cannot boot from USB

[user233]

Hello, I'm sorry to post a new time on this topic but I havn't found solution after few hours trying, my brain start to stuck and maybe I missed an important point someone could point it to me...
Here is my problem :
- After read about TinyCore and tryed it on VM, I would like to try it in 'real'.
- I try to boot it fro USB on my Acer laptop (aspire 1, pentium n5030)
- I can't see the USB in the boot menu. (Some other OS can boot with that key.)

- Do you have any idea what could go wrong ?
- maybe it's possible to create another OS bootable with unetbootin and modify it to boot TC ?
- maybe one already did the post unetbootin install modifications (cde->tce and other) and can tell me more about it ?

here are my trys for now :
- by unetbootin, rufus...
said ok but usb not appear in boot menu
(try to modify some cde->tce ... but still not recognised)
- by core2usb.exe :
said install ok
usb not appear in boot menu
- by balena etcher :
broke my key, windows not recognise it, have to format, only can choose 128mb size even its an 4G sized key
- by dd :
aborted because I'm on windows, my dd program refuse to go on other drives ...

I'll make a pause because my brain is burning now and wait for your answers.
Thank you in advance,
V

[Rich]

Hi user233
Welcome to the forum.

... - I can't see the USB in the boot menu. (Some other OS can boot with that key.) ...

You are referring to the Acer boot menu, not the blue Tinycore boot menu, Right?

... broke my key, windows not recognise it, have to format, only can choose 128mb size even its an 4G sized key ...

Maybe your key was marginal all along and has now deteriorated even further. It's also possible
the key is a gray market counterfeit that found its way into the supply chain.

Which version of Tinycore are you trying to install?  TC12 or TC13?  x86 or x86_64?

[user233]

Hi Rich,
Thank-you for your reply.
Yes I was speaking about the computer boot menu wich allow me to select 'USB' over the hard drive (wich have windows installed).
I just checked another key but nothing change : it can boot puppy linux but not TC.
I tried different version but most of the time I try CorePlus-current.iso (so the 13 I guess), none of the differents releases works.
I suspect some compatibility problem betwin boot manager and bios, it's probably possible to use another boot manager but I know nothing about thoses, It will take me days to understand a bit (if I don't give up) if somebody already tried ...
As I read different posts (some really old) could you tell me the method which works for you (rufus, core2usb, dd...) ?
Still open to all suggestions
Thx

[user233]

New infos:
After try more and more ISOs I finally get a bit better :
- with TinyCorePure64-11.1.iso I can have a black screen with nothing appening after selected my key on startup (I can see the key that's makes me happy !)
- with dCore-bionic64.iso I get a prompt from the boot loader (grub) but I don't know how to use it.
If somebody understand the trings better than me please don't hesitate to explain ...

[core-user]

I normally use dd to image a pendrive, & that usually works every time.

Maybe you got a bad download of the .iso image(?).

Install from the live session, check which boot options you require, & add them when you are given the option, then continue the installation to disk.

Read the installation instructions carefully, & all should work out.

P.S. You can download a copy of Into the Core, for more info about using TC.
http://www.tinycorelinux.net/corebook.pdf

[user233]

Thanks for the reply code-user,
I ll try to make dd works on the others drives to try again this solution tomorrow.
I think my iso are good because of the number of them I tested (10+) all from the official website.
I can't install from live session because having a live session is what I'm trying to achive.
I read lots of forum pages, some saying core2usb is the path to follow, other saying that it's outdated...
I'm willing to try every solution but for now nothing works, as I said the better I got is a black screen or a grub prompt.
I still suspect hardware specific incompatibility and if someone knows bootloaders theory more than me (not difficult, I'm close to the ground) I ll happily accept information for workaround like installing grub and make it start specific iso.
That said have a nice day, I go to bed XD (europe based)

[gadget42]

just downloaded, checksummed, and wrote TinyCorePure64-13.1.iso to an 8GB thumbdrive using dd

Code: [Select]

sudo dd if=TinyCorePure64-13.1.iso of=/dev/sdb bs=1M status=progress ; sync
30+0 records in
30+0 records out
31457280 bytes (31 MB, 30 MiB) copied, 2.002 s, 15.7 MB/s

grabbed a spare laptop for testing(Gateway P7805FX)
https://www.cnet.com/reviews/gateway-p-7805u-fx-edition-review/
which has P8400 processor
https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core2+Duo+P8400+%40+2.26GHz&id=973
for reference N5030 processor
https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Pentium+Silver+N5030+%40+1.10GHz&id=3670
(is that processor really only a 6 watt TDP?)

booted the P7805FX with both a thumbdrive and a CD and in both cases there was a blank screen for several minutes before anything appeared on the screen(can't explain why some machines come right up and others will take several minutes to do their thing...who knows?)

Also the "plus" versions load much more than the core/tinycore versions(mostly for those needing wireless networking, etc)

As Always Your Mileage May Vary

sharing is caring

[user233]

Hello, gadget42, thanks for your reply.
Still searching the reasons and I think I ll have to look closely on the boot but lastly I found I can boot some versions (TC11x64 and dcoreStretch64).
Then I'm now spending more time playing with dcore than digging into my first problem (but happily ).
To your question "is that processor really only a 6 watt TDP" I think they are not lying but havn't really checked it. By the way it's kind of successor of the good old atoms quad core chip with low heat (no need for a fan) that I really like.
Thanks you all for the answers, see you next time !

[Rich]

Hi user233
Boot up one of the Linux versions that does work on your laptop.
Enter the following commands:

Code: [Select]

cat /proc/cpuinfo > cpuinfo.txt
lsmod | head -n 1 > lsmod.txt
lsmod | tail -n +2 | sort >> lsmod.txt
dmesg > dmesg.txt
Attach the  cpuinfo.txt , lsmod.txt , and  dmesg.txt  files to your next post.

[user233]

Hi Rich,
Here are the info, tell me what you found interesting !

[NewUser]

user233, to recover the full 4G of your 'broken' thumb drive, you'll need either Disk Management, or if you have Win10 or 11, Diskpart. Be careful with both tools. If you select the incorrect disk/partition, you can brick your Windows.

[Rich]

Hi user233

... Which version of Tinycore are you trying to install?  TC12 or TC13?  x86 or x86_64?

... I tried different version but most of the time I try CorePlus-current.iso (so the 13 I guess), none of the differents releases works. ...

You didn't mention which architecture. You probably should use x86_64:
http://tinycorelinux.net/13.x/x86_64/release/

[user233]

Hello,
NewUser thanks for the advice, I used diskpart and it worked like a charm.
Rich it seems your right, I can run TC13x86_64 sorry for all the problems, I don't kno why searched so long.
I thought a 64 arch could run a 32 OS, am I wrong ?

[Rich]

Hi user233

... I thought a 64 arch could run a 32 OS, am I wrong ?

No, you're not wrong. The problem is UEFI, not you.
The 64 bit ISO is set up for UEFI booting, the 32 bit ISO is not.

This is a write up by Juanito on creating a UEFI bootable USB stick:
http://forum.tinycorelinux.net/index.php/topic,19364.msg119228.html#msg119228

This is another one by coreplayer2:
https://forum.tinycorelinux.net/index.php/topic,22848.msg143377.html#msg143377

If you create a 64 bit bootable thumb drive, you might be able to boot a 32 bit
kernel.

I have an Asus netbook that's a real basket case. 64 bit CPU with 2 Gbyte RAM, not expandable.
The UEFI loader has to be 32 bit but it needs a 64 bit kernel to boot.

Most UEFI machines use a 64 bit loader.

[gadget42]

...
booted the P7805FX with both a thumbdrive and a CD and in both cases there was a blank screen for several minutes before anything appeared on the screen(can't explain why some machines come right up and others will take several minutes to do their thing...who knows?)
...

follow-up on the 3 minute boot-pause on the P7805FX: using boot-code "acpi=off" causes both the CD and the thumbdrive to boot with no pauses but without acpi the user must manually shut the machine down with the power button.