Manual Install (SOLVED!) in a way

[maxpolaris]

Hi,
     Hope someone can pass a few pointers this way.

Toshiba Satellite A105 Phoenix Bios claims it can boot usb but won't.
Window XP on Original primary partion
EXT2 FS on 15 GB partition
System Had Narly Nachos via WUBI running from windows partition, it was corrupted and deleted now. Just to say I have a dual boot menu already coming up from c:\boot.ini

Problem is, my Toshiba will not boot from ANY usb attached device and the internal CDROM is dead.
I have internet access and usb devices (mem stick/cd rom/ hard drives) are functional, the system just won't boot from any of them.

My homework so far.....
I have wgrub32.exe, a front end for grub4dos which is grub legacy. "clueless to its operation", that I can run from Windozo
I have a win util that has my linux ext2 fs "mounted" accesible via Windoze so I can download and copy files
back and forth between Windoze and Linux partition.

I have a working PCLinux system on another machine. So I can copy config files to the linux partition on Toshiba

I'm looking for the simplest strategy for a newbie to manually install PCLinuxOS
What should or what do I NEED to do next? I'm having a hard time understanding the info in the GRUB manual down to where I can make sense of it to the point I dare use it.
Got anything in a
1.......Do this
2.......then this
3.......then copy your working config files here /boot/.....
4.......
format for me to follow?


Thanx

This is how I solved this;

1  I won't mention any names but I installed another Linux Distro IN/ON my Windoze XP partition.
2 Then I used the INSTALL to Hard Drive option (it recognized my new partition w/EXT2 file sys.

At this point I have some kind of nested grub menu.
1 A Linux Distro  LINUX Partitons ext?, swap,
2 Windoze
       2a Windoze XP  Partition w/NTFS
       2b A Linux Distro Partition w/NTFS

It all works!
Funny thing is, now the Toshiba can boot from USB.

Take my word for it folks that Toshiba Laptop would NOT boot from any attached USB device before.

The Sys Admin where I work maintains an Enterprise Level MIXED OS Intra-Network and he could not get that Toshiba to boot from any attached USB device.
I don't know what GRUB/ Linux did but now I can reconfig my BIOS Boot Menu the exact same way I've done a million times before over a period of several years, stick a USB STICK to it and have YUM come up with 7 Linux Distros to boot.   So now I should be able to simply install any Distro I want after I make some more room on the HARD DRIVE by trimming Windoze down some more.

"Don't you get it? Its a mystery, wrapped in a riddle, inside an enigma! No one will ever figure it out!"

Thanx to everyone for all the suggestions.

[djohnston]

Toshiba Satellite A105 Phoenix Bios claims it can boot usb but won't.
Window XP on Original primary partion
EXT2 FS on 15 GB partition
System Had Narly Nachos via WUBI running from windows partition, it was corrupted and deleted now. Just to say I have a dual boot menu already coming up from c:\boot.ini

Problem is, my Toshiba will not boot from ANY usb attached device and the internal CDROM is dead.
I have internet access and usb devices (mem stick/cd rom/ hard drives) are functional, the system just won't boot from any of them.

Still a bit sketchy on hard disk partition details. Can't help you with doing anything Windows related. But, you're trying to boot from a USB device. In your BIOS menu, did you set the boot priority to boot from USB first, before all other devices? Have you put your hard drive at the end of the boot list?

[Neal ManBear]

When you boot up your PC, with the usb stick connected, are you pressing the key to bring up the boot menu? (for my compaq, it is the <Esc>; for my dell, it is the <F12>) Or the key to access the bios setup?

[maxpolaris]

Yes I have gone through all the usual necessary steps to boot from usb.
Lets just assume it won't boot from USB.

[djohnston]

Do you have a floppy drive? If so, you can download this boot manager, write the image to a floppy drive, and boot from that. Although it fits on a floppy,  it has a builtin USB driver.

http://download.plop.at/files/bootmngr/plpbt-5.0.12.zip
Unzip the file and write the plpbt.img file to a blank floppy.

[T6]

you can get a new external dvd drive and boot from it

also you can change the optical drive

[johnmart]

Sorry if I misunderstand your intent.
You want to install PCLOS, but your optical drive is broken & you can't boot via usb?
So how to install?
If that is the case have a look here:
http://www.pclinuxos.com/forum/index.php/topic,59127.0.html

[rubentje1991]

Sorry if I misunderstand your intent.
You want to install PCLOS, but your optical drive is broken & you can't boot via usb?
So how to install?
If that is the case have a look here:
http://www.pclinuxos.com/forum/index.php/topic,59127.0.html

+1, I was also going to suggest the "poor man's install" 

[maxpolaris]

you can get a new external dvd drive and boot from it

also you can change the optical drive

I have a brand new external usb cdrom drive as well as several others that can boot other machines but not my Toshiba Laptop.

[Just17]

Yes I have gone through all the usual necessary steps to boot from usb.
Lets just assume it won't boot from USB.

Do you have two different USB boot choices? ......  one for USB memory and another for USB HDD?

go to the last options for boot. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Go too the 5th option and scroll threw the options too boot. Hard disk, network, cd, USB memory, USB hard disk. Once u see hard disk stop. Then move everything above it, below it till USB hard disk option is at top. Then reboot with USB stick in and it will load.

I hope that helps.

[T6]

"I have a brand new external usb cdrom drive as well as several others that can boot other machines but not my Toshiba Laptop"

have you tried to connect it on another usb port?

have you tried connecting the two usb connectors?

in the bios of the laptop, have you verified that system can boot form usb devices, at least sees usb as a option?

[maxpolaris]

you can get a new external dvd drive and boot from it

also you can change the optical drive

Nah, I have all kinds of USB external CD;s, DVD's, Floppy Drives and Hard Drives. The Toshiba will not would not boot from any of them ever.

[maxpolaris]

When you boot up your PC, with the usb stick connected, are you pressing the key to bring up the boot menu? (for my compaq, it is the <Esc>; for my dell, it is the <F12>) Or the key to access the bios setup?

Well the way the BIOS sets up is you set the order of devices to boot from in a ordered list
 Typical is              My Setup
 1 CD/DVD         1 USB
 2 Hard Disk       2 CD/DVD
 3 USB              3
 4 Network         4
                     F10 Save and Exit

From my experience , from then on the machine should always try to boot from USB first and then work its way down the list.

[maxpolaris]

Toshiba Satellite A105 Phoenix Bios claims it can boot usb but won't.
Window XP on Original primary partion
EXT2 FS on 15 GB partition
System Had Narly Nachos via WUBI running from windows partition, it was corrupted and deleted now. Just to say I have a dual boot menu already coming up from c:\boot.ini

Problem is, my Toshiba will not boot from ANY usb attached device and the internal CDROM is dead.
I have internet access and usb devices (mem stick/cd rom/ hard drives) are functional, the system just won't boot from any of them.

Still a bit sketchy on hard disk partition details. Can't help you with doing anything Windows related. But, you're trying to boot from a USB device. In your BIOS menu, did you set the boot priority to boot from USB first, before all other devices? Have you put your hard drive at the end of the boot list?

YUP sure did

[T6]

this is not a old unit, it should be capable to boot form a external usb optical drive

maybe a bios update?  toshiba still has a page for this a105 with drivers to download