Slacko 5.7 - March 2014

[killapup]

I'm having some troubles on the shutdown sequence. It hangs or sometime it would not turn at all. I'm having some issues on Huawei dongle. It automatically shutdown and I eventually lost all the things that I'm doing on my computer cause it resets the computer. I think Slacko version 5.6 is still better but I like the interface of puppy 5.71 as it looks so neat this time.

G'day all,

I am trying the new 5.7 and have found the same issue as metastasis69, won't finish the shutdown/reboot sequence?? I have tried both the PAE and non-PAE ISOs and they both do the same thing??

I have found another issue that is different to all the previous Slacko releases too. I've been a Slacko fan since 5.3 and this is the first one that does not recognise my laptop's wifi. I discovered that it will recognise my Belkin dongle (only one of the CDs I have burned does that) but I don't want to have to plug a dongle in to use the wifi on my favourite/most used linux when, in the past, it has never been an issue. Is it just a matter of installing the drivers I need for my wifi??

So what has changed in this version? And can I ask, Why??

On the whole, 5.7 is very much the same as previous versions but looks a little different and I guess there are improvements, I haven't played much yet as I want to find a solution to the wifi and shutdown issues first.

I see bigpup's response to the shutdown issue and I am currently downloading a fresh iso to try but how do I know if I'm getting a good download or a bad one??? Have the ISO files been refreshed/renewed since the initial posting?? I've never had this problem (bad download) before, I do all my downloading and burning of CDs on my iMac. I think the burner in my laptop is kaput, not sure, may just need a clean, although it still reads fine.

Anyway, I hope we can find a solution to these issues soon, thanks for all the work you guys have put into this linux.

Ray

[killapup]

Whilst that's a PAE version, I suspect if you open a terminal and issue a command of

cat /proc/cpuinfo | grep pae

you'll likely see a return (i.e. have a cpu pae flag and hence have a pae supporting cpu)

Thanks, rufwoof, it indeed returns a flag to indicate pae compatibility, will try your suggestion soon.

Ray

rufwoof, I tried the PAE version and it runs ok but has the same issues as the non-pae?? md5sum checks are good for both versions??

[SFR]

I am trying the new 5.7 and have found the same issue as metastasis69, won't finish the shutdown/reboot sequence??

Is Slacko installed to flash drive, frugally?
If so, any kernel oopses/panic at shutdown time (in such case - did you try newer snapmergepuppy yet?) or the shutdown sequence _just_ stops?

I've been a Slacko fan since 5.3 and this is the first one that does not recognise my laptop's wifi.

What dmesg says about it?

Greetings!

[gcmartin]

... At McDonald's, the ...

Yeah, I have seen similar issues as is described and have had to resort to same as you described. But, what you describe is a set of steps that should be undertaken should there be issues in WiFi. Namely, start here, then try this, then try that. In most cases, I have found this to work for me. I have had only one exception to that with PUP distros.

Over the history of PUPs, WiFi, video, and sound seems to be a recurring common set of issues that are consistent when moving from one distro release to another. As you have discovered, we have to work thru them as we recognize patterns with certain releases.

I wonder if we are approaching a need thruout the community, that when certain problems are discovered, there is a system tool or utility which can be a collector of information which when presented to the community can easily assist identity and resolution. Some of these problems are uniques to particular vendors, while others sometimes are broader-based. If so, for the common problems, we would need a tool for Wifi, another for Video, another for sound where the information would be consistent and easily assist in guidance. And, also, maybe a Menu item to house the "Problem Collection" tools.

Hummm...

[killapup]

I am trying the new 5.7 and have found the same issue as metastasis69, won't finish the shutdown/reboot sequence??

Is Slacko installed to flash drive, frugally?
If so, any kernel oopses/panic at shutdown time (in such case - did you try newer snapmergepuppy yet?) or the shutdown sequence _just_ stops?

I've been a Slacko fan since 5.3 and this is the first one that does not recognise my laptop's wifi.

What dmesg says about it?

Greetings!

G'day SFR, and thanks for your interest in my issues.

Firstly, I have only booted from the CD so far as that is how I like to assess any distro that I am interested in playing with. As I have said, this is the first Slacko that has not played ball. Having said that, I can get wifi on my Belkin dongle using the PAE version. See the attached jpeg re: output of dmesg, that is the last bit as it relates to the wifi. The No PAE version does not detect any wifi hardware at all.

Secondly, both PAE and No PAE ISOs have the same inability to shutdown/reboot. I have attached a jpeg showing the shutdown screen message (middle image below).

I've also included a second one that shows what happens when I use the CTRL/ALT/Delete key combo, which on my computer (and I guess most PCs) is supposed to do a hard restart (top image).

I hope this helps with diagnosing the issues. Thanks again for any help,

Ray

[SFR]

Hey Killapup

Can't see any obvious errors, so probably the issue is located on some higher level.
I'd like to help more, unfortunately networking related stuff is not my strong suit,
but from what I've seen you're not the only one and other users also have problems with non-working wifi (whilst in 5.6 all was fine),
so hopefully someone more knowledgeable will hop in and help to track down the cause.

As for the shutdown issue - frankly, I doubt it would change anything, but anyway it's worth to replace the original /etc/rc.d/rc.shutdown
with one taken from Slacko-5.6 and see what will happen.
At least one possible culprit would be eliminated...

Greetings!

[killapup]

Thanks SFR,

I'll probably give that a go and see what comes of it, at least I can get wifi, even if I have to have a dongle sticking out the side. Cheers,

Ray

[killapup]

Hey SFR,

I installed Slacko to try the suggestion you made but I can't get it to boot up Frugal install told me it couldn't find the .sfs and a full install just would not start the boot process.

I use grub4dos and I know that these issues are related to the parameters but I use the menu entries that come up at the end of the installation process and they still don't work

The upshot is that I still haven't been able to try the rc.shutdown replacement idea. I'll keep trying though

Ray

[eowens2]

I am trying to do something and not having much luck, and I need some advice from more experienced folks.

My computer is an ASUS UX32A Zenbook, and I have a spare partition on the HD, on which I would like to do a full install of Slacko5.7.0. The partition is formatted as ext3.

The disk is set up with GPT/EFI, and has 64-bit Windows 7 and 64-bit Ubuntu 12.04 installed and booting properly ( I installed the Ubuntu using Ubuntu's 64-bit installer disk.); at boot I choose the OS to be booted by hitting "Esc", entering the Aptio bios, version 2.15.1226, and make the selection there.

I opened a puppy_slacko_5.7.0.sfs, selected all, and copied all of the folders to the desired partition (no slackosave.3fs copied).

Then I went to sda1, the FAT32 partition where the boot info resides. I note an "EFI" folder, which when opened has a "Boot", a "Ubuntu" and "Microsoft" folder. "Boot" has a bootx64.efi in it, "Ubuntu" has a grub64.efi in it, and the Microsoft folder contains a bunch of stuff including a bootmgr.efi.

So the obvious problem is how to boot Puppy Slacko OS on sda7.

I created a "Slacko" directory in sda1. I remembered that Quirky Tahr boots from a VFAT partition with the root residing elsewhere, so I used that as a model. I used the syslinux-4.0.5 from Quirky Tahr, slacko's kernel, and boot.msg etc from slacko5.7.0. I made changes in syslinux.cfg appropriate for slacko and the root location.

I made changes in the bios boot options to choose the new partition.

But when I select the "Slacko" option on bios selection the process goes and boots Ubuntu!

Is it possible to mix 32- and 64-bit operating systems on a GPT/EFI disk?

Can someone point me in the right direction?

[SFR]

Hey SFR,

I installed Slacko to try the suggestion you made but I can't get it to boot up Frugal install told me it couldn't find the .sfs and a full install just would not start the boot process.

I use grub4dos and I know that these issues are related to the parameters but I use the menu entries that come up at the end of the installation process and they still don't work

The upshot is that I still haven't been able to try the rc.shutdown replacement idea. I'll keep trying though

Ray

Sorry to hear that another issue came up...
Perhaps you could try to install it on USB flash - in this case syslinux would be in use instead of grub4dos.

But actually, in order to test the older rc.shutdown you don't need to install Slacko anywhere, just boot it from CD, replace the file and shut down the system.

Greetings!

[killapup]

Sorry to hear that another issue came up...
Perhaps you could try to install it on USB flash - in this case syslinux would be in use instead of grub4dos.

But actually, in order to test the older rc.shutdown you don't need to install Slacko anywhere, just boot it from CD, replace the file and shut down the system.

Greetings!

Thanks again, SFR, I tried your suggestion booting from the CD and replacing the rc.shutdown file, no go, made no difference.

Yes, I could install to USB but I'm not really interested in going back to that, I've got 2 empty partitions to fill so...

Anyway, thanks for your help, I'll either keep on battling or I'll wait for 5.8, cheers,

Ray

[killapup]

Now here's a tricky one:

I decided to do a manual frugal install of Slacko 5.7, I've never installed a Puppy that way before, thought I'd give it a try.

So, I copied the 3 files to the partition and ran grub4dos to get the info I need for my menu.lst. As expected, it wouldn't boot with the info supplied, I adjusted the entry and it started the boot process, all good so far.

It got to the second screen of text (before the loading actually starts), see image below, and it immediately restarted the laptop.

Could there be something wrong with one of the 3 files I installed?? Or is there still a parameter needed?? I've got the usual ones <psubdir=slacko5.7.0frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck>, what else can I try?

Thanks for any help,
Ray

[bigpup]

Does your Grub4dos menu.lst entry look like this:
The kernel line and initrd line?

Code: Select all

title Puppy slacko 5.7.0 (sda3/slacko5.7.0frugal)
  uuid 3f9de134-a95d-4a9d-9d42-cd5e98895ac6
  kernel /slacko5.7.0frugal/vmlinuz  pmedia=atahd psubdir=slacko5.7.0frugal pfix=fsck
  initrd /slacko5.7.0frugal/initrd.gz

This example is with Slacko installed to directory slacko5.7.0frugal. so, that part might be different for you.

So, I copied the 3 files to the partition and ran grub4dos to get the info I need for my menu.lst. As expected, it wouldn't boot with the info supplied, I adjusted the entry and it started the boot process, all good so far.

I run Grub4dos Bootloader config all the time, to update the menu.lst, for a new install. I just use the default settings.
It always makes a working menu entry.

What did you have to change?

[killapup]

Bigpup wrote,

Does your Grub4dos menu.lst entry look like this:
The kernel line and initrd line?
Code:
title Puppy slacko 5.7.0 (sda3/slacko5.7.0frugal)
uuid 3f9de134-a95d-4a9d-9d42-cd5e98895ac6
kernel /slacko5.7.0frugal/vmlinuz pmedia=atahd psubdir=slacko5.7.0frugal pfix=fsck
initrd /slacko5.7.0frugal/initrd.gz


This example is with Slacko installed to directory slacko5.7.0frugal. so, that part might be different for you.

Quote:
So, I copied the 3 files to the partition and ran grub4dos to get the info I need for my menu.lst. As expected, it wouldn't boot with the info supplied, I adjusted the entry and it started the boot process, all good so far.

I run Grub4dos Bootloader config all the time, to update the menu.lst, for a new install. I just use the default settings.
It always makes a working menu entry.

What did you have to change?

Bigpup,

Yes, my entry looks like that, I think the parameters might be in a different order but similar to yours, I had to ditch the uuid line, it would not start at all with it in there. I took it out and put <root (hd0,15)> in its place.

And that is when this new problem started, could it be the initrd file that is corrupt?? I assume that is the first file that it looks at in the boot process??

Thanks bigpup, you're are always there to help us rookies/noobies, greatly appreciated,

Ray

[bigpup]

Yes, my entry looks like that, I think the parameters might be in a different order but similar to yours, I had to ditch the uuid line, it would not start at all with it in there. I took it out and put <root (hd0,15)> in its place.

You basically changed the entry to a Grub entry.
That is OK. Grub4dos will work with Grub entries Too.

I am wondering if the Grub4dos in Slacko 5.7 has something wrong with it.
I had a problem using it,had to use a different version of Puppy, and run the Grub4dos in it.

Could you boot with a different Puppy version on say a live CD.
Run Grub4dos Bootloader config in it.
Default settings should be fine.
Try using the menu it produces.

[killapup]

I am wondering if the Grub4dos in Slacko 5.7 has something wrong with it.
I had a problem using it,had to use a different version of Puppy, and run the Grub4dos in it.

Could you boot with a different Puppy version on say a live CD.
Run Grub4dos Bootloader config in it.
Default settings should be fine.
Try using the menu it produces.

Thanks bigpup, I am using Precise 5.7.1 at the moment and I'm run grub4dos for there when needed. But the generated entry, which contains the uuid, won't even get to the first screen let alone the actual boot process.

This is my menu.lst:

------------------------------------

# Frugal installed Puppy

title Precise Puppy 5.7 (sda6/precise5.7frugal)
root (hd0,5)
kernel /precise5.7frugal/vmlinuz pmedia=atahd psubdir=precise5.7frugal
initrd /precise5.7frugal/initrd.gz

title Carolite 1.2 (sda7/carolite1.2frugal)
root (hd0,6)
kernel /carolite1.2frugal/vmlinuz
initrd /carolite1.2frugal/initrd.gz

title Saluki Pup 023 (sda9/luki023frugal)
root (hd0,8)
kernel /luki023frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=luki023frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /luki023frugal/initrd.gz

title Macpup 550 (sda11/macpup550frugal)
root (hd0,10)
kernel /macpup550frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=macpup550frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /macpup550frugal/initrd.gz

title FluxPup 1.5.1 (sda15/fluxpup1.5.1frugal)
find --set-root --ignore-floppies /fluxpup1.5.1frugal/initrd.gz
kernel /fluxpup1.5.1frugal/vmlinuz pmedia=atahd psubdir=fluxpup1.5.1frugal
initrd /fluxpup1.5.1frugal/initrd.gz

title Puppy slacko 5.7.0 (sda16/slacko5.7.0frugal)
root (hd0,15)
kernel /slacko5.7.0frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=slacko5.7.0frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /slacko5.7.0frugal/initrd.gz

title Vector Linux (sda8/boot)
root (hd0,7)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/sda8 ro psubdir=boot pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /boot/initrd

-------------------------------------

or at least the first part of it as it relates to my puppy installs, and the Vector Linux shows up as 2 Fatdog64 entries when I run grub4dos; I just reword the title and delete the second entry.

As you can see, some puppies have different entry types, but they all work, except now for Slacko. I will try your suggestion to run with the generated menu.lst and see what happens, I'll let you know,

thanks again,
Ray

[killapup]

Bigpup,

this is the menu.lst as generated by grub4dos in Precise 5.7.1;

----------------------------------------

# Frugal installed Puppy

title Puppy precise 5.7 (sda6/precise5.7frugal)
uuid 27a199ed-0a60-4100-8eb9-90f3c4912bf5
kernel /precise5.7frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=precise5.7frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /precise5.7frugal/initrd.gz

title Puppy carolite 1.2 (sda7/carolite1.2frugal)
uuid 065b5d92-f388-4d8c-a7f8-ed7ed251f8b4
kernel /carolite1.2frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=carolite1.2frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /carolite1.2frugal/initrd.gz

title Puppy luki 023 (sda9/luki023frugal)
uuid 5d08fc1f-b742-43bb-8613-ea118049514e
kernel /luki023frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=luki023frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /luki023frugal/initrd.gz

title Macpup 550 (sda11/macpup550frugal)
uuid 0ce26d19-1dbb-4944-9fd7-0cea666d560b
kernel /macpup550frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=macpup550frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /macpup550frugal/initrd.gz

title Puppy fluxpup 1.5.1 (sda15/fluxpup1.5.1frugal)
uuid 7c79c0cf-78d3-4c9a-87dc-d7b565f4788d
kernel /fluxpup1.5.1frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=fluxpup1.5.1frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /fluxpup1.5.1frugal/initrd.gz

title Puppy slacko 5.7.0 (sda16/slacko5.7.0frugal)
uuid f7811c8e-9658-4e9d-9857-16ec39a2bfb9
kernel /slacko5.7.0frugal/vmlinuz psubdir=slacko5.7.0frugal pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /slacko5.7.0frugal/initrd.gz

title Fatdog64 (sda8/boot)
uuid 0e0c5b5d-17ab-4c3e-b5d7-c553a51130e8
kernel /boot/vmlinuz psubdir=boot pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /boot/initrd

title Fatdog64 (sda8/boot)
uuid 0e0c5b5d-17ab-4c3e-b5d7-c553a51130e8
kernel /boot/vmlinuz psubdir=boot pmedia=atahd pfix=fsck
initrd /boot/initrd

--------------------------------------

Again, it is the first part as relating to the puppy installs. Precise puppy boots ok, as does Carolite but Slacko and Vector don't, as I said, that is the 2 Fatdog entries. Why would it generate 2 entries for the one install, and it has always called it Fatdog??

Vector Linux came up with a kernel panic and Slacko got to the stage where it is supposed to find the .sfs but says that it can't find puppy_slacko_5.7.0frugal.

I didn't try all of my installs but it shows that some work and some don't when using the list as generated. I hope you (or someone else) can make sense of this, 'cause I can't, I'm not savvy enough yet.

Cheers, Ray

[bigpup]

killapup,

Have you ever done a file system check of each of those partitions?

Run the program Gparted and have it do a check of the hard drive.

To use Gparted:
Boot with the Puppy live CD
At the Puppy boot screen hit F2 key.
Use the boot option puppy pfix=ram.
This keeps the hard drive from being mounted.
Hard drive can not be mounted for Gparted to work.

In Gparted
right click on a partition
Select check
If it finds anything wrong it will correct.

If you have more than one partition on hard drive
run a check on all of them.

[killapup]

killapup,

Have you ever done a file system check of each of those partitions?

Run the program Gparted and have it do a check of the hard drive.

To use Gparted:
Boot with the Puppy live CD
At the Puppy boot screen hit F2 key.
Use the boot option puppy pfix=ram.
This keeps the hard drive from being mounted.
Hard drive can not be mounted for Gparted to work.

In Gparted
right click on a partition
Select check
If it finds anything wrong it will correct.

If you have more than one partition on hard drive
run a check on all of them.

Thanks bigpup, yes I am familiar (a bit) with gparted but I hadn't thought to run a check on the partition. Having done that now, it seems to be ok, although, gparted doesn't actually seem to say 'clean' anywhere. It didn't report any problems so I guess that means it is ok??

When I first read your response, I was in another distro and parted showed that the partition was clean. It showed that all my partitions were clean except one, my Knoppix install is on a reiserfs partition and I think that confuses them, gparted wouldn't even let me check that one!!

Anyway, thanks for the suggestion, keep up the good work,
Ray

[bigpup]

killapup,

If Gparted did a check of the partition Slacko 5.7 is on and found no problems.
You have eliminated one possible cause.

Slacko got to the stage where it is supposed to find the .sfs but says that it can't find puppy_slacko_5.7.0frugal.

In troubleshooting you always have to go from a known good condition and work into what is unknown.

Dealing with only the partition Slacko 5.7 is on:

The Gparted check determined nothing is wrong with the file system.

A reformat would eliminate the possibility of old deleted files on partition causing problems.
(when you delete a file the code is not deleted, just the info needed to find it. It is not really gone until it gets written over)
I have seen this cause issues. The writing process sees some of this old code and thinks the code it is writing is already there.
(This is computers, anything can happen).
A reformat usually eliminates this possible problem.

Do a new install of Slacko 5.7 to the partition.
(that eliminates a possible bad install)

Remove any Slacko 5.7 related files from any other partition on computer. Things like files used for a live Slacko CD. (This is probably overkill, but again, trying to eliminate the unknown)

There is always the chance you got a bad download of Slacko 5.7

After that.
Open a window.
Toss computer out.