[Bug 1066387] Re: D-I install menu, select "Boot from first hard disk" and it goes back to Language selection

[Scott Kitterman]

Also seen in Raring Alpha 1.  Today's discussion on #ubuntu-release:

<infinity>   menu label ^Boot from first hard disk
<infinity>   localboot 0x80
<slangasek> "Boot from first hard disk" is done via BIOS calls; if the "first hard disk" it's booting isn't the one you want, that's a BIOS issue
[queuebot] Builds: Edubuntu DVD i386 [Raring Alpha 1] (20121203.1) has been added
<infinity> And yeah, that's just booting 0x80, so if your BIOS is remapping your stick, that's correct.
<infinity> And it's arguably correct for your BIOS to remap your stick when you select it as the boot device.
<ScottK> Hmmm.
<infinity> (Though this behavious varies wildly between machines)
<slangasek> solution: upgrade your firmware to UEFI
<infinity> behaviour, too.
<slangasek> then you can't run syslinux at all, problem solved
<infinity> Hahaha.
<ScottK> So does this option actually do any good?
<infinity> "solved".
<infinity> ScottK: It made a lot more sense on CDs, which were never remapped.
<ScottK> Right.
<infinity> ScottK: And it makes sense for people who burn our images to DVDs (same argument).
<slangasek> right, if the issue is that you're booted *from* the USB stick, it should probably detect that and translate it to 0x81 instead
<infinity> That's probably still more common than USB sticks, except for serial reinstallers.
<ScottK> slangasek: That sounds sensible.
<infinity> slangasek: That's a fair chunk of extra magic to ask of syslinux.
<slangasek> IIRC the same el-torito boot image is used for both CD and hybrid USB booting, so this magic would have to be in syslinux
<slangasek> infinity: it doesn't hurt to ask
<ScottK> Also it doesn't have to detect it's a USB, it would have to detect that the device it's about to try to boot from is the same one it's already booted from.
<infinity> But yeah, one could do an "if current device = 0x80, shift all menu lookups by 1" or something.  I guess.
<ScottK> From the discussion, it seems like that would do it.
<infinity> I'm not sure if it can even reliably know this.
<infinity> Not without more code than it has room to run.
<infinity> Still, yeah, a mildly annoying buglet.
<ScottK> I'll file it and then it will be what it will be.
<ScottK> Turns out there is an existing bug.

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1066387

Title:
  D-I install menu, select "Boot from first hard disk" and it goes back
  to Language selection

Status in “syslinux” package in Ubuntu:
  Triaged

Bug description:
  Server install, 201013. Machine has Quantal B2 installed.

  Boot from installer media (in my case, a USB stick);
  select Language (English, in my case)
  on the installer menu, select "Boot from first hard disk"

  You are thrown back into "Select Language", then the installer menu
  again.

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