Running Linux, 5th Edition - Matthias Kalle Dalheimer [47]
If you are using a CD-ROM, be sure to check the disk for scratches, dust, or other problems that might cause media errors.
The cause of the problem may also be that the medium is in the incorrect format. For example, many Linux distributions require floppies to be formatted in high-density Windows format. (The boot floppy is the exception; it is not in Windows format in most cases.) If all else fails, either obtain a new set of floppies, or re-create the floppies (using new ones) if you downloaded the software yourself.
System reports errors such as "tar: read error" or "gzip: not in gzip format"
This problem is usually caused by corrupt files on the installation medium itself. In other words, your floppy may be error-free, but the data on the floppy is in some way corrupted. For example, if you downloaded the Linux software using text mode, rather than binary mode, your files will be corrupt and unreadable by the installation software. When using FTP, just issue the binary command to set that mode before you request a file transfer.
System reports errors such as "device full" while installing
This is a clear-cut sign that you have run out of space when installing the software. If the disk fills up, not all distributions can clearly recover, so aborting the installation won't give you a working system.
The solution is usually to re-create your filesystems with the mke2fs command, which will delete the partially installed software. You can then attempt to reinstall the software, this time selecting a smaller amount of software to install. If you can't do without that software, you may need to start completely from scratch and rethink your partition and filesystem sizes.
System reports errors such as "read_intr: 0x10" while accessing the hard drive
This is usually an indication of bad blocks on your drive. However, if you receive these errors while using mkswap or mke2fs, the system may be having trouble accessing your drive. This can either be a hardware problem (see "Hardware Problems" earlier in this chapter), or it might be a case of poorly specified geometry. If you used the option:
hd=cylinders,heads,sectors
at boot time to force detection of your drive geometry and incorrectly specified the geometry, you could receive this error. This can also happen if your drive geometry is incorrectly specified in the system CMOS.
System reports errors such as "file not found " or "permission denied "
This problem can occur if the necessary files are not present on the installation medium or if there is a permissions problem with the installation software. For example, some distributions of Linux have been known to have bugs in the installation software itself; these are usually fixed rapidly and are quite infrequent. If you suspect that the distribution software contains bugs, and you're sure that you have done nothing wrong, contact the maintainer of the distribution to report the bug.
If you have other strange errors when installing Linux (especially if you downloaded the software yourself), be sure you actually obtained all the necessary files when downloading.
For example, some people use the FTP command:
mget *.*
when downloading the Linux software via FTP. This will download only those files that contain a "." in their filenames; files without the "." will not be downloaded. The correct command to use in this case is:
mget *
The best advice is to retrace your steps when something goes wrong. You may think that you have done everything correctly, when in fact you forgot a small but important step somewhere along the way. In many cases, just attempting to redownload or reinstall the Linux software can solve the problem. Don't beat your head against the wall any longer than you have to!
Also, if Linux unexpectedly hangs during installation, there may be a hardware problem of some kind.