4

I have a set of identical hardware, Dell R210s. To replicate their configuration, I use a method to image /dev/sda from a working machine, and then apply that image to a new machine. It has been accomplished many times without a hitch.

As root on the machine to be cloned...

dd if=/dev/zero of=/tmp/0bits bs=20M; rm -f /tmp/0bits

Boot from a DVD (I use knoppix 6.7) and image the disk...

dd if=/dev/sda | gzip - | ssh user@hostname dd of=image.gz

Then boot the destination with the DVD, and overlay the image...

ssh user@hostname dd if=image.gz | gunzip - | dd of=/dev/sda

All of the success to date has been with RHEL 5.x and RHEL 6.x. I attempted the same method for RHEL 7.x for the first time and have received the following error when I boot from /dev/sda afterward...

[       1.659252] i8042: No controller found

I do not receive the error if I reboot using the knoppix DVD, but I do receive the error if I attempt to boot using a RHEL 7 installation DVD or the internal hard drive.

I've seen "solutions" on Ubuntu forums which suggest the you add nomodeset to the boot parameters. This does not affect the error in my case.

dacracot
  • 469
  • 2
  • 12
  • 28
  • The i8042 was the chip on the old PCs that took care of the keyboard interface (PS/2). I think it's a dummy message, please use `debug` and try to catch the true kernel error that prevents booting. – kubanczyk Mar 21 '16 at 16:45
  • I am getting the same error. @kubanczyk will you please explain how to debug? thanks – elaheh r May 18 '16 at 17:49
  • Try to wait longer. My machine takes >3 min to pass through this message. – user3257789 Apr 24 '18 at 10:55

1 Answers1

3

I don't think that this message is fatal. I have a CentOS 7 installation that throws this message (onto the boot screen and the kernel log) but continues, completing the boot successfully. On my system, the keyboard and mouse are USB, not PS/2, and (I imagine) not USB-emulating-PS/2.

Have a look at the kernel log. It may show that booting stops elsewhere. That may require editing the boot parameters: remove "rhgb" and "quiet".

Emulation of PS/2 devices for USB keyboards and mice is technically quite tricky. It is done by the firmware behind the scenes, using SMM. Usually there is a firmware ("BIOS") configuration option to enable or disable it. Perhaps this set differently on your two computers.

Hugh
  • 31
  • 3