PC doesn't boot into OS unless external harddrive is connected

Vivian · 14 August 2021 14:23

A few days ago I tried to format my external harddrive without having a clue how to do that correctly in Manjaro. If I remember correctly, I deleted the partition that existed on the external harddrive and created a new one. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to copy any files over to the external harddrive after that, so I tried a few other things, I think I changed the mounting path, whatever that is. (I did all of this in GParted).

I must have done some harm to my Manjaro installation residing on my internal harddrive in the process, because while there were no errors or any alarming signs immediately after I had done my “experiments” with the external harddrive, when I tried to boot the computer again with the external harddrive disconnected, it failed with an error message I couldn’t get past.
I later discovered, to my surprise, that the PC boots just fine if I plug in the external harddrive before I press the on button.

Following is the output of inxi:

[vivian@Viviversum ~]$ inxi --admin --verbosity=7 --filter --no-host --width
System:
  Kernel: 5.10.56-1-MANJARO x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 11.1.0 
  parameters: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-5.10-x86_64 
  root=UUID=65eb49fc-1c79-44a8-949d-30220ce34760 rw quiet apparmor=1 
  security=apparmor udev.log_priority=3 
  Desktop: KDE Plasma 5.22.4 tk: Qt 5.15.2 wm: kwin_x11 vt: 1 dm: SDDM 
  Distro: Manjaro Linux base: Arch Linux 
Machine:
  Type: Desktop System: Hewlett-Packard 
  product: HP Compaq dc7700p Convertible Minitower v: N/A serial: <filter> 
  Chassis: type: 6 serial: <filter> 
  Mobo: Hewlett-Packard model: 0A58h serial: <filter> BIOS: Hewlett-Packard 
  v: 786E1 v02.10 date: 04/13/2007 
Battery:
  Device-1: hidpp_battery_0 model: Logitech Performance MX serial: <filter> 
  charge: 70% (should be ignored) rechargeable: yes status: Discharging 
Memory:
  RAM: total: 7.65 GiB used: 2.44 GiB (31.9%) 
  RAM Report: permissions: Unable to run dmidecode. Root privileges required. 
CPU:
  Info: Dual Core model: Intel Core2 6400 bits: 64 type: MCP arch: Core Merom 
  family: 6 model-id: F (15) stepping: 2 microcode: 5D cache: L2: 2 MiB 
  bogomips: 8509 
  Speed: 1595 MHz min/max: 1596/2133 MHz Core speeds (MHz): 1: 1595 2: 1595 
  Flags: acpi aperfmperf apic arch_perfmon bts clflush cmov constant_tsc cpuid 
  cx16 cx8 de ds_cpl dtes64 dtherm dts est fpu fxsr ht lahf_lm lm mca mce mmx 
  monitor msr mtrr nopl nx pae pat pbe pdcm pebs pge pni pse pse36 pti 
  rep_good sep sse sse2 ssse3 syscall tm tm2 tsc vme xtpr 
  Vulnerabilities: Type: itlb_multihit status: KVM: VMX unsupported 
  Type: l1tf mitigation: PTE Inversion 
  Type: mds 
  status: Vulnerable: Clear CPU buffers attempted, no microcode; SMT disabled 
  Type: meltdown mitigation: PTI 
  Type: spec_store_bypass status: Vulnerable 
  Type: spectre_v1 
  mitigation: usercopy/swapgs barriers and __user pointer sanitization 
  Type: spectre_v2 
  mitigation: Full generic retpoline, STIBP: disabled, RSB filling 
  Type: srbds status: Not affected 
  Type: tsx_async_abort status: Not affected 
Graphics:
  Device-1: NVIDIA GK208B [GeForce GT 710] vendor: Micro-Star MSI 
  driver: nvidia v: 470.57.02 alternate: nouveau,nvidia_drm bus-ID: 01:00.0 
  chip-ID: 10de:128b class-ID: 0300 
  Display: x11 server: X.Org 1.20.13 compositor: kwin_x11 driver: 
  loaded: nvidia display-ID: :0 screens: 1 
  Screen-1: 0 s-res: 1280x1024 s-dpi: 85 s-size: 382x302mm (15.0x11.9") 
  s-diag: 487mm (19.2") 
  Monitor-1: DVI-D-0 res: 1280x1024 dpi: 86 size: 380x300mm (15.0x11.8") 
  diag: 484mm (19.1") 
  OpenGL: renderer: NVIDIA GeForce GT 710/PCIe/SSE2 v: 4.6.0 NVIDIA 470.57.02 
  direct render: Yes 
Audio:
  Device-1: Intel 82801H HD Audio vendor: Hewlett-Packard Compaq dc7700p 
  driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel bus-ID: 00:1b.0 chip-ID: 8086:284b 
  class-ID: 0403 
  Device-2: NVIDIA GK208 HDMI/DP Audio vendor: Micro-Star MSI 
  driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel bus-ID: 01:00.1 chip-ID: 10de:0e0f 
  class-ID: 0403 
  Sound Server-1: ALSA v: k5.10.56-1-MANJARO running: yes 
  Sound Server-2: JACK v: 1.9.19 running: no 
  Sound Server-3: PulseAudio v: 15.0 running: yes 
  Sound Server-4: PipeWire v: 0.3.33 running: yes 
Network:
  Device-1: Intel 82566DM Gigabit Network vendor: Hewlett-Packard 
  driver: e1000e v: kernel port: 2100 bus-ID: 00:19.0 chip-ID: 8086:104a 
  class-ID: 0200 
  IF: enp0s25 state: up speed: 100 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter> 
  IP v4: <filter> type: dynamic noprefixroute scope: global 
  broadcast: <filter> 
  IP v6: <filter> type: noprefixroute scope: global 
  IP v6: <filter> type: noprefixroute scope: link 
  WAN IP: <filter> 
Bluetooth:
  Device-1: Cambridge Silicon Radio Bluetooth Dongle (HCI mode) type: USB 
  driver: btusb v: 0.8 bus-ID: 5-1:2 chip-ID: 0a12:0001 class-ID: e001 
  Report: bt-adapter ID: hci0 rfk-id: 0 state: down 
  bt-service: enabled,running rfk-block: hardware: no software: no 
  address: <filter> 
Logical:
  Message: No logical block device data found. 
RAID:
  Message: No RAID data found. 
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 1.13 TiB used: 99.75 GiB (8.6%) 
  SMART Message: Unable to run smartctl. Root privileges required. 
  ID-1: /dev/sda maj-min: 8:0 vendor: Crucial model: CT240BX500SSD1 
  size: 223.57 GiB block-size: physical: 512 B logical: 512 B speed: 3.0 Gb/s 
  type: SSD serial: <filter> rev: R013 scheme: GPT 
  ID-2: /dev/sdb maj-min: 8:16 type: USB vendor: Western Digital 
  model: WD Elements 25A2 size: 931.48 GiB block-size: physical: 512 B 
  logical: 512 B speed: 3.0 Gb/s type: N/A serial: <filter> rev: 1014 
  scheme: MBR 
  Optical-1: /dev/sr0 vendor: TSSTcorp model: DVD-ROM TS-H353B rev: BC03 
  dev-links: cdrom 
  Features: speed: 48 multisession: yes audio: yes dvd: yes rw: none 
  state: running 
Partition:
  ID-1: / raw-size: 223.56 GiB size: 219.05 GiB (97.98%) 
  used: 99.75 GiB (45.5%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda2 maj-min: 8:2 label: N/A 
  uuid: 65eb49fc-1c79-44a8-949d-30220ce34760 
  ID-2: /run/media/vivian/backups raw-size: 931.48 GiB 
  size: 915.79 GiB (98.32%) used: 28 KiB (0.0%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sdb1 
  maj-min: 8:17 label: backups uuid: 4afefefc-8738-457f-a109-411df0059115 
Swap:
  Alert: No swap data was found. 
Unmounted:
  Message: No unmounted partitions found. 
USB:
  Hub-1: 1-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 4 rev: 2.0 
  speed: 480 Mb/s chip-ID: 1d6b:0002 class-ID: 0900 
  Device-1: 1-4:2 info: Western Digital Elements 25A2 type: Mass Storage 
  driver: usb-storage interfaces: 1 rev: 2.1 speed: 480 Mb/s power: 500mA 
  chip-ID: 1058:25a2 class-ID: 0806 serial: <filter> 
  Hub-2: 2-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 4 rev: 2.0 
  speed: 480 Mb/s chip-ID: 1d6b:0002 class-ID: 0900 
  Hub-3: 3-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 1.1 speed: 12 Mb/s 
  chip-ID: 1d6b:0001 class-ID: 0900 
  Hub-4: 4-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 1.1 speed: 12 Mb/s 
  chip-ID: 1d6b:0001 class-ID: 0900 
  Hub-5: 5-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 1.1 speed: 12 Mb/s 
  chip-ID: 1d6b:0001 class-ID: 0900 
  Device-1: 5-1:2 info: Cambridge Silicon Radio Bluetooth Dongle (HCI mode) 
  type: Bluetooth driver: btusb interfaces: 2 rev: 2.0 speed: 12 Mb/s 
  power: 100mA chip-ID: 0a12:0001 class-ID: e001 
  Hub-6: 6-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 2 rev: 1.1 speed: 12 Mb/s 
  chip-ID: 1d6b:0001 class-ID: 0900 
  Device-1: 6-1:2 info: Logitech Keyboard K120 type: Keyboard,HID 
  driver: hid-generic,usbhid interfaces: 2 rev: 1.1 speed: 1.5 Mb/s 
  power: 90mA chip-ID: 046d:c31c class-ID: 0300 
  Device-2: 6-2:3 info: Logitech Unifying Receiver type: Keyboard,Mouse,HID 
  driver: logitech-djreceiver,usbhid interfaces: 3 rev: 2.0 speed: 12 Mb/s 
  power: 98mA chip-ID: 046d:c52b class-ID: 0300 
Sensors:
  System Temperatures: cpu: 47.0 C mobo: N/A gpu: nvidia temp: 50 C 
  Fan Speeds (RPM): N/A gpu: nvidia fan: 50% 
Info:
  Processes: 181 Uptime: 1h 20m wakeups: 8 Init: systemd v: 248 
  tool: systemctl Compilers: gcc: 11.1.0 Packages: pacman: 1624 lib: 439 
  flatpak: 0 Shell: Bash v: 5.1.8 running-in: konsole inxi: 3.3.06

dmesg errors, warnings:

[vivian@Viviversum ~]$ sudo dmesg --level emerg,alert,crit,err,warn
[sudo] password for vivian: 
[    0.283428] x86/cpu: VMX (outside TXT) disabled by BIOS
[    0.394753] core: PEBS disabled due to CPU errata
[    0.403363] mtrr: your CPUs had inconsistent variable MTRR settings
[    0.419935] ACPI BIOS Error (bug): \_SB.PCI0._OSC: Excess arguments - ASL declared 5, ACPI requires 4 (20200925/nsarguments-162)
[    0.420036] ACPI BIOS Error (bug): Failure creating named object [\_SB.PCI0._OSC.CAPD], AE_ALREADY_EXISTS (20200925/dsfield-184)
[    0.420043] ACPI Error: AE_ALREADY_EXISTS, CreateBufferField failure (20200925/dswload2-477)
[    0.420049] ACPI Error: Aborting method \_SB.PCI0._OSC due to previous error (AE_ALREADY_EXISTS) (20200925/psparse-529)
[    0.456737] pnp 00:07: disabling [io  0xf800-0xf81f] because it overlaps 0000:00:1f.0 BAR 13 [io  0xf800-0xf87f]
[    0.456740] pnp 00:07: disabling [io  0xf820-0xf83f] because it overlaps 0000:00:1f.0 BAR 13 [io  0xf800-0xf87f]
[    0.456742] pnp 00:07: disabling [io  0xf840-0xf85f] because it overlaps 0000:00:1f.0 BAR 13 [io  0xf800-0xf87f]
[    0.456745] pnp 00:07: disabling [io  0xf860-0xf87f] because it overlaps 0000:00:1f.0 BAR 13 [io  0xf800-0xf87f]
[    2.163016] sd 2:0:0:0: [sdb] No Caching mode page found
[    2.163020] sd 2:0:0:0: [sdb] Assuming drive cache: write through
[    9.777923] nvidia: loading out-of-tree module taints kernel.
[    9.777943] nvidia: module license 'NVIDIA' taints kernel.
[    9.777945] Disabling lock debugging due to kernel taint

[   10.359563] NVRM: loading NVIDIA UNIX x86_64 Kernel Module  470.57.02  Tue Jul 13 16:14:05 UTC 2021
[   10.696269] coretemp coretemp.0: Using relative temperature scale!
[   10.711771] coretemp coretemp.0: Using relative temperature scale!
[   13.737789] kauditd_printk_skb: 33 callbacks suppressed
[   14.935250] resource sanity check: requesting [mem 0x000e0000-0x000fffff], which spans more than pnp 00:09 [mem 0x000d0a00-0x000e3fff]
[   14.935661] caller _nv033140rm+0x2a/0x60 [nvidia] mapping multiple BARs
[   15.158404] resource sanity check: requesting [mem 0x000c0000-0x000fffff], which spans more than pnp 00:09 [mem 0x000d0a00-0x000e3fff]
[   15.158936] caller _nv000722rm+0x1ad/0x200 [nvidia] mapping multiple BARs
[   19.351259] kauditd_printk_skb: 38 callbacks suppressed
[   30.024494] kauditd_printk_skb: 5 callbacks suppressed
[ 2261.105359] nvidia_uvm: module uses symbols from proprietary module nvidia, inheriting taint.
[ 2266.385190] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 0 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x80700 phys_seg 4 prio class 0
[ 2266.520449] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 0 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 2 prio class 0
[ 2266.520455] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 0, async page read
[ 2266.520459] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 1, async page read
[ 2266.612165] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 1024 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x80700 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
[ 2266.733769] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 1024 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 2 prio class 0
[ 2266.733775] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 256, async page read
[ 2266.733779] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 257, async page read
[ 2266.833750] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 0 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 2 prio class 0
[ 2266.833756] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 0, async page read
[ 2266.833760] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 1, async page read
[ 3143.889535] sd 5:0:0:0: Power-on or device reset occurred
[ 3145.914809] ready
[ 3153.056217] FAT-fs (sdc): Volume was not properly unmounted. Some data may be corrupt. Please run fsck.
[ 3213.242650] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 0 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x80700 phys_seg 3 prio class 0
[ 3213.272008] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 0 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
[ 3213.272013] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 0, async page read
[ 3213.298514] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 4 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
[ 3213.298520] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 1, async page read
[ 3213.322016] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 1024 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x80700 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
[ 3213.351870] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 1024 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
[ 3213.351875] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 256, async page read
[ 3213.375174] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 1028 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
[ 3213.375180] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 257, async page read
[ 3213.417748] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 0 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
[ 3213.417754] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 0, async page read
[ 3213.449735] blk_update_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 4 op 0x0:(READ) flags 0x0 phys_seg 1 prio class 0
[ 3213.449740] Buffer I/O error on dev sr0, logical block 1, async page read

dmesg info on usb devices:

[vivian@Viviversum ~]$ sudo dmesg | grep usb
[    0.429575] usbcore: registered new interface driver usbfs
[    0.429586] usbcore: registered new interface driver hub
[    0.429595] usbcore: registered new device driver usb
[    0.680705] usb usb1: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0002, bcdDevice= 5.10
[    0.680709] usb usb1: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[    0.680711] usb usb1: Product: EHCI Host Controller
[    0.680714] usb usb1: Manufacturer: Linux 5.10.56-1-MANJARO ehci_hcd
[    0.680716] usb usb1: SerialNumber: 0000:00:1a.7
[    0.697516] usb usb2: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0002, bcdDevice= 5.10
[    0.697519] usb usb2: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[    0.697522] usb usb2: Product: EHCI Host Controller
[    0.697524] usb usb2: Manufacturer: Linux 5.10.56-1-MANJARO ehci_hcd
[    0.697526] usb usb2: SerialNumber: 0000:00:1d.7
[    0.698208] usb usb3: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0001, bcdDevice= 5.10
[    0.698211] usb usb3: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[    0.698213] usb usb3: Product: UHCI Host Controller
[    0.698215] usb usb3: Manufacturer: Linux 5.10.56-1-MANJARO uhci_hcd
[    0.698216] usb usb3: SerialNumber: 0000:00:1a.0
[    0.698777] usb usb4: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0001, bcdDevice= 5.10
[    0.698780] usb usb4: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[    0.698782] usb usb4: Product: UHCI Host Controller
[    0.698783] usb usb4: Manufacturer: Linux 5.10.56-1-MANJARO uhci_hcd
[    0.698785] usb usb4: SerialNumber: 0000:00:1a.1
[    0.699334] usb usb5: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0001, bcdDevice= 5.10
[    0.699337] usb usb5: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[    0.699338] usb usb5: Product: UHCI Host Controller
[    0.699340] usb usb5: Manufacturer: Linux 5.10.56-1-MANJARO uhci_hcd
[    0.699342] usb usb5: SerialNumber: 0000:00:1d.0
[    0.699887] usb usb6: New USB device found, idVendor=1d6b, idProduct=0001, bcdDevice= 5.10
[    0.699890] usb usb6: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=2, SerialNumber=1
[    0.699891] usb usb6: Product: UHCI Host Controller
[    0.699893] usb usb6: Manufacturer: Linux 5.10.56-1-MANJARO uhci_hcd
[    0.699895] usb usb6: SerialNumber: 0000:00:1d.1
[    0.700198] usbcore: registered new interface driver usbserial_generic
[    0.700205] usbserial: USB Serial support registered for generic
[    0.933701] usb 1-4: new high-speed USB device number 2 using ehci-pci
[    1.138977] usb 1-4: New USB device found, idVendor=1058, idProduct=25a2, bcdDevice=10.14
[    1.138982] usb 1-4: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=3
[    1.138985] usb 1-4: Product: Elements 25A2
[    1.138988] usb 1-4: Manufacturer: Western Digital
[    1.138990] usb 1-4: SerialNumber: 575833314137364636385538
[    1.144306] usb-storage 1-4:1.0: USB Mass Storage device detected
[    1.144509] scsi host2: usb-storage 1-4:1.0
[    1.144611] usbcore: registered new interface driver usb-storage
[    1.146814] usbcore: registered new interface driver uas
[    1.151312] usb 5-1: new full-speed USB device number 2 using uhci_hcd
[    1.357364] usb 5-1: New USB device found, idVendor=0a12, idProduct=0001, bcdDevice=88.91
[    1.357368] usb 5-1: New USB device strings: Mfr=0, Product=2, SerialNumber=0
[    1.357370] usb 5-1: Product: CSR8510 A10
[    1.976371] usb 6-1: new low-speed USB device number 2 using uhci_hcd
[    2.167242] usb 6-1: New USB device found, idVendor=046d, idProduct=c31c, bcdDevice=64.00
[    2.167247] usb 6-1: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=0
[    2.167255] usb 6-1: Product: USB Keyboard
[    2.167257] usb 6-1: Manufacturer: Logitech
[    2.213905] input: Logitech USB Keyboard as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-1/6-1:1.0/0003:046D:C31C.0001/input/input4
[    2.269824] hid-generic 0003:046D:C31C.0001: input,hidraw0: USB HID v1.10 Keyboard [Logitech USB Keyboard] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-1/input0
[    2.295115] input: Logitech USB Keyboard Consumer Control as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-1/6-1:1.1/0003:046D:C31C.0002/input/input5
[    2.349725] input: Logitech USB Keyboard System Control as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-1/6-1:1.1/0003:046D:C31C.0002/input/input6
[    2.349835] hid-generic 0003:046D:C31C.0002: input,hidraw1: USB HID v1.10 Device [Logitech USB Keyboard] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-1/input1
[    2.349888] usbcore: registered new interface driver usbhid
[    2.349889] usbhid: USB HID core driver
[    2.896209] usb 6-2: new full-speed USB device number 3 using uhci_hcd
[    3.091231] usb 6-2: New USB device found, idVendor=046d, idProduct=c52b, bcdDevice=12.01
[    3.091235] usb 6-2: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=0
[    3.091237] usb 6-2: Product: USB Receiver
[    3.091240] usb 6-2: Manufacturer: Logitech
[    3.099864] input: Logitech USB Receiver as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.0/0003:046D:C52B.0003/input/input7
[    3.157157] hid-generic 0003:046D:C52B.0003: input,hidraw2: USB HID v1.11 Keyboard [Logitech USB Receiver] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input0
[    3.162360] input: Logitech USB Receiver Mouse as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.1/0003:046D:C52B.0004/input/input8
[    3.162462] input: Logitech USB Receiver Consumer Control as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.1/0003:046D:C52B.0004/input/input9
[    3.217133] input: Logitech USB Receiver System Control as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.1/0003:046D:C52B.0004/input/input10
[    3.217299] hid-generic 0003:046D:C52B.0004: input,hiddev96,hidraw3: USB HID v1.11 Mouse [Logitech USB Receiver] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input1
[    3.221138] hid-generic 0003:046D:C52B.0005: hiddev97,hidraw4: USB HID v1.11 Device [Logitech USB Receiver] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input2
[    3.367575] logitech-djreceiver 0003:046D:C52B.0005: hiddev96,hidraw2: USB HID v1.11 Device [Logitech USB Receiver] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input2
[    3.483321] input: Logitech Wireless Device PID:200a Keyboard as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:200A.0006/input/input12
[    3.483562] input: Logitech Wireless Device PID:200a Consumer Control as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:200A.0006/input/input13
[    3.483633] input: Logitech Wireless Device PID:200a System Control as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:200A.0006/input/input14
[    3.483718] hid-generic 0003:046D:200A.0006: input,hidraw3: USB HID v1.11 Keyboard [Logitech Wireless Device PID:200a] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input2:2
[    3.485201] input: Logitech Wireless Device PID:4004 Keyboard as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:4004.0007/input/input18
[    3.485441] input: Logitech Wireless Device PID:4004 Consumer Control as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:4004.0007/input/input19
[    3.485510] input: Logitech Wireless Device PID:4004 System Control as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:4004.0007/input/input20
[    3.485586] hid-generic 0003:046D:4004.0007: input,hidraw4: USB HID v1.11 Keyboard [Logitech Wireless Device PID:4004] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input2:1
[    3.486975] input: Logitech Wireless Device PID:101a Mouse as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:101A.0008/input/input24
[    3.487064] hid-generic 0003:046D:101A.0008: input,hidraw5: USB HID v1.11 Mouse [Logitech Wireless Device PID:101a] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input2:3
[    3.640559] input: Logitech K350 as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:200A.0006/input/input28
[    3.640790] logitech-hidpp-device 0003:046D:200A.0006: input,hidraw3: USB HID v1.11 Keyboard [Logitech K350] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input2:2
[    3.774541] input: Logitech K360 as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:4004.0007/input/input29
[    3.774780] logitech-hidpp-device 0003:046D:4004.0007: input,hidraw4: USB HID v1.11 Keyboard [Logitech K360] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input2:1
[    3.796318] input: Logitech Performance MX as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb6/6-2/6-2:1.2/0003:046D:C52B.0005/0003:046D:101A.0008/input/input30
[    3.796457] logitech-hidpp-device 0003:046D:101A.0008: input,hidraw5: USB HID v1.11 Mouse [Logitech Performance MX] on usb-0000:00:1d.1-2/input2:3
[   13.211548] usbcore: registered new interface driver btusb
[ 3142.721218] usb 1-3: new high-speed USB device number 3 using ehci-pci
[ 3142.872034] usb 1-3: New USB device found, idVendor=054c, idProduct=09c0, bcdDevice= 1.00
[ 3142.872039] usb 1-3: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=3
[ 3142.872042] usb 1-3: Product: WALKMAN
[ 3142.872044] usb 1-3: Manufacturer: Sony
[ 3142.872047] usb 1-3: SerialNumber: 1100AD55478844
[ 3142.873253] usb-storage 1-3:1.0: USB Mass Storage device detected
[ 3142.874528] scsi host5: usb-storage 1-3:1.0
[ 3448.877799] usb 1-3: USB disconnect, device number 3

How can I restore my PC to its former behaviour (booting into OS from internal HDD regardless if external HDD is connected or not)?
How can I format my external HDD correctly so it becomes usable again?

DeLinuxCo · 14 August 2021 15:06

What is the output of lsblk from a terminal?

maycne.sonahoz · 14 August 2021 15:13

That’s a common symptom of a partition, from an external drive, set to be auto-mounted at boot, and thus failing to do so if the drive is not connected.

Did you set it so?
cat /etc/fstab

Vivian · 14 August 2021 15:22

The output is:

[vivian@Viviversum ~]$ lsblk
NAME   MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS
sda      8:0    0 223,6G  0 disk 
├─sda1   8:1    0     8M  0 part 
└─sda2   8:2    0 223,6G  0 part /
sdb      8:16   0 931,5G  0 disk 
└─sdb1   8:17   0 931,5G  0 part /run/media/vivian/backups
sr0     11:0    1 416,2M  0 rom

Vivian · 14 August 2021 15:25

I don’t know what I did. It is certainly possible.

The output of the command you gave is as follows:

[vivian@Viviversum ~]$ cat /etc/fstab
# /etc/fstab: static file system information.
#
# Use 'blkid' to print the universally unique identifier for a device; this may
# be used with UUID= as a more robust way to name devices that works even if
# disks are added and removed. See fstab(5).
#
# <file system>             <mount point>  <type>  <options>  <dump>  <pass>
UUID=65eb49fc-1c79-44a8-949d-30220ce34760   /                           ext4    noatime             0 1 

/dev/sdb1                                   /run/media/vivian/backups   ext4    defaults            0 0

chomsky · 14 August 2021 15:29

Just add noauto,nofail to the /dev/sdb1 options in your fstab so it says defaults,noauto,nofail and you should be ok I think.

maycne.sonahoz · 14 August 2021 15:49

Although only one would actually be needed:

noauto disables automatic mounting at boot
nofail makes failing to mount the partition non-fatal, so the boot can proceed even if the drive is not connected

jabber · 14 August 2021 15:55

And, you don’t need defaults as long as there is at least one option defined. Because they’re the defaults.

The only time you need to specify the word “defaults” is if you have no other options in the field, as the field cannot be empty.

It doesn’t hurt anything to have it, but it’s not necessary.

DeLinuxCo · 14 August 2021 16:07

Here is what I see, you have an internal HDD that is partitioned with a swap and a root partition.
You also have a USB external drive for backups.

Since your HDD does not have a boot/EFI partition, but it’s scheme is GPT. you must be running in BIOS mode and not in UEFI.
Your USB drive has a scheme of MBR, so the only drive that can boot your system is the USB drive because more than likely you installed the MBR to the USB drive because that was the only drive available to you during the install.

The best thing to do is to start from scratch. Unplug the USB drive so that it is not in the equation.
Boot usb installer drive in UEFI, not BIOS mode. Some system will show the USB disk in two spots, you need to boot via UEFI.

Then reinstall your system, note the Manjaro installer, when on the disks page should show you at the top if you are in BIOS mode or UEFI mode.

Wollie · 14 August 2021 16:14

Where do you see a swap partition? /dev/sda1 could be a BIOS_grub partion to boot in legacy (BIOS) mode for a gpt parted disk.

No, as said, /dev/sda1 could be a BIOS_grub partition, then no booting from a MBR of a msdos parted disk is required.

References:

http://www.gnu.org/software/grub/manual/grub/html_node/BIOS-installation.html#GPT

DeLinuxCo · 14 August 2021 16:44

My mistake, there is no Swap, I misread the 8M as 8G and just assumed the it was the swap, I usually do 8G for swap.
At any rate, the rest of my synopsis is correct, your link explains that. In order for a GPT formatted drive to boot in BIOS mode, it must have a BIOS Boot Partition. lsblk does not show a Bios Boot Partition. Therefore the logical conclusion is that the system is booting off of the MBR of the USB drive.

Essentially, the USB drive is acting as a Bios Boot Partition.

Vivian · 14 August 2021 17:59

I’m confused.

@maycne.sonahoz , @chomsky and @jabber wrote that I should modify the file /etc/fstab.

@DeLinuxCo I also think that I’m running in BIOS mode, because I doubt my at this point 14 year old PC supports UEFI.

Your USB drive has a scheme of MBR, so the only drive that can boot your system is the USB drive because more than likely you installed the MBR to the USB drive because that was the only drive available to you during the install.

This can’t be correct, because the external USB drive was not connected during the installation. I burned a live DVD and installed the OS from that. I had tried to install from a USB stick before, but the PC failed to recognize it and started from the internal drive anyway, so I used the DVD. (The PC does recognize USB media after it has booted into Manjaro.) Because of the USB problem I’d rather not start from scratch - I would have to use a DVD again, and I don’t have a DVD burner at hand.

@Wollie Do you have any suggestions what I could do?

If it helps the troubleshooting, I can take a photo of the error messages I see when I try to boot the system without the USB harddrive.

Vivian · 14 August 2021 18:12

Following are screenshots from GParted, first the internal harddrive, then the external one.

maycne.sonahoz · 14 August 2021 18:38

Between a likely cause and an unlikely cause, i’d chose the solution for the likely cause.

DeLinuxCo · 14 August 2021 19:13

Well, 14 year old pc, is kind of an important detail… But your USB drive is clearly what is booting the system…

Your sda1 has a file system of lvm2 pv? If that is supposed to be the bios boot partition, I don’t think that will work.

Check your boot order, make sure USB drives are not set to boot before HDD although, without the USB drive connected it should just boot from the HDD, but then again with the LVM2 partion, I don’t think it can boot from the HDD.

Check your HDD using Gparted to make sure the HDD has the correct flags, “boot” etc.

I have never tried setting a Bios boot partion as LVM2, that seems to be the logical place to look as to why the drive will not boot.

Vivian · 14 August 2021 23:13

I have finally solved the problems. Thanks for guiding me to the fstab file, @chomsky , @jabber and @maycne.sonahoz !
I swapped the entry “defaults” in fstab to “noauto”, and that enabled my PC to boot without the external harddrive again. Then I decided to take a risk and delete the whole sdb section from fstab, and everything still works fine after a reboot.

The external harddrive became usable again after I formatted it with a tool called “mintstick” which is available from the offficial Manjaro software sources. Files can be saved on the drive again. It still behaves strangely, though - it is not shown as a swappable medium in the taskbar when it is plugged in, and it seems to mount itself automatically instead of waiting for me to mount it as it was before my experiments.

I’ll create a new thread for the external harddrive; this thread can be closed.

system · 15 August 2021 23:14

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