Member Avatar for kartik14

Hi,

I'm trying to install Ubuntu on my Pc. When I insert the Cd ans reboot, I selected the option install Ubuntu. Then I get the Ubunu screen with the logo.

After that I'm getting :

Busy Box v1.1.3 (Debian 1:1.1.3-5 Ubuntu 12) Built-in Shell (ash) Enter 'help' for a list of built in commands

(initramfs) _

Then the cursor is blinking and nothing happens ...

Can anyone tell me how to proceed from here ?

Thanks

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The symptoms describes — the ACPI “BIOS age” message followed by a BusyBox (initramfs) prompt — mean the early userspace couldn’t find or mount the real root filesystem. Common causes are a bad/incorrectly burnt CD, a read-problem with the drive, missing disk-controller drivers, or a BIOS/ACPI interaction that prevents the kernel from continuing. ’s suggestion to try alternate install methods and change ACPI behavior is a good start; add these concrete troubleshooting steps.

First, verify the install media. From another machine check the ISO checksum before burning, and if burning again use the slowest speed available or try a different burner/disc. Example checksum commands:

md5sum path/to/ubuntu.iso

On Windows:

certutil -hashfile path\to\ubuntu.iso MD5

Next, try kernel boot options temporarily (no permanent file edits yet). At the CD boot menu edit the installer/boot entry (legacy GRUB: press e, or use the Live CD’s boot options) and append kernel parameters to test behavior: try disabling ACPI, trying alternate ACPI modes, and disabling APIC/IRQ polling if needed. If a specific option lets the system continue, make that change permanent in the boot config for the installed system (note: older Ubuntu used legacy GRUB/menu.lst; modern systems use GRUB2 via /etc/default/grub and update-grub).

If the system still drops to the initramfs prompt, collect diagnostic output before rebooting. Useful commands in the BusyBox shell:

dmesg | tail -n 50
cat /proc/partitions
ls /dev
cat /proc/cmdline

Post those logs or photograph the screen — they will point to whether devices are visible or drivers failed. If none of the above helps, try a different medium (another burned CD, another drive, or a USB installer) or the text/alternative installer as recommended. Updating the BIOS can sometimes fix ACPI problems but is a last resort and should be done with caution.

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Member Avatar for myle

Maybe the cd is damaged. You could try another one or the alternative cd.

Member Avatar for kartik14

before I get this error, I get the message:

ACPI: BIOS age (1997) fails cutoff (2000), acpi=force is required to enable ACPI
ACPI: Disabling ACPI support

Does this mean I cannot Ubuntu on my old machine..?

Thanks

Member Avatar for myle

Install Ubuntu using the alternative cd and then edit your /boot/grub/menu.lst

title Ubuntu, kernel 2.6.20-15-generic
root (hd0,5)
kernel /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.20-15-generic root=UUID=3015a7a1-6e5d-42d6-934d-193459bed89b acpi=force
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.20-15-generic
quiet
savedefault

Some thing may be slightly different. Don't change them. Just append the acpi=force at the end of the third record.
If that causes you some problems, you may have to add the

pci=noacpi

at the end of the same line, furthmore.

You may find useful the Ubuntu forums

Member Avatar for kartik14

Hi, thanks for the reply.. can you tell me howto edit the file ?

Where is the menu.lst file located ?

Thanks..

Member Avatar for myle

So, can I suppose that you have installed succesfully Ubuntu?

Open terminal.
If you have Gnome:

gksudo gedit /boot/grub/menu.lst

KDE:

kdesu kate /boot/grub/menu.lst

If you prefer a simple editor

sudo nano /boot/grub/menu.lst
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