OMG! My Boot Loader Was Corrupted! I Can’t Log into My Linux System!

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Corrupted GrubWhat will you do if your Grub Boot Loader was corrupted? The most probable answer will be “Hitting my head in my keyboard ‘n’ number of times”. Most of us think that, if our boot loader get corrupted, we are doomed! So, we re-format our systems! But, don’t you know that, sometimes we can fix a corrupted boot loader?

As I said earlier, for most of us, the answer for a corrupted boot loader is “format” (earlier, this is the answer for most of my questions! please don’t be like me!). But, there are more easier ways to solve it without committing suicide!

Why is this happening?

Most of the time, the Grub Boot Loader can get corrupted because of :

  • Installing Windows on your machine. When you install Windows, it will overwrite the Linux boot loader in the MBR, and install their own version.
  • Installing another version of Linux. Some times, the new Linux version may fail to detect the existing one.

Now, lets see how to fix this. Its really easy :

  • First, if you have another Linux distribution on your system you can log into it. If you don’t have one, you can use a Linux live CD and boot from it as shown below (Boot from the live CD, Do not install it) :

Boot from Live CD

Boot from Live CD

  • Next, open the terminal and enter the following command :

sudo update-grub

This will update your Grub settings. If you have installed Windows or another version of Linux, this command will detect them, and add them to your boot loader!… Enjoy!

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Author: Pubudu Kodikara (140 Articles)

Pubudu Kodikara is a writer at Tech Hamlet (www.techhamlet.com), a state of the art tech blog which is powered by the Earth Organization, which have a main target of educating people about the latest technology. They post latest tech news, tips on how to resolve problems, tricks and hacks to improve what you do, tutorials to learn new things and many more.

8 Responses to OMG! My Boot Loader Was Corrupted! I Can’t Log into My Linux System!
  1. career
    February 2, 2010 | 3:00 am

    haw haw, that has happened with me lot of time. with me ringing up my geek friend nd eating his mind everytime ;)
    career´s last blog ..how to become a senior secondary recruits in indian navy? My ComLuv Profile

  2. career
    February 2, 2010 | 12:20 pm

    yeah for sure, bookmarked . can you suggest me some Feedreaders?
    career´s last blog ..how to become a senior secondary recruits in indian navy? My ComLuv Profile

  3. TechChunks
    February 8, 2010 | 2:26 pm

    Great tips buddy. It happened once to me with Windows and I had to reformat C:// drive and install Windows.
    TechChunks´s last blog ..Microsoft To Patch 17-Year-Old Computer Bug My ComLuv Profile

  4. Ramkumar
    March 8, 2010 | 8:54 pm

    I liked to add another info, GRUB is a bootloader, there are several bootloaders for linux, you got to type the respective bootloader name instead of GRUB if you are using some other linux distro.
    Ramkumar´s last blog ..gagets?? My ComLuv Profile

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