Grub2 grumbles

[D. Hugh Redelmeier]

| From: D. Hugh Redelmeier <hugh-pmF8o41NoarQT0dZR+AlfA at public.gmane.org>

| Context:
| 
| Summary: I need to triple boot:
|   Ubuntu 10.10
|   Ubuntu 10.04
|   Windows 7
| 
| I use 10.10's Grub2 as the bootloader that chooses amongst these
| things.

Giving up, I have decided to use 10.04's bootloader as the bootloader.

So: I want to put 10.10's boot sector on 10.10's partition's boot
sector (not the Master Boot Record).

Here's grub2 being unwilling:

    $ sudo grub-setup '(hd0,5)'
    [sudo] password for hugh: 
    grub-setup: warn: Attempting to install GRUB to a partition instead of the MBR.  This is a BAD idea..
    grub-setup: warn: Embedding is not possible.  GRUB can only be installed in this setup by using blocklists.  However, blocklists are UNRELIABLE and their use is discouraged..
    grub-setup: error: if you really want blocklists, use --force.
    $ 

Note: old grub would have let me use /dev/sda5 as an alternative to
(hd0,4).  Oh: and that 4 isn't a typo: grub1 and grub2 number
partitions differently.

I cannot really understand that message.  Installing a boot block on a
partition is perfectly normal and reasonable.  If grub2 cannot handle
that, it is pathetic.

I'm *guessing* that grub2 wants to install parts of itself in the
gap before the first partition starts.  And that kind of gap doesn't
exist within each partition.

See this paritioning:

    $ sudo fdisk -u -l

    Disk /dev/sda: 500.1 GB, 500107862016 bytes
    255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 60801 cylinders, total 976773168 sectors
    Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
    Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
    I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
    Disk identifier: 0x3c46f452

       Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
    /dev/sda1            2048    39847935    19922944   27  Unknown
    /dev/sda2   *    39847936    40052735      102400    7  HPFS/NTFS
    /dev/sda3        40052736   244852735   102400000    7  HPFS/NTFS
    /dev/sda4       244854782   976771071   365958145    5  Extended
    /dev/sda5       244854784   283914239    19529728   83  Linux
    /dev/sda6       283916288   322975743    19529728   83  Linux
    /dev/sda7       322977792   332740607     4881408   82  Linux swap / Solaris
    /dev/sda8       332742656   976771071   322014208   83  Linux

There is a gap of over 2000 sectors (almost a megabyte) before the first
partition starts.

I'm getting seriously annoyed with grub2.

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