Ext file systems fail to mount if computer clock is reset
| Affects | Status | Importance | Assigned to | Milestone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| initramfs-tools (Ubuntu) |
New
|
Undecided
|
Unassigned | ||
Bug Description
Binary package hint: initramfs-tools
Apparently the ext file system saves in the superblock when was the file system last mounted (probably for date based scheduled checks), and fsck reports an error if the last mount date is in the future compared to the current system time.
The problem is that if the computer's clock was reset for any reason (a power spike reset my computers clock. Other reasons may be a depleted CMOS battery) then the boot-up file system check reports an *unrecoverable* error while trying to load the system, prompting the user to run fsck manually, and then the system fails to load - just because the hardware clock has the wrong time!
Worse - the graphical boot up screen does not show this error, it just keeps ticking away to itself hiding the error and never completing the boot. Even if one presses ESC to see the actual boot messages, they are confronted with horribly scaring error messages talking about file system failures and such - coming immediately after a power spike that reset the computer, this is very very scary.
The boot process should never stop the boot when the only error is that the last mount time is in the future. fsck itself should not report this as an unrecoverable error.
The workaround on my side was to go in to the BIOS settings and manually set the clock - if a non-power user encounters this, they are likely to assume the worst and reformat their computer, losing all their information due to a simple harmless hardware glitch.
