[BusLogic] scsi drives inaccessible

[glenstewart]

Binary package hint: linux-image-2.6-386

On an older Asus K7V server with a PCI Buslogic BT-958 SCSI card, the Ubuntu
Feisty Fawn Herd 2 Live CD's kernel fails to properly load the BusLogic
 module to enable mounting or configuration of any SCSI drives attached to
 the card.

In contrast, Mandriva 2007 Free and Knoppix 4 & 5 all work properly with the
SCSI controller and disks.

This has been a problem with both Ubuntu and Debian for the past 2 years
(Dapper, Edgy, Feisty; SID, and pre-SID unstable). Mandriva has worked with
this card and drives since at least Mandrake 9.0. But since moving to Ubuntu
on other boxes, I'm very eager to move this box to Ubuntu too. SuSE's 10.x
 Live CD also fails to see these drives properly.

From what I've been able to research, other reports point to the BusLogic

module only working correctly when it's built into the kernel, rather than
being loaded as a loadable external module. As provided with Ubuntu, the
SCSI bus seems to be reset at least twice by the kernel during startup, and
I'm not sure I see this with Mandriva or Knoppix.

Attached is a screenshot of the KDE Control Center's Disk & Filesystem
 settings that shows the 2 18Gb SCSI disks, MAG3182MP and DNES-318350W, are
 detected by Ubuntu. They are seen as sdb and sdc. These disks have
 partitions in common formats, but Ubuntu kernel can't see them. "cfdisk
 /dev/sdb" and QTparted (and Gparted) are unable to operate on the disks for
 formatting or partitioning in any way. This is not a sudo issue.

-- System Information:
Debian Release: testing/unstable
  APT prefers edgy-updates
  APT policy: (500, 'edgy-updates'), (500, 'edgy-security'), (500, 'edgy')
Architecture: i386 (x86)
Shell: /bin/sh linked to /bin/dash
Kernel: Linux 2.6.17-10-generic
Locale: LANG=C, LC_CTYPE=C (charmap=ANSI_X3.4-1968)

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

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--- Original Message Follows ---

From: glenstewart <email address hidden>
Date: Sat, 03 Feb 2007 16:34:46 -0000
Subject: [Bug 83068] linux-image: SCSI drives inaccessible to parted or any
To: <email address hidden>

Public bug reported:

Binary package hint: linux-image-2.6-386

On an older Asus K7V server with a PCI Buslogic BT-958 SCSI card, the Ubuntu
Feisty Fawn Herd 2 Live CD's kernel fails to properly load the BusLogic
 module to enable mounting or configuration of any SCSI drives attached to
 the card.

In contrast, Mandriva 2007 Free and Knoppix 4 & 5 all work properly with the
SCSI controller and disks.

This has been a problem with both Ubuntu and Debian for the past 2 years
(Dapper, Edgy, Feisty; SID, and pre-SID unstable). Mandriva has worked with
this card and drives since at least Mandrake 9.0. But since moving to Ubun=
tu
on other boxes, I'm very eager to move this box to Ubuntu too. SuSE's 10.x
 Live CD also fails to see these drives properly.

>From what I've been able to research, other reports point to the
BusLogic

module only working correctly when it's built into the kernel, rather than
being loaded as a loadable external module. As provided with Ubuntu, the
SCSI bus seems to be reset at least twice by the kernel during startup, and
I'm not sure I see this with Mandriva or Knoppix.

Attached is a screenshot of the KDE Control Center's Disk & Filesystem
 settings that shows the 2 18Gb SCSI disks, MAG3182MP and DNES-318350W, are
 detected by Ubuntu. They are seen as sdb and sdc. These disks have
 partitions in common formats, but Ubuntu kernel can't see them. "cfdisk
 /dev/sdb" and QTparted (and Gparted) are unable to operate on the disks for
 formatting or partitioning in any way. This is not a sudo issue.

-- System Information:
Debian Release: testing/unstable
  APT prefers edgy-updates
  APT policy: (500, 'edgy-updates'), (500, 'edgy-security'), (500, 'edgy')
Architecture: i386 (x86)
Shell: /bin/sh linked to /bin/dash
Kernel: Linux 2.6.17-10-generic
Locale: LANG=3DC, LC_CTYPE=3DC (charmap=3DANSI_X3.4-1968)

** Affects: linux-meta (Ubuntu)
     Importance: Undecided
         Status: Unconfirmed

-- =

linux-image: SCSI drives inaccessible to parted or any installation tool...

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

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is done, no more confirmations will be necessary to email the recipient.

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--- Original Message Follows ---

From: glenstewart <email address hidden>
Date: Sat, 03 Feb 2007 16:36:05 -0000
Subject: [Bug 83068] Re: linux-image: SCSI drives inaccessible to parted or
To: <email address hidden>

** Attachment added: "screenshot of system info"
   http://librarian.launchpad.net/6169444/IMG_5171.JPG

-- =

linux-image: SCSI drives inaccessible to parted or any installation tool
https://launchpad.net/bugs/83068

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

Just tested the problem with Herd 3 Desktop CD, and the problem remains.

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

I confirmed that this problem remains in Feisty Herd 4 Desktop CD.

System Info shows that the 2 SCSI disks exist, and shows their partition information, but the sudo cfdisk /dev/sda (or /dev/sdb) command claims the disk doesn't exist.

QTparted also refuses to work with the disks, and they cannot be mounted.

[Cristian Aravena Romero (caravena)]

Thanks for taking the time to report this bug. Unfortunately we can't fix it, because your description didn't include enough information.

Please include the following additional information, if you have not already done so (please pay attention to lspci's additional options), as required by the Ubuntu Kernel Team:
1. Please include the output of the command "uname -a" in your next response. It should be one, long line of text which includes the exact kernel version you're running, as well as the CPU architecture.
2. Please run the command "dmesg > dmesg.log" and attach the resulting file "dmesg.log" to this bug report.
3. Please run the command "lspci -vvnn > lspci-vvnn.log" and attach the resulting file "lspci-vvnn.log" to this bug report.

For your reference, the full description of procedures for kernel-related bug reports is available here: <http://wiki.ubuntu.com/DebuggingKernelProblems> Thanks!

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

Details follow and are attached:

Linux ubuntu 2.6.20-8-generic #2 SMP Tue Feb 13 05:18:42 UTC 2007 i686
GNU/Linux

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

I confirmed that this problem remains in Feisty Herd 5 Desktop CD.

Symptoms exactly as described previously.

[Kyle McMartin (kyle)]

Could you attach a dmesg from a succesful boot up into Mandriva? Building this driver into the kernel isn't an option, since it would require us moving the whole of the SCSI stack into the kernel.

Cheers,
 Kyle

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

The dmesg from the successful Mandriva boot from the SCSI drive is attached.

[khaj zrlo (khaj-zrlo)]

I have the same (or similar) problem with an old dual PII system that has a buslogic BT-946C scsi card. Previously reported in bug #47957. You can close that bug as a dup of this one, I think, as glenstewart has given a better description.

It would be great if the problem could be fixed. I'd love to run Ubuntu on that system. Thanks.

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

The problem remains in the latest Feisty beta released today.

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

Just for the sake of comparison, Debian 4 also fails to provide access to the SCSI drives attached to the Buslogic BT-958 SCSI card. I was unable to get a dmesg.log because they apparently have logging turned off on the installer DVD.

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

The latest Gutsy test CD still has the same SCSI problem identified 5 months ago.

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

Gutsy Tribe 2 continues to exhibit this problem, reported 5 months ago in Dapper and Feisty.

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

While my comments about Mandriva and Knoppix working fine with a PCI Buslogic BT-958 SCSI card, and Ubuntu not, remain true, I can advise on a <b>workaround</b> to allow installation of (K)Ubuntu on a BT-958 connected SCSI disk...

Follow the instructions at http://www.sourcentral.org/man/ubuntu606/5+sane-scsi which say:
<pre>During boot, when your BusLogic adapter is being initialized, press Ctrl-B to enter your BusLogic adapter setup. Choose the address which your BusLogic containing your scanner is located. Choose ‘‘SCSI Device Configuration’’. Choose ‘‘Scan SCSI Bus’’. Choose whatever SCSI id that contains your scanner and then choose ‘‘View/Modify SCSI configuration’’. Change ‘‘Negotiation’’ to ‘‘async’’ and change ‘‘Disconnect’’ to ‘‘off’’. Press Esc, save, and Esc again until you are asked to reboot.</pre>

Though unlikely to be needed, I also upgraded the BT-958 firmware from 5.06i to 5.06J using the files at http://dandelion.sourceforge.net/BusLogic.html

This is a WORKAROUND because a). it's not the factory-recommended default for performance, and b). other Linux distributions have exhibited their ability to work fine with the factory defaults.

Kubuntu Feisty is now installed on the system reported, and working fine.

[glenstewart (glen-stewart)]

Correction - the asynchronous setting on the SCSI adapter isn't what fixes the problem - it's the Disconnect turned to OFF. Here are the corrected instructions:

During boot, when your BusLogic adapter is being initialized, press Ctrl-B to enter your BusLogic adapter setup. Choose the address which your BusLogic containing your scanner is located. Choose ‘‘SCSI Device Configuration’’. Choose ‘‘Scan SCSI Bus’’. Choose whatever SCSI id that contains your scanner and then choose ‘‘View/Modify SCSI configuration’’. Change ‘‘Disconnect’’ to ‘‘off’’. Press Esc, save, and Esc again until you are asked to reboot.

[khaj zrlo (khaj-zrlo)]

On 7/7/07, glenstewart <email address hidden> wrote:
> Correction - the asynchronous setting on the SCSI adapter isn't what
> fixes the problem - it's the Disconnect turned to OFF. Here are the
> corrected instructions:
>
> During boot, when your BusLogic adapter is being initialized, press
> Ctrl-B to enter your BusLogic adapter setup. Choose the address which
> your BusLogic containing your scanner is located. Choose ''SCSI Device
> Configuration''. Choose ''Scan SCSI Bus''. Choose whatever SCSI id that
> contains your scanner and then choose ''View/Modify SCSI
> configuration''. Change ''Disconnect'' to ''off''. Press Esc, save, and
> Esc again until you are asked to reboot.

Thanks for the tip.

For my systems with the old Buslogic BT-946C SCSI card, I had to turn
OFF both "Disconnect" and "Wide Negotiation" options for all my scsi
disks. This allowed me to boot up with kernel 2.6.15-28-686.

[Leann Ogasawara (leannogasawara)]

Hi Everyone,

This bug was reported a while ago bug hasn't had any recent activity. The 18 month support period for Feisty Fawn 7.04 has reached it's end of life - http://www.ubuntu.com/news/ubuntu-7.04-end-of-life . As a result we are closing the linux-source-2.6.20 task. However, I'd be interested to know if this is still an issue with the most recent Intrepid Ibex 8.10 release? I suspect this won't qualify for a Dapper SRU - http://wiki.ubuntu.com/StableReleaseUpdates but we'll keep it open against the actively developed kernel. I'll go ahead an open a "linux" kernel task but set it to Incomplete for now until we get feedback regarding Intrepid. Thanks.

[Jonathan Thomas (echidnaman)]

e are closing this bug report because it lacks the information we need to investigate the problem, as described in the previous comments. Please reopen it if you can give us the missing information, and don't hesitate to submit bug reports in the future. To reopen the bug report you can click on the current status, under the Status column, and change the Status back to "New". Thanks again!

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Per a decision made by the Ubuntu Kernel Team, bugs will longer be assigned to the ubuntu-kernel-team in Launchpad as part of the bug triage process. The ubuntu-kernel-team is being unassigned from this bug report. Refer to https://wiki.ubuntu.com/KernelTeamBugPolicies for more information. Thanks.