SOLVED Unable to install

[dlobel]

I'll give it a try but I don't think it's gonna change anything. I think HP has blocked something in their BIOS which is preventing to boot EUFI the correct way. After testing I'll report my findings

 

[pschatz100]

Thanks for the suggestion, but I need some help with this.

I use MacOS to "dd" the iso to an USB stick. I don't know how I can set the DD command to create an BIOS boot device. The dd command transfers RAW data to the USB stick (and 1-1 copy of the ISO file). Or should I use another tool?

I also have access to a Windows 10 machine, so if needed I could use Rufus (or other) to create a boot device.

It's just a pity that I have an spare PC laying around here and not be able to get is NAS ready.

I am not talking about preparing the install media. I am referring to the options you work through when you actually run the installer to set up the boot device.

The installation directions in the documentation make a reference to this.

 

[dlobel]

I am not talking about preparing the install media. I am referring to the options you work through when you actually run the installer to set up the boot device.

The installation directions in the documentation make a reference to this.

I'm not sure what you mean ... but if you mean what steps do I take to get the boot device ready:

1) insert USB stick
2) terminal app
3) diskutil unmountDisk /dev/disk2 (disk2 is the USB STICK)
4) SUDO dd if=/path/Freenas.iso of=/dev/rdisk2 bs=64k

Checked the SHA256 a few time, download are not corrupted.

I guess somehow the HP bios is blocking EUFI boot when legacy and secure boot are turned off.

 

[dlobel]

Is it possible to use an MBR USB device to Legacy load Freenas?

 

[Bugstar]

Hi OP,

I am going through this very same pain right now with a HP 6200 Pro SSF and have tried a few things:
1. Different USB sticks
2. Different USB ports
3. Re-download the latest*.iso

With a variety of results.

However, I have found that getting to the Boot Options menu and picking the USB stick from the available options in the Legacy BIOS list, rather than the same USB stick from the EFI list allows it to move past the "Mask" line.
As an aside, the screen resolution is less during install output too.

 

[Bugstar]

Update. After a couple of days of wirking on it, this change has lead to a successful installation and boot of TrueNAS Core. phew.
Attached is an image of the boot device selection screen showing the same USB stick in both EFI and Legacy (BIOS) boot lists. Only the later option would continue past the "Mask..." install line.

 

[dlobel]

Update. After a couple of days of wirking on it, this change has lead to a successful installation and boot of TrueNAS Core. phew.
Attached is an image of the boot device selection screen showing the same USB stick in both EFI and Legacy (BIOS) boot lists. Only the later option would continue past the "Mask..." install line.

How did you get this working. My USB stick is only showing in UEFI and not in Legacy?

 

[dlobel]

Check this screenshot: UEFI recognises the USB boot image but Legacy not. UEFI is always freezing the kernal loading after the masks are shown ... (whichever version of BSD or FreeNAS I use). I have the feeling i'm close but I need you help guys!

 

[dlobel]

Ok, so I'm a step further. I've tested the UEFI boot USB on a mac and I'm able to install FreeNAS. So the problem is the BIOS on my HP PC.
When i boot in UEFI mode, it always freezes at the same point. Could it be incompatible hardware? Its a notmal x86 i5 core with 8GB ram and two harddrivers (1x NVME and 1x SSD)

 

[dlobel]

On OS X balana Etcher is the most convenient tool for writing ISO images to USB sticks. Give it a try.

Tested this, the image isn't the problem. The BIOS is somehow blocking

 

[Bugstar]

I'm not familiar with the UEFI/BIOS environment that you're using, but...

I have the option to enable/disable storage devices in either EFI (pre-UEFI I believe) or Legacy BIOS. Enabling USB Harddrive in Legacy BIOS allowed it to be selected in the Boot Options menu.

Again, I had to 'manually' select the boot device from the Legacy BIOS list in the Boot Options Menu otherwise it would default to EFI boot devices first. There's seemingly no way to change the Boot Device Order to use Legacy BIOS devices first.

 

[dlobel]

i'm starting to believe my last resort is getting freenas to boot from a legacy (BIOS) mode. The question is: How do I get an ISO to be writtten to USB stick as MBR? Somebody?

 

[pschatz100]

i'm starting to believe my last resort is getting freenas to boot from a legacy (BIOS) mode. The question is: How do I get an ISO to be writtten to USB stick as MBR? Somebody?

I think you may be right. Follow the directions in the TrueNAS documentation to prepare the install media: https://www.truenas.com/docs/hub/initial-setup/install/firsttimeinstall/

One of the first questions the installer will ask is whether you want to create a UEFI or BIOS boot device.

For the record, on some systems a BIOS boot device will show up on both UEFI and BIOS boot modes, but it will only work in BIOS mode. A UEFI device will never show up in a BIOS boot option list.

Edit: I think you may be confusing the ISO with the boot image. The ISO image is used to create the install device, then you run the installer to create the boot device. You need two drives: 1) first one you will write the ISO to - it can be a flash drive or CD, then 2) second device that will become the boot device after you run the installer - should be a small SSD.

 

[dlobel]

I think you may be right. Follow the directions in the TrueNAS documentation to prepare the install media: https://www.truenas.com/docs/hub/initial-setup/install/firsttimeinstall/

One of the first questions the installer will ask is whether you want to create a UEFI or BIOS boot device.

For the record, on some systems a BIOS boot device will show up on both UEFI and BIOS boot modes, but it will only work in BIOS mode. A UEFI device will never show up in a BIOS boot option list.

Edit: I think you may be confusing the ISO with the boot image. The ISO image is used to create the install device, then you run the installer to create the boot device. You need two drives: 1) first one you will write the ISO to - it can be a flash drive or CD, then 2) second device that will become the boot device after you run the installer - should be a small SSD.

thanks for you reply ... no i'm not confusing the ISO and the boot device.

I just downloaded the iso 11.1 GRUB version of FreeNAS. The problem is: the USB is not showing as aa legacy device, only UEFI. I wrote the image with Etcher.

After that I tried an oldschool version of Freenas (version 9.1.2) and it shows in both UEFI and Legacy. That version I can run from USB.

So my question is: why isn't version 11/12 of FreeNAS showing both in UEFI and Legacy after writing the iso to USB?

 

[pschatz100]

@dlobel Even if you get it running, you probably will not be happy with the system. It uses a Realtek network interface that is known to cause problems with FreeNAS/TrueNAS (which is built on FreeBSD.) You might be better off using different hardware or installing a Linux based NAS.

Good luck.

 

[dlobel]

@dlobel Even if you get it running, you probably will not be happy with the system. It uses a Realtek network interface that is known to cause problems with FreeNAS/TrueNAS (which is built on FreeBSD.) You might be better off using different hardware or installing a Linux based NAS.

Good luck.

What would you then recommend?

Btw: Yesterday I got FreeNAS 11.1 installed ... haven’t dived into it yet

 

[dlobel]

I finally got Freenas up and running. I have to say with quite a bit of headache. The problem is that the HP configuration in the BIOS is quite stubborn. After a lot of trying I found out that UEFI boot was not going to work. I then focused on Legacy (BIOS) boot. This was not easy. The USB sticks were not picked up by Legacy boot. I had created the sticks with DD, Rufus and Etcher. Finally I manually put a GRUB MBR on the stick after which I could image Feeenas 11.1. After Freenas 11.1 was fully running I was able to upgrade to version 12.

I want to thank everyone here for supporting me on this journey!

 

[pschatz100]

It does seem like more work than it should be. At least it is clear that the issue was related to the requirement for BIOS (LEGACY) boot - which will save the next person a lot of agony trying to diagnose a tricky problem. I suspect one wouldn't have this problem if they created the installer on a DVD.

Good luck with your system.

 

[ThyPredator]

I have found that installing the TrueNAS Core12 iso does not support BIOS (LEGACY) boot anymore. I have tried different versions of Rufus, Etcher, RMPprep and different USB sticks.
Seems TN12 bootable USB installer ISO is for UEFI only.
My sticks bring up the TN12 install straight away on my newer board with UEFI but not for my older server board with BIOS only.
Cheers
Tim