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My Debian (Wheezy) server has been running smoothly for a very long time with no indications of any problems. I had it running 24/7 so it was always on. The other day my power went out and when I tired to turn it back on, it freezes during it's boot process. I Googled the issue but the responses were way over my head. I am extremely new to debian/linux/unix/CLI. I booted into Ubuntu from a USB and mounted the hard drive and so I saw that all my files were there and not corrupt but I still can't boot into it normally. Below I have included a picture of what the server is saying. It stays at this screen forever.

Screenshot

I don't think the mount failed is the cause, that is just because I removed a hard drive that was mounted. Before I removed that drive it was still hanging at this step. Does anyone know if I can fix this? Again I am very new to all of this so if possible, try to keep everything basic.

Thank You so much!

P.S. If I am in a position that I can't fix this, could I backup the files, re-install Debian and copy the files back over?

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  • Yes, you may be able to backup your files and reinstall. Why not try booting off a livecd, to see that your files still exist, and your system works when booted from a livecd.
    – Zoredache
    Feb 4, 2013 at 23:26
  • @Zoredache If I boot off a live Debian Cd and everything works, it there a way to just install the boot process onto my drive without re-partitioning it or formatting it?
    – DonJuma
    Feb 5, 2013 at 0:58
  • did you try to boot with older installed kernel (if exists)? Jun 2, 2021 at 15:24
  • Could you boot your original debian (wheezy) installation media in rescue mode Jun 2, 2021 at 15:26

2 Answers 2

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There are several things to do with a non-booting server. If your server had been running for a while without any issues, and you have been doing updates, it is very likely that a new kernel was installed.

Additionally, if you haven't rebooted since then, it is possible that it never worked. First thing to check is if there are other options on the boot menu. When a new kernel is installed, the old is is still kept around.

There should be two options per installed kernel. One normal and one recovery. If you have an older version of the kernel you can choose, go ahead and do that (the non-recovery one). With any luck, this will resolve your issue straight away.

Failing that, the next thing to do is to go into recovery mode. If you can get to a prompt in recovery mode, it would suggest that there really is nothing serious wrong with your system and it can likely be resolved easily.

If you can't get to single user mode on one of your kernel versions, then you will have to use a recovery disk. The most likely culprit is a kernel update though and dropping back to an earlier version should fix it.

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Yes, you could rescue your system.

Disclaimer:

Before writting on disk, do backup of all your sensible datas!!

By

  • boot your installation media on rescue mode. If you don't have them anymore, you could use minimal Debian 7.11 amd64.iso, Debian 7.11 i386 or any other from Debian Archives CD.
    • Advanced options -> Rescue mode... Configure locales...
      • Enter rescue mode
        • Reinstall GRUB boot loader

        • Execute a shell in /dev/...

          update-initramfs -u -k all
          update-grub
          

Note, you could do 1st step by using any live CD, but Debian CD will mount all dependencies. And same version of debian installer than your installed OS will use same kernel version. This will avoid incompatibility issues.

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