Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Discussions about using Linux guests in VirtualBox.
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Tummymunster
Posts: 10
Joined: 14. Jun 2019, 02:42

Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by Tummymunster »

My guest is on Ubuntu 18.04 and a recent Ubuntu update messed up the way my VM boots. I can no longer just press Start in VirtualBox and boot the VM regularly. I'd have to get to the grub menu, 'Advanced options for Ubuntu', then 'Ubuntu, with Linux 4.15.0-54-generic (recovery mode)'. Once the recovery menu is loaded I can 'Resume normal boot' and it will boot up fine. If I just try to boot normally in VirtualBox, I'd get stuck on a dark purple screen. How can I fix this?
socratis
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Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
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Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by socratis »

Tummymunster wrote:My guest is on Ubuntu 18.04 and a recent Ubuntu update messed up the way my VM boots
I just updated Ubuntu 18.04 last night with no ill effects. A couple of times actually, since I had a snapshot which I reverted to.

We need to see a complete VBox.log, from a complete VM run, where the problem occurs:
  • Start the VM from cold-boot (not from a paused or saved state) / Observe problem / Shutdown the VM (force close it if you have to).
  • With the VM completely shut down (not paused or saved), right-click on the VM in the VirtualBox Manager and select "Show Log".
  • Save only the first "VBox.log", ZIP it and attach it to your response. See the "Upload attachment" tab below the reply form.
Image
Do NOT send me Personal Messages (PMs) for troubleshooting, they are simply deleted.
Do NOT reply with the "QUOTE" button, please use the "POST REPLY", at the bottom of the form.
If you obfuscate any information requested, I will obfuscate my response. These are virtual UUIDs, not real ones.
Tummymunster
Posts: 10
Joined: 14. Jun 2019, 02:42

Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by Tummymunster »

Thank you, I have attached the log.
Attachments
Ubuntu-2019-07-06-22-03-35.zip
vbox.log
(33.4 KiB) Downloaded 20 times
mpack
Site Moderator
Posts: 39156
Joined: 4. Sep 2008, 17:09
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Mostly XP

Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by mpack »

Grub errors usually mean that the hard disk UUID has changed, usually due to cloning. Has this VM been cloned from a working one?
Tummymunster
Posts: 10
Joined: 14. Jun 2019, 02:42

Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by Tummymunster »

mpack wrote:Grub errors usually mean that the hard disk UUID has changed, usually due to cloning. Has this VM been cloned from a working one?
Yes, I used your cloning tool to consolidate my snapshots into 1. I was able to boot no problem for a few weeks after I cloned. Then after a Ubuntu update, it suddenly stopped booting normally.
mpack
Site Moderator
Posts: 39156
Joined: 4. Sep 2008, 17:09
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Mostly XP

Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by mpack »

The problem I refer to would appear immediately, assuming the VM is booted, and not restarted from a hibernated state somehow - i.e. the grub code has to run for the problem to appear.
Tummymunster
Posts: 10
Joined: 14. Jun 2019, 02:42

Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by Tummymunster »

Are you saying since it is not appearing immediately, it doesn't have to do with the UUID? In what way does the a resume normal boot in grub differ from a regular boot?
mpack
Site Moderator
Posts: 39156
Joined: 4. Sep 2008, 17:09
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Mostly XP

Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by mpack »

I'm not sure how to answer that, because I have no idea what a "resume normal boot" would be. You are either booting or resuming, not both. Grub is only involved when booting, and the UUID only matters when grub is involved.
socratis
Site Moderator
Posts: 27330
Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Win(*>98), Linux*, OSX>10.5
Location: Greece

Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by socratis »

BTW, moving from "Windows Hosts" to "Linux Guests", the problem is with the guest, not with the host.
Do NOT send me Personal Messages (PMs) for troubleshooting, they are simply deleted.
Do NOT reply with the "QUOTE" button, please use the "POST REPLY", at the bottom of the form.
If you obfuscate any information requested, I will obfuscate my response. These are virtual UUIDs, not real ones.
Tummymunster
Posts: 10
Joined: 14. Jun 2019, 02:42

Re: Cannot boot Ubuntu guest unless through Grub recovery mode

Post by Tummymunster »

This is the resume normal boot I'm talking about: https://i.imgur.com/MHBewNE.png

I can only boot from here and I would have assumed this is the same as regular boot but this is the only option I can choose to make my VM work.
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