Booting from a USB on a PC Syslinux Boot Promt

Question

I have a corrupted version of Windows 7 on my PC so I can't boot up anymore. I have all my data saved on a SSD so im not loosing anything. I thought this would be the perfect time to try Ubuntu. I created a Bootable USB using PendriveLinux and now my 8GB USB is ready. I went to the Boot Menu on my BIOS and selected my USB. The screen turned black for a second and then some text popped up. SYSLINUX 4.07 EDD 2013-07-25 Copyright (C) 1994-2013 H. Peter Anvin et al and then it says boot:.

Any help?

Notes:

• Delete SYSLINUX file didn't work (it says no config file found).
• I used pendrivelinux.com/universal-usb-installer-easy-as-1-2-3 to make the bootable USB.

Answer 1

The Could not find kernel image: linux error typically occurs on USB flash drive Linux installations if syslinux could not find the configuration file syslinux.cfg. This configuration file is used to tell syslinux where your kernel image and initrd files are located. In the following section we will cover some of the basic things to look for if you are encountering this boot error.

How to fix Could not find kernel image: linux error:

Use the following troubleshooting guide to assist in fixing the error.

1. Make sure that the syslinux.cfg file exists on the USB flash drive. Depending on which version of linux you have installed to your flash drive, the syslinux.cfg file should be found at the root of the drive or within the /boot/syslinux or /syslinux directory
2. If a file named isolinux.cfg exists and syslinux.cfg does not, rename isolinux.cfg to syslinux.cfg
3. If the syslinux.cfg file does exist and your still encountering the error, open the syslinux.cfg file with a text editor and make sure that the paths to your kernel and initrd files are correct.

Note: With newer versions of syslinux, you may need to check text.cfg for the paths to initrd and kernel in step 3, instead of syslinux.cfg

source

Answer 2

Download the windows program "Rufus" to make a Bootable USB or CD from your Ubuntu ISO file, it will request to download files from internet, accept the request and continue the burning process, boot your USB via the BIOS boot order or manual boot selection. It seems to have a very high compatibility with Linux operating systems.

Answer 3

If none of the above work for you, what worked for me is to NOT rename the isolinux.cfg to syslinux.cfg in the isolinux folder, the reason to not rename it is that syslinux.cfg already exists in another folder and is a completely different .cfg file (this may have changed with updates to the program, universal USB installer and how it populates/used to populate USB's with the data).

I went back to the top level of the USB and found the syslinux.cfg in the uui folder (USB installer creates this name for your USB drive and folder) after looking up how linux looks for the files upon boot (/boot/syslinux/syslinux.cfg, or /syslinux/syslinux.cfg or /syslinux.cfg) these are the only three places it looks for the file while trying to boot (1 in a boot folder, then inside of a syslinux folder, 2 in a syslinux folder on the top level of the USB (this is the reason that renaming the folder and files usually works) and 3 top level with the .cfg file not inside of a folder.

Also note that the original syslinux.cfg (in the uui folder) is populated by the installer program and is NOT from the .iso file you downloaded and thus is changed/ adapted for each and every program on the list explaining why it works for some without any adjustments while others have issues. If you open the syslinux.cfg file in notepad etc. you will notice that all it does is call out the location directory /isolinux/isolinux.cfg for the beginning of the boot (preboot in a way) to redirect linux to the real boot file since it is stored outside of the default locations that linux looks for the boot file but since it is in the uui folder and not in one of the three places linux looks while booting it gets overlooked like it doesn’t exist.

In summary, go into the uui folder and copy the syslinux.cfg file in that folder, go back up to the top level of your USB where all the folders for the program are at and text files to read and paste the .cfg file onto the top level of your USB. I was using a FAT32 format and 64bit version.