12-27-2013 10:23 AM - edited 03-04-2019 09:57 PM
Hello,
I have two MS-DOS (FAT 16) 512MB Compact Flash cards (Cisco brand) and I can't seem to get my either of my two 2811 routers to read these cards in rommon.
I can read them on my PC and I have confirmed FAT 16 formatting. When I boot the router, rommon reports
open(): Open Error = -66
boot: cannot open "flash:"
boot: cannot determine first executible file name on device "flash:".
If I load an image from tftp using tftpdnld -r, it loads a 15.1 image successfully into memory and I have subsequently formatted the CF card (format flash: ) from IOS successfully. show flash: works fine. I have even copied another image over to the 512MB flash via my IOS session using tftp. IOS doesn't have any issues with the CF card. I can do a "show flash: all" and it reports multiple partitions. However, when reload the router, the boot stage dumps execution control into rommon indicating that it can't read the CF card ... error -66 again.
I have looked at Cisco's Using Compfact Flash Memory cards whitepaper and read some other posts where the poster indicated the CF card lost its partitions. However, in my case, i have reformatted using "format flash:" which should create a class C filesystem.
I have also seen various posts that indicate the 2811 can support up to 2GB flash sizes so this 512MB card should be fine.
Any ideas? this seems more complicated that it should be.
Thanks in advance...
Will
Solved! Go to Solution.
12-28-2013 01:10 AM
well, thats a good question. they were purchased off eBay as authentic CF cards.
The reason why I ask this obvious question is because some else posted a similar issue with their so-called "Cisco" branded CF that was recently purchased from e-Bay. The thread was about two weeks old.
Well, the CF didn't work because they weren't really "Cisco" CF. So when he got another non-Cisco branded CF they worked.
I am suspecting you got your CF from the same seller.
My recommendation is go to your favorite electronics shop and get two different brand of 2Gb (or up to 4 Gb) CF and try both of them out.
12-27-2013 11:05 AM
In rommon have you initialized the flash before trying to read it?
12-27-2013 04:52 PM
thanks for the reply. how would I initialize the flash beforehand within rommon? I looked through the published rommon command set but didn't see anything relevant other than reset command.
that said, I tried set without success. it just reports:
Upgrade ROMMON initialized
program load complete, entry point: 0x8000f000, size: 0xcb80
open(): Open Error = -66
boot: cannot open "flash:"
boot: cannot determine first executable file name on device "flash:"
c2811 platform with 524288 Kbytes of main memory
Main memory is configured to 64 bit mode with ECC enabled
this is bizarre because IOS can read it but it seems like its just rommon that can't.
12-27-2013 05:02 PM
Try typing flash_init
12-27-2013 05:09 PM
that command is not supported in my current rommon version. :-(
I had read one posting where someone had a similar issue so he upgraded rommon but it didn't make a difference. he eventually indicated his particular issue was tied to the fact that the partitions on the CF card were corrupt. so not sure if its worth trying to ugprade the rommon ??
not sure how to check the version while within rommon either. i tried cookie but its a rather cryptic output.
12-27-2013 05:14 PM
In rommon of you type dir flash: do you get the -66 error?
12-27-2013 05:50 PM
I do.
So check this out ... I booted this router (2811) using a TFTP image using tftpdnld -r to avoid rommon from attempting to write to flash after pulling the image over the network.
Once the IOS image was decompressed and loaded into memory, I did the following successfull command
displaying the flash in detail:
R10#show flash: all
-#- --length-- -----date/time------ path
1 67878324 Dec 27 2013 06:48:16 +00:00 c2800nm-adventerprisek9-mz.151-4.M6-512D.bin
443416576 bytes available (67936256 bytes used)
******** ATA Flash Card Geometry/Format Info ********
ATA CARD GEOMETRY
Manufacturer Name
Model Number WDC SSD-C51M-4430
Serial Number CB29524751501GC28D03
Firmware Revision 3.27
Number of Heads 16
Number of Cylinders 993
Sectors per Cylinder 63
Sector Size 512
Total Sectors 1000944
ATA PARTITION 1 INFO
Start Sector 233
Number of Sectors 1000711
Size in Bytes 512364032
File System Type FAT32
Number of FAT Sectors 978
Sectors Per Cluster 8
Number of Clusters 124842
Number of Data Sectors 998736
Base FAT Sector 12
Base Root Sector NA
Base Data Sector 1968
Root Cluster 2
Backup Boot Sector 0
FS Info Sector 1
ATA MONLIB INFO
Image Monlib size 123036
Disk Monlib Size NA
Disk Space Available NA
Name NA
End Sector NA
Start sector NA
Updated By NA
Version NA
R10#
Then I formatted the flash using IOS successfully:
R10#format flash:
Format operation may take a while. Continue? [confirm]
Format operation will destroy all data in "flash:". Continue? [confirm]
Format: All system sectors written. OK...
Format: Total sectors in formatted partition: 1000711
Format: Total bytes in formatted partition: 512364032
Format: Operation completed successfully.
Format of flash: complete
R10#
Then I displayed the device again - noting that IOS can read this flash device successfully:
R10#show flash:
No files on device
511348736 bytes available (4096 bytes used)
R10#
Then I rebooted the router and execution dumps into rommon:
R10#reload
Proceed with reload? [confirm]
*Dec 28 02:07:31.951: %SYS-5-RELOAD: Reload requested by console. Reload Reason: Reload Command.
System Bootstrap, Version 12.4(13r)T11, RELEASE SOFTWARE (fc1)
Technical Support: http://www.cisco.com/techsupport
Copyright (c) 2009 by cisco Systems, Inc.
Initializing memory for ECC
..
c2811 platform with 524288 Kbytes of main memory
Main memory is configured to 64 bit mode with ECC enabled
Upgrade ROMMON initialized
program load complete, entry point: 0x8000f000, size: 0xcb80
open(): Open Error = -66
loadprog: error - on file open
boot: cannot load "flash:c2800nm-adventerprisek9-mz.151-4.M6-512D.bin"
c2811 platform with 524288 Kbytes of main memory
Main memory is configured to 64 bit mode with ECC enabled
Upgrade ROMMON initialized
program load complete, entry point: 0x8000f000, size: 0xcb80
open(): Open Error = -66
boot: cannot open "flash:"
boot: cannot determine first executable file name on device "flash:"
c2811 platform with 524288 Kbytes of main memory
Main memory is configured to 64 bit mode with ECC enabled
Upgrade ROMMON initialized
program load complete, entry point: 0x8000f000, size: 0xcb80
open(): Open Error = -66
boot: cannot open "flash:"
boot: cannot determine first executable file name on device "flash:"
c2811 platform with 524288 Kbytes of main memory
Main memory is configured to 64 bit mode with ECC enabled
Upgrade ROMMON initialized
Entering rommon> prompt after several failed attempts to boot an IOS image.
Please check your internal/external flash drives for the correct IOS image
and issue 'reset' at the rommon> prompt to re-try the boot process.
Then I display the flash characteristics again (unsuccessfully):
rommon 1 > dir flash:
program load complete, entry point: 0x8000f000, size: 0xcb80
open(): Open Error = -66
dir: cannot open device "flash:"
rommon 2 > dev
Devices in device table:
id name
flash: compact flash
bootflash: boot flash
usbflash0: usbflash0
usbflash1: usbflash1
eprom: eprom
rommon 3 >
I am baffled.
12-27-2013 06:20 PM
Can you create a smaller partition, say 128mb, format as fat16? In Windows of course and not a quick format.
10-10-2015 07:42 PM
Two years later. Hopefully it helps someone else.
I had the same problem. Looks like doing the low-level filesystem "erase flash" worked.Instead of DOS "format flash"
Curious what the
ATA MONLIB INFO
section does. The DOS filesystem 128MB real Cisco flash card has values there where yours and mine did not for the format flash fake card. That section is not there for an "erase flash" type "format"
12-27-2013 05:57 PM
Can you post the results of a dev
12-27-2013 08:32 PM
hi there ... dev resutls are actually at the tail end of my long post above.
I should also note that I have tried both fat16 and fat32 as 2800 series CF documenation indicates it supports both. but resutls are the same.
i can create a smaller partition using fat16 using windows diskpart utility. i may try 256MB because i pulled a 256MB lexar CF out of this very router and it was fine.
12-27-2013 10:59 PM
I have subsequently partitioned the 512MB CF card into a 256MB partition without success. I went a step further and partitioned down to 128MB without any luck. I put a 64MB CF card in and it works just fine. I was really hoping to use these 512MB Cisco CF cards.
I did end up going into privilged rommon mode and an initfs didn't do much. A "flash: erase" failed with error code -72. A "flash: info" reports its full size of 512MB.
12-27-2013 02:21 PM
Are you sure this is a "Cisco" branded CF?
12-27-2013 04:54 PM
well, thats a good question. they were purchased off eBay as authentic CF cards. I have used non-Cisco cards with success in the past however ... i.e. 256MB Lexar card. But given that IOS can read these cards if I boot from a tftp IOS image, wouldn't that help speak to the integrity of the CF card and its formatting?
12-28-2013 01:10 AM
well, thats a good question. they were purchased off eBay as authentic CF cards.
The reason why I ask this obvious question is because some else posted a similar issue with their so-called "Cisco" branded CF that was recently purchased from e-Bay. The thread was about two weeks old.
Well, the CF didn't work because they weren't really "Cisco" CF. So when he got another non-Cisco branded CF they worked.
I am suspecting you got your CF from the same seller.
My recommendation is go to your favorite electronics shop and get two different brand of 2Gb (or up to 4 Gb) CF and try both of them out.
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