How can I fix a "no such partition Grub Rescue" error?

Question

Earlier I installed Ubuntu 10.04 from a USB flash drive.

Since the system was unable to detect Ubuntu in the initial menu that appears on reoboting, I deleted the partition onto which I had installed Ubuntu while in Windows 7.

I then installed PowerISO which prompted me to reboot the system.

Now however I get the following error:

error: no such partition
grub rescue>

How can I fix this?

Solution 1

I've just had the same problem. I found this article which explains how to fix it:

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/20864-mbr-restore-windows-7-master-boot-record.html

Solution 2

Part of GRUB lives in the Master Boot Record (MBR), while the other parts live in the Linux boot partition. Since you killed the that partition, GRUB can't load all the other files that it needs.

To fix this, you need a Windows install CD so that you can get into the recovery console. From there, use the commands FIXMBR and FIXBOOT (I think) to remove the last remaining parts of GRUB. After that, your machine should boot up as normal.

Comments

[Dan]

I've just tried this, but neither of those command were found.

[MBraedley]

@Dan: You're right, the procedure I described only works for Windows XP. I hadn't realized that it changed for Vista and 7 as I've never had to use it since XP.

[user3019105]

Sorry, what about if you do not have the Win 7 installation DVD? Is it possible to repair?

[Mokubai]

Whilst this may theoretically answer the question, it would be preferable to include the essential parts of the answer here, and provide the link for reference.