Use GPT for "advanced format" drives. Create your partitions with GPT Fdisk (gdisk). If it's a boot disk, and your machine uses BIOS, then use a hybrid boot record. <br><br>In regard to the format specifically, my write up on it gets a fair number of hits -- <a href="http://jrfom.com/2010/05/03/4kb-sectors/">http://jrfom.com/2010/05/03/4kb-sectors/</a><span></span><br>
<br>On Sunday, May 13, 2012, PairOfTwins wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">Anyone:<br>
<br>
This was home server upgrade weekend, I thought. Bought a WD15EARX on<br>
sale, installed Zentyal, and found after an apparently successful<br>
installation, that the partition with the OS on it had pages of errors,<br>
according to e2fsck.<br>
<br>
Next 2 installations failed during "Select and install software" step,<br>
both stable and beta versions, though both CDs passed the iso verify check.<br>
<br>
I had partitioned ahead of time with fdisk and each start sector was<br>
evenly divisible by 8.<br>
<br>
Then I installed a freshly verified burn of Ubuntu Server 12.04 using<br>
those same partitions.<br>
<br>
When finished the alignment was whacked:<br>
<br>
root@PartedMagic:~# fdisk -lu /dev/sda<br>
Disk /dev/sda: 1500.3 GB, 1500301910016 bytes<br>
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 182401 cylinders, total 2930277168 sectors<br>
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes<br>
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 4096 bytes<br>
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 4096 bytes / 4096 bytes<br>
Disk identifier: 0x000ad2bd<br>
Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System<br>
/dev/sda1 2048 2930687 1464320 82 Linux swap / Solaris<br>
/dev/sda2 * 2930688 31602687 14336000 83 Linux<br>
/dev/sda3 31604734 2930276351 1449335809 5 Extended<br>
Partition 3 does not start on physical sector boundary.<br>
/dev/sda5 31604736 34471935 1433600 83 Linux<br>
/dev/sda6 34473984 2041513983 1003520000 83 Linux<br>
/dev/sda7 2041516032 2930276351 444380160 83 Linux<br>
root@PartedMagic:~#<br>
<br>
<br>
Plus e2fsck showed a page of errors on the OS partition sda2, whose<br>
alignment looks OK, though I had to force a check, as it thought it was<br>
clean.<br>
<br>
root@PartedMagic:~# e2fsck /dev/sda2<br>
e2fsck 1.42.2 (27-Mar-2012)<br>
UbuntuSvr: clean, 55618/897600 files, 364573/3584000 blocks<br>
root@PartedMagic:~# e2fsck -f /dev/sda2<br>
e2fsck 1.42.2 (27-Mar-2012)<br>
Pass 1: Checking inodes, blocks, and sizes<br>
Pass 2: Checking directory structure<br>
Entry '.' in<br>
/usr/src/linux-headers-3.2.0-23-generic/include/config/usb/whci (398464)<br>
has an incorrect filetype (was 42, should be 2).<br>
Fix<y>? yes<br>
Entry 'hcd.h' in<br>
/usr/src/linux-headers-3.2.0-23-generic/include/config/usb/whci (398464)<br>
has an incorrect filetype (was 33, should be 1).<br>
Fix<y>? yes<br>
Entry '.' in ??? (398477) has an incorrect filetype (was 14, should be 2).<br>
Fix<y>? yes<br>
Entry '..' in ??? (398477) has invalid inode #: 705041315.<br>
Clear<y>? yes<br>
Entry 'elan.h' in ??? (398477) has an incorrect filetype (was 9, should<br>
be 1).<br>
Fix<y>? yes<br>
Pass 3: Checking directory connectivity<br>
'..' in /usr/src/linux-headers-3.2.0-23-generic/include/config/usb/ftdi<br>
(398477) is ??? (705041315), should be<br>
/usr/src/linux-headers-3.2.0-23-generic/include/config/usb (398243).<br>
Fix<y>? yes<br>
Error while adjusting inode count on inode 0<br>
Pass 4: Checking reference counts<br>
Inode 398243 ref count is 42, should be 41. Fix<y>? yes<br>
Pass 5: Checking group summary information<br>
<br>
UbuntuSvr: ***** FILE SYSTEM WAS MODIFIED *****<br>
UbuntuSvr: 55618/897600 files (0.2% non-contiguous), 364573/3584000 blocks<br>
root@PartedMagic:~#<br>
<br>
BTW the SMART error log is always clean.<br>
<br>
I'm tired of googling, and ready for a fresh set of eyes to tell me what<br>
I'm missing here!<br>
<br>
Tom<br>
_______________________________________________<br>
Ale mailing list<br>
<a href="javascript:;" onclick="_e(event, 'cvml', 'Ale@ale.org')">Ale@ale.org</a><br>
<a href="http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale" target="_blank">http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale</a><br>
See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at<br>
<a href="http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo" target="_blank">http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo</a><br>
</blockquote><br><br>-- <br>James Sumners<br><a href="http://james.roomfullofmirrors.com/">http://james.roomfullofmirrors.com/</a><br><br>"All governments suffer a recurring problem: Power attracts pathological personalities. It is not that power corrupts but that it is magnetic to the corruptible. Such people have a tendency to become drunk on violence, a condition to which they are quickly addicted."<br>
<br>Missionaria Protectiva, Text QIV (decto)<br>CH:D 59<br>