Ubuntu – “ALERT! /dev/mapper/ubuntu–vg-root does not exist “

bootlvm

When I boot up my server in Ubuntu 14.04 LTS Desktop .
I encounter this situation ,
after the screen tell you how to get into BIOS

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Then

Gave up waiting for root device. Common problem:
  - Boot args (cat /proc/cmdline)
   - Check rootdelay= (did the system wait long enough?)
   - Check root= (did the system for the right device?)
  - Missing modules (cat /proc/modules; ls/dev)
ALERT!  /dev/mapper/ubuntu--vg-root does not exist. Dropping to a shell!

BusyBox v1.21.1 (Ubuntu 1:1.21.0-1ubuntu1) built-in shell (ash)
Enter 'help' for a list of built-in commands.

(initramfs)_

after I typed exit , system could always start normally.

I have searched and found out that there are many similar problems like mine . But the answers I have tried cannot solve my situation. I'm going to describe my server environment and what I have done as detailed as possible , very appreciate for any help . It really made me annoyed because I didn't do anything special before last shutdown .

I have installed Ubuntu system with LVM mechanism.
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sudo parted -l 

I took this screenshot when the system just setup several weeks ago.
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lsblk

I have two disks , sdb is for another volume group , logical volumes on that vg are for KVM . I think it's not the matter , just mention.
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I've followed the hints to inspect :

- Boot args (cat /proc/cmdline)
 - Check rootdelay= (did the system wait long enough?) 
 - Check root= (did the system for the right device?)  

what I've got

cat /proc/cmdline  
BOOT_IMAGE=/vmlinuz-4.4.0-45-generic.efi.signed root=/dev/mapper/ubuntu—vg-root ro rootdelay=30 quiet splash 

As you can see , I've edited /etc/default/grub to add rootdelay=30, but it fixed nothing.

- Missing modules (cat /proc/modules; ls/dev)

Not really knowing what should I notice about this hint . When I list files in /dev/mapper , /dev/mapper/ubuntu–vg-swap_1 and /dev/mapper/ubuntu–vg-root are all there .

Other information that frequently asked to provide for similar problem :

cat /etc/fstab

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blkid

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I have entered into GRUB menu to boot with recovery mode , there are three pairs :

Ubuntu, with Linux 4.4.0-45-generic
Ubuntu, with Linux 4.4.0-45-generic(recovery mode)
Ubuntu, with Linux 4.4.0-42-generic
Ubuntu, with Linux 4.4.0-42-generic(recovery mode)
Ubuntu, with Linux 4.4.0-38-generic
Ubuntu, with Linux 4.4.0-38-generic(recovery mode)

But when I select any version in recovery mode to boot , just fail into BusyBox again . As I previously mentioned , after I type exit I could start system normally , but I don't think that I should do this every time , and it apparently my server have something wrong .

I really want to know what behavior or situation could cause this problem ,then I could prevent it .

LiveUSB boot environment :

sudo parted -l

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pvdisplay

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vgdisplay

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lvdisplay

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lvmdiskscan

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Best Answer

I had the same problem on a Dell XPS-13 soon after a fresh Ubuntu 16.06 install, but was unable to successfully 'exit' BusyBox.

I powered the laptop on while holding ctrl, selected System Settings from the boot menu, entered 'SATA settings' and changed from RAID to AHCI

Apparently RAID harddrives aren't supported by Ubuntu

This immediately solved the problem for me

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