I don't know if this will work for you, but I had this same problem a
couple months ago trying to install RedHat 7.3 onto a new box.  I was
having a kernel panic error just minutes into the install.  7.1 would
install fine, and the 7.3 cds worked on another machine.

My machine was running Duron 950 and I can't remember the manufacture of
the motherboard (I will look it up when I get home) with and AMI BIOS. 
Anyway, I came across a web site that made referance to a BIOS setting.  I
had to disable some power management feature and that fixed it for me.  I
have been running the box as a server for over 2 months now, and not a
single problem since then.

> Hello again, folks.  Last week I decided Mandrake 8.1 just wasn't new
> enough for me now that I have a cable modem, so I downloaded the 8.2
> CDs,  repartitioned my drive, and attempted to install the new version.
> Got a  kernel panic -- can't mount root partition -- a few seconds into
> loading  the installer.  Here's what I've tried so far:
>
> * Are the CDs bad?  No, I checked them against the images, and checked
> the  images against the checksums available online.
> * Is my drive unsupported?  No, it still works with the 8.1 CDs, and
> swapping out the drive for another doesn't help.
> * Is my K6 processor unsupported?  No, it still works with 8.1, and
> "expert  nopentium" at the boot prompt doesn't help.
> * Is the problem with Mandrake?  No, I downloaded Red Hat 7.3 and the
> same  thing happens.
> * Would it help to upgrade to 8.2 rather than install directly?  That
> gets  around the kernel panic, but a number of packages don't upgrade
> correctly,  and the system winds up halfway between 8.1 and 8.2.
>
> Anyway, I'm realizing that the bigger problem here is that I'm not
> enough  of a geek to figure out what's going on.  I live in Lyn-Lake --
> surely  there are other Linux folks nearby who are better at this stuff
> than I  am.  My roommate and I are pretty good cooks, and Uptown Pizza
> is only 2  blocks away.  So if anybody out there is up for a challenge
> and hungry for  dinner, please write to me.
>
> Thanks in advance!  --Ben
>
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