[ale] Can't Log In After LVM2 Removal

[Jeff Hubbs]

I'm trying to take the default LVM2 arrangement out from within a CentOS 
5.4 install and replace it with the classic three-primary-partition 
arrangement...my machine boots up and I get a login prompt, but when I 
try to log in I see for an instant "no shell. permission denied."  Net 
doesn't start so I can't shell in.

Permissions of /root, /bin/bash, /etc/passwd and everything else I can 
think of are rwx for root...the tarball I made from the LV contents used 
a "p" in the args coming and going.

I've put some things in root's crontab and rc.local that do file writes; 
I am led to believe that my / is read-only when I boot.

I can boot up to single-user mode and my / is read-write, for what it's 
worth.

What might I have missed?