On Fri, Feb 06, 2004 at 10:08:49AM -0500, Aron Griffis wrote:
> Jay Maynard wrote:	[Fri Feb 06 2004, 03:39:19AM EST]
> > I was able to get there by defining both DOS partitions and BSD disklabels,
> > with identical layouts.
> I'd be curious to see this.  Would you post the partition tables?

cdimage root # fdisk /dev/sda
This disk has both DOS and BSD magic.
Give the 'b' command to go to BSD mode.

Command (m for help): p

Disk /dev/sda: 4290 MB, 4290600960 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 521 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

   Device Boot    Start       End    Blocks   Id  System
/dev/sda1             3        34    257040   82  Linux swap
/dev/sda2            35       521   3911827+  83  Linux

Command (m for help): b

BSD disklabel command (m for help): p

3 partitions:
#       start       end      size     fstype   [fsize bsize   cpg]
  a:        3        34        32       swap
  b:       35       521       487       ext2
  c:        1       521       521     unused        0     0

BSD disklabel command (m for help): q
cdimage root # 

The same trick works for /dev/rd/disc0/disc, for the DAC960. I don't know
how far this can be pushed, but I suspect that it will work as long as
partitions can be defined in the DOS table with the same dimensions as the
partitions in the BSD disklabel. I don't think they have to be in the same
order,, and I think that partitions in an extended DOS partition can be defined
to match partitions in the BSD disklabel. I haven't played with any of this,
however. It's only necessary until the system is installed far enough to be
booted off of the target disk. I suspect, but haven't verified, that writing
aboot to the drive will overlay the DOS partition table, and so the system
cannot be rebooted from the LiveCD and used to work with the target disk
once that has been done without redefining a DOS partition table (and, thus,
clobbering aboot).

--
gentoo-alpha@g.o mailing list