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Hi Romuald, |
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|
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I just replied you on the forums. |
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|
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On 02/26/2011 12:30 PM, Romuald Lobet wrote: |
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> Dear Gentoo/Alpha geeks |
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> |
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> Currently I am willing to bring an API CS20D AlphaServer, fitted with |
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> two EV68AL, back to life. I can access this very compact but very loud |
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> machine through a serial console, and ultimately get a remote display |
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> with VNC on my iMac hopefuly in a very near future. |
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> |
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> One last trick to solve: ABOOT starts the kernel, and the initrd goes up |
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> to the selection of the keymap. Then, it says: |
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> Code: |
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> !! The root block device is unspecified or not detected. |
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> Please specify a device to boot, or "shell" for a shell... |
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> boot() :: |
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> |
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> Why do I get there? |
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> |
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> Because of the simplistic hardware configuration, there is no |
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> possibility to connect a display, and it is hard to plug the box over |
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> the internet. Previously, I did start the installation from the usual |
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> minimal iso image, however the process described in the documents, using |
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> standard emerge commands was too lengthy and leave the machine in an |
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> unknown state because the compilation stopps in the middle of nowhere. |
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> So, I choose to start from the LiveCD available for download on the |
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> official website http://distfiles.gentoo.org/experimental/alpha/livecd/. |
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> |
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> Obviously, the way Gentoo works with packages allows us to do so, after |
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> all the simple "emerge --update --deep world" can do the trick to bring |
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> the live system back to the current stand. Since the current stand is |
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> moving quite fast these days, and because the settings of the compiler |
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> suite and compilable source can be a painful process that can leave this |
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> noisy and power hungry server alive for days. I think this can be a good |
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> method to cope to underlying problems of the very fluidic and fast |
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> changing Gentoo distribution. |
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> |
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> Doing so, I could finaly step over the Chapter One of Gentoo Handbook, |
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> and start with real things which are unfortunately only briefly |
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> discribed in the handbooks available on internet. But obviously, there |
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> is something not clear in the documentation, or at least the information |
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> is not well sorted, how Gentoo is Booting on AlphaServers. |
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> |
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> There is no other example of aboot.conf than the one delivered with the |
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> distribution itself, so I took it and simply copied into etc/aboot.conf |
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> of the target system. This brought the Gentoo box to a semi-finished |
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> product: After a short cp /mnt/livecd sda1 I was pretty much ready with |
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> the basic programs. The following aboot.conf summarize all trials |
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> |
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> 0:/boot/gentoo initrd=/boot/gentoo.igz root=/dev/sda1 init=/linuxrc |
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> dokeymap console=ttyS0 |
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> 1:/boot/gentoo initrd=/boot/gentoo.igz root=/dev/sda2 init=/linuxrc |
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> dokeymap console=ttyS0 |
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> 3:/boot/gentoo initrd=/boot/gentoo.igz root=/dev/ram0 init=/linuxrc |
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> dokeymap looptype=squashfs |
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> loop=/image.squashfs |
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> 4:/boot/gentoo initrd=/boot/gentoo.igz root=/dev/ram0 init=/linuxrc |
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> dokeymap looptype=squashfs |
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> loop=/image.squashfs console=ttyS0 |
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> (*) of course all files mentionned here were copied into their proper |
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> locations |
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> |
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> |
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> I had a look in the MAN Pages of aboot.conf, abootconf and aboot, but |
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> the explanation is rather simplistic. I also read the threads regarding |
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> problem configuring the bootloader and Gentoo aboot issues on alpha |
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> ev56, but I don't think we are in these cases. Thinking I just lack one |
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> parameter in my aboot.conf, it would be very interesting if someone |
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> would extend the explanation in the man pages, to include an explanation |
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> about the last parameter "cdroot" and also the meaning of "looptype" |
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> "zisofs". Perhaps I need to flash the kernel is the first sectors of the |
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> harddrive, like it is done with fd0 boot disks, using the brute-force DD |
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> command! What else will I miss, the configuration of EMERGE perhaps ? |
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> |
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> Gentoo Forums :: View Forum - Gentoo on Alternative Architectures |
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> <http://forums.gentoo.org/viewforum-f-32.html> |
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> Is the LiveCD the right method to installon Alpha: 0: 14: |
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> ali_baba_in_alpha_caves Sun Feb 20, 2011 1:00 pm: |
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> ali_baba_in_alpha_caves Sun Feb 20, 2011 1:00 pm |
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> http://forums.gentoo.org/viewforum-f-32.html |
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> |
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> Kindest regards, |
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> |
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> Romuald |