From owner-freebsd-current Mon Nov 25 17:28:54 1996 Return-Path: owner-current Received: (from root@localhost) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) id RAA25529 for current-outgoing; Mon, 25 Nov 1996 17:28:54 -0800 (PST) Received: from godzilla.zeta.org.au (godzilla.zeta.org.au [203.2.228.19]) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) with ESMTP id RAA25488 for ; Mon, 25 Nov 1996 17:28:22 -0800 (PST) Received: (from bde@localhost) by godzilla.zeta.org.au (8.8.3/8.6.9) id MAA19052; Tue, 26 Nov 1996 12:22:12 +1100 Date: Tue, 26 Nov 1996 12:22:12 +1100 From: Bruce Evans Message-Id: <199611260122.MAA19052@godzilla.zeta.org.au> To: jgreco@brasil.moneng.mei.com, mark@grondar.za Subject: Re: 2.2-ALPHA install failure Cc: freebsd-current@FreeBSD.ORG, jkh@time.cdrom.com, joerg_wunsch@uriah.heep.sax.de, phk@critter.tfs.com, rgrimes@gndrsh.aac.dev.com Sender: owner-current@FreeBSD.ORG X-Loop: FreeBSD.org Precedence: bulk >My standard procedure is to use a DOS boot disk to > >fdisk /mbr >fdisk <= create DOS partition >format : > >and then boot FreeBSD. I have never had a problem with sysinstall that >I can recall, when doing this... it always "discovers" a usable geometry. This won't work with geometry-detecting SCSI BIOSes if the partition table has suitable non-garbage in it. Try it with a X/1/1 prepared by a previous installation of FreeBSD. The kernel must be kept entirely below 512KB for booting with such a geometry. >I will probably switch to Rod's X/64/32 thing for SCSI disks, as I have >used that occasionally in the past and never seemed to have any problems, >but I wasn't too sure about it. The kernel must be kept entirely below 1GB for booting with a X/64/32 geometry. This is usually arranged by keeping the boot partition entirely below 1GB. My standard procedure for new SCSI disks is to use a FreeBSD boot disk to: boot with -v note (vendor-supplied) geometry for future reference back up MBR for future reference write 0's to MBR reboot boot with -v note default geometry for future reference fdisk. Specify a geometry of X/255/63. Create a dummy partition with start = 63 and size = ((some multiple of 255*63) - 63). reboot boot with -v fdisk. Check that geometry is now X/255/63. If not, try another geometry... fdisk, sysinstall: enter this geometry if the default is wrong. The default is likely to be wrong only if you've cleared the dummy partition. new IDE disks is easier: run BIOS setup and choose the biggest available geometry boot with -v and check that this geometry is used fdisk, sysinstall: enter this geometry if the default is wrong. The default is likely to be wrong if you haven't entered a dummy partition or if the partition table has garbage in it. For disks with existing partitions that must be preserved: boot with -v and note the current geometry run fdisk or sysinstall and check that the default geometry is the same. If it is different, then you have a serious configuration error (perhaps for a dedicated disk :-). Fix it before continuing. Bruce