Date: Mon, 7 May 2001 22:06:03 +0200 (CEST) From: James Tapping <james@fr.clara.net> To: Ian Thomas <ipthomas_77@yahoo.com> Cc: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: Re: freebsd bootdisk Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.21.0105072204160.5444-100000@munster.noc.fr.clara.net> In-Reply-To: <20010507163947.30814.qmail@web11304.mail.yahoo.com>
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Hello I got it sorted, I win the daft prize :-) I rechecked the BIOS settings and there are actually several pages, on the third there is a good old fashioned "first boot device etc", I do have the excuse thats it's all in French and I'm not , Thanks for your help and all the others who replied James On Mon, 7 May 2001, Ian Thomas wrote: > Did this machine originally have DOS one of its > variants(DR DOS) on it. I had an old drive that had > an old DOS bootloader on it that I had a heckuva time > removing. Once the DOS OS was gone it wouldn't see a > filesystem it recognized and would ask for a boot > disk. I know there is a way to write over the first > part of a disk with dd but I don't remember how(I > think I saw it on this list). I know it's a long shot > but see if you can get a serial number off the mobo > and find out more info on it. I have an old IBM > thinkpad that gives me no bios options at all. It > used to have WIN 3.1 on it. Let me know how it turns > out, I'm going to be playing around with two old 486's > myself in the next few weeks. > > Ian > --- James Tapping <james@fr.clara.net> wrote: > > > > > > On Sun, 6 May 2001, Sue Blake wrote: > > > > > Follow-ups to James and -questions please. > > > No discussion of install problems should be held > > on -newbies. > > > > > > On Sat, May 05, 2001 at 01:47:02PM +0200, James > > Tapping wrote: > > > > > > > > Hello > > > > > > > > I am new too FreeBSD and coming from the linux > > world...I have an old > > > > 486 machine that I use as a NAT gateway using > > Debian Linux, and I > > > > have never managed to get the machine to boot > > from the harddrive > > > > (even after using a /boot partition etc), so i > > quite happily use a > > > > boot-diskette. So my question is what and how > > does one do the > > > > equivalent thing in FreeBSD? > > > > > > That arrangement is a Linuxism that I've heard of > > before but don't > > > fully understand. There is no direct equivalent > > for FreeBSD, because > > > the two operating systems boot entirely > > differently. In order to solve > > > your problem for FreeBSD, you need to start again > > with a totally > > > FreeBSD approach, first defining the problem in an > > OS-independent > > > manner. > > > > > > > Yes, I have tried installing a FreeBSD on the > > machine and it doesn't > > > > want to boot either, the machine justs asks for > > a diskette (nothing > > > > in the bios settings either, its an IBM 433 DXS) > > > > > > > > Any ideas? > > > > > > What version of FreeBSD are you installing? > > > > 4.3 > > > > > How much RAM does the machine have? > > > > 16MB > > > > > How big is the hard disk, are you using all of it > > > > 3.2 gig and yes > > > > Slicing, I used all of it... > > > > > Did the standard FreeBSD installation succeed? > > > > Yes until the moment where the machine reboots. And > > then of course it > > dosen't :-) I don't see the words freeBSD atall, I > > get an ascii drawing > > obviously asking me to put a diskette in the > > drive..., this comes from > > the PC and nothing to do with Freebsd...It's an old > > machine and I am sure > > that this is where the problem is coming from. > > > > > How much RAM does the machine have? That could be > > a limiting factor. > > > How big is the hard disk, are you using all of it, > > and how have you > > > sliced it (DOSSpeak=partition) for FreeBSD? We > > usually use a single > > > slice and make partitions within that, unlike > > Linux. > > > Did the standard FreeBSD installation succeed? If > > so, where > > > do you first read the word "FreeBSD" when you try > > to boot? > > > > > > If the machine has FreeBSD installed and is asking > > for a boot diskette, > > > I can't imagine that it would be FreeBSD making > > that request. Perhaps > > > scraps of the old boot manager remain? > > > > > > > please reply personally as I am not subscribed > > to questions@ on newbies > > > > > > No problem. > > > > > > Perhaps you'll see someone on freebsd-questions > > correct me (and cc you) > > > if I've said anything wrong. Meanwhile, James, can > > you provide some > > > more information to freebsd-questions so that the > > support volunteers > > > can help you? Exactly what have you got, and what > > have you done with it > > > so far? If anyone can help you, they will do so on > > freebsd-questions > > > with a cc to you but you might have to help the > > helpers a little more. > > > > > > -- > > > > > > Regards, > > > -*Sue*- > > > > Thanks :-) > > > > > > > > > > > To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org > > > with "unsubscribe freebsd-newbies" in the body of > > the message > > > > > > > > > To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org > > with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of > > the message > > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Yahoo! Auctions - buy the things you want at great prices > http://auctions.yahoo.com/ > To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message
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