From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Tue Sep 18 11:43:01 2007 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5179716A420 for ; Tue, 18 Sep 2007 11:43:01 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from martin@dc.cis.okstate.edu) Received: from dc.cis.okstate.edu (dc.cis.okstate.edu [139.78.100.219]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4653A13C491 for ; Tue, 18 Sep 2007 11:43:01 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from martin@dc.cis.okstate.edu) Received: from dc.cis.okstate.edu (localhost.cis.okstate.edu [127.0.0.1]) by dc.cis.okstate.edu (8.13.8/8.13.8) with ESMTP id l8IBW7wS075929 for ; Tue, 18 Sep 2007 06:32:07 -0500 (CDT) (envelope-from martin@dc.cis.okstate.edu) Message-Id: <200709181132.l8IBW7wS075929@dc.cis.okstate.edu> To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-ID: <75927.1190115127.1@dc.cis.okstate.edu> Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 06:32:07 -0500 From: Martin McCormick Subject: 6.2 Headless Installs Don't Seem to Work. X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 11:43:01 -0000 As a computer user who happens to be blind, I have always wanted to use the headless installation method to build FreeBSD systems. After FreeBSD version 5, things seemed to go a bit wrong and I am trying to figure out whether it is me not doing something right or if there is a bug. The sequence as I understand it from previous documentation is to boot the CD, wait for the lull in activity and then hit the number 6. After that, you type boot -h and the serial port usually comes up. On some systems, it comes up at the wrong speed which turns out to be 115,200 baud, but it does come up. What then happens after that is what I am writing this message about. The kernel on the CD boots but then it can't seem to find the hard drives and the whole process is dead on arrival with a spew of errors about not finding any media followed by a lockup. If I have a cowworker help me and run the install off the new system's video display, all is well and we get a good FreeBSD installation. Can anybody think of a way to get the headless install to work in FreeBSD 6.2? Many thanks. Martin McCormick WB5AGZ Stillwater, OK Systems Engineer OSU Information Technology Department Network Operations Group