From owner-svn-src-head@FreeBSD.ORG Mon Jul 27 14:13:55 2009 Return-Path: Delivered-To: svn-src-head@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4B6081065675; Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:13:55 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from nwhitehorn@freebsd.org) Received: from mail.icecube.wisc.edu (trout.icecube.wisc.edu [128.104.255.119]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0887F8FC1B; Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:13:54 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from nwhitehorn@freebsd.org) Received: from localhost (localhost.localdomain [127.0.0.1]) by mail.icecube.wisc.edu (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4E8B858296; Mon, 27 Jul 2009 08:45:18 -0500 (CDT) X-Virus-Scanned: amavisd-new at icecube.wisc.edu Received: from mail.icecube.wisc.edu ([127.0.0.1]) by localhost (trout.icecube.wisc.edu [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10030) with ESMTP id sLgHfm1jbyL4; Mon, 27 Jul 2009 08:45:18 -0500 (CDT) Received: from wanderer.tachypleus.net (unknown [76.210.76.212]) by mail.icecube.wisc.edu (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1A83C5827A; Mon, 27 Jul 2009 08:45:16 -0500 (CDT) Message-ID: <4A6DAF6B.1050701@freebsd.org> Date: Mon, 27 Jul 2009 08:45:15 -0500 From: Nathan Whitehorn User-Agent: Thunderbird 2.0.0.22 (X11/20090727) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: John Baldwin References: <4A68DA56.60301@samsco.org> <20090724.235420.319856209.imp@bsdimp.com> <4A6A855C.7090003@samsco.org> <200907270821.52571.jhb@freebsd.org> In-Reply-To: <200907270821.52571.jhb@freebsd.org> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Cc: Scott Long , src-committers@freebsd.org, svn-src-all@freebsd.org, cperciva@freebsd.org, svn-src-head@freebsd.org, mav@freebsd.org, "M. Warner Losh" Subject: Re: svn commit: r195817 - head/usr.sbin/sysinstall X-BeenThere: svn-src-head@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: SVN commit messages for the src tree for head/-current List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:13:55 -0000 John Baldwin wrote: > [snipped] >> Ah, we will never be freed of the CHS bonds, will we. Oh well. >> > > GPT doesn't use C/H/S and thus doesn't have the weird limitations of the MBR + > BSD label arrangement. As soon as sysinstall can install to a GPT-labelled > disk you will be free of the bonds in sysinstall. I think the easiest way to > allow for that w/o dealing with the headaches of fdisk.c and label.c and > libgeom support in sysinstall, etc., etc. is to add a sort of "cheat" mode to > sysinstall where you can say "look, I've already partitioned my drives and > newfs'd my filesystems and they are mounted at '/foo', go install all the > bits into there". We could then let people setup their disks using command > line tools with the livefs or what is in the install rescue build using GPT > or ZFS or gmirror, etc. Getting /etc/fstab correct in that instance becomes > a bit more tricky, but not impossible. (If nothing else one could take the > output of mount -p, find all the paths starting with /foo, chop off the > leading /foo, and write that out as an initial /etc/fstab.) That would at > least allow people to do more creative things with disks with sysinstall > until the disk labeller can be overhauled. > > This would be extremely useful also on PowerPC, and probably some embedded systems as well (though I doubt they are using sysinstall). sysinstall currently cannot write APM partitions, so we don't currently ship a functional installer on PPC. However, gpart can write APM partitions, and so this even this stopgap would be the difference between an installable 8.0-RELEASE on PowerPC and an uninstallable one for many users. -Nathan