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Date:      Wed, 19 Jan 2011 01:29:32 -0500
From:      Joel Heikkila <jjheik@gmail.com>
To:        freebsd-sparc64@freebsd.org
Subject:   install via miniroot?
Message-ID:  <AANLkTinrNCSfuiQEP-RCYouzsFYpxVs7TWy1VJJP5Y-F@mail.gmail.com>

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Hello all,

I recently got a nice older Ultrasparc machine and I'm interested in
putting FreeBSD on it.  It doesn't have a CD-ROM drive.

I've tried every configuration imaginable to me but I've been unable
to get the "standard" netboot approach (tftp the loader, then load
kernel via NFS) to get past the NFS stage with FreeBSD.  I managed to
get Debian installed on it because Debian includes the kernel and a
small root on the tftp install image.  I then used a NetBSD miniroot
image which let me install NetBSD successfully.

So I'd like to know, is there a miniroot (an image dd'd over an
existing partition to bootstrap an install) or similar way to install
FreeBSD from a working Debian or NetBSD install?  How would I go about
that?  I notice a miniroot.ufs.gz file in the release/miniroot
directory, but when gunzip'd then dd'd over either the entire drive or
a swap partition, Openboot objects, claiming it is not a valid
executable.

Thanks in advance!



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