Re: port-alpha/60366 (port-alpha: SRM boot -n exploit to enforce wscons delay)

[riastradh%NetBSD.org@localhost]

Synopsis: port-alpha: SRM boot -n exploit to enforce wscons delay

State-Changed-From-To: open->feedback
State-Changed-By: riastradh%NetBSD.org@localhost
State-Changed-When: Wed, 05 Aug 2026 18:11:02 +0000
State-Changed-Why:
Can you please provide

(a) output of dmesg,
(b) content of /var/log/Xorg.0.log

on working and non-working boots?  Or, if you can't get
/var/log/Xorg.0.log in a non-working boot, can you get
/var/log/Xorg.0.log.old on the _next_ boot?

> To resolve this, we present an exploit of the SRM console firmware
> environment parameters. By passing the 'boot -n' (non-interactive/
> no-video initialization parameters) from the SRM firmware, we
> intentionally insert a structural timing delay into the early OS boot
> sequencer.

How is this an `exploit'?  Where do you get the description
`non-interactive/no-video initialization parameters'?  Exactly what are
you passing where and how?  I don't have an Alpha system to test, but
according to the alpha/boot(8) man page
(https://man.NetBSD.org/alpha/boot.8), the syntax is:

     boot [-file filename] [-flags value] [device]

     Boot an operating system.  The default arguments for this command are
     taken from the SRM environment variables:

           boot_file     file name to bootstrap.
           boot_osflags  flags to pass to the secondary bootstrap program.
           bootdef_dev   default bootstrap device....
   SRM Variables
...
     boot_osflags    The flag passed to the secondary bootstrap program, and
                     the NetBSD kernel:
...
                     n     the NetBSD kernel will ask for the root file sys-
                           tem's device, the kernel core dump device, and the
                           path to init(8).

> 2. Configure the system to boot directly into a graphical Xorg
>    environment via /etc/rc.conf.

Exactly what do you mean by this?  Adding the line `xdm=YES' to
rc.conf?

If so, does creating a file /etc/rc.conf.d/xdm with the one line

	sleep 10

also have the same effect of making Xorg work?