Subject: Re: FW: NEC RiscStation and NetBSD
To: Bob Meader <bob@cci.net>
From: David Hopper <dhop@nwlink.com>
List: port-arc
Date: 09/14/2001 22:20:11
Hi Bob, you wrote:

> Hi this is bob...
> No you know didn't a root filesystem on a floppy(last time I checked
> floppy driver needs work..) the "default mdoa" is the ramdisk
> filesystem... just press <return> should go to install menu...

I was afraid of this.  On the NEC 2000, when I specified the defaults (md0a root
device, swap on md0b, default file system) the system hangs.  No errors, no
panics; nothing coming through COM at all.  It just sits there.  That's why I
was confused.

Maybe there's some difference in the RAM or VM addressing.  Y'all have my
arcdiag and winmsd output; any clues there?

> Now some gotcha's...
> 1.The install "menu" program assumes a "video console workstation"
> so it emits <esc> sequences for that terminal type.... I think
> a vt220 terminal type should work...
> 2.Do a custom partiton split hardrive into two partitions ...
> I suggest Netbsd first followed by an MSDOS partion of 10-15 meg
> size (enough to hold several kernels ie "netbsd.eco").
> 3.The makefilesystem for Msdos only supports floppies (not a kernel
> bug a utility program bug).  So you will have to format the
> msdos partition with "arcinst.exe"... I include a version from
> NT4.0 HOWEVER it doesn't load on all version's of arc firmware
> so check/use the version that came with you're copy of NT.

Thanks much!
--David