Subject: Re: A few limiting factors
To: Aaron Mansheim <a-manshe@runet.edu>
From: The Great Mr. Kurtz [David A. Gatwood] <davagatw@mars.utm.edu>
List: port-mac68k
Date: 07/30/1996 19:56:44
On Tue, 30 Jul 1996, Aaron Mansheim wrote:

> I now have MacBSD installed and running on my Mac. I even have
> PPP, lynx, and serial logins, some of my biggest intermediate goals.
> But I have a couple problems that are fundamental to my use of MacBSD.
> Are they easy?
>
> 1. Filesystem: /usr/bin ends up screwy after fscks.
>
> Are crashes that wreck the filesystem a problem for others?
> If not, why not?

I've had no problems with my IIsi, but my powerbook 145 displays much the
same symptoms. You could try to use a kernel with the sbc driver (look
in the 1.2_BETA directory, somewhere deep within netbsd.org).  The worst
it could do is what it did to mine (filesystem creamed on mount).

Also, after splitting root and usr, I haven't used it much since, but so
far have been through lighting storms and everything else with no trouble.
Of course, that's probably just a coincidence.  (For the record, I also
too the liberty of creating an 8 meg "volatile" partition for compiling)

> forced to reset the machine. Once I was trying things with chat and

Just one word of advice: wait at least a minute or a minute and a half
before killing power.  Also, try to work in multi-user when possible.  In
multi-user, the cron daemon should call sync once every thirty seconds.
Since a second sync operation can't begin until the first has ended, two
sync calls in a row is essentially a guranteed buffer flush.  That should
minimize the damage somewhat.

> 2.

With reference to dt, a temporary solution might be to run screen or
something.  Not perfect by any means, but at least maybe it'll work.

> 3. su: hears me knocking but I can't come in
>
> When I su from my account, which is included in group wheel according
> to passwd and group settings, why does the system say 'Sorry'?

Hmmm.... Not sure about that one.  Some off-hand ideas that are probably
way off: make sure your shell is in /etc/shells, and if that fails, try
using your root account to su to another account to make sure su isn't
just creamed.

Later,

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