Subject: RAM disk and sysinst
To: None <port-alpha@netbsd.org>
From: Ray Phillips <r.phillips@mailbox.uq.edu.au>
List: port-alpha
Date: 08/02/2001 14:24:45
Dear NetBSD/alpha:

1) How does the booting sequence in cdhdtape create a RAM disk and populate
it with a file system and functioning NetBSD system?

2) What sequence of commands does sysinst use to install NetBSD once it's
been told the desired configuration?  I've been able to see some of them at
the top of the console as they're being performed but it would be good to
see a complete list.

3) I've made a CD-ROM containing the NetBSD/alpha installation files which
will boot an alpha according to the instructions in
http://www.au.netbsd.org/Documentation/bootcd.html.  When booting from this
CD this sequence is displayed on the console


  NetBSD/alpha 1.5.1 ISO 9660 Primary Bootstrap
  Jumping to entry point...

  NetBSD/alpha 1.5.1 Secondary Bootstrap, Revision 1.10
  (he@albatross.urc.uninett.no, Jun 13 03:11:13 MEST 2001)

  VMS PAL rev: 0x10001052f
  OSF PAL rev: 0x20122
  Switch to OSF PAL code succeeded.

  Boot flags: A
  open netbsd: No such file or directory
  7780888+250088=0x7a8e58

  Entering netbsd.gz at 0xfffffc00003010c0...
  [ netbsd ELF symbol table not valid ]
  [ no symbol table formats found ]
  Copyright (c) 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
      The NetBSD Foundation, Inc.  All rights reserved.
  Copyright (c) 1982, 1986, 1989, 1991, 1993
      The Regents of the University of California.  All rights reserved.


"open netbsd: No such file or directory" doesn't appear when I boot from a
DAT tape (which I copied cdhdtape to) so I guess the instructions at the
above URL should really say to put a decompressed version of the file
alpha/installation/instkernel/netbsd.gz named netbsd in the CD's root
directory?

What do the "netbsd ELF symbol table not valid" and "no symbol table
formats found" messages mean?


Ray Phillips