On 30 Mar, Simon Burge wrote:

>> Dear contributers, maintainers and generally anyone who might know,
>> what could cause NetBSD 1.3 to _NOT_ netboot properly from a Linux
>> machine?
> 
> Just a hunch (without checking too closely) - try using bootp, _not_
> bootparams.  Something like:
> 
> 	basil:\
> 		:ha=08.00.2b.24.39.71:\
> 		:sm=255.255.255.0:gw=172.73.42.1:\
> 		:tc=.172_73_42_0:bf=netbsd/basil:rp=/dlboot0/basil.root:
> 
> (where /tftpboot/netbsd/basil is the netbsd.ecoff kernel, and
> /dlboot0/basil.root is the untar'd diskimage.tar.gz) works for me...
> 
> The "INSTALL" file for 1.3 and 1.3.1 mentions setting up bootp/dhcp, but
> not bootparams.

It also states "Complete instructions are in the installation notes on
the pmax web page.". In that document, under "Setting up an NFS server
for the diskless client", the first sentence says: "Now, obtain and read 
the diskless(8) man page from a current NetBSD distribution."

I did just that, and it clearly states that you have to use bootparams. 
However, that did not work, and I used several hours before I tried to
use "rp=" in bootp. This is _not_ documented anywhere in the install 
documents! After doing this, 1.3 netbooted fine, and I could use the
1.3.1 tarballs. 

The install documents also says: "The DECstation PROMS only know how to 
read ECOFF (an extension of COFF) format executables.". It took me a 
couple of hours to figure out that I had to use a.out format to be able
to boot the NetBSD kernel after disklabeling the system. Of course, I
also had serious problems attaching the clock, so I ended up running
a 1.3 generic kernel with 1.3.1 userland. It was at this point I found
out that it could be "smart" to join the pmax mailinglist :)

One other thing, I tried to boot the miniroot in the diskimage.gz. I 
thought this was the easiest way, since the box had two scsi-disks, and
it had a running Ultrix. The image booted fine, but no matter how hard
I tried, I could not mount / read-write. I finally gave up, and tried
to netboot the kernel... (which was easy, it was mounting the root file
system that was hard!)

So, maybe the install documents should be changed...

Bye,
-- 
Geir Inge Jensen                                    gij@jk.priv.no
                                                    http://www.jk.priv.no/