On Sun, 11 Jan 1998, Brian D Chase wrote:
> On Sun, 11 Jan 1998, ^orpur Ivarsson wrote:

> > I am using serial console, there is no graphical screen on this thingy,
> > just 3mmj+1modem+8 expansion on card, serial inputs.
> 
> Okay.  Well, I say we operate under the assumption that your system is in
> fact netbooting properly but that something's gone wrong with the console
> output. If this is the case then we can still work with the system.  
> 
> If we can get it operating in multi-user mode then you can telnet into it. 
> It's been a while since I've installed NetBSD from scratch for a netbooted
> workstation, so I'll have to refresh my brain with the necessary steps to
> going from being booted to single user to booting all the way up to
> multi-user config. 
> 
> The intention would be to make the appropriate changes to directly to the
> client's files on the bootserver.

Okay, finally getting back to this.  It took a while just to get 
everything into place on my end. Here's what you're going to need to do on
the bootserver (these instructions are based on tinkering with the 1.3
distribution, but they should be the same for 1.2G):

[1] Go to the directory where you've placed the NetBSD/VAX distribution
    for the MicroVAX 3100/20 client.  In the HOWTO I used
    /netboot/netbsd-vax for the example.

[2] Create an ./etc/fstab file for the netbooted VAX if the file doesn't
    exist.  Even just a `touch ./etc/fstab' is fine.  It doesn't need to
    contain anything.

[3] Edit the ./etc/rc.conf file.  All you need to do with this file is to
    change the `rc_configured=NO' to `rc_configured=YES'.

[4] Create the devices files in ./dev.  I don't really know of a good way
    to do this directly on the bootserver.  You could always create each
    and every device file using mknod, but that's tedious.  So I just made
    the device files the normal way while logged into my VAXstation, I
    tarred them up, and I will send them to you in private e-mail.  Then
    you can untar the files into the NFS client directory on your
    bootserver.

[5] Edit the ./etc/ttys file to allow root logins over telnet.
    On the line starting with `ttyp0', add the word `secure' at the
    end of the line right after `network'.  Be aware of how this affects
    the security of the system if placed on an open network, blah dee
    blah dee blah...

>From here you should be able to boot the VAX over the network into
multiuser mode (if it's in fact just a console problem with your system)
and telnet into the system as the root user on the /dev/ttyp0 telnet
session.

If you get to this point I'd recommend performing the usual system
configs, adding at least one user account for yourself. If you add
yourself to the wheel group so you can su to root, then you can take out
the `secure' reference to /dev/ttyp0 in /etc/ttys. 

I hope I didn't miss anything.
-brian.
---
Brian "JARAI" Chase | http://world.std.com/~bdc/ | VAXZilla LIVES!!!