Baslinux mailing list

[sindi keesan <keesan AT sdf.lonestar.org>]

On Fri, 28 Jul 2006 3aoo-cvfd AT dea.spamcon.org wrote:

> sindi keesan wrote:
> > Is anyone else running BL3 ext2 on a Compaq?
>
> I'm running BL3 on three Compaqs (two are DeskPros).
> They all work fine (loop, floppy and ext2).  However,
> they are all IDE.
>
> If yours are SCSI, I suggest you get a proper SCSI
> kernel (eg from Slackware) or compile one yourself.
>
> > These both have onboard ATI video - could it be causing
> > the boot problems somehow?
>
> One of my DeskPros has ATI video.  It works fine.
>
> Cheers,
> Steven

On the Presario 5240 and the Deskpro, loop BL3 with kernel 2.2.26 works 
fine even if I bypass system files with F5 while booting to DOS.

Loop 2.4.31 and ext2 2.4.31 AND 2.2.26 refuse to boot on the Presario 
unless I have a config.sys with BOTH himem.sys and emm386.exe (DOS 7.1 
standalone or Win98 work, with or without ems).  Uncompressing linux,... 
Ok, booting the kernel - and nothing more.

But if I DO have a config.sys with these drivers, Xvesa refuses to work.
It works when I boot with lilo and 2.2.26 from floppy disk, or when I boot 
loop with 2.2.26 and no config.sys (F5).  I can't boot ext2 BL3 without 
these drivers, or loop 2.4.31 BL3.  (I have not had this problem with the 
same kernel on other computers, including the one the drives came out 
of).


This leaves me with the problem of a computer that will boot ext2 linux 
(or loop linux with 2.4.31) only if I boot to DOS with emm386 and 
himem.sys, but then won't run Xvesa.  I will try another X server for the 
Rage Pro LT (SVGA?) and if that fails, learn to use LILO.
(A boot menu won't help here, not sure about SBM).


Since I can't even boot 2.2.26 ext2 BL3 without config.sys drivers, the 
problem here is not my kernel, it is the hardware.

The error message from Xvesa:
_XSERVTransSocktUNIXCreateListener:...SocketCreateListener() failed
_XServetransMakeAllCOTSServerListerners:  server already running

Followed by a suggestion to check if a server is already running.
Something in himem.sys or emm386.exe appears to be fooling Xvesa into 
thinking a server is already running, but not if I run loop BL3 with 
2.2.26, just with 2.4.31, or either kernel with ext2 partition.

----------------
I am getting closer to booting loop linux from SCSI drive:

The DESKPRO had no config.sys, which explains why it would not boot past 
the first line.  Our previous Presario with SiS video did Xvesa despite 
config.sys (but it had a few other problems so we replaced it).  I think I 
tried it with 2.4.31, but maybe only with 2.2.16.

I added a config.sys to the Deskpro and attempted to boot loop with 
kernel 2.4.31 and my own scsi kernel (which I have been using all along) 
and my own initfs.gz (with /dev/sda1 and with linuxrc that mounts it).


It started to boot (got past the uncomressing linux line) and found sda1 
sda2 sda3, 0,0,0 , then:

RAMDISK:  Compressed image found at block 0
Freeing initrd memory:  42K freed
EXT-fs warning:  (run e2fsck....)
VFS:  Mounted root (ext2 filesystem)
FAT:  Unable to read boot sector                WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?
FAT:  Unable to read boot sector
isofs_read_super_bread failed, dev=07:00
   iso_blknum=16, block=32
Kernel panic:  VFS: Unable to mount root fs on 07:00



Do I need to recompile the scsi kernel so it will read the FAT boot 
sector on a SCSI drive?   This kernel works for ext2 linux on a
scsi drive, when booted with loadlin from an IDE drive, on a different 
computer (where the controller seems to be failing, or maybe both disk and 
controller because sometimes the controller won't spin up the disk, but it 
does not work right with a different disk either, file system crashes).

If I boot with loadlin and kernel on a DOS partition on the scsi drive 
to an EXT2 partition on the same drive, am I likely to have the above 
problem?  Another option is to add an IDE drive from which to boot linux 
to ext2 and loop, if the Compaq will accept it.

The Deskpro runs Xvesa booted with lilo from floppy disk but the kernel 
won't access the scsi hard disk.

Steven, do you have a scsi controller and drive?

Sindi