Lennart Sorensen wrote:
kernel sources from kernel.org do NOT support cramfs initrd's. Debian kernel sources has patches for that.
Ok... I was just going by the fact that the 2.6.12.6 from kernel.org did have cramfs under "Miscellaneous filesystems", so I thought that would do it. If it needs to be patched then that's a whole other kettle of fish...
Making an install cd with a replacement kernel involves a lot more updates than just the vmlinuz file. Well you need to take an existing netinstall image, replace the kernel image file on the cd, replace the kernel udebs on the cd, replace the debian installer base package with one that looks for your new kernel name, and the packages files have to be rebuilt to match those new files.
Ah! Well, that would explain a lot. I guess I was probably very naiive thinking I could simply replace the initrd.gz and vmlinuz, because I thought those were the crucial elements needed to boot. Since this starts to look a lot more complex than I thought, I will probably try the debootstrap route instead, so I can skip the whole CD mess. Unless anyone has a step-by-step howto on how to roll your own netinst CD - especially when you do not have an already-working Debian system to use for getting packages, building etc.
Thanks again for all your help, it's been most illuminating! Seems like every time I think I have linux down pat, then I try to do something on a new machine and have to spend a week just getting the hardware working... Linux, it's always good for your humility!
/Neil