controlling installation from a serial terminal

["James R. Van Zandt" <jrv@vanzandt.mv.com>]

I am trying to set up boot files that will allow an installation to be
controlled from a serial terminal.  This would let a blind user
install Debian, using a second computer with a terminal emulator and a
speech synthesizer.  (I once wrote up such a procedure for installing
Slackware.)

So far, I have done this:

 - Connected a second machine with a LapLink cable to my first serial
port, started getty on that port, and confirmed I could log in.

 - Compiled a 2.0.36 kernel with support for standard serial ports
configured.  Unfortunately, I had to make a bzImage.

 - Copied the new kernel (bzImage) to a DOS filesystem.

 - Modified /scripts/rootdisk/prototype/etc/init_tab in the
boot-floppies sources, uncommenting two lines:

    # Example how to put a getty on a serial line (for a terminal)
    #
    T0:23:respawn:/bin/login root </dev/ttyS0 >/dev/ttyS0 2>&1
    T1:23:respawn:/bin/login root </dev/ttyS1 >/dev/ttyS1 2>&1
    # T0:23:respawn:/sbin/getty -L ttyS0 9600 vt100
    # T1:23:respawn:/sbin/getty -L ttyS1 9600 vt100

 - Built the installation files with "make release"

 - copied these files to the DOS filesystem:
    install.bat
    loadlin.exe
    root.bin

 - Constructed a new serial.bat file like this:
    loadlin bzimage root=/dev/ram initrd=root.bin

 - Booted DOS and executed serial.bat.

The kernel did boot, and recognized the serial ports with lines
something like these:
    Serial driver version 4.27 with no serial options enabled
    ttyS00 at 0x03f8 (irq = 4) is a 16550A
    ttyS01 at 0x02f8 (irq = 3) is a 16550A

However, after booting, the machine is not listening to the serial
port.  I got no prompt on the other machine, and could not log in.

I looked around using the second virtual terminal:

 1) When I list /proc/devices, there is no entry for ttyS, like there
is with my usual 2.1.132 kernel.

 2) When I run "ps", there is no process named login or getty.
 
 3) There are no files /bin/login or /sbin/getty.  I could not find
either program anywhere in the filesystem.  Are those entries in
/scripts/rootdisk/prototype/etc/init_tab completely bogus?

Any pointers would be appreciated.

			- Jim Van Zandt