Potential problem with DFSG installations on NSLU2
Hi All
In the past, Debian could be installed on an NSLU2 using the installer
image that did not contain the NPE-B firmware by using a USB to
Ethernet adapter. I tried this configuration with a daily snapshot
last night, and was presented with the following text in the "Detect
network hardware" dialog box.
---
Some of your hardware needs non-free firmware files to operate. The
firmware can be loaded from removable media, such as a USB stick or
floppy.
The missing firmware files are: NPE-B
If you have such media available now, insert it, and continue.
Load missing firmware from removable media?
<Yes> <No>
---
I confirmed that my USB to Ethernet adapter is detected by checking
that the modules were loaded (asix and usbnet in this case).
~ # lsmod
Module Size Used by
asix 14496 0
usbnet 15622 1 asix
evdev 8608 0
ohci_hcd 18212 0
ehci_hcd 35148 0
ixp4xx_eth 12216 0
ixp4xx_npe 7936 2 ixp4xx_eth
ixp4xx_beeper 2720 0
firmware_class 7552 1 ixp4xx_npe
ixp4xx_qmgr 5336 1 ixp4xx_eth
usbcore 128252 5 asix,usbnet,ohci_hcd,ehci_hcd
For users without serial console access, the installation with this
configuration will appear to freeze, and they will never be able to
proceed. Is this the intended behaviour? I realize that not many
people will install Debian on the NSLU2 without using an image that
contains the NPE-B microcode, but it seems that this configuration
should still be supported.
Gordon
--
Gordon Farquharson
GnuPG Key ID: 32D6D676
Reply to: