Re: booting the install on the H50

[AlexB <bozy@pisem.net>]

On Fri, 14 Jul 2006 19:20:09 +0200, dtutty@porchlight.ca wrote:

>Hello,
>
>My H50 vendor wants to ensure that the unit will boot the Debian 3.1
>install before he ships the unit.  He says he can't get it to and
>suspects he is not making the CD correctly since his running systems are
>windows.
>
>In reading the Installation manual for both 3.0 and 3.1 it says that
>"Currently, the only PowerPC subarchitectures that support CD-ROM
>booting are PReP and New World PowerMacs."  Elsewhere it says that "for
>CHRP, floppy support is currently broken".  
>
>So what do I tell my vendor?  How does he boot a stand-alone H50 if
>neither CD-ROM or floppy will boot?
>
>This is a PowerPC 604e processor, 256 MB ram, floppy drive, SCSI CDROM
>and SCSI sda 9.? GB, using Open Firmware.
>
>Thanks,
>
>Doug.
First, try to read relevant Debian bug info about booting on IBM CHRP machines:

http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=322745

It has almost all information needed to get Debian 3.1 'stable' image to boot.
Please note that 'testing' or 'unstable' Debian CDs do not have this problem!

I have seen a better instruction somewhere (the one I followed to make a boot CD
for my 7025-F50) but cannot find it right now. I will try to reproduce the
instruction on how to do it. First, mount your boot CD (or CD image using mount
-o loop debian-stable.iso /mnt). Then, create a /tmp/deb directory. Then:
 cp -a /mnt/* /tmp/deb; cp /mnt/.* /tmp/deb

The latter cp command copies .diskinfo file, so installer will recognize disk
later on.

then:

mkdir /tmp/deb/etc
cp /tmp/deb/install/yaboot.con* /tmp/deb/etc/yaboot.conf

this will copy yaboot.conf file to the place where yaboot expects it (/etc on
the CD, not /install)

then:
vi /tmp/deb/etc/yaboot.conf

then:
mkdir /tmp/deb/ppc

and save file, attached to this message as /tmp/deb/ppc/bootinfo.txt
this file is needed by IBM Open Firmware to find yaboot boot loader
automagically.

now, change all occurences of cd: to cdrom: , as IBM open firmware had cdrom:
alias by default for CD drive. Save the file.

then, create new ISO image with -l option (so long file names will be allowed):
mkisofs -r -J -l -o debian-new.iso /tmp/deb

then, burn the new ISO image to the CD by using cdrecord in Linux or any CD
burning program in Windows (I prefer Nero Burning ROM).

This CD should boot on your H50.