RE: DEBIAN 3.0 on a SPARC Classic X
Thanks for the help. I got it working.
For whatever reason the Classic X's didn't like external SCSI devices (I
tried a JAZ drive but that didn't work either).
Also they didn't seem to like networking with my 10/100 switch or the 10/100
network cards in my PC's but the 'test net' command passed when they were
connected to each other with a cross-over cable.
So what I did was -
1. got hold of a 10BaseT (only) hub so that they could communicate with my
network.
2. downloaded the tftboot.img (from the URL in the Debian 3.0 install guide
for SPARC)
3. setup a tftp server (I used SolarWinds on a PC)
4. booted via tftp
> boot net:192.168.0.40,tftpboot.img,192.168.0.99
[192.168.0.40 is the IP of the PC, and I used a fixed IP for the Classic X
since I don't have a DHCP or ARP/RARP server configured]
5. watched the boot occur
Then I needed to configure the hard drive. I didn't know the CHS geometry
(its not on the drive, and I didn't bother searching for it) so I used the
'Sun 1.0Gb' option which hasn't caused any grief so far ;) Since it was a
1Gb HDD I don't think I'm losing any/much space. I also left it with two
partitions - root & swap.
I didn't know I could install via ftp, but I tried it out and it worked [I
kinda expected that I'd need to copy the contents of the debian CD's to the
tftp server, or something].
6. I used the ftp://www.au.debian.org/debian/ mirror (the US mirror & the
'non-us software' sites caused some trouble [like timeouts on downloads] so
I skipped them)
7. did the base install.
8. got the X software & python software using tasksel
Unfortunately I have a problem with X. I din't know what xserver to chose so
I randomly chose one (all the choices seemed pretty cryptic and there was no
'auto detect' option). Also [not being a SUN freak] I didn't know the screen
resolution so I chose 1024x768 (I wanted more than 800x600!)
'startx' fails - the server dies for some reason, not clear from the
messages displayed.
I've tried using a tool to reconfigure (I'm used to Xconfigurator) but I
can't find a useful one. 'xf86cfg' brings up a graphics screen for
configuration (only), but kills the mouse and assumes a PC keyboard (all the
key codes are up the creek). If I try to set the keyboard for SUN/Type 5
(which is what I'm using) the key codes are better but still seem to be out
by 1 position [ie the '8' on the numeric keypad works like the '7' and the
'9' like the '8', and so on...] In any case I can't get the mouse working so
I've given up on that app.
If someone could be so nice as to tell me what the debian/sparc X
configuration tool is called I might fare better. Alternatively if someone
could tell me what I should put in the XF86 config file that'll do.
cheers
Jonathan Pratt
-----Original Message-----
From: Thomas 'Mike' Michlmayr [mailto:mike@cluon.priv.at]
Sent: Monday, 2 September 2002 18:34
To: debian-sparc@lists.debian.org
Subject: Re: DEBIAN 3.0 on a SPARC Classic X
On Sun, Sep 01, 2002 at 05:30:36 +0930,
woodsend <woodsend@bigpond.net.au> wrote:
[...]
> to) have no trouble by itself. Its when the boot sequence looks at the
SCSI
> bus that the whole thing falls down. I can't imagine that anything
different
> would happen if I removed the CDROM (and left the HDD in place), so I
> wouldn't be able to save the system on the HDD in any case.
doesn't have to be. friend of mine has a voyager, which has the same
problems
when an external CDROM is installed. internal disk works just fine. i have
no idea what the problem actually is, the same SCSI chain works fine on
other machines, just not on the voyager. could be that the external port
is b0rken, or something. i wouldn't discount the possibility that the
internal disk might work if left alone on the SCSI chain.
> Also this would be pushing the limit of my experience. (but hey I've
> obviously got some spare time, right)
tftp is actually fairly simple to setup, and quite well documented in
a number of places. and _so_ much better that all the cdrom/floppy
install crap.
--
Thomas 'Mike' Michlmayr | ignorami: n: The BOFH art of folding problem
<mike+sig@cluon.priv.at> | lusers into representational shapes.
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