Re: Installation problems
On Sat, 8 May 1999, Nic Cottrell wrote:
> Hi everyone,
Hello there...
> This is my first time installing Linux. I've got the Debian packages on CD,
> but was forced to install the base systems on floppy disks because the CD
> drive was playing up (it's a sbpcd). At reboot it was detected successfully,
> but when I got to install the packages from the CD I'm asked for the block
> device name for the cd drive. I have no idea what it may be. Is there a way
> I can find out.
When you are installing debian if you press alt-f2 then you should see a
screen with just a short line up the top of the screen, this is another
"virtual terminal", and if you press enter (I believe that's the thing,
it's been a while since I installed debian on a system), then you will be
at a command prompt.
Have a look (dir works if you know dos, but it's better to get used to
linux straight up and just type ls) in the /dev directory their should be
a "file" called sbpcd, and a couple more called sbpcdx (where x is 1-4).
As such the device name for the cdrom drive should be /dev/sbpcd, or if
that does not work try /dev/sbpcd0, /dev/sbpcd1..etc...
This is only an educated guess, as you may need to have a module loaded to
access your cd-rom and if you have not loaded it, then you won't be able
to access it anyway... (During install you should have had to insert a
"drivers" disk, or something similiar, after that it should have given you
a big listing of things, these are the modules available in the base
distribution (you make others yourself, ie the ones for your soundcard).
If you haven't loaded the module, try changing to another virtual terminal
(there are 6 normally installed in the base setup, where alt-f1 take you
too the first vt), and then running modconf, you'll then be shown the same
program which you should have loaded the module for the cd in the first
time.
> Also, the ^C key does not work where I am and so the only thing I can do is
> type in the correct block name or reboot the system..
Try using ctrl-x during initial install ctrl-c is disabled (at least it
was on my machine, don't know if it is supposed to be or not, but it
prevents accidents <grin>).
> Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.
That's okay, all I have is ideas, I don't actually own a sbpcd cdrom drive
:) but I did have a phillips lms-205MS (don't ask, and thier isn't a
driver that works for that particular model <frown> phillips being
stuck-up again...).
Hope this helps,
Peter Ludwig
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