Subject: Re: Another changer, another changer problem
To: None <current-users@netbsd.org>
From: der Mouse <mouse@Rodents.Montreal.QC.CA>
List: current-users
Date: 10/04/1998 00:27:47
> I know various PROMware, whose manufacturers (like Sun) shall go
> nameless,
:-)
> make various assumptions along the lines that "All disks have 8
> partitions", but this is a topic that has been discussed but not
> fully addressed. I know der Mouse has come up with his own solution
> to this problem (hiya, Mouse!).
...did somebody call?
I use principally the sparc and sun3 ports. Both of these tend to use
Sun-compatible disklabels; I'm not sure whether they *require* it or
not (except for the boot drive, where the PROMs demand it).
I found space within the Sun-style disklabels to tuck 8 more
partitions. I've got patches to the sparc and sun3 MD disklabel code
to understand and generate such labels, and have also taught my
disk-labeling program "sunlabel" about them. I've been running with
16-partition disks on NetBSD/sparc and NetBSD/sun3 for, oh, months at
least, I think at least a year.
There's a PR in the database with what were then my patches. I can
easily supply patches relative to the last source tree I upgraded to,
probably with minimal effort relative to -current. The biggest problem
is the flag day in /dev.
If and when I start using any other ports more than tangentially, I'm
going to arrange for them to support at least 16 partitions per pack
too; it's just too useful. Especially now that we have 32-bit dev_ts
and this thus doesn't restrict me to 8 packs per driver! (Not that
I've felt that limitation yet; the closest is one sun3 machine with
seven 80meg disks...and can't add more 'cause it's a -3/60 and has just
the one (narrow) SCSI controller, with no way to add more (AFAIK).
der Mouse
mouse@rodents.montreal.qc.ca
7D C8 61 52 5D E7 2D 39 4E F1 31 3E E8 B3 27 4B