Re: Rename netbsd-INSTALL_FLOPPY to netbsd-INSTALL

["Thomas Mueller" <mueller6724%bellsouth.net@localhost>]

> > Note that, while paths look similar, i386 INSTALL_FLOPPY is quite
> > different to amd64 INSTALL, which is just a GENERIC kernel + md(4)
> > hooks. No troll intended, but building a "floppy" install kernel which
> > is 3+MiB in size is... weird (which makes me believe that INSTALL_FLOPPY
> > is used as an INSTALL replacement).

> > Thoughts?


> So far, no comments nor objections after ~ three weeks, I have the
> impression that everyone agrees (or nobody disagrees :) )

> I'll commit the following patch in a day or two. It will:
> - reinstate the original INSTALL kernel (GENERIC + ramdisk included),
> - use this kernel for floppies
> - comment out INSTALL_FLOPPY build
> - comment out bootfloppy-big, as we don't use it for El Torito cdroms
> anymore; I don't think there are many around there with 3.6+MiB floppies
> anyway

> The big difference between using INSTALL_FLOPPY and INSTALL is that we
> follow GENERIC closely with INSTALL. This is better than having a
> spcific INSTALL_FLOPPY kernel, where certain features may render the
> image useless on real hardware when time passes (ACPI support comes to
> mind). And given that GENERIC is a lot more "tested" than INSTALL_FLOPPY
> in this regard...

> --
> Jean-Yves Migeon
> jeanyves.migeon%free.fr@localhost

I actually installed NetBSD 5.99.44 i386 on a USB stick, using boot-big.fs (the 
3.6-MiB floppy image) and installing from 

ftp://nyftp.netbsd.org/pub/NetBSD-daily/HEAD/... 

I had intended to post the question about what was the intended way to boot 
this big floppy, assuming that using grub4dos from FreeDOS was not their idea.

But that's how I did it, booting FreeDOS with no high-memory manager and 
running grub4dos, which can boot floppy images including images that don't 
match physical-floppy capacities.  Installation took 2 1/2 hours, slow part 
being unpacking the .tgz files on a USB stick, with a motherboard that dates to 
before USB 2.0 was widely available on motherboards.

I could also use the mini-iso image as long as there is an emebedded/included 
ramdisk.

GENERIC + ramdisk kernel seems like an improvement.  It might be a good idea to 
allow for disabling certain drivers where they might render the kernel 
nonbootable on certain hardware.

It would also be nice to be able to install from a CD image; I noticed there 
was no vnconfig in the installation system.


Tom