Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2010 11:39:35 -0700 From: Tim Judd <tajudd@gmail.com> To: Martin McCormick <martin@dc.cis.okstate.edu> Cc: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: Re: Trying to build 8.0 Headless Installation Disk Message-ID: <ade45ae91001151039t278663f4jd1215732811d5013@mail.gmail.com> In-Reply-To: <201001132142.o0DLgDCJ077793@dc.cis.okstate.edu> References: <201001132142.o0DLgDCJ077793@dc.cis.okstate.edu>
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Replies inline On 1/13/10, Martin McCormick <martin@dc.cis.okstate.edu> wrote: > Tim Judd writes: >> ^^^ mkisofs needs to have the boot record >> -b boot/cdboot -no-emul-boot >> >> >> And as another option, you might look at mfsBSD, it runs off mfs (RAM) >> disks with sshd being enabled by default. Once it boots (kernel >> starts probing), the cd can be ejected. > > This could be a game changer if I could somehow get the > FreeBSD8.0 installation CD to run remotely via this method. The install mediums are a basic freebsd kernel with a MFS-root that provides a cut-down userland including the binary sysinstall. The kernel tries a few binaries to run as the initial binary, init. The last item it will try to launch on startup is sysinstall. > > The problem is that some of the systems that I am > upgrading are 150 miles away. We have people there who are not > comfortable with Unix but who are certainly able to install and > remove CDROM's on request. If I could get the sysinstall > application to talk to me over the network, I don't care if it > is a serial line or not. You can run sysinstall over any connection, I've had it running on the local console (of course), serial console, and ssh session. > If we could get this down to 1 or two CD's, a major > millstone will be removed from my neck. > > As a computer user who happens to be blind, the serial > console is extremely useful and I usually make whatever version > of FreeBSD we are using in to a serial console disk so it comes > up serial, even if it is right next to me. It just makes things > go more smoothly if one doesn't have to hunt up a keyboard and > hope this or that box still has a sounder so you can hear any > beeps. I'm surprised on how far braille has gotten onto computer systems. > I have even put a portable radio on top of a server and > listened for activity because that was the only way to tell if > it was booting or in Lala Land. Just for the record, a steady > sound usually means Lala Land and a sound like whales competing > FOR territory and female attention means something is happening. > > Anyway, not needing to modify the installation disk, > itself would be nice. > > In closing, I love FreeBSD and nothing said here is a > gripe or complaint. FreeBSD is Unix and therefore accessible. > Utilities like installation disks and rescue applications are > always a little tricky because they deal with the system at a > very low level. > > Martin McCormick WB5AGZ Stillwater, OK > Systems Engineer > OSU Information Technology Department Telecommunications Services Group > _______________________________________________ > freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list > http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions > To unsubscribe, send any mail to "freebsd-questions-unsubscribe@freebsd.org" >
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