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Date: Sun, 17 Nov 1996 14:24:33 -0800
From: Julian Elischer <julian@whistle.com>
Organization: Whistle Communications
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To: Joerg Wunsch <joerg_wunsch@uriah.heep.sax.de>
CC: FreeBSD-current users <freebsd-current@FreeBSD.org>,
        Philippe Charnier <charnier@xp11.frmug.org>
Subject: Re: can not change to correct boot device
References: <199611162336.AAA04631@uriah.heep.sax.de>
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J Wunsch wrote:
> 
> As Philippe Charnier wrote:
> 
> > If I let him boot, it tries 1:sd(1,a)/kernel and fails at
> > `change root to sd1a'. Entering 1:sd(0,a)/kernel is ok.
> >
> > How can I do this in the kernel config file?
> 
> You can't.  You must do it in the bootblocks.
> 
> I think there's something from Julian around that would let you store
> such a change automatically in the bootblock, but offhand i don't
> remember any pointers to documentation for it.
> 

IF you have sliced your disk with a normal BIOS partition table (fdisk)
then you can replace the bootblocks with a set compiled with the
NAMEBLOCK (I think that was it) option
and then use the 'nextboot(8)' program to set the default
string..

if you used the "dangerously dedicated" option it won't work, because
it stores the string(s) in block 1 but if block 1 is part of a slice,
it refuses to rewrite it (sensibly).

We use it in production, though we use a version of boot.c that is
checked in under the tag "JULIAN_HACK"
I'd like to get that version reconciled with the version bruce 
reworked.


julian