Date: Fri, 16 Jun 1995 15:13:04 +1000 From: Bruce Evans <bde@zeta.org.au> To: hackers@freebsd.org, phk@ref.tfs.com Cc: doc@freebsd.org, faq@freebsd.org Subject: Re: disk handling program Message-ID: <199506160513.PAA07652@godzilla.zeta.org.au>
next in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
>For your boot-disk it MUST be correct. For other disks it merely have >to make sense. >There are two ways to get it right: >A: Create a msdos partition, and delete it from FreeBSD. >B: Boot freebsd with -v and look at the "bios-geometry" table > it prints at the end, find the right one for this particular > drive and use that. That's 2 more wrong ways. A: Fails if the fdisk used to create the msdos partition does things a little differently. Deletion of foreign partitions may cause trouble later. It may be necessary to delete certain metadata within the partitions, and fdisk (on any system) has no way of knowing where the metadata is. The problems occur if stale metadata is reactivated (and used). For DOS, stale parameter blocks may be used by `format' to format areas outside the (new) slice. For FreeBSD, stale disklabels may be used by `newfs' to newfs the wrong areas. The damage is now limited by disklabels being restricted to the slice that they are in. B: Usually fails if a disk manager is normally installed but isn't installed when you boot with -v. Right ways: A1: If a disk manager isn't normally installed, use method B. B1: If a disk manager is normally installed: Install disk manager. Install DOS (on the same disk). Boot DOS (on the same disk). Run pfdisk or some other DOS utility that reports the geometry. Use DOS fdisk to remove DOS. Use the geometry reported by pfdisk. Simpler methods might work: C: If a disk manager is normally installed: Install disk manager. Boot DOS from a floppy. Run utility to load disk manager for hard disk. Run pfdisk or some other DOS utility that reports the geometry. Use the geometry reported by pfdisk. D: If a disk manager is normally installed: Install disk manager. Use method B. This requires booting FreeBSD with -v from ANOTHER disk with BOTH the disk manager and FreeBSD already installed. Bruce
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?199506160513.PAA07652>