Date: Tue, 30 Mar 1999 10:18:54 -0600 From: "Brian D. Woodruff" <wood@eris.quintessential.com> To: jef53313@bayou.uh.edu Cc: Greg Lehey <grog@lemis.com>, freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG, "Eric J. Schwertfeger" <ejs@bfd.com>, "Francisco Reyes" <freyes@inch.com>, Kent Stewart <kstewart@3-cities.com> Subject: Re: 3.1 UNstable (FINAL WORD!!) Message-ID: <3.0.6.32.19990330101854.009576c0@freeq.com>
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This is being resent for Greg Lehey, who says he didn't see it, which makes me wonder if it ever made it to the list: If you want to get 3.1-RELEASE or 3.1-STABLE (which is currently a link back to 3.1-RELEASE), you MUST use the floppy disks for 3.1-RELEASE, because the install program puts its own kernel loader on the hard disk, regardless whether it is appropriate for the kernel it is installing. The resultant error message is "invalid format!" if you use the wrong loader. This also happens if you try to upgrade using /stand/systinstall on any previous version of FreeBSD, including 3.0! SEE BELOW FOR DETAILS ... At 10:52 PM 3/27/99 -0600, you wrote: >[snip] >> booted off of CD-R with Walnut Creek 3.0 CD # 1 in it on some tries, off of >> a 2.2.6 and 2.2.8 floppy disk on other tries >Attempts to install 3.1 and above off of a lower version's install media >is probably a bad idea. I see what the problem is and will point it out >below. >[snip] >> the error message occurs upon boot after "successful" installation of the >> OS. the system gets as far as where it says >> >> boot: >> >> and pauses before loading the kernel. when it tries to load the kernel, the >> error message is >> >> "invalid format!" >> >> and then the same "boot:" message is displayed again, and the same thing >> repeats every few seconds. when we typs "?" for a directory, we find the >> kernel, kernel.GENERIC and all the other normal stuff, but it won't bloody >> well load! >You are getting the error message because the FreeBSD bootstrap that >produces the boot: message like that only works on a.out kernels. The ELF >loader looks markedly different, providing you with an option to hit space >to get to a prompt, hit enter to boot immediately, or leave it alone and >it will boot after 10 seconds. I guess the problem is that the >installation medium (floppy or cdrom) installs whatever copy of the loader >it has on it and not from the ftp site. At any rate, 3.0 worked because >it still has a a.out kernel. Your options as I see them are to upgrade vi >CVS and then a make upgrade, or else to reinstall using the 3.1 CDs or >using the 3.1 install disk. >[rest snipped] Well, all ... after much going back and forth with Jonathan, I discovered that he was quite correct. The familiar kernel loader with the help screen and "boot:" prompt has been replaced by a new loader which, well, to say it is terse would be felony understatement. All you see when you boot is a spinny thing to let you know your computer is still there, and then a prompt with about ten lines of text explaining what hardware is being used and what version of the loader is running. There is one line of text explaining what to do next: wait, press return to hurry it up, or press ? for help. This is all fine, though dauntingly unfamiliar. What is problematic is that the 3.1 kernel being loaded is not compatable with the familiar loader which had been used in previous versions. The error message which you will see is "invalid format!", which sounds like a disk problem to me, not a kernel problem. This invalid assumption on my part let me to bark up a number of wrong trees before getting the real story from Jonathan. Unfortunately, since the loader which no longer works is the one everyone already has, and therefore the cryptic message can't be changed on them, I suspect a lot of experienced installers and upgraders like myself are going to be bitten by this problem. Hopefully a lot of folks on the list are reading this and will be able to pass the word on: If you want to get 3.1-RELEASE or 3.1-STABLE (which is currently a link back to 3.1-RELEASE), you MUST use the floppy disks for 3.1-RELEASE, because the install program puts its own kernel loader on the hard disk, regardless whether it is appropriate for the kernel it is installing. The resultant error message is "invalid format!" if you use the wrong loader. This also happens if you try to upgrade using /stand/systinstall on any previous version of FreeBSD, including 3.0! Thank you all for your help, and good fortune in all you do! Brian D. Woodruff President Quintessential Communications http://www.Quintessential.com http://FreeQ.com http://www.MagicChat.com > >Jonathan Fosburgh >Geotechnician >Snyder Oil Corporation >Houston, TX > >Home Page: >http://www.geocities.com/vienna/1498 >Manager, FreeBSD Webring: >http://www.geocities.com/vienna/1498/computer/freebsdring.html >ICQ: 32742908 >AIM: Namthorien > > > To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message
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