SUMMARY: installboot

From: Sebastian v. Bomhard (svb@svb.guug.de)
Date: Mon Aug 10 1992 - 18:19:59 CDT


In article <1992Aug10.013816.27835@afterlife.ncsc.mil> dpkemp@afterlife.ncsc.mil (David P. Kemp) writes:
>In article <135@svb.guug.de> I wrote about "installboot"
>>
>># pwd
>>/usr/kvm/mdec
>># ./installboot -vl /boot bootsd /dev/rsd0a
>>Primary boot: bootsd
>>Secondary boot: /boot
>>Boot device: /dev/rsd0a
>>bootfile /boot not on bootdevice /dev/rsd0a

>RTEM - Read The Error Message. It says /boot not on bootdevice /dev/rsd0a.

It turned out that I should have said
# ./installboot -vl /mnt/boot bootsd /dev/rsd0a
with a _mounted_ file system sd0a(!) and the full path of the boot file in
that special situation.

Ok, but: Do you agree, that on _every_ fs there is a root? The manual
is _very_ misleading in this point, not to speak of the un-"unixish"
way of writing onto a mounted device via the raw device, this is ugly!!!

Every programm could find a file named /boot on a unmounted partion, and
that's what I'd expect with a command, where TFM says:

DESCRIPTION
     The boot(8S) program is loaded from disk by bootblock code
     which resides in the bootblock area of a disk partition. In
     order for the bootblock code to read the boot program (usu-
     ally /boot) it is necessary for it to know the block numbers
     occupied by the boot program.

         [stuff deleted]

         bootfile is the name of the boot program, usually /boot.

You see? _Usually_ /boot! If this isn't misleading... Even better:

EXAMPLE
     To install the bootblocks onto the root partition on a Xylo-
     gics disk:
          example% cd /usr/kvm/mdec
          example% installboot -vlt /boot bootxy /dev/rxy0a

Arrrgghh. This sounds like installboot also does the copying stuff, which
it could do, by the way, if it insists on a mounted partition.

Ok, it's always one first time, now I know, but I don't like it, still.
After a moment of thinking it gets clearer: Track zero is not touched by
sync, so the fact that the fs is mounted is considered harmless.

Thanks to all of you out there who responded by email:

jw@owf.ch (Juerg Wanner)
Martin Frost <me@Sunburn.Stanford.EDU>
Mike.Sullivan@EBay.Sun.COM (Mike Sullivan {AKA Simon BarSinister})
From: Edward J. Hartnett <ejh@khonshu.Colorado.EDU>

(didn't record the answers over the net, all answers were basically the
same, also thank you very much!).

And a special remark to David (dpkemp@afterlife.ncsc.mil): You tried
to help me, I see. But I hate being treated like a fool! Nevertheless,
thank you anyway.

Regards
   -svb.

-- 
Sebastian v. Bomhard  <svb@guug.de>,        Brodersen & Bomhard GmbH
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