Thanks Gerardo for your answer. It was a reason I tried to boot into SqueakNOS just now. Unfortunately, I failed.
First, I dounloaded two files, SqueakNOS-8-Mar-2010-Disk.7z and SqueakNOS-19-feb-2010.tar.bz2 from http://sourceforge.net/projects/squeaknos/files/. I beleive first is VMware virtual computer copy, so I put it aside. Second is ISO image (and vmx file, I expect for VMware diskless CD-bootable virtual computer).
I used UNetbootin (http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/) to make a bootable SD-card for my eeepc-900 from those ISO.
Then I restarted my laptop with SD card installed, changed BIOS settings to boot from SD Card, and I got into GRUB menu with several lines in it for different resolutions.
Unfortunately, process not goes further :) For any menu entry I it reports something like "Missing or corrupted kernel". I failed to switch myself into command-line mode. Pressing "c" do nothing, "ctrl+c" and "esc" switch me to "boot:" prompt, which asking me for kernel name, not commands. Manual "SqueakNOS.kernel" and "/SqueakNOS.kernel" typing do not helps. Pressing "tab" (for autocomplition) lists several entries like "unetbootindefault", "ubnentry0" and so on, but typing as kernel names calls error message, too.
Maybe it's something wrong about UNetbootin ? I can see several additional files on the SD card if compared them to .iso: ldlinux.sys menu.c32 syslinux.cfg ubnfilel.txt ubnkern ubnpathl.txt
I thought it's grub files, but I'm not sure anymore - maybe it's files of "normal" GRUB, not your modified version? For example, I do not understand if menu I saw goes from /boot/grub/menu.lst or from /syslinux.cfg ? They both have lines with SqueakNOS. I think it's second one, becouse I can see "Default" entry in /syslinux.cfg , and there are no this name in /boot/grub/menu.lst And I see this "Default" line during boot.
I'll continue my experiments at home, where I have Ubuntu with grub command. But maybe you know whats going wrong?
Юрий Мироненко wrote:
I used UNetbootin (http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/) to make a bootable SD-card for my eeepc-900 from those ISO.
I don't know how UNetbootin works, I read their documentation, but still... They say they use syslinux, but your said you saw a GRUB menu (blue screen? you sure it's GRUB?) So I guess they are chainloading the GRUB from the ISO image, now, what's weird, is that none of the files you listed came out of the .iso.
You are missing all GRUB files, and more specially, SqueakNOS.kernel (or SqueakNOS.kernel.gz) and SqueakNOS.image or SqueakNOS.image.gz Has anything been extracted from the .iso into de SD card?
gera
They say they use syslinux, but your said you saw a GRUB menu (blue screen? you sure it's GRUB?) So I guess they are chainloading the GRUB from the ISO image, now, what's weird, is that none of the files you listed came out of the .iso.
Sorry, I do not realize it's syslinux and not GRUB, especially becouse I saw "SqueakNOS 1024x768x32" and so on lines in it. But yes, it was syslinux, and they try to be smartass, so it looks like UNetbootin analyzed my menu.lst, and tried to make "similar" entries in syslinux.cfg
Well, I just followed this page http://community.corest.com/~gera/My%20Documents/Building,%20changing,%20boo... (really, I understands it's syslinux by reading "Copy grub.exe from /boot/grub to the root directory, and add the following lines to syslinux.cfg" line :), and chained GRUB with SYSLINUX, so I got into grub succesfully. Unfortunately, it doesn't help me much :)
It's something about VESA modes I beleive. First of all, vbeprobe looks damaged. It not list me supported modes if called without parameter. Next, I failed to understand format of mode string. I tried a decimal VESA numbers, I tried hexadecimal in "0x115"-like form, I tried "640x480x8" form. It prints me strange mode numbers (like "0x400") and said they are unsupported.
Well, if I choose, for example, 1024x768x32, it prints me a list of something looks like supported modes table. Every mode I tested outside this table do not works (i.e., displaying this very table as part of error report and "press any key to continue"). Every mode from this table are...hmm...works. Sort of.
There are two scenarios. First is loooong pause, and then - messy colored rectangle in topleft corner. Second is: printing "boot" in topleft corner (it looks like it was printed in graphic mode, not text), then looong pause, and then, again, messy colored rectangle in topleft corner.
This messy colored rectangle looks like those I saw when misscalculate some settings for videomemory in one of my projects. I can see some structure in this rectangle, not just random color.
And well, I remeber SqueakNOS works on ESUG conference on this very laptop...
You are missing all GRUB files, and more specially, SqueakNOS.kernel (or SqueakNOS.kernel.gz) and SqueakNOS.image or SqueakNOS.image.gz Has anything been extracted from the .iso into de SD card?
Yes, it was, I checked it. .kernel, .image and .changes are there.
Юрий Мироненко wrote:
Well, if I choose, for example, 1024x768x32, it prints me a list of something looks like supported modes table. Every mode I tested outside this table do not works (i.e., displaying this very table as part of error report and "press any key to continue"). Every mode from this table are...hmm...works. Sort of.
This list is the list of video modes supported by your laptop, choose the best from the list, and use it. In short, what you did is correct.
There are two scenarios. First is loooong pause, and then - messy colored rectangle in topleft corner. Second is: printing "boot" in topleft corner (it looks like it was printed in graphic mode, not text), then looong pause, and then, again, messy colored rectangle in topleft corner.
Uhm... no sure what's going on, we are currently seeing the colored box you describe, but after that we get SqueakNOS up and running... it's weird, 'cos on old versions I don't remember seeing the colored box, and at some point it started to show up. I'm not sure what's it about... I guess it may be that some hardware is blocking the boot process, so Squeak never gets to refresh the video screen...
What can you do? well... the .image file in the SD is a true squeak image, so you can open it outside and change it. Try adding some code as the first things executed in Squeak, not sure where it is, I guess it's in the startUp for some class (check StartUpList in, erm... let me look it up, SystemDictionary >> #processStartUpList:, put something there to see if the execution reaches that point. What to put? In the list of video modes, the big hex number next to the video mode you chose is the address for the frame buffer, let's say its 0xfe000000, so try something like:
| screen block | screen := ExternalAddress fromInteger: 16rfe000000. block := (String new: 100000) atAllPut: $a. screen stringAt: 1 put: block.
with that you should see something in the screen... if you do see something in the screen then the next thing is to find out what is blocking the boot processs. So I guess a good idea is to get a visual signal every time something in the list finishes, and then we'll know where it blocks... etc... In fact, it may be possible to get some text in the screen, but we'll try that later.
and, erm... if you want, you could document all this process you are following, 'cos I think is a good help for anybody in your situation :)
gera
squeaknos@lists.squeakfoundation.org
-
Gerardo Richarte -
Юрий Мироненко