News Group Posts

btlds

From: Bela Lubkin <belal@sco.com>
Subject: Re: booting restored kernel on new hardware, am I screwed or what?
Date: Tue, 6 Nov 2001 21:39:30 GMT
References: <9s8s2j$ko4$1@slb3.atl.mindspring.net>
<MyXF7.143392$RG4.1322445967@newssvr10.news.prodigy.com>
<9s9jvs$shf$1@slb6.atl.mindspring.net> 

John H wrote:

> OpenServer 5.0.6, BackupoEdge 01.01.08
> 
> When creating the boot/root disk set, I ran RecoverEdge and let it do it's
> thing.  I didn't do anything other than insert the disk(s) when it told me
> to.
> 
> Tryed btld from the command prompt and I get a out of memory error (huh? I
> got 98MB in here, mebbe I'll have to spec that in the boot string as well)

The program that does the boot-time linking of BTLDs is a small-model
8086 program.  It has some very limited knowledge of 32-bit address
space for purposes of copying the actual kernel code up there.  It does
the _linking_ in 8086 mode.  Specifically, the kernel and BTLD objects'
symbol tables get loaded into the low 1MB of memory.  It's quite easy
for it to run out of space.

Check BIOS setup: many modern machines have settings which control
whether 512KB or 640KB of the low 1MB are available.  You won't be able
to BTLD anything if it's set to 512KB.  At 640KB, you at least have a
chance.

> I've gotten the system booted from a kernel build on an ide system, but I
> need to now try to figure out how to tell my system the root disk is ide, not
> ida, and then I should be able to relink a new kernel and boot and be happy
> again.  Until then... I'm still muttering ...

Rather than all this, what you might want to do is start a new, fresh
install on the replacement machine -- starting from the OS distribution
CD.  (Or possibly from SmartStart if these are Compaqs, like I seem to
remember from the previous messages.)  Anyway, using whatever is the
correct procedure for the replacement machine, do a new install.  Then
restore your data from the old system, being careful not to restore the
OS portions.  Finally, if necessary, restore the OS portions into a
subdirectory.  You can use the restored old OS as a reference for things
like kernel parameters you had changed.

>Bela<
 

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