Jim Fron wrote: > I'm attempting to install OBSD 3.7 sparc on a Sparcstation 20. I've > been through installs numerous times on 20's, 2's, and an IPC using > previous OBSD versions. > > Currently, I only have one install method -- floppy. I could > conceivably set up a netboot install or wrangle a CDR drive if need be. > > The problem is this: every time I attempt to install, I get part-way > or all the way through the package download process, and the > installer bombs, dumps hex to the screen, and drops back into OFW. I > don't have serial console, either: I'm using a monitor and keyboard, > so it's tough to say what, if any, error messages may be present. > The more packages I attempt to install, the more likely it is to > crash in the middle of download. If I reduce the packages to bsd and > base37.tgz, I can often get as far as building nodes before the crash. > > This system seemed to happily run Solaris 7, booting all the way into > CDE and running seeral apps at once without bombing, so I'm hesitant > to start yanking RAM, but if that's the only thing suspect, I'll do it.
Sounds like one of two things: either 1) No one has ever installed OpenBSD 3.7 on a SS20, and you have discovered that it really doesn't work. 2) Your computer is broke. While it may be argued that I am a "no one", it isn't due to the fact that I have installed OpenBSD 3.7 on an SS20. Two SS20, in fact, testing both CDROM and floppy based installs. It isn't #1. Your computer is broke. Get troubleshooting. Your description sounds just like a memory problem, the more your install, the more memory the system uses. MAKEDEV uses a LOT of RAM. If another OS fails on the same hardware, you can be pretty sure it is bad hardware. If another OS is still working, it is at best a suggestion that it might NOT be hardware. As the system is fully booting the kernel, I don't think it is a floppy problem. Nick.
