On Tue, Mar 23, 2010 at 09:35:53PM -0600, han...@lostwells.org wrote: > I would like to install Debian linux on a Sparc box to help with some > porting work I'm trying to do. I have a lifetime supply of retired > Ultra 1's, so figured to install on one of those. > > While I installed Slackware on a PC maybe 12-14 years ago, this is my > first stab at any Linux since then. But I've worked with Unix flavors > (kernel/driver development, etc.) since the 1970's. So easy on the > jargon, please. > > The install disk I downloaded was debian-504-sparc-netinst.iso. > That's burned to CD. > > The box configuration is Ultra 1 200E, with 512 mb and a single > Sun-barcoded 18 gb. disk. My thinking was to install to defaults so I > could learn my way around the system. > > Everything went OK until it came to partitioning the disk. I didn't see > any choices to run an fdisk or define the layout, and took the "use the > whole disk" option. The partition failed, and after some > jiggery-pokery, I gave up. I couldn't find a way to any disk utility > to help me.
Were disks detected though? I guess they were, because otherwise you would not get the "use the whole disk option". What was the error message that you've got? We used to have this hard-to-reproduce bug, where, if you install Debian on a disk which was previously used with Solaris, Debian installer would misdetect the size of the disk in a way you describe. If that's the same bug, then you should be able to apply the following workaround: 1. Perform installation steps until partitioning, make sure that disks are detected. 2. Select "Back" from the installer screen to get to the main menu. 3. Choose "Start a shell" option. 4. Zero the first 100 megabytes of the disk in question (disk name may need to be adjusted): dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sda bs=1M count=100 sync 5. Ctrl-D to exit the shell and return to main menu. 6. Re-run the "Detect disks" step from the menu, you will be offered to write a new partition table and the disk size should be determined correctly. > Put this disk in slot 1, put a Solaris boot disk in slot 0, and > discovered that my 18gb disk was now a 5 gb disk. Evidently, Debian > rewrote the disk VTOC, changing it from 7608 cylinders to 2200. > > Right now I've recovered the disk by using Solaris utilities to rewrite > the VTOC. But I'm very reluctant to try anything with an install that > trashes a disk. > > In short, what do I do now? > > Hank > > > -- > To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to debian-sparc-requ...@lists.debian.org > with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact listmas...@lists.debian.org > Archive: > http://lists.debian.org/201003240335.o2o3zsxj014...@aurum.lostwells.org -- Jurij Smakov ju...@wooyd.org Key: http://www.wooyd.org/pgpkey/ KeyID: C99E03CC -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to debian-sparc-requ...@lists.debian.org with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact listmas...@lists.debian.org Archive: http://lists.debian.org/20100324211240.ga3...@droopy.oc.cox.net