Re: developing on a sparc?

To: bwitt@arch.sel.sony.com, oskit-users@cs.utah.edu
Subject: Re: developing on a sparc?
From: Kevin Van Maren <vanmaren@fast.cs.utah.edu>
Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 17:12:44 -0700 (MST)
Sender: owner-oskit-users@fast.cs.utah.edu


We've cross compiled from HPs, but not from a Sparc.  However,
ig you build the cross-compiler correctly, it should work fine.

Given your situation, I believe the best thing would be to create
a boot floppy containing netboot (boot/net in the OSKit), which
you can stick in the PC.  You will need to set up bootp on a
machine on the LAN, or type in the IP address/netmask manually
on every boot.

As for creating the boot floppy, you should be able to cross-
compile netboot without major problems.  The problem would be
to get the resulting kernel onto a floppy so that it can be
loaded.  This would be easiest with an existing BSD or Linux
machine; for example, under FreeBSD you could do "mkbsdimage
netboot", and copy the Image file to a floppy with the BSD
bootblocks.

You may be able to install Grub on a floppy, and have it
read netboot from a DOS Fat disk (you can use mtools under
Solaris to read/write a DOS floppy).  [Or if Solaris can
write BSD ffs floppies, and you can build mkbsdimage, then
you could do that]

We have talked about providing a floppy disk image containing
a bootable netboot with all the PCI ethernet device drivers.
[Possibly a few disks that contain drivers for all the supported
network cards]  If we do so, then you could dd (or rawrite under
DOS) that to a floppy and avoid this whole problem.  I'll check
up on the status of that idea.

Kevin T. Van Maren
University of Utah, CSL

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