Linux on PowerPC FAQ-O-Matic : PowerPC Linux : LinuxPPC for PCI Macs :
Linux/PowerPC on a Power Mac 7600 with 2 hard drives Help
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-->1.) Your Machine may be messed up straight from the box!
Unplug your machine and open the cover, with your PPC's manual open to the motherboard drawing. Identify where the VRAM (video ram) is supposed to be. There are 2 banks for vram, 'a' & 'b'. NOTE: In my machine, and in others, they mistakenly put the vram in bank B, ( instead of loading basic vram in A, leaving B open for adding xtra vram). Open Firmware and Linux/PowerPC cannot adress vram in B, and you will get a dark monitor with a flashing yellow monitor light if it is in B only, ( two full banks are okay, it'll just get the A vram).
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-->2.) Become familiar with Open Firmware
Open Firmware is software in your mac's ROM (read only memory) that boots on startup BEFORE your MacOS software so you can intercept the BOOT and go into a GUI, ( graphics user interface), which is a menu that let's you choose what system to boot and where on which drive and in which partition it is. This actually is easier than it sounds.
On reboot, hold down: Option-Command(clover-leaf, the old "open-apple")-O-P, ( 4 keys), and you will drop into OF.
This is a great way to learn about where everything is in the terms BootVars and your Mac uses. And if you can't, or get a black screen, check your VRAM
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-->3.) If you have a second Hard Drive internally, (maybe externally too...I don't know"), your BootVars settings need to be paid attention to: boot device: "N" boot file: "N" Both MILO and the Red Hat installer will furnish you with recommended values.
READ THE Installation Read Me!••••••••••••••••
-->4.) When partitioning a second hard drive for UNIX partitions on Non Apple Hard Drives, you need a hacked version of Hard Drive Set up. In Res-Edit make these changes: "SC Setup 7.3.5, resource wfwr, ID 67, change 00 to FF." (thanks Ruud ingema!).
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-->5: After installing new partitions, you'll have to use "Drive Setup", a different utility to Mount the Drive so it can be "seen", at least I did. This move turned the trick on allowing me to Boot linux from new drive.
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-->6.) "why does my machine constantly interrupt me with "YPBINDPROC_DOMAIN: No
Server for Domain (none)" notices and e-mail every 5 minutes?"
Because you used the "Install Everything Option" on the Red Hat Installer and
you've got a lone machine at home or the office and you're not ON a Network, and
have no Host or Client identity. Your machine is freaking out trying to locate
it's MOMMA! Re-install just choosing the packages you want. Pass Network and
such selections as NIS by.
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-->7.) I find that BootVars gets me to Linux consistantly, but after using Linux
I have to boot into Open Firmware and type "Bye" and hit RETURN to go back to
Mac OS8. This actually is less effort than the old MkLinux Control Panel I used
with MkLinux, which also kept me from using RAM Doubler or Virtual Memory....now
my Mac stuff is MOOT, Monolithic Linux doesn't care what your Mac Life is all
about!
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Good Luck
I hope I have helped more than I have confused.
Hal
hsundt@eugn.uswest.net
Switched from External to Internal Jaz and Linux-Pmac won't boot