ybin 0.12 online


Subject: ybin 0.12 online
From: Ethan Benson (erbenson@alaska.net)
Date: Wed Apr 19 2000 - 07:50:13 MDT


I have uploaded version 0.12 of my yaboot installation utility ybin to
http://www.linuxppc.org/ybin/.

This version deprecates the use of a separate ybin.conf and now
instead reads its configuration variables directly from
/etc/yaboot.conf. Note that this *requires* yaboot 0.6 or later.

The configuration file options for ybin have also changed, please note
the changelog and Readme files for details. Ybin 0.11 configuration
files will NOT work with 0.12.

Version 0.11 added command line switches, some of these have been
removed and others have changed, again check the documentation.

Also included in the ybin package are man pages for yaboot,
yaboot.conf (including the ybin configuration options) and a
description of the newworld Powermac bootstrap process. There is
always room for improvment in documentation so please feel free to
make suggestions, and/or submit patches. I hope to get these
converted into html format and post them online in the next couple
days.

In case you are not aware of what ybin is:

Ybin is a installation utility for GNU/Linux on PowerPC (it will not
run on MacOS) to take the hassle out of managing the bootstrap
partition. Ybin takes care of copying the yaboot executable, a
OpenFirmware boot script and the yaboot.conf file to the bootstrap
partition and then setting various attributes on these files and on
the bootstrap filesystem to make OF believe the partition is as
bootable as a MacOS partition. This means, assuming your bootstrap
partition appears before any MacOS partitions that OpenFirmware will
automatically boot the boot script (usually a OS chooser or menu) with
the Apple default settings for OpenFirmware. Ybin also lets you
manage the boot loader in much the same way as you manage quik or
LILO, you edit /etc/yaboot.conf and run `ybin', the bootstrap
partition is updated with the current versions of /boot/yaboot
/boot/ofboot.b and /etc/yaboot.conf all in one step. ybin lets you
think of the bootstrap partition as nothing more then a bootblock with
its own device file in /dev/.

I highly recommend that you use a dedicated bootstrap partition for
yaboot as it allows it to be configured in such a way that
OpenFirmware will boot it on its own (you don't have to remember the
right OF command to get your system to boot). I also recommend that
this partition be given a partition type "Apple_Bootstrap", this is
not required by ybin but it will protect against MacOS `unblessing'
the bootstrap partition, which it will usually do when it finds that
there is not a real copy of MacOS installed. (MacOS X Server used
this trick as well)

The Bootstrap partition also must not be mounted anywhere on your
filesystem for ybin to work. This should not be a problem since there
is no need to store kernels or anything else on it.

enjoy.

-- 
Ethan Benson
http://www.alaska.net/~erbenson/




This archive was generated by hypermail 2a24 : Sun Apr 23 2000 - 22:14:40 MDT