[comp.sys.sgi] how to boot a file different from /unix ?

doelz@urz.unibas.ch (07/30/90)

Hi, 

I am playing with my operating system in order to fix a problem I have with 
IP5 on high load. The lboot -t nicely produces a new kernel, asks whether
I want to reconfigure the system upon startup, and is apparently o.k.

The only thing which puzzles me is that I am getting in trouble 
with the panic messages if I accidentially did something wrong.
The machine dies, and hangs, without RESET being active... I 
need to power off the machine in order to get the PROM prompt.  
I then load the inst, spawn a sh and rename my save file to /root/unix
in order to be able to boot. 

Question: In early versions of PROM, there was a hint how to boot a 
different file than /unix on the system disk. I didn't find that info 
somewhere now in the current documentation (3.3). 
How to boot a file other than /unix ? 

Merci 
Reinhard 

dwatts@ki.UUCP (Dan Watts) (07/31/90)

In article <1990Jul29.201238.846@urz.unibas.ch> doelz@urz.unibas.ch writes:
>
>Question: In early versions of PROM, there was a hint how to boot a 
>different file than /unix on the system disk. I didn't find that info 
>somewhere now in the current documentation (3.3). 
>How to boot a file other than /unix ? 
>
>Merci 
>Reinhard 

See page 2-14 of "IRIS-4D System Administrator's Guide".
To boot from a SCSI disk, I use:

 boot dksc(0,1,0)unix.test

I too spent quite a while once trying to figure out how to do this.
Sure would be nice if there was a _real_ index for all these #!#?
manuals.
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ted@vball.sgi.com (Ted Wilcox) (07/31/90)

In <1990Jul29.201238.846@urz.unibas.ch> doelz@urz.unibas.ch writes:

>The only thing which puzzles me is that I am getting in trouble 
>with the panic messages if I accidentially did something wrong.
>The machine dies, and hangs, without RESET being active... I 
>need to power off the machine in order to get the PROM prompt.  
>I then load the inst, spawn a sh and rename my save file to /root/unix
>in order to be able to boot. 

Ouch!

>Question: In early versions of PROM, there was a hint how to boot a 
>different file than /unix on the system disk. I didn't find that info 
>somewhere now in the current documentation (3.3). 
>How to boot a file other than /unix ? 

When you're in the prom menu (the 5 buttons) select option 5 (Enter Command
Monitor).

When you're at the ">>" prompt, tell the system to boot the file that
you have saved.  For example if you have a scsi root disk, and your
saved unix file is called unix.sav, type:

>>boot dksc(0,1,0)/unix.sav

The dksc means use a scsi device, the first 0 means controller 0,
the 1 means device 1 (the default main disk), and the last 0 means
partition 0 (SGI's default root partition).

>Merci 
>Reinhard 

De rien.  (I think that's right.)
                      ___
Ted.                 /x  \/|  I'd kill Flipper
ted@sgi.com          > \\  |  for a tuna sandwich.
                     \___/\|      -Flipper (The band) (Thanks Archer.)