yeah, that was why I was asking ... the nvram variable, with that sdXX, looked like it was taken from a doc.
It is worth understanding that plan 9 partitions are very, very different from what people are used to on unix. There are the basic partitions, in, e.g., fat you can see them with unix/windows/osx tools. the plan 9 partitions are created, in memory, by the diskparts script. See /rc/bin/diskparts and the echo to /dev/whatever/ctl. This is actually very nice. It frees you from the limits that come with certain partition schemes, e.g. 8 partitions, or whatever. You're not going to see the fossil, nvram, etc. partitions until you run diskparts. In early days, IIRC, if you needed to get to the nvram partition before diskparts got run, you could use the nvroff etc. variables to do a non-file-system-oriented read to get it. the nvram partition is kind of a hack anyway; when we had linuxbios-based plan 9 systems at LANL, we used extended cmos for nvram, not the disk, because on some of the systems there was no disk. Somebody can correct me here, but I believe the terminals at Bell Labs, among other systems, had a true nvram to hold the key. On Wed, Sep 10, 2025 at 11:29 AM adventures in9 <[email protected]> wrote: > I'm guessing you pasted the nvram location from some instructions > somewhere, as the sdXX in /dev/sdXX/nvram is not a valid drive. It > would have to be /dev/sdE2/nvram or /dev/sdE3/nvram. Something like > that. sdXX is a commonly used example, but it would be > sd[letter][number] to correspond to a particular drive on your > computer. > > On Wed, Sep 10, 2025 at 10:42 AM _ resun <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > Thank you Frank Engel for the explanation. I downloaded the usb Image > from here and I think it's a cpu kernel as the plan9.ini looks like this: > > > > ``` > > console=0 > > > > # new 9load can figure out bootfile > > bootfile=sdB0!9fat!9pccpuf.gz > > nobootprompt=local!/dev/sdXX/fossil > > > > readparts= > > nvram=/dev/sdXX/nvram > > > > debugboot=1 > > *nodumpstack=1 > > *noe820print=1 > > ``` > > > _______________________________________________________________________________ > >> it would be helpful to see all of the boot messages. > >> — Ron Minnich > > > > > > I couldn't get the first part of it but this is what I see at the end: > > ``` > > Part fosil 204880 3709377 > > p9part /dev/sdE2/data data > > p9part /dev/sdE3/data data > > auth...can't open /dev/sdXX/nvram: '/env/nvroff' file does not exist > > authid: _resun > > authdom: resun.local > > auth password: resun > > secstore password: resun > > can't write to nvram: '/env/nvroff' file does not exist > > usbinit...usbd.../boot/usbd: /dev/usb: no hubs > > no /srv/usb...no usb disk..mount usbd...boot: can't open /srv/usb: > '/env/usb' file does not exist > > boot: can't connect to file server: '/boot/kfs' does not exist > > panic: boot process died: can't connect to file server: '/boot/kfs' does > not exist > > panic: boot process died: can't connect to file server: '/boot/kfs' does > not exist > > dumpstack disabled > > cpu2: exiting > > someone's exiting > > someone's exiting > > cpu3: exiting > > cpu1: exiting > > apshutdown: active = 0x00000000 > > ``` > > > >> it looks like you have a fossil partition, but do you have an nvram > partition? > >> — Ron Minnich > > > > > > That's hard to answer. After writing the usb image to the usb stick I > can only see a fat partition with these files: > > > > ``` > > 9LOAD > > 9PCCPUF.GZ > > PLAN9.INI > > System Volume Information > > ``` > > > > Is there any way to see other partitions on that usb? There must be a > fossil or other plan9 specific partition. > > > > > _______________________________________________________________________________ > >> I am wondering why your bootfile is > >> bootfile=sdB0!9fat!9pccpuf.gz > >> and your nvramfile is > >> sdXX > >> ? > >> — ron minnich > > > > > > I do not know. but according to this script from 9legacy that's how it > should be. > > > > > _______________________________________________________________________________ > > > > New! > > > > I also tried to boot into the USB Image from the 9legacy website but > same result. > > > > Thanks! > > > > _resun > > > > > > On Tue, 9 Sept 2025 at 18:19, ron minnich <[email protected]> wrote: > >> > >> I am wondering why your bootfile is > >> bootfile=sdB0!9fat!9pccpuf.gz > >> and your nvramfile is > >> sdXX > >> > >> ? > >> > >> > >> On Mon, Sep 8, 2025 at 4:42 PM Ron Minnich <[email protected]> wrote: > >>> > >>> it would be helpful to see all of the boot messages. > >>> > >>> it looks like you have a fossil partition, but do you have an nvram > partition? > >>> > >>> On Mon, Sep 8, 2025 at 2:28 PM Frank D. Engel, Jr. <[email protected]> > wrote: > >>> > > >>> > In Plan9, a "terminal" is a computer that the user interacts with > directly, while a "cpu server" is one that provides processing capacity > over the network (basically a computer that multiple users connect to and > run programs on). > >>> > > >>> > The terminal kernel is optimized for a single user running the > graphical interface (rio) and sitting in front of that computer to access > the system. > >>> > > >>> > The cpu server kernel is optimized for a server that is sitting in a > network closet somewhere (or running on a virtual machine) and accessed > primarily remotely by multiple users simultaneously. > >>> > > >>> > The startup scripts respond to the choice of kernel and start the > appropriate services depending on which one is selected (rio if terminal, > server-related services if cpu). > >>> > > >>> > > >>> > On 9/8/25 11:04, _ resun wrote: > >>> >> > >>> >> Note that the usbdisk image does not contain the installer, you > have to manually > >>> >> set up fossil and venti and install on your hard drive. The > instruction is available > >>> >> on 9legacy's site. > >>> > > >>> > Can you please provide the link of the instructions? > >>> > > >>> >> > >>> >> When you boot into your usb, it will ask you to select the cpu > kernel > >>> >> or terminal kernel. you selected the cpu kernel. > >>> >> On the first boot of the cpu kernel, nvram doesn't have anything > yet, > >>> >> the authid prompt is normal, it will write your information to nvram > >>> >> (if you are interested in booting a cpu kernel) > >>> > > >>> > > >>> > It does not provide any prompt to select cpu kernel or terminal > kernel. What does the terminal kernel do by the way? > >>> > > >>> > Thanks! > >>> > > >>> > _resun > >>> > > >>> > > >>> > On Mon, 8 Sept 2025 at 17:32, <[email protected]> wrote: > >>> >> > Unfortunately, I posted an incomplete message. I sincerely > apologise for > >>> >> > the mistake. > >>> >> > > >>> >> > Here's the complete one: > >>> >> > > >>> >> > I was trying to install Plan9 on my pc using the USB Image. My > host machine > >>> >> > is windows 11. Here's how I made the usb drive: > >>> >> > >>> >> Note that the usbdisk image does not contain the installer, you > have to manually > >>> >> set up fossil and venti and install on your hard drive. The > instruction is available > >>> >> on 9legacy's site. > >>> >> > >>> >> > > >>> >> > 1. Downloaded the USB Disk Image from here > >>> >> > <http://9p.io/plan9/download.html>. > >>> >> > 2. run this from cmd > >>> >> > ``` > >>> >> > dd if="...\usbdisk" of=\\.\PhysicalDrive3 bs=4M --progress > >>> >> > ``` > >>> >> > > >>> >> > Note. dd is dd for windows from here: chrysocome > >>> >> > <http://www.chrysocome.net/dd>. > >>> >> > 3. booted into the usb drive in Legacy mode and the loader was > running > >>> >> > > >>> >> > after that I got this error: > >>> >> > > >>> >> > ``` > >>> >> > auth...can't open /dev/sdXX/nvram: 'env/nvroff' file does not > exist. > >>> >> > ``` > >>> >> > Then it prompted something related to `authid`. > >>> >> > >>> >> When you boot into your usb, it will ask you to select the cpu > kernel > >>> >> or terminal kernel. you selected the cpu kernel. > >>> >> On the first boot of the cpu kernel, nvram doesn't have anything > yet, > >>> >> the authid prompt is normal, it will write your information to nvram > >>> >> (if you are interested in booting a cpu kernel) > >>> >> > >>> >> > > >>> >> > Here's what my `plan9.ini` looks like: > >>> >> > > >>> >> > ``` > >>> >> > console=0 > >>> >> > > >>> >> > # new 9load can figure out bootfile > >>> >> > bootfile=sdB0!9fat!9pccpuf.gz > >>> >> > nobootprompt=local!/dev/sdXX/fossil > >>> >> > > >>> >> > readparts= > >>> >> > nvram=/dev/sdXX/nvram > >>> >> > > >>> >> > debugboot=1 > >>> >> > *nodumpstack=1 > >>> >> > *noe820print=1 > >>> >> > ``` > >>> >> > > >>> >> > I tried setting `nvroff=0` and also `nvrlen=512` and then I got > the error > >>> >> > that `/dev/sdXX` does not exists following the `authid` prompt. > >>> >> > > >>> >> > What should I do? > >>> >> > > >>> >> > Thanks! > >>> >> > > >>> >> > _resun > >>> >> > > >>> >> > > >>> >> > On Sun, 7 Sept 2025 at 23:49, <[email protected]> wrote: > >>> >> > > >>> >> >> Hello! > >>> >> >> > >>> >> >> I was trying to install Plan9 on my pc using the USB Image. My > host > >>> >> >> machine is windows 11. Here's how I made the usb drive: > >>> >> >> > >>> >> >> 1. 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