Luke, Same issue/message with a DELL laptop, the fix was to use UKC (boot_config(8)) and enable/disable/change device settings. Once it got up a fw_update(8) seemed to fix the base problem. I've attached my successful dmesg log FWIW but perhaps a comparison will make it clear.
On Tue, Nov 25, 2025 at 7:17 AM Luke A. Call <[email protected]> wrote: > On 2025-11-11 22:49:30+0000, Crystal Kolipe <[email protected]> > wrote: > > On Mon, Nov 10, 2025 at 12:36:16PM -0700, Luke A. Call wrote: > > > On 2025-11-08 22:30:22+0000, Crystal Kolipe < > [email protected]> wrote: > > > > On Fri, Nov 07, 2025 at 03:40:27PM -0700, Luke A. Call wrote: > > > > > Which is what happened after I had to do a hard reset and re-do the > > > > > above, due to the keyboard freezing (^Q did't help nor ^C nor > anything > > > > > else I tried). But I got back where I was, then doing "ls > -lR|more" on > > > > > the mounted directory and ^Z causes it to lock again...so I will > > > > > reboot again and re-do fsck -p on it. > > > > > > > > Did this lock-up happen just once, or is it happening repeatedly > whilst the > > > > machine is booted in to a 7.8 kernel? > > > > > > The first time may have been, and the 2nd time definitely it was when > I > > > pressed ^Z while in "ls -lR|more" in the 7.8 kernel. The 3rd time as I > > > try to reproduce it similarly I get "--More--Segmentation fault" and > it > > > didn't freeze (but I had not attached a disk with bioctl this time). > > > So not sure. > > .... > > If well tested programs such as ls and more are segfaulting whilst > running in > > a known and fairly uncomplicated enviroment such as the ramdisk kernel > then I > > would usually start to suspect hardware problems, (often ram memory > failing), > > but you said that this machine previously ran 7.7, so that seems less > likely. > > > > It might be worth running memtest86 or something similar to eliminate > this > > possibility, or even just booting with less memory using something like > > 'machine mem =512M' at the bootloader configuration prompt for a quicker > if > > less thorough test. > > Thanks. When I boot cold into the Dell utility for checking memory and > cpu etc and run all of it for 30-60 minutes, I see no errors. > > When I boot from the installation CD into a shell, and run ls -lR|more , > hit space several times then ^Z, I get the segmentation fault, > whether or not I disable the bce* and bwi* drivers in kernel config. > That might be of interest to the devs, since it, like the freeze, only > seems > to happen in the 7.8 upgrade disk's installer kernel. > > If I do the ls -lR then ^Z in single-user mode after the upgrade > was complete, or after a regular bootup, I do not get a segmentation fault > nor the system freeze described above. > > > > > > Maybe the error/panic that is causing the reboot > > > > > during upgrade comes in some fast subsequent step after the > "Mounting > > > > > root filesystem" message. > > > > > But it flashes off too fast to see what comes next. Maybe if I > took a > > > > > video, found some video editing software, and paused it to see the > very > > > > > end. But happy to try more other things... > > > > > > > > The next step after the "Mounting root filesystem" message is > bringing up > > > > the network devices. It's plausible that something could be going > wrong > > > > there. > > > > > > > > But first, quickly check that the "checking root filesystem" and > "mounting > > > > root filesystem" messages specify the expected device. The format > of the > > > > latter message is: > > > > > > > > Mounting root filesystem (mount -o ro /dev/FOO /mnt)... > > > > > > > > ... where FOO is the device being mounted. Hopefully it is sd0a in > your > > > > case. > > > > > > Yes, they say: > > > Checking root filesystem (fsck -fp /dev/sd0a)... OK. > > > Mounting root filesystem (mount -o ro /dev/sd0a /mnt)... OK. > > > > Well, at least we know that it is finding the correct root fs. > > > > > ...and the next thing I can see in the video is that the screen is > > > filled with repeated, hard-to-read lines, that seem to say: > > > panic: netlock rwlock 0xffffffff81955d48: enter write deadlock > > > ...and it immediately goes dark and reboots. > > > > So presumably something in the kernel called NET_LOCK(), likely with > another > > thread waiting on a shared lock. That probably explains why it crashes > when > > the installer reaches the point of bringing up the network interfaces. > > > > Seems odd that nobody ran in to this pre-release, assuming that it is > actually > > a kernel bug rather than a hardware issue. It could be a timing issue, > or > > maybe for some reason you are exercising a code path that didn't see much > > testing. > > > > > Curiously now, maybe due to something(???) I did while in the 7.8 > install > > > disk shell, while booting it instead of prompting me for the FDE key, > it > > > says this (though I can still boot from the disk and attach it with > bioctl > > > and it prompts me for the FDE key and data is visible): > > > > > > Using drive 0, partition 3. > > > Loading...... > > > probing: pc0 mem[636K 2045M a20-on] > > > disk: hd0+ sr0 > > > >> Openbsd/amd64 BOOT 3.67 > > > open(hd0a:/etc/boot.conf): Invalid argument > > > boot> > > > cannot open hd0a:/etc/random.seed: Invalid argument > > > [the next lines are the ones I didn't get before this error of no FDE > > > prompt etc] > > > booting hd0a:/bsd: open hd0a:/bsd: Invalid argument > > > failed(22). will try /bsd > > > boot> > > > booting hd0a:/bsd: open hd0a:/bsd: Invalid argument > > > failed(22). will try /bsd > > > Turning timeout off. > > > boot> > > > > It's trying to find the kernel on the 'a' partition of your boot drive, > which > > in your case is not an FFS filesystem but a softraid volume. > > > > It's easily fixed by running installboot and pointing it to the correct, > > (I.E. sd0a in your case), partition. But don't try to do that from the > > ramdisk kernel, (yet), because it requires the correct files to be in > > /usr/mdec. > > > > > > > > ...and then I type at the boot prompt this and again get: > > > boot> boot /bsd > > > cannot open hd0a:/etc/random.seed: Invalid argument > > > booting hd0a:/bsd: open hd0a:/bsd: Invalid argument > > > failed(22). will try /bsd > > > boot> > > Thanks. I was able to work through the install with the kernel configs > (more > on that below) and do the installation, and after the upgrade I no longer > see this inability to find the boot kernel, so I didn't have to try the > installboot command. Good to know though, for future. > > > > > Assuming that is not the issue, and returning to the next step of > bringing up > > > > the network devices... From your dmesg the only network card in > this machine > > > > seems to be bce0. You could try disabling that device in the > bootloader and > > > > see if that allows the 7.8 ramdisk installer to finish booting, (or > at least > > > > get further). > > > > > > I did: > > > boot> boot -c > > > cannot open cd0a:/etc/random.seed: No such... > > > booting cd0a:/7.8/amd64/bsd.rd: ... > > > entry point at ... > > > .... > > > UKC> disable bce0 > > > UKC> disable adfadfa > > > UKC> find bce* > > > 144 bce* at pci* dev -1 function -1 flags 0x0 > > > UKC> disable bce* > > > 144 bce* disabled > > > > > > ...and continued into the install disk, did the shell commands for > > > bioctl etc., and continued with the install which again said: > > > Mounting root filesystem (mount -o ro /dev/sd0a /mnt)... OK. > > > panic: netlock rwlock 0xffffffff81955d48: enter write deadlock > > > ...filling the screen with the panic message, and reboots as before. > > > > > > The same thing happened with I tried disabling the net card from the > > > BIOS. > > > > OK, so it seems to be network related, but not triggered by the bce > device. > > > > I just noticed you have a bwi wireless adaptor as well. Maybe try > disabling > > that in the same way. Other than that and testing memory as I mentioned > > earlier, you'll probably need to wait for someone who actually worked on > this > > code during the 7.8 development cycle to chime in with further advice. > > Good catch. > When I tried that, disabling both the bce and bwi adapters, the > installer got a > little farther (ran fsck on some things and something), but I failed to > capture the last thing on video just before it crashed/rebooted itself > again. > > So I went thru it again, this time disabling only bwi*, and it is now > behaving more like what I would expect: got through the keyboard choice, > couple questions about disk and http maybe, fsck, starting to download > and install the sets. > Then after working through some "no space left on device" errors in /usr, > based on another misc@.. thread, I was able to finish the installation and > things seem normal. > > But if I didn't disable bwi*, I couldn't finish the installation process > w/o > a crash, so this might be worth knowing, for the 7.8 devs. > > I have attached a new /var/run/dmesg.boot now, as booted into a working > 7.8 system. > > Separately, just curious, I don't need it right now: is it possible to > have both kernel config options and single-user mode on the same bootup? > > Thanks again!! > Luke Call > -- Phil Maker . web: https://eds.power.on.net/EDS or https://eds.power.net/laot-pub emails: <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, <[email protected]> <[email protected]> phone: +61 (0) 439 223 469
dmesg
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