Re: Install problems on 43p-150 RS/6000
https://groups.google.com/g/linux.debian.ports.powerpc/c/C_3lrNkFmJg I went through this thread and I thought it might have helped. Original message From: Bill deWindt Date: 27/03/2024 02:18 (GMT+01:00) To: debian-powerpc@lists.debian.org Subject: Re: Install problems on 43p-150 RS/6000 Hello Adrian,On 3/26/2024 5:10 AM, John Paul Adrian Glaubitz wrote:> I can't go into the details right now due to lack of time, but you should> first check whether your machine is still supported by the Linux kernel.> > I know that IBM engineers dropped support for many of their own PowerPC> machines in the Linux kernel unlike Apple PowerMacs, so chances might be> that your machine is no longer supported and you would have to stick to> an older kernel.> I'll dive into researching the kernel support further when I have some time. I do know that 2.6 runs on it since that is what it is booted to under SUSE 10, so maybe I'm stuck with an older kernel but could migrate to an equally old Debian 3 which would at least get me off of RPM based systems entirely. :)> Your 43-P150 system is listed here:> >> https://www.debian.org/ports/powerpc/inst/install> > Apparently, there were custom installation floppy disks for this machine.> I did find the supported machines list and the dead links but hadn't found working links, so many thanks for pointing me to updated ones. This sounds virtually identical to what my notes from 2010 say / what I remember about getting SUSE on it in the first place. There were specific floppy images that you HAD to use to get the install going. Glad I still have actual floppy disks brand new in the box here!Looks like I now have my weekend project lined up for me. Thanks again!-Bill
Re: Install problems on 43p-150 RS/6000
Hello Adrian, On 3/26/2024 5:10 AM, John Paul Adrian Glaubitz wrote: I can't go into the details right now due to lack of time, but you should first check whether your machine is still supported by the Linux kernel. I know that IBM engineers dropped support for many of their own PowerPC machines in the Linux kernel unlike Apple PowerMacs, so chances might be that your machine is no longer supported and you would have to stick to an older kernel. I'll dive into researching the kernel support further when I have some time. I do know that 2.6 runs on it since that is what it is booted to under SUSE 10, so maybe I'm stuck with an older kernel but could migrate to an equally old Debian 3 which would at least get me off of RPM based systems entirely. :) Your 43-P150 system is listed here: https://www.debian.org/ports/powerpc/inst/install Apparently, there were custom installation floppy disks for this machine. I did find the supported machines list and the dead links but hadn't found working links, so many thanks for pointing me to updated ones. This sounds virtually identical to what my notes from 2010 say / what I remember about getting SUSE on it in the first place. There were specific floppy images that you HAD to use to get the install going. Glad I still have actual floppy disks brand new in the box here! Looks like I now have my weekend project lined up for me. Thanks again! -Bill
Re: Install problems on 43p-150 RS/6000
Hi Adrian, Bill,
On Tue, Mar 26, 2024 at 10:01 AM John Paul Adrian Glaubitz
wrote:
> Your 43-P150 system is listed here:
>
> > https://www.debian.org/ports/powerpc/inst/install
>
> Apparently, there were custom installation floppy disks for this machine.
>
> Since the link above 404s, you have to download them from the archive server:
>
> > http://archive.debian.org/debian/dists/woody/main/disks-powerpc/current/chrp/
>
> The page also links to a 404 page by Geert Uytterhoven who apparently once had
> such a system:
>
> > https://web.archive.org/web/20140625035302/http://users.telenet.be/geertu/Linux/PPC/
>
> I'm CC'ing him since he might be able to give you some hints.
While I did have a CHRP system, it was a LongTrail, not a 43P-150.
The "Development History" part doesn't mention that I ran Debian,
but I did. Probably some manual installation, in the late nineties...
Gr{oetje,eeting}s,
Geert
--
Geert Uytterhoeven -- There's lots of Linux beyond ia32 -- ge...@linux-m68k.org
In personal conversations with technical people, I call myself a hacker. But
when I'm talking to journalists I just say "programmer" or something like that.
-- Linus Torvalds
Re: Install problems on 43p-150 RS/6000
Hi Bill, On Mon, 2024-03-25 at 21:08 -0400, Bill deWindt wrote: > Please bear with me as this is my first post the powerpc group, but I am > pretty sure I am in the right place for this. :) You are. > After recently purchasing a NOS Sparc Ultra 5 and having great success > getting Sid running on it after much work and reading on > linux.debian.ports.sparc I decided to try and get Debian running on the > RS/6000 43p-150 machine I have in my collection. I originally purchased > the machine from a hospital back in 2008 or 09 for $20 and after a great > deal of sweat and tears I managed to get openSUSE 10.3 ppc running on > it. It has been like that since 2010 and I haven't use it since about > 2012, but if I could get Debian running on it I might have a use for it. > So, after doing the usual Googling and reading everything I could find > about this machine and why I had such trouble getting anything other > than AIX and openSUSE running on it I find myself here asking for any > assistance or guidance. So let me start with what I have tried to date > and what the results were (some are virtually identical to posts I found > from the early 2000's but I hoped some things had changed since then...) I can't go into the details right now due to lack of time, but you should first check whether your machine is still supported by the Linux kernel. I know that IBM engineers dropped support for many of their own PowerPC machines in the Linux kernel unlike Apple PowerMacs, so chances might be that your machine is no longer supported and you would have to stick to an older kernel. Your 43-P150 system is listed here: > https://www.debian.org/ports/powerpc/inst/install Apparently, there were custom installation floppy disks for this machine. Since the link above 404s, you have to download them from the archive server: > http://archive.debian.org/debian/dists/woody/main/disks-powerpc/current/chrp/ The page also links to a 404 page by Geert Uytterhoven who apparently once had such a system: > https://web.archive.org/web/20140625035302/http://users.telenet.be/geertu/Linux/PPC/ I'm CC'ing him since he might be able to give you some hints. Adrian -- .''`. John Paul Adrian Glaubitz : :' : Debian Developer `. `' Physicist `-GPG: 62FF 8A75 84E0 2956 9546 0006 7426 3B37 F5B5 F913
Install problems on 43p-150 RS/6000
Greetings! Please bear with me as this is my first post the powerpc group, but I am pretty sure I am in the right place for this. :) After recently purchasing a NOS Sparc Ultra 5 and having great success getting Sid running on it after much work and reading on linux.debian.ports.sparc I decided to try and get Debian running on the RS/6000 43p-150 machine I have in my collection. I originally purchased the machine from a hospital back in 2008 or 09 for $20 and after a great deal of sweat and tears I managed to get openSUSE 10.3 ppc running on it. It has been like that since 2010 and I haven't use it since about 2012, but if I could get Debian running on it I might have a use for it. So, after doing the usual Googling and reading everything I could find about this machine and why I had such trouble getting anything other than AIX and openSUSE running on it I find myself here asking for any assistance or guidance. So let me start with what I have tried to date and what the results were (some are virtually identical to posts I found from the early 2000's but I hoped some things had changed since then...) 1) Debian 30r6-powerpc-binary iso does nothing at all on the machine. The boot process hits the floppy, then the CD and jumps right to the SUSE install on the Hard Drive. 2) Debian 40r9-powerpc-netinst iso bombs after reading the CD with the error: "Firmware Error: DEFAULT CATCH!" 3) Debian 6.0.10-powerpc-netinst iso hangs the system completely (Bus Locks) as soon as the CD reads and requires a power-cycle to bring the machine back. 4) Debian 7.11.0-powerpc-netinst and 8.11.0-powerpc-netinst isos get the machine into a reboot loop showing nothing on the console. If you eject the CD during a reboot it will come up fine into SUSE from the HDD. 5) Debian 9.0-powerpc-NETINST-1 iso comes up to yaboot 1.3.17 and the boot prompt works allowing you to see all boot options, however choosing any option attempts to load and the machine just hangs but is NOT Bus Locked. 6) Debian 12.0.0-powerpc-NETINST-1 iso GRUB boots with the following output: /pci@8000/scsi@10/sd@1,0 Warning: attempt to claim over our own code! Welcome to GRUB! error: unrecognized number. error: no such partition. grub rescue> ls (ieee1275/floppy) (ieee1275/disk) (ieee1275/cdrom) grub rescue> ls (ieee1275/cdrom) (ieee1275/cdrom): Filesystem is unknown. After trying all of the incantations I could find to attempt at both the yaboot and grub prompts to no avail I also tried NetBSD 9.0 just for kicks and it bus locks the system just like some of my Debian attempts. From my ancient notes from 2010 when I installed SUSE on this machine I had to do some weirdness using literal floppy images for boot and root like the old days to get the installer running. So that makes me think it is a kernel or module problem I am running into. If I am understanding the reading I did when you look at the grub output from my attempt #6 above, it appears to me that the system can boot off the CD just fine but it can't read the actual filesystem on the disk. I have no idea if that is remotely correct but that is my wild guess after spending all week last week getting things working on the SPARC. :) I have seen past posts in here where folks were having issues with other 43 models of the RS/6000 but those machines were PReP machines and not CHRP like this critter. So, since all these RS/6000 fan sites keep talking about how this specific model is one of the most popular for the era due to its size and cost I am hoping _somebody_ might have tried this before and have some pointers. I would try banging my head on another PPC machine to ensure that my burns actually work, but alas they are all in a storage facility about 150 miles away, so they are not readily available and they are all PowerMac's anyways. So apologies for the long-winded message and I do thank you in advance for even reading this far. :) Cheers! Bill
