| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 1969.1 | Hal: Dave, I can't let you do that... | CERN::HOBBS | Congrats to the Ignoble Peace Prize winner! (http://www.eecs.ha | Wed May 14 1997 01:51 | 30 |
| How are you handling the issue that each system will need the
proper HAL in the FAT system partition (for example, you'll
see that NT installation copies:
CD:\alpha\halmiata.dll -> c:\os\winnt40\hal.dll
CD:\alpha\halalcor.dll -> c:\os\winnt40\hal.dll
CD:\alpha\halavant.dll -> c:\os\winnt40\hal.dll
...
depending on the CPU type. It also copies the boot disk
driver and sets the registry entries to load the boot disk
driver, as well as other drivers.
There's also a serious issue that the registry contains a
unique system id - if you clone a disk you end up with multiple
systems which the LAN thinks are the same system - very
confusing to NT.
In other words, the VGA issue is not important - you have
many other more serious problems. (The TGA is not a VGA
card...)
Simply install the systems as Bill intended, trying to do
shortcuts will waste time and give you screwed up NT systems
that you'll have trouble supporting.
-cw
ps: the NT conferences have been beating this horse for many
years
|
| 1969.2 | I believe I have found solutions for the other issues | LNZALI::BACHNER | Mouse not found. Click OK to continue | Wed May 14 1997 05:32 | 24 |
| cw,
I've already taken care of the HAL issue by using multiple directories like
d:\os\alpha200, d:\os\alpha600 etc. and define the proper directory in ARC /
AlphaBIOS in the boot selection definitions.
If I'm not mistaken, the boot disk driver is the same on all systems - they all
have the NCR / Symbios chip on board.
Also, I'm not trying to clone the system disk, I just want to boot from the
external disk (without network) and kick off the installation from the kit that
I've copied to that disk. The ARC console doesn't allow installation from a hard
disk, only from a CD-ROM, therefore the mini NT system on the external disk to
boot from and start the installation. The target disk is the AlphaStation's
internal disk.
I believe the video driver problem is the last open issue. Any creative
suggestions ?
Thanks,
Hans.
PS: I have searched the Windows NT and Windows NT on Alpha conferences but was
unable to find a relevant topic.
|
| 1969.3 | run setupldr | CERN::HOBBS | Congrats to the Ignoble Peace Prize winner! (http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/ig_nobel) | Wed May 14 1997 08:28 | 39 |
| > Also, I'm not trying to clone the system dis
Good ;-)
> The ARC console doesn't allow installation from a hard
> disk, only from a CD-ROM,
Huh?
Run program: scsi(0)disk(0)rdisk(1)partition(1)\alpha\setupldr
In other words, installation is merely running a program from your
hard disk. Put the right ARC device string and the setupldr program
and you should be OK. In fact, "Install NT from CDROM" is probably
just a 'shortcut' for "Run: CD:\alpha\setupldr"
I haven't had to do this for some time - but it always used to work.
> If I'm not mistaken, the boot disk driver is the same on all
> systems - they all have the NCR / Symbios chip on board.
Most Alcor systems have QLISP (on the dual SCSI/NI combo board). Brets
have QLISP on the mother board. (You can get around this one by building
the disk on a system with ALL of the necessary SCSI adaptors - you'll get
a "service failed to start" popup when you boot on a target system, but
it can be ignored.)
> I believe the video driver problem is the last open issue. Any creative
> suggestions ?
As long as you're setting the boot string, have:
\winntvga\...
\winnttga\...
and have two complete NT installations - one for real VGA devices and one
for the TGA systems.
|
| 1969.4 | mail I sent to Hans... - installing windows NT from hard drive copy of CDROM | CERN::HOBBS | Congrats to the Ignoble Peace Prize winner! (http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/ig_nobel) | Wed May 14 1997 09:13 | 34 |
| (I've put a more useful title for this one reply, in case someone is
searching for the real topic. Hans sent me a mail saying that he'd
try SETUPLDR directly tomorrow...)
Hans,
From the beginning we had to use the SETUPLDR trick ("beginning" being
Jensen internal FT for NT).
I just checked that the three commands:
"install NT from CDROM"
Run: CD:\alpha\setupldr
Run: scsi(1)cdrom(5)fdisk(0)\alpha\setupldr
do exactly the same thing - bring up the "Windows NT Setup" blue screen -
on my Alcor.
By the way, you'll probably also find that invoking SETUPLDR directly is
a lot faster. When you run WINNT32 to do an installation/upgrade,
it will:
- copy files to the target hard drive (including SETUPLDR),
- set a boot selection to the temp directory with SETUPLDR
- boot SETUPLDR
- copy the files again from the temp directory to the real
directory
- boot from the real directory and copy the rest of the files
from the source hard drive (or CDROM)
Booting directly should avoid the copy to the temp directory and the
reshuffle...
-cw
|