Puppy Linux Discussion Forum

[JustAuser]

Hi!
Can anybody tell me is there a way to boot the puppy from the HDD without using floppy? (im using notebook without flp)

What i've done is that I created extendet partition with ext2fs.
After that I exec hdd-install2 script but i skiped steps 4 and 5 (creating a bootable floppy disk). So at the end i had all directories structure on my linux partition and I also copied vmlinuz to it.
The next step is that I tried to install Boot Loader (from Paragon). It recognized the linux partition but when i try to boot it stops at some line which says:
Kernel Panic - try to pass init= parametr.
Any suggestions ?

[Jester626]

Well, some people have been able to get puppy to boot from a HDD, I have taken a look at the process and decided that since puppy V 1.0.2 is due out within the next week and it will have an automated process to select a full blown HDD Install.

I'm just going to wait the 7 days before I go and do the native install.

Hope this helps a bit

J

[jimbo]

There are a couple of ways to boot Puppy from a HD without a floppy. What else do you have installed on your PC?

jimbo

[PeterSieg2]

Hi, just check this forum under annoucements.
That description and attached file allow type 1 and type 2 install with grub as boot manager.
It is setup for ONLY Puppy on the hdd!!!
If you (get to) know grub, can be altered to allow also some win$ stuff to coexist..

PS

[kmoffat]

Does that mean that if you already have a grub installation that is booting other distros, that you cannot add puppy to that installs "/boot/grub/menu.lst" so it will be on the grub menu?

[mouldy]

If only running linux you can make a tiny dos partition at beginning of hardrive. Do a sys c: after booting from a dos floppy or cd (win98 boot disk works fine or I tend to use the EBCD boot cd). That will install minimal dos systems files to make the partition bootable to dos prompt. Install loadlin or tiny and setup an autoexec.bat file that automatically runs loadlin when this dos partition boots. Then set loadlin (or tiny) to boot the Puppy partition.

Can also do this if your computer has a dos based windows version. Think there have been posts on old forum on various and good ways to do this.

Nothing wrong with Grub or Lilo, but I just like loadlin when I only have puppy. Loadlin is simple and darn near foolproof. If I am adding linux to windows hardrive then Grub is way to go.

[JohnMurga]

Also, a while ago Bladehunter had a very interesting posting about booting Puppy over the network with PXE ...

Now that is cool

Cheers
JohnM

[Auda]

I have been using SBM to boot puppy from my hda2 fat32 partition. Well I guess thats not quite right Smb boot dos and then tiny boots puppy
Works well enough with 1.01 but 0.98 wont boot it gets partway through loading image.gz and crashes Ideas anyone ?
SBM is here http://btmgr.webframe.org/index.php3?body=download.html
Auda

[danleff]

hehe... try a mini-itx system w/o a floppy or cdrom drive! Puppy will not recognize an external dvd/cdrw drive that I attached, so the type 2 install fails. I did a "poor man's install" on a fat32 partition and it worked with an already existing grub.

I'm waiting for a slimline ide converter cable to add an ide cdrom drive to the system.

Grub can be a little finicky about syntax. on my main box, that has a prior Suse install, I passed the following (assuming Puppy on an ext2 partition on hda5);

Title Puppy 1.0.1
kernel (hd0,4)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda5

Remember, the kernel (hd0..) starts at zero and the root= starts at one (hda1), for a primary master drive.

Make sure that there is a space after the last kernel line entry.

[Guest]

danleff,
was that external drive a usb drive?
If so, it is probably a matter of loading the appropriate driver... or maybe not.

[PeterSieg2]

[Bruce B]

There is a version of GRUB for MS-DOS in case anyone is interested. Very easy to install and doesn't modify the MBR (Master Boot Record) which you may find an advantage, depending on your setup. Installation is quite simple also.

You can download the package at:

www.ibiblio.org/pub/micro/pc-stuff/freedos/files/util/boot/grub013.zip

(I thought it should be ftp.ibiblio.org but gFTP accesses it at www.ibiblio.org)

Here is a brief step-by-step how to install it with MS-DOS (not FreeDOS because it only works with MS-DOS)

1) download grub013.zip

2) make directory c:\boot\grub

3) extract grub.exe and menu.lst from grub013.zip to c:\boot\grub (leave the other files in the zip package because these two files are all you need)

4) edit menu.lst for Puppy (see my example at end of post)

5) you can run grub.exe in config.sys with a menu system

use:
install=c:\boot\grub\grub.exe

or try shell statement I think this works also:
shell=c:\boot\grub\grub.exe

or in autoexec.bat

c:\boot\grub\grub.exe

------------

EXAMPLE MENU.LST

you will have to modify partition location and pupfile name and size
to suit your needs. this is for an example only.

===================

color white/blue black/light-gray
# default 0
# timeout 8


title Drive C:
root (hd0,0)
chainloader +1

# (example for type 1 install)
title Puppy
rootnoverify (hd0,4)
kernel /vmlinuz root=/dev/ram PFILE=pup1-none-131072 PHOME=hda5
initrd /image.gz

# (example for type 2 install)
title Puppy (hda6)
kernel (hd0,5)/boot/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda6

title Floppy
root (fd0)
chainloader +1

title Reboot Computer
reboot

[Bruce B]

If I remember right (maybe I don't) I think on the type 2 install I created a /boot directory for vmlinuz for use with the GRUB menu.lst example above.

[mouldy]

However, its doc says: "Important Note: It supports FreeDOS build 2029. However, since FreeDOS build 2030 saved a wrong BIOS interrupt vector table, it cannot be supported by GRUB.EXE." Hope this be fixed soon by FreeDOS maintainers. Since build 2031 just came out, I wonder if it's working again?

Bug was fixed according to this:

http://www.freedos.org/freedos/news/technote/201.html

[Bruce B]