HD Install :: Toshiba Libretto - have Floppy and CDrom

Quote (curaga @ July 23 2007,06:51)

You could boot that dos disk and copy all the files to the destination HD, and then boot them from dos..

OK. I am missing a lot here. I probably have to do one 'simple' install to understand the workings of DSL HD install...

I would first want to partition the disk so that I would end up with grub and a /boot partition.

So you say I copy the fils the the HD. How is the HD formatted? I would guess FAT32?

What is meant by 'boot them from dos'?

Are you speaking of running DSL under dos? Given this system, my goal is native DSL....

did you try using the boot floppy with "dsl frompcmcia" and the pcmcia floppy after that?
'cause on the pcmcia floppy there are drivers for pcmcia devices..

If that won't work, I'll go into detail here.
Boot dos. Delete all partitions, create one 128mb, one 20mb and one the rest.
Format only that 128mb one. To fat32.

Then copy everything from the cd to that 128mb partition, guess it's C:
Now you're gonna boot the cd from the HD. It will still think it's a cd.

I thought booting DSL from dos would be best, but I changed my mind.
After this boot DSL boot floppy, using "dsl 2 root=hda1".
It will boot the cd from the HD. Now you can format the nonformatted partitions.
Make them both ext2. (mke2fs /dev/hda2), and the same with hda3.

Then type "dsl-hdinstall" and when it asks where you're installing, select hda3.
Don't install a bootloader or reboot when it tells so, 'cause you still have to separate /boot.
mount hda2, aka the to-be-boot partition. I guess you need it separate 'cause of the old bios?

Move everything from /boot to hda2. So /boot is now an empty dir.
Mount hda3, aka where you installed DSL. Edit etc/fstab:

right after this line: "/dev/hda3 / ext2 ........"
add this line: "/dev/hda2 /boot ext2 defaults 0 0"

umount hda3. Then to hda2. edit grub/menu.lst by adding "nofstab" to each line of boot arguments (this'll keep your fstab together) and also for your separation of boot (all "root (hdsomething)" lines should say root (hd0,1))

Type this:

Quote

grub
root (hd0,1)
setup (hd0)
quit

Phew, I hope this was clear enough..

After a succesful HD install you will change that 128mb working partition into swap..

original here.