Memory card reader: How to mount?

Forum: Other Help Topics
Topic: Memory card reader: How to mount?
started by: DSL Guy

Posted by DSL Guy on Dec. 04 2006,19:18

I'm trying to install DSL 3.1 on a 64Mb CompactFlash card (to be used on a Compaq IA-1).

I have a generic USB-based Memory Card Reader/Writer (supports CF, SD, Memory Stick, etc) that is automatically recognized by Ubuntu 6.1 but NOT by DSL 3.1.

How do I get DSL to recognize and mount the Memory Card Reader?

Something from /dev goes in /etc/mtab along with its file structure type (I assume "vfat") and then another entry is made in /etc/fstab ... I'm a Linux newbie so I humbly request your patience.

Posted by meo on Dec. 04 2006,19:43

Hi DSL Guy!

I don't think it will work with DSL. I have a similar device that only is for CF-cards and that one works fine and mounts as sda1 just like a usb-stick. I had read that multiple card readers didn't work with DSL that's why I bought one only for CF-cards.

Have fun,
meo

Posted by DSL Guy on Dec. 04 2006,20:47

OK, thanks for clearing that up. So my Memory Card reader is unusable with DSL. Let's try this another way.

The Memory Card Reader is recognized by Ubuntu and WinXP. In theory, I can write a bootable DSL image directly to the CompactFlash card using either Ubuntu or WinXP.

I can use Linux's "dd" and in WinXP I can use
"physdiskwrite" (a non-native utility).

The big question is: Can I get a bootable (frugal) DSL image?
Alternately: How do I make a bootable (frugal) DSL image?

Or am I all mixed up and there's a really simple way to copy the DSL files onto the CF card?

Posted by rja on Dec. 05 2006,06:01

This may not work with a Compaq IA-1, but...

I just now performed a USB-HDD install of DSL-3.1 onto a
512MB Compact Flash card in a multi-card reader. Make sure
that the multi-card reader and CF card are plugged in BEFORE
booting your DSL-3.1 CD and try this:

Apps > Tools > Install to USB Pendrive > For USB-HDD Pendrive

With my hardware, the device was "sda". Here is part of the
dialog from the install script:

Display your USB storage device information log? (Y/n):
scsi2 : SCSI emulation for USB Mass Storage devices
Vendor: ICSI Model: IC1210 CF Rev: 1.4F
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 02
Attached scsi removable disk sda at scsi2, channel 0, id 0, lun 0
SCSI device sda: 1000944 512-byte hdwr sectors (512 MB)
Enter the device name of pendrive.(EXAMPLE: sda): sda

My PC can even boot from the CF card!

My ASRock 939DUAL-VSTA motherboard is ali1695 based,
so DSL doesn't recognize most of the hardware on it, but
Fedora Core 5 shows this:

usb 3-5: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 7
usb 3-5: configuration #1 chosen from 1 choice
scsi2 : SCSI emulation for USB Mass Storage devices
usb-storage: device found at 7
usb-storage: waiting for device to settle before scanning
Vendor: ICSI Model: IC1210 CF Rev: 1.4F
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
SCSI device sdb: 1000944 512-byte hdwr sectors (512 MB)
sdb: Write Protect is off
sdb: Mode Sense: 43 00 00 08
sdb: assuming drive cache: write through
SCSI device sdb: 1000944 512-byte hdwr sectors (512 MB)
sdb: Write Protect is off
sdb: Mode Sense: 43 00 00 08
sdb: assuming drive cache: write through
sdb: sdb1
sd 2:0:0:0: Attached scsi removable disk sdb
sd 2:0:0:0: Attached scsi generic sg1 type 0
Vendor: ICSI Model: IC1210 MS Rev: 1.4F
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
sd 2:0:0:1: Attached scsi removable disk sdc
sd 2:0:0:1: Attached scsi generic sg2 type 0
Vendor: ICSI Model: IC1210 MMC/SD Rev: 1.4F
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
sd 2:0:0:2: Attached scsi removable disk sdd
sd 2:0:0:2: Attached scsi generic sg3 type 0
Vendor: ICSI Model: IC1210 SM Rev: 1.4F
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
sd 2:0:0:3: Attached scsi removable disk sde
sd 2:0:0:3: Attached scsi generic sg4 type 0
usb-storage: device scan complete

FC5 shows the CF card as sdb because FC5 recognizes a
SATA disk as sda, but DSL doesn't see the SATA disk.

DSL-3.1 only recognizes the CF slot of the multi-card reader,
so it probably depends on which slot is the first slot of your
multi-card reader.

Is that because DSL-3.1 cannot access multiple LUN's?

Posted by DSL Guy on Dec. 05 2006,14:44

Unfortunately, DSL 3.1 does not "see" any of the four slots of the Memory Card Reader and the device (with CompactFlash card) is plugged in prior to booting DSL. In WinXP it is seen as four separate drives (E-H) and the CF slot is the second drive (F).

DSL 3.1 does recognize my USB flashdrive and identifies it as device sda but it does not do this for the Memory Card Reader.

I agree DSL's USB-HDD install would be the way to go with the CF card. I've done this with my USB flashdrive and it boots and operates perfectly.

So here's the next Big Question:
Can I copy the DSL image from the USB flashdrive directly to the CompactFlash card?

and as a follow-up:
Is it the right image to use if the CF card will be seen as a "hard-disk" in the target computer (CF card is connected via IDE on the Compaq IA-1)?

Ubuntu recognizes the Memory Card Reader and the USB flashdrive. I should be able to copy the DSL image directly from the USB flashdrive to the CF card with dd. Does this sound viable?

Posted by meo on Dec. 05 2006,15:40

Hi again!

Well I'm not sure it will work but most about learning how DSL works is experimenting (trial and error). I'm using DSL-embedded on a CF-card (2 GB) with a PCMCIA-adapter. In this environment I usually make a remaster of just the KNOPPIX-file and copy it to the CF-card and it works perfectly. I've just done just that with the latest version of DSL and writing this post using it. So give it a try!

Have fun experimenting with DSL,
meo

Posted by rja on Dec. 05 2006,20:36

I should have pointed out that my multiple card reader is
connected with a USB interface, so that is why it is "sda".

I also have DSL on a CF Microdisk with a pcmcia interface.
That is a "hdc". That is a HD install from a DSL Live CD (not
embeded).

It sounds like you are trying to install DSL to a CF card on a
different computer which can boot DSL from a pendrive, and
then move the CF card to the Compaq IA-1.

Since the Compaq IA-1 has an IDE to CF interface,
another option is to get an IDE/CF adapter for the other
computer that can boot DSL. Then you should be able to
access the CF card as a "hdx" and try a frugal install. That
should be close to what the Compaq IA-1 will need. I havn't
tried that myself, but there are many posts in the forums by
others who use IDE/CF adapters. The DSL store has them:

< http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/store/embedded_storage >

If you want to try copying the image, then you could look at
the scripts included with DSL. They are in
/usr/sbin/frugal*.sh.

Posted by DSL Guy on Dec. 06 2006,14:31

rja:

You've described my goal precisely!

I acquired the Compaq IA-1 via eBay and it came with Midori Linux loaded on a 32Mb CF card. I'm trying to load DSL on a 64Mb CF card ... only I don't have an IDE-CF adapter installed on my WinXP PC and DSL cannot recognize my USB-based memory card reader.

I don't want to purchase an IDE-CF adapter because I'd have very little use for it ... the memory card reader works perfectly (except with DSL). Just call me 'frugal'.

Last night I was able to start, but not complete, the boot process using a CF card. I had copied all the files from a 'known-good' USB-flashdrive loaded with DSL 3.1 to a FAT16 formatted CF card (drive G:) and then I ran "syslinux G:".

It looked promising as various boot-up messages displayed and then it crashed. I'll post the question on how to solve that problem in the appropriate forum ... I guess in "USB Booting".