[User-mode-linux-user] Slack rules!

[Jeff D. <jd...@ka...>]

I've been wanting to get uml to run a distribution install procedure for quite 
a while.  I tried with the RH installation a while ago, and it was pretty cool 
with each virtual console in an xterm and the main install window working for 
the first couple of screens.  However, it started doing i386 in and out 
instructions, which caused segfaults which the kernel couldn't deal with.

So, I decided to try a Slackware install, on the theory that, since it is the 
least graphical install I've seen, it might install without trying anything 
fancy with the hardware.  And, after a while, I got it to work.

The steps, if anyone is interested, were roughly these:
	uncompress rootdsks/text.gz (relative to the CD root)
	make a ext2 file (100 meg isn't enough for the a, ap, and d subsets)
		in root_slack
	run fdisk on it and make it a single big partition
	mount text somewhere
	mknod dev/fhd0 b 62 0 (and repeat for fhd1 and fhd2)
	rm dev/hda
	mknod dev/hda b 62 0 (this is necessary to convince fdisk that there
		is an installable partition available)
	build a kernel with minix in it
	boot it with fhd0=text fhd1=root_slack fhd2r=/dev/cdrom rw devfs=nomount
	if it hangs on boot, comment the syslogd line in etc/rc, repeat
	log in
	mount /dev/fhd1 /mnt
	mount /dev/fhd2 /cdrom
	run setup, telling it that you're installing from a mounted directory
		which is /cdrom/slakware
	it should go off and happily install whatever you want

I got it to fill up my 100 meg file midway through the d install.  After 
making an /etc/fstab, fiddling /etc/inittab and /etc/securetty to tell them 
about devfs, and copying /bin/true over /sbin/clock, I got a bootable 
Slackware install.

The current kernel won't boot for you because there are some system calls that 
I had to hook up, but the next one will.

The reason I'm so happy about this is that getting distro install procedures 
to run is a very handy shortcut to creating bootable filesystems.

				Jeff