Debian GNU/Linux on a Sharp PC-CV50F
I've run Ubuntu on my Sharp PC-CV50F since I got it. I originally chose Ubuntu to check it out and because it quickly had gained a reputation for being desktop-oriented and laptop-friendly. I run Debian on my other machines, so I'm giving Debian a whirl on my little "Muramasa", hodja, now.
Connecting
If you connect the turned off laptop to another computer via the small USB-port on the right side, it acts as a USB-harddrive ("DirectHD"). When doing that, the laptops harddisk turns up as /dev/sdb on my desktop box, topper.
Partitioning
I've already done this part while installing Ubuntu.
So, the harddisk has three partitions: sd1, bootable, 18GB; sd2, swap, 1GB; sd3, Dell Utility
Filesystems
I want XFS on sdb1 and prepare sdb2 to be swap:
topper:~# mkfs.xfs /dev/sdb1
mkfs.xfs: /dev/sdb1 appears to contain an existing filesystem (xfs).
mkfs.xfs: Use the -f option to force overwrite.
topper:~# mkfs.xfs -f /dev/sdb1
meta-data=/dev/sdb1 isize=256 agcount=16, agsize=288165 blks
= sectsz=512
data = bsize=4096 blocks=4610640, imaxpct=25
= sunit=0 swidth=0 blks, unwritten=1
naming =version 2 bsize=4096
log =internal log bsize=4096 blocks=2560, version=1
= sectsz=512 sunit=0 blks
realtime =none extsz=65536 blocks=0, rtextents=0
topper:~# mkswap /dev/sdb2
Setting up swapspace version 1, size = 1069281 kB
no label, UUID=6772a280-e933-49d2-811f-04acbf0c2bc0
topper:~#
(Note that the -f for mkfs was only necessary because I already had a filesystem there.)
Install base system (debootstrap)
This part is basically following the instructions in the Debian GNU/Linux Installation Guide, specifically appendix C.4.
First I mount the laptop-harddisk on my desktop box:
topper:~# mount /dev/sdb1 /mnt/hodja topper:~#
Then I proceed by installing debootstrap on my desktop. Notice that because I'm running unstable on that and want to install stable, I need a stable-line in /etc/apt/sources.list and specifically specify that I want debootstrap from stable:
topper:~# aptitude install debootstrap/stable Reading package lists... Done Building dependency tree Reading extended state information Initializing package states... Done The following NEW packages will be installed: debootstrap 0 packages upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded. Need to get 0B/72.2kB of archives. After unpacking 193kB will be used. Writing extended state information... Done Reading package fields... Done Reading package status... Done Retrieving bug reports... Done grave bugs of debootstrap ( -> 0.2.45-0.2) <open> #314157 - does not work in d-i anymore Summary: debootstrap(1 bug) Are you sure you want to install/upgrade the above packages? [Y/n/?/...] Selecting previously deselected package debootstrap. (Reading database ... 129222 files and directories currently installed.) Unpacking debootstrap (from .../debootstrap_0.2.45-0.2_i386.deb) ... Setting up debootstrap (0.2.45-0.2) ... Reading package lists... Done Building dependency tree Reading extended state information Initializing package states... Done topper:~#
Be sure that your locale is generic (POSIX) before starting debootstrap; I've had problems with my default locale (Danish/English, mixed). It should look a little like this:
topper:~# locale LANG=POSIX LC_CTYPE="POSIX" LC_NUMERIC="POSIX" LC_TIME="POSIX" LC_COLLATE="POSIX" LC_MONETARY="POSIX" LC_MESSAGES="POSIX" LC_PAPER="POSIX" LC_NAME="POSIX" LC_ADDRESS="POSIX" LC_TELEPHONE="POSIX" LC_MEASUREMENT="POSIX" LC_IDENTIFICATION="POSIX" LC_ALL= topper:~#
Then run debootstrap (I'm using a mirror close to me):
topper:~# /usr/sbin/debootstrap --arch i386 sarge /mnt/hodja http://mirrors.telianet.dk/pub/mirrors/ftp.debian.org/debian I: Retrieving debootstrap.invalid_dists_sarge_Release I: Validating debootstrap.invalid_dists_sarge_Release I: Retrieving debootstrap.invalid_dists_sarge_main_binary-i386_Packages I: Checking adduser... I: Checking apt... I: Checking apt-utils... I: Checking aptitude... [...] I: Checking wget... I: Checking whiptail... I: Checking zlib1g... I: Retrieving adduser I: Validating adduser I: Retrieving apt I: Validating apt I: Retrieving apt-utils I: Validating apt-utils I: Retrieving aptitude I: Validating aptitude [...] I: Installing core packages... [...] I: Base system installed successfully.
Configure base system
Still following Debian GNU/Linux Installation Guide appendix C.4, first chroot'ing into the newly installed system:
topper:~# chroot /mnt/hodja /bin/bash topper:/#
(Note that the sequence here is not random, you want /proc mounted fairly soon in the chroot, I think.)
fstab
topper:/# editor /etc/fstab topper:/# cat /etc/fstab # /etc/fstab: static file system information. # # /dev/hda1 / xfs noatime 0 0 /dev/hda2 none swap sw 0 2 proc /proc proc defaults 0 0 sys /sys sysfs defaults 0 0 usbfs /proc/bus/usb usbfs defaults 0 0 topper:/# mount -a mount: mount point /proc/bus/usb does not exist topper:/#
Well, it seems this is needed for /proc to work:
topper:/# mount -t proc proc /proc topper:/# mount -a topper:/#
/etc/resolv.conf from my desktop is fine:
topper:/# cat /etc/resolv.conf search koldfront.dk koldfront.local nameserver 192.168.1.111 topper:/#
topper:/# echo hodja > /etc/hostname topper:/#
hodja:~# editor /etc/hosts hodja:~# cat /etc/hosts 127.0.0.1 hodja.koldfront.dk hodja localhost hodja:~#
Timezone, users, apt
topper:/# /usr/sbin/base-config new
(Configured apt to use the closest mirror and security.debian.org.)
mdetect and read-edid was installed here - I don't know if I should have waited to install them until after booting the new machine? - and then a bunch of other files. But I need the compiler and stuff for the wireless, so I think it's correct to install this now, here.
Recommended but not installed: ca-certificates hotplug wbritish
I can't live without these: jove less
topper:/# aptitude install ca-certificates hotplug wbritish jove less
Install kernel
And also install the headers and stuff needed to compile the linux-wlan-ng modules:
topper:/# aptitude install kernel-image-2.6-686 kernel-source-2.6 kernel-headers-2.6-686 kernel-doc-2.6 kernel-package subversion
Wireless sources
topper:/# cd /usr/src/ topper:/usr/src# svn co svn://svn.shaftnet.org/linux-wlan-ng/trunk linux-wlan-ng-devel
Boot loader
Change the fstab temporarily to read sdb and so on.
topper:/# jove /etc/fstab topper:/# aptitude install grub
Had to do this outside the chroot, don't know if it works:
asjo@topper:~$ sudo grub-install --root-directory=/mnt/hodja /dev/sdb Due to a bug in xfs_freeze, the following command might produce a segmentation fault when /mnt/hodja/boot/grub is not in an XFS filesystem. This error is harmless and can be ignored.
(This probably means that the grub installed is the one from the desktop box, running unstable?)
^Cgrub didn't work. Trying lilo:
topper:/# mount -t proc proc /proc topper:/# mount -a topper:/# aptitude install lilo topper:/# liloconfig [...] Warning: /dev/sdb1 is not on the first disk Fatal: Filesystem would be destroyed by LILO boot sector: /dev/sdb1 ERROR: correct /etc/lilo.conf manually and rerun /sbin/lilo topper:/# jove /etc/lilo.conf topper:/# lilo Warning: /dev/sdb is not on the first disk Added Lin_2.6.8img0 * topper:/#
The final lilo.conf contains:
topper:/# grep -v ^# /etc/lilo.conf | grep -v ^$
lba32
boot=/dev/sdb
root=/dev/sdb1
install=menu
prompt
timeout=50
map=/boot/map
vga=normal
image=/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.8-2-686
label="Lin 2.6.8img0"
initrd=/boot/initrd.img-2.6.8-2-686
read-only
topper:/#
topper:/# umount /proc/ topper:/# exit topper:~# umount /mnt/hodja/
append="pci=noacpi pci=usepirqmask i8042.nomux" (I'm not sure if the first two should be used?)
Boot
The moment of truth, if anything above has gone wrong, we will soon know. Fortunately it is quite easy to turn the laptop off and into a USB-harddisk again if something did indeed go wrong.
Remember to add root=/dev/hda1 to the command-line when booting, otherwise the laptop will try mounting its root-filesystem on a nonexistant /dev/sdb1...
Fix up lilo.conf.
Wireless
To get the wireless network going, I installed linux-wlan-ng from svn.
Unpack kernel source. Make kernel. Install. Reboot. make config. make all. make install. Turn on wlan. Works!
Install grub:
grub-install --no-floppy /dev/hda grub
fuckit installed lilo instead - grub sucks (doesn't install, uses all CPU for 10+ minutes, probes for floppy disk even with --no-floppy).
X
Change /etc/X11/XF86Config-4 to read 1280x768.
Longrun
Added cpuid and msr to /etc/modules, installed the acpid and longrun packages and modified the scripts in /etc/acpid/actions/
CompactFlash
Install pcmcia-cs (probably removed automatically due to the "install on usb-harddisk"-method.
Needs finishing up...