  The Linux Bootdisk HOWTO
  Graham Chapman, grahamc@zeta.org.au
  v1.01, 6 February 1995

  This document describes how to create Linux boot, boot/root and util-
  ity maintenance disks. These disks could be used as rescue disks or to
  test new kernels.

  1.  Introduction


  1.1. Why Build Boot Disks?

  Linux boot disks are useful in a number of situations, such as:

  o  Testing a new kernel.

  o  Recovering from disk or system failure. Such a failure could be
     anything from a lost boot sector to a disk head crash.

  There are several ways of producing boot disks:

  o  Use one from a distribution such as Slackware. This will at least
     allow you to boot.

  o  Use a rescue package to set up disks designed to be used as rescue
     disks.

  o  Learn what is required for each of the various types of disk to
     operate, then build your own.

  I choose the last option - learn how it works so that you can do it
  yourself. That way, if something breaks, you can work out what to do
  to fix it. Plus you learn a lot about how Linux works along the way.

  Experienced Linux users may find little of use in this document.
  However users new to Linux system administration who wish to protect
  against root disk loss and other mishaps may find it useful.

  A note on versions - this document has been updated to support the
  following packages and versions:

  o  Linux 1.1.73

  o  LILO 0.15

  Copyright (c) Graham Chapman 1995.

  Permission is granted for this material to be freely used and
  distributed, provided the source is acknowledged.  No warranty of any
  kind is provided. You use this material at your own risk.


  1.2. Feedback and Credits

  I welcome any feedback, good or bad, on the content of this document.
  Please let me know if you find any errors or omissions.

  I thank the following people for correcting errors and providing
  useful suggestions for improvement:






   Randolph Bentson
   Bjxrn-Helge Mevik
   Johannes Stille





  1.3. Change History

  v1.01, 6 February 1995

  o  Fix: DO NOT cp <kernel file> /dev/fd0 - this will overwrite any
     file system on the diskette.

  o  Fix: Put LILO boot.b and map files on target disk.

  o  Add: -dp flags to cp commands to avoid problems.

  o  Chg: restructure to try to improve readability.

  o  Add: can now use ext2 filesystem on root diskettes.

  o  Chg: can now separate boot and root diskettes.

  o  Add: credits section in Introduction.

  o  Add: FAQ.

  v1.0, 2 January 1995

  o  Converted to conform to HOWTO documentation standards.

  o  Added new section - Change History.

  o  Various minor corrections.

  v0.10, 1 November 1994 Original version, labelled "draft".


  2.  Disks


  2.1. Summary of Disk Types

  I classify boot-related disks into 4 types. The discussion here and
  throughout this document uses the term "disk" to refer to diskettes
  unless otherwise specified. Most of the discussion could be equally
  well applied to hard disks.

  A summary of disk types and uses is:

     boot
 A disk containing a kernel which can be booted. The disk can
 contain a filesystem and use a boot loader to boot, or it can
 simply contain the kernel only at the start of the disk.  The
 disk can be used to boot the kernel using a root file system on
 another disk. This could be useful if you lost your boot loader
 due to, for example, an incorrect installation attempt.


     root
 A disk with a file system containing everything required to run
 a Linux system. It does not necessarily contain either a kernel
 or a boot loader.

 This disk can be used to run the system independently of any
 other disks, once the kernel has been booted. A special kernel
 feature allows a separate root disk to be mounted after booting,
 with the root disk being automatically copied to a ramdisk.

 You could use this type of disk to check another disk for
 corruption without mounting it, or to restore another disk
 following disk failure or loss of files.


     boot/root
 A disk which is the same as a root disk, but contains a kernel
 and a boot loader. It can be used to boot from, and to run the
 system. The advantage of this type of disk is that is it compact
 - everything required is on a single disk.  However the
 gradually increasing size of everything means that it won't
 necessarily always be possbile to fit everything on a single
 diskette.


     utility
 A disk which contains a file system, but is not intended to be
 mounted as a root file system. It is an additional data disk.
 You would use this type of disk to carry additional utilities
 where you have too much to fit on your root disk.

 The term "utility" only really applies to diskettes, where you
 would use a utility disk to store additional recovery utility
 software.


  2.2. Boot


  2.2.1.  Overview

  All PC systems start the boot process by executing code in ROM to load
  the sector from sector 0, cylinder 0 of the boot drive and try and
  execute it. On most bootable disks, sector 0, cylinder 0 contains
  either:

  o  code from a boot loader such as LILO, which locates the kernel,
     loads it and executes it to start the boot proper.

  o  the start of an operating system kernel, such as Linux.

  If a Linux kernel has been written to a diskette as a raw device, then
  the first sector will be the first sector of the Linux kernel itself,
  and this sector will continue the boot process by loading the rest of
  the kernel and running Linux. For a more detailed description of the
  boot sector contents, see the documentation in lilo-01.5 or higher.

  An alternative method of storing a kernel on a boot disk is to create
  a filesystem, not as a root filesystem, but simply as a means of
  installing LILO and thus allowing boot-time command line options to be
  specified. For example, the same kernel could then be used to boot
  using a hard disk root filesystem, or a diskette root filesystem. This
  could be useful if you were trying to rebuild the hard disk
  filesystem, and wanted to repeatedly test results.


  2.2.2.  Setting Pointer to Root

  The kernel must somehow obtain a pointer to the drive and partititon
  to be mounted as the root drive. This can be provided in several ways:

  o  By setting ROOT_DEV = <device> in the Linux kernel makefile and
     rebuilding the kernel (for advice on how to rebuild the kernel,
     read the Linux FAQ and look in /usr/src/linux). Comments in the
     Linux makefile describe the valid values for <device>.

  o  By running the rdev utility:


	rdev <filename> <device>





  This will set the root device of the kernel contained in <filename> to
  be <device>. For example:


	rdev Image /dev/sda1





  This sets the root device in the kernel in Image to the first parti-
  tion on the first SCSI drive.

  There are some alternative ways of issuing the rdev command. Try:


	rdev -?




  and it will display command usage.

  There is usually no need to configure the root device for boot
  diskette use, because the kernel currently used to boot from probably
  already points to the root drive device. The need can arise, howoever,
  if you obtain a kernel from another machine, for example, from a
  distribution, or if you want to use the kernel to boot a root
  diskette. It never hurts to check, though. To use rdev to check the
  current root device in a kernel file, enter the command:


	rdev -r <filename>




  It is possible to change the root device set in a kernel by means
  other than using rdev. For details, see the FAQ at the end of this
  document.


  2.2.3.  Copying Kernel to Boot Diskette

  Once the kernel has been configured then it must be copied to the boot
  diskette.

  If the disk is not intended to contain a file system, then the kernel
  must be copied using the dd command, as follows:



   dd if=<filename> of=<device>

   where   <filename> is the name of the kernel
   and	 <device> is the diskette raw device,
    usually /dev/fd0




  The seek parameter to the dd command should NOT be used. The file must
  be copied to start at the boot sector (sector 0, cylinder 0), and
  omitting the seek parameter will do this.

  The output device name varies. Many systems have /dev/fd0 as an alias
  of one sort or another for the "real" device name for the default
  diskette drive. For example, where the default drive (i.e. "drive A:"
  in DOS) is a high density 3 1/2 inch diskette drive, the device name
  will be /dev/fd0H1440, but usually /dev/fd0 points to the same device.

  Where the kernel is to be copied to a boot disk containing a
  filesystem, then the disk is mounted at a suitable point in a
  currently-mounted filesystem, then the cp command is used. For
  example:


	mount -t ext2 /dev/fd0 /mnt
	cp Image /mnt
	umount /mnt





  2.3. Root


  2.3.1.  Overview

  A root disk contains a complete working Linux system, but without
  necessarily including a kernel. In other words, the disk may not be
  bootable, but once the kernel is running, the root disk contains
  everything needed to support a full Linux system. To be able to do
  this, the disk must include the minimum requirements for a Linux
  system:

  o  File system.

  o  Minimum set of directories - dev, proc, bin, etc, lib, usr, tmp.

  o  Basic set of utilities - bash (to run a shell), ls, cp etc.

  o  Minimum set of config files - rc, inittab, fstab etc.

  o  Runtime library to provide basic functions used by utilities.

  Of course, any system only becomes useful when you can run something
  on it, and a root diskette usually only becomes useful when you can do
  something like:

  o  Check a file system on another drive, for example to check your
     root file system on your hard drive, you need to be able to boot
     Linux from another drive, as you can with a root diskette system.
     Then you can run fsck on your original root drive while it is not
     mounted.


  o  Restore all or part of your original root drive from backup using
     archive/compression utilities including cpio, tar, gzip and ftape.


  2.4. Boot/Root

  This is essentially the same as the root disk, with the addition of a
  kernel and a boot loader such as LILO.

  With this configuration, a kernel file is copied to the root file
  system, and LILO is then run to install a configuration which points
  to the kernel file on the target disk. At boot time, LILO will boot
  the kernel from the target disk.

  Several files must be copied to the diskette for this method to work.
  Details of these files and the required LILO configuration, including
  a working sample, are given below in the section titled "LILO".


  2.4.1.  RAM Drives and Root Filesystems on Diskette

  For a diskette root filesystem to be efficient, you need to be able to
  run it from a ramdrive, i.e. an emulated disk drive in main memory.
  This avoids having the system run at a snail's pace, which a diskette
  would impose.

  There is an added benefit from using a ramdrive - the Linux kernel
  includes an automatic ramdisk root feature, whereby it will, under
  certain circumstances, automatically copy the contents of a root
  diskette to a RAM disk, and then switch the root drive to be the RAM
  disk instead of the diskette. This has two major benefits:

  o  The system runs a lot faster.

  o  The diskette drive is freed up to allow other diskettes to be used
     on a single-diskette drive system.

  The requirements for this feature to be invoked are:

  o  The file system on the diskette drive must be either a minix or an
     ext2 file system. The ext2 file system is generally the preferred
     file system to use. Note that if you have a Linux kernel earlier
     than 1.1.73, then you should see the comments in the section below
     titled "File Systems" to see whether your kernel will support ext2.
     If your kernel is old then you may have to use minix. This will not
     cause any significant problems.

  o  A RAM disk must be configured into the kernel, and it must be at
     least as big as the diskette drive.

  A RAM disk can be configured into the kernel in several ways:

  o  By uncommenting the RAMDISK macro in the Linux kernel makefile, so
     that it reads:


	RAMDISK = -DRAMDISK=1440




  to define a ramdisk of 1440 1K blocks, the size of a high-density
  diskette.

  o  By running the rdev utility, available on most Linux systems. This
     utility displays or sets values for several things in the kernel,
     including the desired size for a ramdisk. To configure a ramdisk of
     1440 blocks into a kernel in a file named Image, enter:


	rdev -r Image 1440




  this might change in the future, of course. To see what your version
  of rdev does, enter the command:


	rdev -?




  and it should display its options.

  o  By using the boot loader package LILO to configure it into your
     kernel at boot time. This can be done using the LILO configuration
     parameter:


	ramdisk = 1440




  to request a RAM drive of 1440 1K blocks at boot time.

  o  By interrupting a LILO automatic boot and adding ramdisk=1440 to
     the command line. For example, such a command line might be:


	vmlinux ramdisk=1440




  See the section on LILO for more details.

  o  By editing the kernel file and altering the values near the start
     of the file which record the ramdisk size. This is definitely a
     last resort, but can be done. See the FAQ near the end of this
     document for more details.

  The easiest of these methods is LILO configuration, because you need
  to set up a LILO configuration file anyway, so why not add the ramdisk
  size here?

  LILO configuration is briefly described in a section titled "LILO"
  below, but it is advisable to obtain the latest stable version of LILO
  from your nearest Linux mirror site, and read the documentation that
  comes with it.


  2.5. Utility

  Often one disk is not sufficient to hold all the software you need to
  be able to perform rescue functions of analysing, repairing and
  restoring corrupted disk drives. By the time you include tar, gzip
  e2fsck, fdisk, Ftape and so on, there is enough for a whole new
  diskette, maybe even more if you want lots of tools.

  This means that a rescue set often requires a utility diskette, with a
  file system containing any extra files required. This file system can
  then be mounted at a convenient point, such as /usr, on the boot/root
  system.

  Creating a file system is fairly easy, and is described above in the
  section titled "File Systems" above.


  3.  Components


  3.1. File Systems

  The Linux kernel now supports two file system types for root disks to
  be automatically copied to ramdisk. These are minix and ext2, of which
  ext2 is the preferred file system.  The ext2 support was added
  sometime between 1.1.17 and 1.1.57, I'm not sure exactly which. If you
  have a kernel within this range then edit
  /usr/src/linux/drivers/block/ramdisk.c and look for the word "ext2".
  If it is not found, then you will have to use a minix file system, and
  therefore the "mkfs" command to create it.

  To create an ext2 file system on a diskette on my system, I issue the
  following command:


	mke2fs /dev/fd0




  The mke2fs command will automatically detect the space available and
  configure itself accordingly. It does not therefore require any
  parameters.

  An easy way to test the result is to create a system using the above
  command or similar, and then attempt to mount the diskette. If it is
  an ext2 system, then the command:


	mount -t ext2 /dev/fd0 /<mount point>




  should work.


  3.2. Kernel


  3.2.1.  Building a Custom Kernel

  In most cases it would be possible to copy your current kernel and
  boot the diskette from that. However there may be cases where you wish
  to build a separate one.

  One reason is size.  The kernel is one of the largest files in a
  minimum system, so if you want to build a boot/root diskette, then you
  will have to reduce the size of the kernel as much as possible.  The
  kernel now supports changing the diskette after booting and before
  mounting root, so it is not necessary any more to squeeze the kernel
  into the same disk as everything else, therefore these comments apply
  only if you choose to build a boot/root diskette.

  There are two ways of reducing kernel size:

  o  Building it with the minumum set of facilities necessary to support
     the desired system. This means leaving out everything you don't
     need. Networking is a good thing to leave out, as well as support
     for any disk drives and other devices which you don't need when
     running your boot/root system.

  o  Compressing it, using the standard compressed-kernel option
     included in the makefile:


	make zImage




  Refer to the documentation included with the kernel source for up-to-
  date information on building compressed kernels.  Note that the kernel
  source is usually in /usr/src/linux.

  Having worked out a minimum set of facilities to include in a kernel,
  you then need to work out what to add back in. Probably the most
  common uses for a boot/root diskette system would be to examine and
  restore a corrupted root file system, and to do this you may need
  kernel support.

  For example, if your backups are all held on tape using Ftape to
  access your tape drive, then, if you lose your current root drive and
  drives containing Ftape, then you will not be able to restore from
  your backup tapes. You will have to reinstall Linux, download and
  reinstall Ftape, and then try and read your backups.

  It is probably desirable to maintain a copy of the same version of
  backup utilities used to write the backups, so that you don't waste
  time trying to install versions that cannot read your backup tapes.

  The point here is that, whatever I/O support you have added to your
  kernel to support backups should also be added into your boot/root
  kernel. Note, though, that the Ftape module (or at least the one I
  have) is quite large and will not fit on your boot/root diskette. You
  will need to put it on a utility diskette - this is described below in
  the section titled "ADDING UTILITY DISKETTES".

  The procedure for actually building the kernel is described in the
  documentation that comes with the kernel. It is quite easy to follow,
  so start by looking in /usr/src/linux. Note that if you have trouble
  building a kernel, then you should probably not attempt to build
  boot/root systems anyway.


  3.3. Devices

  A /dev directory containing a special file for all devices to be used
  by the system is mandatory for any Linux system. The directory itself
  is a normal directory, and can be created with the mkdir command in
  the normal way. The device special files, however, must be created in
  a special way, using the mknod command.

  There is a shortcut, though - copy your existing /dev directory
  contents, and delete the ones you don't want. The only requirement is
  that you copy the device special files using the -R option. This will
  copy the directory without attempting to copy the contents of the
  files. Note that if you use lower caser, as in "-r", there will be a
  vast difference, because you will probably end up copying the entire
  contents of all of your hard disks - or at least as much of them as
  will fit on a diskette! Therefore, take care, and use the command:


	cp -dpR /dev /mnt




  assuming that the diskette is mounted at /mnt. The dp switches ensure
  that symbolic links are copied as links (rather than the target file
  being copied) and that the original file attributes are preserved,
  thus preserving ownership information.

  If you want to do it the hard way, use ls -l to display the major and
  minor device numbers for the devices you want, and create them on the
  diskette using mknod.

  Many distributions include a shell script called MAKEDEV in the /dev
  directory. This shell script could be used to create the devices, but
  it is probably easier to just copy your existing ones, especially for
  rescue disk purposes.


  3.4. Directories

  It might be possible to get away with just /dev, /proc and /etc to run
  a Linux system. I don't know - I've never tested it. However a
  reasonable minimum set of directories consists of the following:

     /dev
 Required to perform I/O with devices

     /proc
 Required by the ps command

     /etc
 System configuration files

     /bin
 Utility executables considered part of the system

     /lib
 Shared libraries to provide run-time support

     /mnt
 A mount point for maintenance on other disks

     /usr
 Additional utilities and applications

  Note that the directory tree presented here is for root diskette use
  only.  Refer to the Linux File System Standard for much better
  information on how file systems should be structured in "standard"
  Linux systems.

  Four of these directories can be created very easily:

  o  /dev is described above in the section titled DEVICES.

  o  /proc only needs to exist. Once the directory is created using
     mkdir, nothing more is required.

  o  Of the others, /mnt and /usr are included in this list only as
     mount points for use after the boot/root system is running.  Hence
     again, these directories only need to be created.

  The remaining 3 directories are described in the following sections.


  3.4.1.  /etc

  This directory must contain a number of configuration files. On most
  systems, these can be divided into 3 groups:

  o  Required at all times, e.g. rc, fstab, passwd.

  o  May be required, but no-one is too sure.

  o  Junk that crept in.

  Files which are not essential can be identified with the command:


	ls -ltru




  This lists files in reverse order of date last accessed, so if any
  files are not being accessed, then they can be omitted from a root
  diskette.

  On my root diskettes, I have the number of config files down to 15.
  This reduces my work to dealing with three sets of files:

  o  The ones I must configure for a boot/root system:


	rc	system startup script
	fstab	list of file systems to be mounted
	inittab parameters for the init process - the
	 first process started at boot time.





  o  the ones I should tidy up for a boot/root system:


	passwd	list of logins
	shadow	contains passwords




  These should be pruned on secure systems to avoid copying user's pass-
  words off the system, and so that when you boot from diskette,
  unwanted logins are rejected.

  o  The rest. They work at the moment, so I leave them alone.

  Out of this, I only really have to configure two files, and what they
  should contain is suprisingly small.

  o  rc should contain:


	#!/bin/sh
	/etc/mount -av
	/bin/hostname boot_root

  and I don't really need to run hostname - it just looks nicer if I do.
  Even mount is actually only needed to mount /proc to support the ps
  command - Linux will run without it.

  o  fstab should contain:


	/dev/fd0	/	 ext2	 defaults
	/proc	     /proc	  proc	  defaults




  I don't think that the first entry is really needed, but I find that
  if I leave it out, mount won't mount /proc.

  Inittab should be ok as is, unless you want to ensure that users on
  serial ports cannot login. To prevent this, comment out all the
  entries for /etc/getty which include a ttys or ttyS device at the end
  of the line. Leave in the tty ports so that you can login at the
  console.

  For the rest, just copy all the text files in your /etc directory,
  plus all the executables in your /etc directory that you cannot be
  sure you do not need. As a guide, consult the sample ls listing in
  "Sample Boot/Root ls-lR Directory Listing" - this is what I have, so
  probably it will be sufficient for you if you copy only those files.


  3.4.2.  /bin

  Here is a convenient point to place the extra utilities you need to
  perform basic operations, utilities such as ls, mv, cat, dd etc.

  See the section titled "Sample Boot/Root ls-lR Directory Listing" for
  the list of files that I place in my boot/root /bin directory. You may
  notice that it does not include any of the utilities required to
  restore from backup, such as cpio, tar, gzip etc. That is because I
  place these on a separate utility diskette, to save space on the
  boot/root diskette. Once I have booted my boot/root diskette, it then
  copies itself to the ramdisk leaving the diskette drive free to mount
  another diskette, the utility diskette. I usually mount this as /usr.

  Creation of a utility diskette is described below in the section
  titled "Adding Utility Diskettes".


  3.4.3.  /lib

  Two libraries are required to run many facilities under Linux:

  o  ld.so

  o  libc.so.4

  If they are not found in your /lib directory then the system will be
  unable to boot. If you're lucky you may see an error message telling
  you why.

  These should be present in you existing /lib directory. Note that
  libc.so.4 may be a symlink to a libc library with version number in
  the filename. If you issue the command:


	ls -l /lib

  you will see something like:


	libc.so.4 -> libc.so.4.5.21




  In this case, the libc library you want is libc.so.4.5.21.


  3.5. LILO


  3.5.1.  Overview

  For the boot/root to be any use, it must be bootable. To achieve this,
  the easiest way (possibly the only way?) is to install a boot loader,
  which is a piece of executable code stored at sector 0, cylinder 0 of
  the diskette. See the section above titled "BOOT DISKETTE" for an
  overview of the boot process.

  LILO is a tried and trusted boot loader available from any Linux
  mirror site. It allows you to configure the boot loader, including:

  o  Which device is to be mounted as the root drive.

  o  Whether to use a ramdisk.


  3.5.2.  Sample LILO Configuration

  This provides a very convenient place to specify to the kernel how it
  should boot. My root/boot LILO configuration file, used with LILO
  0.15, is:


       ______________________________________________________________________
       boot = /dev/fd0
       install = ./mnt/boot.b
       map = ./mnt/lilo.map
       delay = 50
       message = ./mnt/lilo.msg
       timeout = 150
       compact
       image = ./mnt/vmlinux
	ramdisk = 1440
	root = /dev/fd0
       ______________________________________________________________________




  Note that boot.b, lilo.msg and the kernel must first have been copied
  to the diskette using a command similar to:


       ______________________________________________________________________
       cp /boot/boot.b ./mnt
       ______________________________________________________________________




  If this is not done, then LILO will not run correctly at boot time if
  the hard disk is not available, and there is little point setting up a
  rescue disk which requires a hard disk in order to boot.

  I run lilo using the command:


	/sbin/lilo -C <configfile>




  I run it from the directory containing the mnt directory where I have
  mounted the diskette. This means that I am telling LILO to install a
  boot loader on the boot device (/dev/fd0 in this case), to boot a
  kernel in the root directory of the diskette.

  I have also specified that I want the root device to be the diskette,
  and I want a RAM disk created of 1440 1K blocks, the same size as the
  diskette. Since I have created an ext2 file system on the diskette,
  this completes all the conditions required for Linux to automatically
  switch the root device to the ramdisk, and copy the diskette contents
  there as well.

  The ramdisk features of Linux are described further in the section
  above titled "RAM DRIVES AND BOOT/ROOT SYSTEMS".

  It is also worth considering using the "single" parameter to cause
  Linux to boot in single-user mode. This could be useful to prevent
  users logging in on serial ports.

  I also use the "DELAY" "MESSAGE" and "TIMEOUT" statements so that when
  I boot the disk, LILO will give me the opportunity to enter command
  line options if I wish. I don't need them at present, but I never know
  when I might want to set a different root device or mount a filesystem
  read-only.

  The message file I use contains the message:



       Linux Boot/Root Diskette
       ========================

       Enter a command line of the form:

      vmlinux [ command-line options]

       If nothing is entered, linux will be loaded with
       defaults after 15 seconds.




  This is simply a reminder to myself what my choices are.

  Readers are urged to read the LILO documentation carefully before
  atttempting to install anything. It is relatively easy to destroy
  partitions if you use the wrong "boot = " parameter. If you are
  inexperienced, do NOT run LILO until you are sure you understand it
  and you have triple-checked your parameters.


  3.5.3.  Removing LILO

  One other thing I might as well add here while I'm on the LILO topic:
  if you mess up lilo on a drive containing DOS, you can always replace
  the boot sector with the DOS boot loader by issuing the DOS command:
	FDISK /MBR




  where MBR stands for "Master Boot Record". Note that some purists
  disagree with this, and they may have grounds, but it works.


  3.5.4.  Useful LILO Options


  LILO has several useful options which are worth keeping in mind when
  building boot disks:

  o  Command line options - you can enter command line options to set
     the root device, ramdrive size, special device parameters, or other
     things. If you include the DELAY = nn statement in your LILO
     configuration file, then LILO will pause to allow you to select a
     kernel image to boot, and to enter, on the same line, any options.
     For example:


	vmlinux aha152x=0x340,11,3,1 ro




  will pass the aha152x parameters through to the aha152x scsi disk
  driver (provided that driver has been included when the kernel was
  built) and will ask for the root filesystem to be mounted read-only.

  o  Command line "lock" option - this option asks LILO to store the
     command line entered as the default command line to be used for all
     future boots. This is particularly useful where you have a device
     which cannot be autoselected. By using "lock" you can avoid having
     to type in the device parameter string every time you boot.  For
     example:


	vmlinux aha152x=0x340,11,3,1 root=/dev/sda8 ro lock




  o  APPEND configuration statement - this allows device parameter
     strings to be stored in the configuration, as an alternative to
     using the "lock" command line option. Note that any keywords of the
     form word=value MUST be enclosed in quotes. For example:


	APPEND = "aha152x=0x340,11,3,1"




  o  DELAY configuration statement - this pauses for DELAY tenths of
     seconds and allows the user to interrupt the automatic boot of the
     default command line, so that the user can enter an alternate
     command line.


  4.  Samples



  4.1. Disk Directory Listings

  This lists the contents of files and directories that I keep on my
  hard disk to use when building boot/root and utility diskettes.  It
  shows which files I put in the /etc and /bin directories on my
  diskettes.

  The sample shell scripts in the next section use these directories and
  files as a model to build the diskettes.


  4.1.1.  Boot/Root Disk ls-lR Directory Listing

  The boot/root listing is of directory boot_disk:




















































  total 226
  drwxr-xr-x   2 root	root	    1024 Oct  8 13:40 bin/
  drwxr-xr-x   2 root	root	    3072 Sep  8 16:37 dev/
  drwxr-xr-x   2 root	root	    1024 Oct  8 12:38 etc/
  drwxr-xr-x   2 root	root	    1024 Sep 10 14:58 lib/
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root	  297956 Jan 25 21:55 vmlinux

  boot_disk/bin:
  total 366
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    4376 Sep  9 21:34 cat*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    4112 Sep  9 21:34 chown*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   12148 Sep  9 21:34 cp*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    4376 Sep  9 21:34 cut*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    7660 Sep  9 21:34 dd*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    4696 Sep  9 21:34 df*
  -rwx--x--x   1 root	root	    1392 Sep 10 14:13 hostname*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    5252 Sep  9 21:34 ln*
  -rwsr-xr-x   1 root	root	    6636 Sep  9 21:34 login*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   13252 Sep  9 21:34 ls*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    4104 Sep  9 21:34 mkdir*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   21504 Sep 10 15:27 more*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    6744 Sep  9 21:34 mv*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    9780 Sep  9 21:34 ps*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    5076 Sep  9 21:34 rm*
  -r-xr-xr-x   1 root	root	   12604 Sep  9 21:34 sed*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	  222208 Sep  9 21:34 sh*
  -rws--x--x   1 root	root	   16464 Sep  9 21:34 su*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    1216 Sep  9 21:34 sync*

  boot_disk/dev:
  total 73
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    8331 Sep  8 16:31 MAKEDEV*
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 10,   3 Sep  8 16:31 bmouseatixl
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 10,   0 Sep  8 16:31 bmouselogitec
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 10,   2 Sep  8 16:31 bmousems
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 10,   1 Sep  8 16:31 bmouseps2
  crw-------   1 root	root	  0,   0 Sep  8 16:31 boot0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,   0 Sep  8 16:31 console
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  5,  64 Sep  8 16:31 cua0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  5,  65 Sep  8 16:31 cua1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  5,  66 Sep  8 16:31 cua2
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  5,  67 Sep  8 16:31 cua3
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,   0 Sep  8 16:31 fd0
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  12 Sep  8 16:31 fd0D360
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  16 Sep  8 16:31 fd0D720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  28 Sep  8 16:31 fd0H1440
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  12 Sep  8 16:31 fd0H360
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  16 Sep  8 16:31 fd0H720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  16 Sep  8 16:31 fd0Q720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,   4 Sep  8 16:31 fd0d360
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,   8 Sep  8 16:31 fd0h1200
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  20 Sep  8 16:31 fd0h360
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  24 Sep  8 16:31 fd0h720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  24 Sep  8 16:31 fd0q720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,   1 Sep  8 16:31 fd1
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  13 Sep  8 16:31 fd1D360
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  17 Sep  8 16:31 fd1D720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  29 Sep  8 16:31 fd1H1440
  brw-------   1 root	root	  2,  31 Sep  8 16:31 fd1H1722
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  13 Sep  8 16:31 fd1H360
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  17 Sep  8 16:31 fd1H720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  17 Sep  8 16:31 fd1Q720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,   5 Sep  8 16:31 fd1d360
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,   9 Sep  8 16:31 fd1h1200
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  21 Sep  8 16:31 fd1h360
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  25 Sep  8 16:31 fd1h720
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	  2,  25 Sep  8 16:31 fd1q720
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   0 Sep  8 16:31 hda
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   1 Sep  8 16:31 hda1
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   2 Sep  8 16:31 hda2
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   3 Sep  8 16:31 hda3
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   4 Sep  8 16:31 hda4
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   5 Sep  8 16:31 hda5
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   6 Sep  8 16:31 hda6
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   7 Sep  8 16:31 hda7
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   8 Sep  8 16:31 hda8
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  64 Sep  8 16:31 hdb
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  65 Sep  8 16:31 hdb1
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  66 Sep  8 16:31 hdb2
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  67 Sep  8 16:31 hdb3
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  68 Sep  8 16:31 hdb4
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  69 Sep  8 16:31 hdb5
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  70 Sep  8 16:31 hdb6
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  71 Sep  8 16:31 hdb7
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,  72 Sep  8 16:31 hdb8
  crw-r-----   1 root	root	  1,   2 Sep  8 16:31 kmem
  brw-------   1 root	root	 12,   0 Sep  8 16:31 loop0
  brw-------   1 root	root	 12,   1 Sep  8 16:31 loop1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  6,   0 Sep  8 16:31 lp0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  6,   1 Sep  8 16:31 lp1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  6,   2 Sep  8 16:31 lp2
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	 12,   0 Sep  8 16:31 mcd0
  crw-r-----   1 root	root	  1,   1 Sep  8 16:31 mem
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  5,  65 Sep  8 16:31 modem
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  5,  64 Sep  8 16:31 mouse
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 27,   4 Sep  8 16:31 nrft0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 27,   5 Sep  8 16:31 nrft1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 27,   6 Sep  8 16:31 nrft2
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 27,   7 Sep  8 16:31 nrft3
  crw-------   1 root	root	  9, 128 Sep  8 16:31 nrmt0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  1,   3 Sep  8 16:31 null
  crw-r-----   1 root	root	  6,   0 Sep  8 16:31 par0
  crw-r-----   1 root	root	  6,   1 Sep  8 16:31 par1
  crw-r-----   1 root	root	  6,   2 Sep  8 16:31 par2
  crw-r-----   1 root	root	  1,   4 Sep  8 16:31 port
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 10,   1 Sep  8 16:31 ps2aux
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 128 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 129 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 130 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp2
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 131 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp3
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 132 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp4
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 133 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp5
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 134 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp6
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 135 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp7
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 136 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp8
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 137 Sep  8 16:31 ptyp9
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 138 Sep  8 16:31 ptypa
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 139 Sep  8 16:31 ptypb
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 140 Sep  8 16:31 ptypc
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 141 Sep  8 16:31 ptypd
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 142 Sep  8 16:31 ptype
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 143 Sep  8 16:31 ptypf
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  1,   0 Sep  8 16:31 ram
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 27,   0 Sep  8 16:31 rft0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 27,   1 Sep  8 16:31 rft1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 27,   2 Sep  8 16:31 rft2
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	 27,   3 Sep  8 16:31 rft3
  crw-------   1 root	root	  9,   0 Sep  8 16:31 rmt0
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   0 Sep  8 16:31 sda
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   1 Sep  8 16:31 sda1
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   2 Sep  8 16:31 sda2
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   3 Sep  8 16:31 sda3
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   4 Sep  8 16:31 sda4
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   5 Sep  8 16:31 sda5
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   6 Sep  8 16:31 sda6
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   7 Sep  8 16:31 sda7
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,   8 Sep  8 16:31 sda8
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  16 Sep  8 16:31 sdb
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  17 Sep  8 16:31 sdb1
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  18 Sep  8 16:31 sdb2
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  19 Sep  8 16:31 sdb3
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  20 Sep  8 16:31 sdb4
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  21 Sep  8 16:31 sdb5
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  22 Sep  8 16:31 sdb6
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  23 Sep  8 16:31 sdb7
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  8,  24 Sep  8 16:31 sdb8
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  32 Sep  8 16:31 sdc
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  33 Sep  8 16:31 sdc1
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  34 Sep  8 16:31 sdc2
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  35 Sep  8 16:31 sdc3
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  36 Sep  8 16:31 sdc4
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  37 Sep  8 16:31 sdc5
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  38 Sep  8 16:31 sdc6
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  39 Sep  8 16:31 sdc7
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  40 Sep  8 16:31 sdc8
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  48 Sep  8 16:31 sdd
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  49 Sep  8 16:31 sdd1
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  50 Sep  8 16:31 sdd2
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  51 Sep  8 16:31 sdd3
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  52 Sep  8 16:31 sdd4
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  53 Sep  8 16:31 sdd5
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  54 Sep  8 16:31 sdd6
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  55 Sep  8 16:31 sdd7
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  56 Sep  8 16:31 sdd8
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  64 Sep  8 16:31 sde
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  65 Sep  8 16:31 sde1
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  66 Sep  8 16:31 sde2
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  67 Sep  8 16:31 sde3
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  68 Sep  8 16:31 sde4
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  69 Sep  8 16:31 sde5
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  70 Sep  8 16:31 sde6
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  71 Sep  8 16:31 sde7
  brw-------   1 root	root	  8,  72 Sep  8 16:31 sde8
  brw-r--r--   1 root	root	 11,   0 Sep  8 16:31 sr0
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	 11,   1 Sep  8 16:31 sr1
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	 11,   2 Sep  8 16:31 sr2
  brw-r-----   1 root	root	  3,   1 Sep  8 16:31 swap
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  5,   0 Sep  8 16:31 tty
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,   0 Sep  8 16:31 tty0
  crw-------   1 root	root	  4,   1 Sep  8 16:31 tty1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,   2 Sep  8 16:31 tty2
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root   20 Sep  8 16:31 tty21
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,   3 Sep  8 16:31 tty3
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,   4 Sep  8 16:31 tty4
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,   5 Sep  8 16:31 tty5
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,   6 Sep  8 16:31 tty6
  crw-------   1 root	root	  4,   7 Sep  8 16:31 tty7
  crw-------   1 root	root	  4,   8 Sep  8 16:31 tty8
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,  64 Sep  8 16:31 ttyS0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,  65 Sep  8 16:31 ttyS1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,  66 Sep  8 16:31 ttyS2
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 192 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 193 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp1
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 194 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp2
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 195 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp3
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 196 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp4
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 197 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp5
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 198 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp6
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 199 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp7
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 200 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp8
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 201 Sep  8 16:31 ttyp9
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 202 Sep  8 16:31 ttypa
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 203 Sep  8 16:31 ttypb
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 204 Sep  8 16:31 ttypc
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 205 Sep  8 16:31 ttypd
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 206 Sep  8 16:31 ttype
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4, 207 Sep  8 16:31 ttypf
  -rw-------   1 root	root	   63488 Sep  8 16:31 ttys0
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  4,  67 Sep  8 16:31 ttys3
  crw-r--r--   1 root	root	  1,   5 Sep  8 16:31 zero

  boot_disk/etc:
  total 173
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root   53 Sep  8 18:48 boot.env
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   27408 Sep  8 18:48 e2fsck*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   18540 Sep  8 18:48 fdisk*
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root   69 Oct  8 12:27 fstab
  -r-x------   1 root	root	   13312 Sep  8 18:48 getty*
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root  334 Sep  8 18:48 group
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root   12 Sep  8 18:48 host.conf
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root   62 Sep  8 18:48 hosts
  -r-x------   1 root	root	    6684 Sep  8 18:48 ifconfig*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   11492 Sep  8 18:48 init*
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root	    1017 Sep  9 22:12 inittab
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root	0 Oct  8 12:19 issue
  -rw-r-----   1 root	root	    5137 Sep  8 18:48 login.defs
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   14028 Sep  8 18:48 mke2fs*
  -rwxr-x---   1 root	root	    2436 Sep  8 18:48 mkswap*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   11288 Sep  8 18:48 mount*
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root  327 Sep  8 18:48 passwd
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root  383 Sep 10 16:02 profile*
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root   94 Sep  8 18:48 protocols
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root  334 Oct  8 12:27 rc*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    9220 Sep  8 18:48 reboot*
  -r-x------   1 root	root	    4092 Sep  8 18:48 route*
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root   20 Sep  8 18:48 securetty
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root	    9749 Sep  8 18:48 services
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root   36 Sep  8 18:48 shells
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   13316 Sep  8 18:48 shutdown*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    2496 Sep  8 18:48 swapoff*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    2496 Sep  8 18:48 swapon*
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root	    5314 Sep  8 18:48 termcap
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    5412 Sep  8 18:48 umount*
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root  224 Sep  8 18:48 utmp
  -rw-r--r--   1 root	root  280 Sep  8 18:48 wtmp

  boot_disk/lib:
  total 629
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   17412 Sep 10 14:58 ld.so*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	  623620 Sep  8 18:33 libc.so.4*

  <sect2>Utility Disk ls-lR Directory Listing
  <p>
  The utility listing is of directory util_disk:

  total 1
  drwxr-xr-x   2 root	root	    1024 Sep 10 16:05 bin/

  util_disk/bin:
  total 897
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   41984 Sep 10 14:11 cpio*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	  504451 Sep  9 21:39 ftape.o*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   63874 Sep  9 21:40 gzip*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	   13316 Sep  9 21:34 insmod*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root   58 Sep  9 21:34 lsmod*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    3288 Sep  9 21:34 mknod*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	    9220 Sep  9 21:34 rmmod*
  -rwxr-xr-x   1 root	root	  226308 Sep  9 22:13 tar*





  4.2. Shell Scripts to Build Diskettes

  There are two shell scripts:

  o  mkroot - builds a root or boot/root diskette.

  o  mkutil - builds a utility diskette.

  Both are currently configured to run in the parent directory of
  boot_disk and util_disk, each of which contains everything to be
  copied to it's diskette. Note that these shell scripts will *NOT*
  automatically set up and copy all the files for you - you work out
  which files are needed, set up the directories and copy the files to
  those directories. The shell scripts are samples which will copy the
  contents of those directories. Note that they are primitive shell
  scripts and are not meant for the novice user.

  The scripts both contain configuration variables at the start which
  allow them to be easily configured to run anywhere.  First, set up the
  model directories and copy all the required files into them. Then
  check the configuration variables in the shell scripts and change them
  as required before running the scripts.


  4.2.1.  mkroot - Make Root or Boot/Root Diskette
































  ______________________________________________________________________
  # mkroot: make a boot/boot disk - creates a boot/root diskette
  #   by building a file system on it, then mounting it and
  #   copying required files from a model.
  #   Note: the model to copy from from must dirst be set up,
  #   then change the configuration variables below to suit
  #   your system.
  #
  # usage: mkroot [nokernel]
  #   if the parameter is omitted, then the kernel and LILO
  #   are copied.

  # Copyright (c) Graham Chapman 1994. All rights reserved.
  # Permission is granted for this material to be freely
  # used and distributed, provided the source is acknowledged.
  # No warranty of any kind is provided. You use this material
  # at your own risk.

  # Configuration variables...
  BOOTDISKDIR=./boot_disk # name of boot disk directory
  MOUNTPOINT=./mnt  # temporary mount point for diskette
  LILODIR=/sbin   # directory containing lilo
  LILOBOOT=/boot/boot.b  # lilo boot sector
  LILOMSG=./lilo.msg  # lilo message to display at boot time
  LILOCONFIG=./lilo.conf # lilo parms for boot/root diskette
  DISKETTEDEV=/dev/fd0	# device name of diskette drive

  echo $0: create boot/root diskette
  echo Warning: data on diskette will be overwritten!
  echo Insert diskette in $DISKETTEDEV and and press any key...
  read anything

  mke2fs $DISKETTEDEV
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
  then
   echo mke2fs failed
   exit
  fi

  mount -t ext2 $DISKETTEDEV $MOUNTPOINT
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
  then
   echo mount failed
   exit
  fi

  # copy the directories containing files
  for i in bin etc lib
  do
   cp -dpr $BOOTDISKDIR/$i $MOUNTPOINT
  done

  # copy dev *without* trying to copy the files in it
  cp -dpR $BOOTDISKDIR/dev $MOUNTPOINT

  # create empty directories required
  mkdir $MOUNTPOINT/proc
  mkdir $MOUNTPOINT/tmp
  mkdir $MOUNTPOINT/mnt
  mkdir $MOUNTPOINT/usr

  # copy the kernel
  if [ "$1" != "nokernel" ]
  then
   echo "Copying kernel"
   cp $BOOTDISKDIR/vmlinux $MOUNTPOINT
   echo kernel copied

   # setup lilo
   cp $LILOBOOT $MOUNTPOINT
   cp $LILOMSG $MOUNTPOINT
   $LILODIR/lilo -C $LILOCONFIG
   echo LILO installed
  fi

  umount $MOUNTPOINT

  echo Root diskette complete
  ______________________________________________________________________





  4.2.2.  mkutil - Make Utility Diskette















































  ______________________________________________________________________
  # mkutil: make a utility diskette - creates a utility diskette
  #   by building a file system on it, then mounting it and
  #   copying required files from a model.
  #   Note: the model to copy from from must first be set up,
  #   then change the configuration variables below to suit
  #   your system.

  # Copyright (c) Graham Chapman 1994. All rights reserved.
  # Permission is granted for this material to be freely
  # used and distributed, provided the source is acknowledged.
  # No warranty of any kind is provided. You use this material
  # at your own risk.

  # Configuration variables...
  UTILDISKDIR=./util_disk # name of directory containing model
  MOUNTPOINT=./mnt  # temporary mount point for diskette
  DISKETTEDEV=/dev/fd0	# device name of diskette drive

  echo $0: create utility diskette
  echo Warning: data on diskette will be overwritten!
  echo Insert diskette in $DISKETTEDEV and and press any key...
  read anything

  mke2fs $DISKETTEDEV
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
  then
   echo mke2fs failed
   exit
  fi

  # Any file system type would do here
  mount -t ext2 $DISKETTEDEV $MOUNTPOINT
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]
  then
   echo mount failed
   exit
  fi

  # copy the directories containing files
  cp -dpr $UTILDISKDIR/bin $MOUNTPOINT

  umount $MOUNTPOINT

  echo Utility diskette complete
  ______________________________________________________________________





  5.  FAQ


  5.1. Q. How can I make a boot disk with a XXX driver?

  The easiest way is to obtain a Slackware kernel from your nearest
  Slackware mirror site. Slackware kernels are generic kernels which
  atttempt to include drivers for as many devices as possible, so if you
  have a SCSI or IDE controller, chances are that a driver for it is
  included in the Slackware kernel.

  Go to the a1 directory and select either IDE or SCSI kernel depending
  on the type of controller you have. Check the xxxxkern.cfg file for
  the selected kernel to see the drivers which have been included in
  that kernel. If the device you want is in that list, then the
  corresponding kernel should boot your computer. Download the
  xxxxkern.tgz file and copy it to your boot diskette as described above
  in the section on making boot disks.

  You must then check the root device in the kernel, using the rdev
  command:


	rdev vmlinuz




  Rdev will then display the current root device in the kernel. If this
  is not the same as the root device you want, then use rdev to change
  it.  For example, the kernel I tried was set to /dev/sda2, but my root
  scsi partition is /dev/sda8. To use a root diskette, you would have to
  use the command:


	rdev vmlinuz /dev/fd0




  If you want to know how to set up a Slackware root disk as well,
  that's outside the scope of this HOWTO, so I suggest you check the
  Linux Install Guide or get the Slackware distribution. See the section
  in this HOWTO titled "References".


  5.2. Q. How do I update my boot floppy with a new kernel?

  Just copy the kernel to your boot diskette using the dd command for a
  boot diskette without a filesystem, or the cp command for a boot/root
  disk. Refer to the section in this HOWTO titled "Boot" for details on
  creating a boot disk. The description applies equally to updating a
  kernel on a boot disk.


  5.3. Q. How do I remove LILO so that I can use DOS to boot again?

  This is not really a Bootdisk topic, but it is asked so often, so: the
  answer is, use the DOS command:


	FDISK /MBR




  MBR stands for Master Boot Record, and it replaces the boot sector
  with a clean DOS one, without affecting the partition table. Some
  purists disagree with this, but even the author of LILO, Werner
  Almesberger, suggests it. It is easy, and it works.

  You can also use the dd command to copy the backup saved by LILO to
  the boot sector - refer to the LILO documentation if you wish to do
  this.


  5.4. Q. How can I boot if I've lost my kernel AND my boot disk?

  If you don't have a boot disk standing by, then probably the easiest
  method is to obtain a Slackware kernel for your disk controller type
  (IDE or SCSI) as described above for "How do I make a boot disk with a
  XXX driver?". You can then boot your computer using this kernel, then
  repair whatever damage there is.

  The kernel you get may not have the root device set to the disk type
  and partition you want. For example, Slackware's generic scsi kernel
  has the root device set to /dev/sda2, whereas my root Linux partition
  happens to be /dev/sda8. In this case the root device in the kernel
  will have to be changed.

  You can still change the root device and ramdisk settings in the
  kernel even if all you have is a kernel, and some other operating
  system, such as DOS.

  Rdev changes kernel settings by changing the values at fixed offsets
  in the kernel file, so you can do the same if you have a hex editor
  available on whatever systems you do still have running - for example,
  Norton Utilities Disk Editor under DOS.  You then need to check and if
  necessary change the values in the kernel at the following offsets:


       0x01F8  Low byte of RAMDISK size
       0x01F9  High byte of RAMDISK size
       0x01FC  Minor device number - see below
       0X01FD  Major device number - see below




  The ramdisk size is the number of blocks of ramdisk to create.  If you
  want to boot from a root diskette then set this to decimal 1440, which
  is 0x05A0, thus set offset 0x01F8 to 0xA0 and offset 0x01F9 to 0x05.
  This will allocate enough space for a 1.4Mb diskette.

  The major and minor device numbers must be set to the device you want
  to mount your root filesystem on. Some useful values to select from
  are:


       device	     major minor
       /dev/fd0     2  0   1st floppy drive
       /dev/hda1    3  1   partition 1 on 1st IDE drive
       /dev/sda1    8  1   partition 1 on 1st scsi drive
       /dev/sda8    8  8   partition 8 on 1st scsi drive




  Once you have set these values then you can write the file to a
  diskette using either Norton Utilities Disk Editor, or a program
  called rawrite.exe. This program is included in several distributions,
  including the SLS and Slackware distributions.  It is a DOS program
  which writes a file to the "raw" disk, starting at the boot sector,
  instead of writing it to the file system. If you use Norton Utilities,
  then you must write the file to a physical disk starting at the
  beginning of the disk.


  5.5. Q. How can I make extra copies of boot/root diskettes?

  It is never desirable to have just one set of rescue disks - 2 or 3
  should be kept in case one is unreadable.

  The easiest way of making copies of any diskettes, including bootable
  and utility diskettes, is to use the dd command to copy the contents
  of the original diskette to a file on your hard drive, and then use
  the same command to copy the file back to a new diskette.  Note that
  you do not need to, and should not, mount the diskettes, because dd
  uses the raw device interface.

  To copy the original, enter the command:


	dd if=<device> of=<filename>
	where	<device> = the device name of the diskette
	 drive
	and	<filename> = the name of the file where you
	 want to copy to




  For example, to copy from /dev/fd0 to a temporary file called
  /tmp/diskette.copy, I would enter the command:


	dd if=/dev/fd0 of=/tmp/diskette.copy




  Omitting the "count" parameter, as we have done here, means that the
  whole diskette of 2880 (for a high-density) blocks will be copied.

  To copy the resulting file back to a new diskette, insert the new
  diskette and enter the reverse command:


	dd if=<filename> of=<device>




  Note that the above discussion assumes that you have only one diskette
  drive. If you have two of the same type, then you can copy diskettes
  using a command like:


	dd if=/dev/fd0 of=/dev/fd1





  5.6. Q. How can I boot without typing in "ahaxxxx=nn,nn,nn" every
  time?

  Where a disk device cannot be autodetected it is necessary to supply
  the kernel with a command device parameter string, such as:


	aha152x=0x340,11,3,1




  This parameter string can be supplied in several ways using LILO:

  o  By entering it on the command line every time the system is booted
     via LILO. This is boring, though.

  o  By using the LILO "lock" keyword to make it store the command line
     as the default command line, so that LILO will use the same options
     every time it boots.

  o  By using the APPEND statement in the lilo config file. Note that
     the parameter string must be enclosed in quotes.

  For example, a sample command line using the above parameter string
  would be:


	vmlinux aha152x=0x340,11,3,1 root=/dev/sda1 lock




  This would pass the device parameter string through, and also ask the
  kernel to set the root device to /dev/sda1 and save the whole command
  line and reuse it for all future boots.

  A sample APPEND statement is:


	APPEND = "aha152x=0x340,11,3,1"




  Note that the parameter string must NOT be enclosed in quotes on the
  command line, but it MUST be enclosed in quotes in the APPEND
  statement.

  Note also that for the parameter string to be acted on, the kernel
  must contain the driver for that disk type. If it does not, then there
  is nothing listening for the parameter string, and you will have to
  rebuild the kernel to include the required driver. For details on
  rebuilding the kernel, cd to /usr/src/linux and read the README, and
  read the Linux FAQ and Installation HOWTO. Alternatively you could
  obtain a generic kernel for the disk type and install that.

  Readers are strongly urged to read the LILO documentation before
  experimenting with LILO installation. Incautious use of the "BOOT"
  statement can damage partitions.


  6.  References

  In this section, vvv is used in package names in place of the version,
  to avoid referring here to specific versions. When retrieving a
  package, always get the latest version unless you have good reasons
  for not doing so.


  6.1. LILO - Linux Loader

  Written by Werner Almesberger. Excellent boot loader, and the
  documentation includes information on the boot sector contents and the
  early stages of the boot process.

  Ftp from: tsx-11.mit.edu:/pub/linux/packages/lilo/lilo.vvv.tar.gz also
  on sunsite and mirror sites.


  6.2. Linux FAQ and HOWTOs

  These are available from many sources. Look at the usenet newsgroups
  news.answers and comp.os.linux.announce.

  Ftp from: sunsite.unc.edu:/pub/Linux/docs

  o  FAQ is in /pub/linux/docs/faqs/linux-faq

  o  HOWTOs are in /pub/Linux/docs/HOWTO

  For WWW, start at the Linux documentation home page:


       http://sunsite.unc.edu/mdw/linux.html




  If desperate, send mail to:


	mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu




  with the word "help" in the message, then follow the mailed
  instructions.

  Note: if you haven't read the Linux FAQ and related documents such as
  the Linux Installation HOWTO and the Linux Install Guide, then you
  should not be trying to build boot diskettes.


  6.3. Rescue Shell Scripts

  Written by Thomas Heiling. This contains shell scripts to produce boot
  and boot/root diskettes. It has some dependencies on specific versions
  of other software such as LILO, and so might need some effort to
  convert to your system, but it might be useful as a starting point if
  you wanted more comprehensive shell scripts than are provided in this
  document.

  Ftp from: sunsite.unc.edu:/pub/Linux/system/Recovery/rescue.tgz


  6.4. SAR - Search and Rescue

  Written by Karel Kubat. SAR produces a rescue diskette, using several
  techniques to minimize the space required on the diskette.  The manual
  includes a description of the Linux boot/login process.

  Ftp from: ftp.icce.rug.nl:/pub/unix/SAR-vvv.tar.gz

  The manual is available via WWW from:

  http://www.icce.rug.nl/karel/programs/SAR.html


  6.5. Slackware Distribution

  Apart from being one of the more popular Linux distributions around,
  it is also a good place to get a generic kernel. It is available from
  almost everywhere, so there is little point in putting addresses here.
