Very Computer

You have to have the right hardware and then set up the BIOS
right,
if I understand your question at all.

Quote:

> I am familiar with ATAPI drives and that they require a driver in
> order to run - and this unlike the EIDE drives that can boot from
> the BIOS.  (If I am missing the boat here, please let me know).

When something says you need a bootable CDROM it means your
computer
is going to look at the CDROM first upon booting to find the
instructions as to what to do next. On its own it doesn't know
much
at all, it has to read the instructions from a source such as
your
CDROM, a floppy, or the hard drive.

(I realize you are probably trying to install Linux
from the CDROM. Continue reading.)

Where it looks first depends upon what you tell it in
the BIOS.

It doesn't have anything to do with the drivers -- they load
later
in the boot sequence.

Even if you do not have Linux on your computer at all you still
have
a BIOS and the following directions will still apply. If you
already
know all this I apologize, but the way you worded your question
makes
me think you are just starting out.

Quote:

> Does this mean that an ATAPI CD-ROM is not a bootable drive or
> is there a way to make it a bootable drive?

My ATAPI CDROM is bootable now that I set the BIOS to boot from
CDROM first, floppy second, and hd third. (My BIOS actually
allows a
fourth option, which I left blank.) So yes, there MAY be a way
you can
make your CDROM a bootable drive too.

(My CDROM is /dev/hdb in Linux. I don't know if a SCSI CDROM can
be a bootable
device, maybe someone else can tell you.)

To access
the bios watch the very first boot messages after you turn on
the
computer. Usually it will pause and tell you to hit a particular
key
or combination to enter "setup" or BIOS. Do so. Strange colored
screens will
appear. Just read them and navigate around and
look for some part that concerns the boot sequence. See if you
can change
it to what you want. This is a very primitive
part of the computer and pretty self-explanatory once you catch
on.

Some BIOSs do not allow you to set the CDROM as the boot device.
In
that case you are stuck, and the answer to your question will be
no:
there is not a way to make your CDROM bootable.

If you only change the part about what device to boot from in
the BIOS
and nothing else, and you make a wrong choice, you should be
able to go
in and put it back the way it was pretty easily, so give it a
try. Make
notes of everything you do so you can back out.

Hope this addresses your real question.

MP

Thank you John and Mpulliam for your responses - they did
answer my question.

Marty

Quote:>I want to know what makes a CD-ROM a bootable CD-ROM.

>Is it in the hardware of the drive itself or is it in the way the
>computer is set up?

>I am familiar with ATAPI drives and that they require a driver in
>order to run - and this unlike the EIDE drives that can boot from
>the BIOS.  (If I am missing the boat here, please let me know).

>Does this mean that an ATAPI CD-ROM is not a bootable drive or
>is there a way to make it a bootable drive?

>Thank you for your comments and thoughts.

>Marty