Very Computer

Mathias> Could someone tell me how to install LINUX on a DELL with a
Mathias> 18Go hard drive and SCSI Adaptec AIC 7890 adapter ? Current
Mathias> distributions like RedHat6.0 or Mandrake6.0 don't work.

I have had no problems installing RedHat 6.0 on a computer with AIC
7890 based SCSI controller, what goes wrong ?

/bart
--
caffeine low .... brain halted

Quote:>    Could someone tell me how to install LINUX on a DELL with a 18Go
hard
> drive and SCSI Adaptec AIC 7890 adapter ? Current distributions like
> RedHat6.0 or Mandrake6.0 don't work.
> --
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
----
> Mathias MARGULIES

SCSI detected : 0
VFS cannot open root device 08:21
Kernel Panic : VFS : Unable to mount root on 08:21

   and that this message makes the installation procedure exit on error.
--
Mathias MARGULIES

Mathias MARGULIES

[...]

Quote:>   What goes wrong is that I get the following message :
>SCSI detected : 0

Quote:>VFS cannot open root device 08:21
>Kernel Panic : VFS : Unable to mount root on 08:21

Michael
--

          Lumber Cartel Unit #456 (TINLC) & Official Netscum
    Note: If you want me to send you email, don't munge your address.

Have you rebuilt your kernel? Make sure you have a current initrd.img in the
/boot directory especially if you have SCSI modules.
Command line = "mkinitrd /boot/initrd.img-2.2.5-15 2.2.5-15".
Change the 2.2.5-15 to whatever version the Kernel and/or Modules are. Also
check that the System.map is current. Without a proper Initrd image the
Kernel cannot link with the modules.
If anyone can add to this, feel free as I am new to RH6.0.

Ron Joscher

I am not an expert on how various installs work, but I think the problem is
that it is not reading the CD ROM.  (This may be true even if you are
booting from the CD, because the during the process of booting the disc is
access through the BIOS, not the kernel.  This should be self evident,
because the kernel is not loaded yet.)

A fix, you ask?  Well, you don't say what type of CD drive you have, but I
am pretty sure that Dell does not sell any systems with the throughput of
the 7890 crippled by a single ended cdrom.  (the 7890 is a low voltage diff
controller, it will work with se drives, but it slows things down
considerably.)

My guess is that you have a Power Edge 1300, in which case, the problem is
that you have an IDE CDROM and you probably don't know it.  This is
supported by the fact that if you told linux that the only controller you
have is a 7890 it would automatically start using the 7860, if there is one,
and this is the natural controler that one would likely use to compliment
the 7890.

I will be grateful to anyone who sees fit to cc: when posting more info to
this thread, as I do not intend to come back here to see what has happened.

Mathais,

Please let me know if this works or not.  I will be glad to help further if
I can.

-P

Quote:>    Could someone tell me how to install LINUX on a DELL with a 18Go hard
> drive and SCSI Adaptec AIC 7890 adapter ? Current distributions like
> RedHat6.0 or Mandrake6.0 don't work.
> --
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Mathias MARGULIES

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Share what you know. Learn what you don't.

Linux is, by default, limited to 1GB.  Since some space is needed for the
kernel, this means that you must have some amount of ram LESS than 1GB to
install (or to run for that matter).  Physically removing the ram is
unnecessary.  Per the BootPrompt  HowTo (at www.linux.org), you may pass
mem=xxxm where xxx is the amount of ram, to the kernel.

This said, I doubt that memory is causing Kernel Panic : VFS : Unable to
mount root on 08:21, though I am sure that it would cause some sort of
panic.  I still think that it is a CDROM access issue, though I have not
heard from Mathais.

Finally, kernel version 2.2.12 has an option for allowing up to 2GB of ram
(although, again, if you have 2GB the system will not work.  Pass mem=2000m
(giving the kernel 48m to play with.) or use [1GB-2GB) of ram.)  Using this
opting would allow Greg to use his full 1GB.

And as a side note; suse and simens have worked out a patch to allow 4GB, and
it is going to be added to 2.3 in the near future, and will likely be in 2.4.

-Peter

Pass the noprobe argument at boot time.  I can't be bothered to look up the
exact syntax.

Mathias,

If you would be so kind as to tell me what model of "Dell" you have it would
be ever so helpful.  (I need model, type and number of each SCSI controller.)

-Peter

Quote:>    Could someone tell me how to install LINUX on a DELL with a 18Go hard
> drive and SCSI Adaptec AIC 7890 adapter ? Current distributions like
> RedHat6.0 or Mandrake6.0 don't work.

This is all with Red Hat 6. What's really puzzling is that Debian installs
and run just fine from the base installer. Windows NT runs fine, too, with
SCSI drivers dupplied by the manufacturer.

I found a recent set of install disks with an updated aic7xxx driver on Red
Hat's web site. I tried that as well, but it gives me exactly the same
message.