/dev/hda missing

[raman]

Hello,

I think this may be off topic but I just thought I'd try anyway. I upgraded my 6GB hard drive on my iMac to 40GB Seagate barracuda drive. I had Gentoo installed on the old drive. My plan was to make a dual boot (Gentoo/OS X) system on the new drive. Now, the Mac OS X installation CD doesn't see the 40 GB drive.

My OS 8.6 CD does see it and and I can install 8.6 on it but I couldn't boot from my HD. So I booted using my Gentoo live CD and saw that there's no /dev/hda but a 40GB drive under /dev/hdb. Is there an way to change that to /dev/hda (with or without opening my box)? Or is there a way to get everyting to work using /dev/hdb?

Thanks!
Raman

[andrew_j_w]

Sounds to me like the jumper on the drive was set to slave instead of master. You can't solve it without opening your box, but its a very simple procedure.

You should just need a pair of tweesers, or small fingers - and the instructions should be printed on the drive.

HTH,
Andrew

[raman]

It worked.. thank you! I noticed the jumper setting before I installed the drive but wasn't sure what it was.

Raman

[Tapp_Darden]

do you got one of those trey-loading iMacs? 233-333 MHz?

If you do, you cant install MacOS X on any partion that goes beyond the first 8Gbs (installer will just plain not let you) you can install Mac OS 8/9 on a partion that is past the first 8 gig, but you will not beable to boot from it....

as far as gentoo, I think as long as you have the boot partion(not to be mixed up with the bootstrap partion) is in the first 8 gig you should be fine....

you said you had a 6 gig, thats why I jumped in. if you have a slot-loding iMac(or later), your fine...

Pat

[raman]

Yes, it a 333mhz imac with a tray loading cd drive. Could you post a link for the instructions for correctly partitioning the HD?

thanks,
raman

[Tapp_Darden]

not really willing to go digging through apple docs to find it for ya, if you really want you can go over to apple and search. beside, I can give you somehting that apple can't. I had that exact same model. I have put a 120 gig, in there, installed mac os 9 and X. and also, linux(not gentoo though)

Because of a limition in the IDE interface, you can only boot off from a partion that is within the first 8 GB. mind you, that is only booting. after the computer is booted, no limition on the rest of the hdd.

now as long as the Mac OS 8/9 system folder is within the first 8 GB, you will beable to boot from it. even if the partion goes past that 8GB, you can still boot from it. as long as the system folder is in that first 8GB, your ok. I would recomend not doing it that way, because if the disk gets fragmented(which it will) and you reinstall or otherwise upgrade make os 9, that System folder might wonder off that 8 GB limit, and then you will not beable to boot from it. However, you will beable to run classic, and mol I would think, off of a system folder that is outside that 8 GB.

As for Mac OS X, it just will not install on any partion that is in any shape or form outside of that 8 GB limit. ( I found out, that even a 8GB partion it will not install from, its best to have just less then 8GB for this reason)

As far as Linux goes, I'm not sure, I bet you can have just a boot partion(5 or 6 MB) that just holds your kernel, within that first 8 GB and have your root ( /) partion(and any other partions you want to make.) outside that first 8 GB. you might get away with just having a boot strap partion and everything else outside of that 8GB partion.

the importent thing is to experement, to see what you can do, I have given you info, that will help you, if things don't work out... aahh,, the joys of computing. testing shit out, and see what you can get it to do, even if it is not ment to do it.

BTW, was it the jumpers? by what you discribed of your problems, it sounded like that was the problem... Mac OS X should let you see the 40GB drive, even if it won't let you install to it....

let me know how it goes, and how you partioned things up...

[raman]

Yes, it was the jumper setting. I installed OSX on a 7GB partition at the top. I noticed that the disk utility on Mac OS X installer CD created my partitions fine but it left 128MB blocks of free space before each partiton. Is this for use in emergency sitautions?

I have been searching for information about making a dual-boot system with the 8GB limitation. I just had a few questions though:

1. I can easlily create a partiton for /boot in the top 8GB and put my kernel there. But don't I also need to have my bootstrap partition for linux in the top 8GB?

2. If I understand correctly, I would have to create the linux bootsprap partition at logical position 2 in the partition table (and I may need to use the reorder command in mac-fdisk to do this.) If I do that, will Mac OS X still work or do I need to update OSX/darwin's /etc/fstab file to account for the changes in the partiton numbers?

Thanks!
Raman

[Tapp_Darden]

I think the bootstrap partion is the one partion you should worry about. its only 800k, so it shouldn't be too hard to find a spot for it. like I said, I'm not sure if the boot partion need to be in that first 8GB or not. I'm thinking not.

Not sure why 128MB are getting left behind, never did like apples gui with making partions. classic or macosx.... I'm almost sure, that if you have freespace, its just being wasted. unless its less then 1MB. If, you list the partions using mac-fdisk, it should show you every partion, and what space is being used as what. you should have a few for apple drivers. but that should not take up very much space at all.

Darwin doesn't use config files like /etc/fstab. Apple put that in to be compatble. Darwin uses netinfo. which, is very nice, imho. Anyway, you should be find doing all the re-ording you want in mac-fdisk. Macintoshs are pretty good at finding valid MacOSs boot disks. no real need to tell MacOS X what your doing.

I don't think you have to have the bootstrap in position 2, or in any other position. My bootstrap is in position 10.....

oh, btw, if you re-order the partions in mac-fdisk, I dont' think it physicaly moves the partions. I don't really see the point in it.. although I'm sure there is on....

[raman]

Tapp_Darden,

Thanks for all your help! I am able to dual boot my system. I just used part of the 128MB free space to make my bootstrap at physical position 2. I put /boot on a separate partition in the first 8GB as well. I disabled OS9 drivers so I didn't have those extra partitions. The only trouble was that Mac OS X showed a blinking folder before eventually finding the blessed folder. That was resolved by reblessing the proper system folder (or by resecting the startup disk under system preferences). But that setting probably doesn't matter now because yaboot takes over first.

This is where I read that it's good to have the bootstrap as the second logical partition:

http://penguinppc.org/projects/yaboot/doc/yaboot-howto.shtml/ch4.en.shtml

Anyway, I'll remove the boot partition and see if it still works when the kernel is outside the first 8GB.

Thanks again,
Raman

[Tapp_Darden]

[raman]

Tapp_Darden:

I tried to boot from a kernel located outside the top 8GB of disk-space and it didn't boot. This is consistent what I have seen on the web in the context of Yellow Dog linux and other linuxes. So, for these early G3s both the bootstrap partition and the kernel must be in the top 8GB.

From the yaboot how-to at penguinppc.org, what I gathered was that if your bootstrap partition comes after Mac OS partition and you do a hardware reset (by pressing Cmd+Option+P+R at startup) then your startup disk may end up becoming Mac OS... which is the reason for the second logical partition. Maybe I'll try that sometime..

Raman

[Tapp_Darden]

I can confirm that if you reset your pram, you will lose your startup disk. and your mac will boot from the fist boot device it finds. I just did not think it would ever pick yaboot, unless you program it too.... hmm, i'll have to re-order my partions and reset my pram to see...