[MIPS] netboot failure on IP27

[termdex]

I've got an Origin 200...

>> bootp(): root=/dev/ram0
Setting $netaddr to 10.0.0.4 (from server )
Obtaining from server
8137072+354976 entry: 0xa800000000519000
ó

Never comes back...

Tcpdump on FreeBSD (BOOTP / TFTP) server reveals ...
[BOOTP stuff]
SGI -> SVR : Read Request, File: /ip27-r10k+-20050820.img\000
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 1
SGI -> SVR : Ack, Block: 1
...
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 15926
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 15926
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 15926
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 15926
[end of trace]

Each data packet payload is 512 bytes and the img size is 8981244, so ...

Any suggestions?

[armanox]

Check to make sure that your image is good?

I'll repost if I come up with more ideas

[termdex]

I found another netboot image (ip27-r10k+-20040528.img) and this one actually boots.

However, the kernel panics when it can't find the root fs at /dev/ram0 as I specified. Obviously, I'm missing something.

In the same directory tree on the Gentoo mirror (OSUOSL) I found initrd images.
The handbook describes howto setup the bootp and tftp to deliver the kernel image but says little, or nothing, about howto get the initrd image to the SGI.

Could someone point out in the docs (or describe if simple) what to do with the initrd image.

Thanks,

[armanox]

I always just put the initrd in the same folder as the netboot image. That doesn't actually mean it gets xfered or used, but, I've never had any issues.

[termdex]

Hmm, strange. I have that...

[root@alphabsd ~]# ls -l /var/tftproot/
total 23152
-rw-r--r-- 1 root wheel 6056351 Nov 30 2005 ip27-r10k+-20040528.img
-rw-r--r-- 1 root wheel 8981244 Nov 30 2005 ip27-r10k+-20050820.img
-rw-r--r-- 1 root wheel 8601600 Nov 30 2005 sgimips-initrd-20050530.img

Should the initrd image NOT be decompressed, but left in gz?

[Update]

{kernel messages}
Kernel command line: root=dksc(0,1,0) root=/dev/ram0
...
RAMDISK driver initialized: 16 RAM disks of 8192K size 1024 blocksize
loop: loaded (max 8 devices)
...
Found DS1981U NIC registration number 83:2e:05:00:70:5e, CRC 4b.
Ethernet address is 08:00:69:0d:21:68.
eth0: link down
eth0: Using PHY 0, vendor 0x2000, model 0, rev 3.
eth0: IOC3 SSRAM has 128 kbyte.
...
eth%d: link down
...
Found DS1981U NIC registration number fd:66:06:00:70:5e, CRC 9f.
Ethernet address is 08:00:69:0d:6b:ae.
eth1: link down
eth1: Using PHY 0, vendor 0x2000, model 0, rev 3.
eth1: IOC3 SSRAM has 128 kbyte.
...
XFS: bad magic number
XFS: SB validate failed
Kernel panic: VFS: Unable to mount root fs on ram0

[Hard lock]

A few concerns:
- Those two 'root=' args in the boot string.
- eth link down messages; perhaps it can no longer reach the initrd image.
- I'm not sure where this 'eth1' is; I see only one TP port.
- XFS errors. I read somewhere that the PROM can only load kernels from XFS. So if the initrd has XFS then there's some kind of corruption perhaps.

[armanox]

I'll check what I did next time I have my Gentoo box up and running. I half way remember having a compressed and uncompressed copy in the folder.

[termdex]

I decided to give tcpdump another try, this time with 20040528.img.
I hoped to see the SGI try and fail to load a particular initrd image via TFTP.

[Begin packet trace]

BOOTP stuff
SGI -> SVR : Read Request, File: /ip27-r10k+-20040528.img\000
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 1
SGI -> SVR : Ack, Block: 1
...
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 9570
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 9570
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 9570
SVR -> SGI : Data Packet, Block: 9570
[end of trace]

Again, we see the TFTP server repeatedly sending a block but the SGI has already gone and booted the kernel, which later panics because it can't mount root on ram0, same as above post.

How does the PROM determine when to stop receiving from TFTP?