Gentoo on i386 Macintosh [solved]

shoelesshunter78 · n00b Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 58

I want to put Gentoo on an Intel iMac. The architecture of the machine is listed as i386. The handbook states Gentoo is only supported for i686 and up. Will the currently available builds for x86 work on this machine? I get conflicting information regarding the compatibility if i368, i686, and x86 in my searches.

TJNII · l33t Joined: 09 Nov 2003 Posts: 648 Location: for(;;);

The 386 is from 1985. Are you 100% sure it is a 386 and not something newer? If it is a 386 your performance is going to be very poor, you probably won't be able to use it for anything beyond a thin client.

What you can do is get another x86 PC and build your install on that. Take the i686 build and recompile it for i386. I've never tried this myself, but it should work.

You should probably do the compiling on another box anyways for safety. I've heard rumors of people burning out air-cooled iMacs with Gentoo.

shoelesshunter78 · n00b Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 58

I bought the machine brand new in 2006. It is an intel core duo currently running a 32-bit OSx 10.6. I did have Sabayon installed on it at one time. As for the cooling with Sabayon, I would set the fan speed manually to 3000 rpm. I was going to go ahead and do a Gentoo installation, but when I ran

TJNII · l33t Joined: 09 Nov 2003 Posts: 648 Location: for(;;);

Well, if the arch is wrong you won't even be able to chroot into your install or boot the livecd. If your box can't run i686 binaries you'll find out long before you start compiling. If the box is from '06 you should be fine. Like I said, i386 is from '85. Nobody was putting them in desktop boxes in '06. (You can still buy them for use as embedded procs, though.)

shoelesshunter78 · n00b Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 58

Hmm . . when I jumped into Linux not long ago, I was trying all sorts of distros. I have definitely run 686 Linux binaries on this machine, and the Gentoo x86 Minimal CD boots-- I got very far into an installation, chrooted, etc but lost power and went with Sabayon instead of finishing the Gentoo installation. Call it ADD. I failed to mention I used Gentoo on a nearly identical machine for a while, but it was setup by someone else . . . I couldn't maintain it and stopped using the machine anyway.

I don't know why this machine is saying 386. My Apple laptop, purchased at the same time and bearing the same processor, reads 686. ???

I think I'll give it a go on a partition. Thanks for the help. This has been by far the most pleasant distro forum I've used.

keet · Guru Joined: 09 Sep 2008 Posts: 574

I think the architecture that it's posting isn't quite accurate. According to the information in http://developer.apple.com/library/mac/#DOCUMENTATION/Darwin/Reference/ManPages/man1/arch.1.html , it's just a general description of your CPU type, or maybe just the installation type:

shoelesshunter78 · n00b Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 58

thanks keet. that clarified a lot for me. this machine is Core Duo and indeed 32 bit. The 64-bit models were just coming out when I got this one, hence the good price on it.

I've always ran on that assumption of a 32-bit processor and been using 686 binaries for months. But when Terminal spat out 386, I thought to check with you folks first.

I am darn* impressed with the speed and quality of the responses. I've been to many forums, and I've never had "support" like this on the spot and accurate. I hope I can get a Gentoo going and contribute likewise.

I'll mark this solved.