booting a DECserver from linux

[Steve-Thompson]

(continuation of a previous closed thread)
If I get this one sorted it's worth a few points.
Mr. Stanley F. Quayle suggests I can do this with Lunix. I hope so too as I spent yesterday evening "man dhcp.conf" and modifying the dhcp.conf with no luck.

I'll be trying again later today but Stanley, if you can sort this for me I'd be very greatful.

[Rob Leadbeater]

Hi,

Never tried this with Linux, but on Tru64 you'd have a bootptab entry that specifies the the IP address and the boot file (bf).

For a DECserver 90M this would be MNENG1 (IIRC).

Once the DECserver has its IP Address it loads the boot file via TFTP, so you'll need to have that service running as well as bootp.

Hope this helps,

Regards,

Rob

[Steven Schweda]

> (continuation of a previous closed thread)

You can't re-open an old thread?

> [...] modifying the dhcp.conf [...]

Not a useful description of what you tried.

> [...] with no luck.

Not a useful description of what happened
when you tried it.

> [...] linux [...] Lunix [...]

Not a useful description of the OS, either.

"man tftpd" might tell you whether the system
log file(s) might contain useful info.

Did you also look at "man bootpd"?

I'm a MOP user, so I know nothing, but you
may need to tell the DECserver where to look
for its stuff, and I see no description of
how that device is configured.

[Hoff]

I'd suggest reading the manuals for the DECserver devices, which are probably available over at the Vnetek site, or from one of the other archives around the network.

dhcp is just part of the sequence, and I'd expect that the sequence needed for DECserver devices with bootp/tftp would be documented in the manuals.

It's probably best to use one of the more Linux-oriented forums (here at HP or elsewhere), or work with the Vnetek folks.

Google finds various discussions for DECserver devices and Linux, too. Here's one example of some discussions: http://www.wlug.org.nz/DECserver

Here is some reading on asking questions -- and asking questions is a skill well worth developing -- in this FAQ:
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

[Stanley F Quayle · Accepted solution]

You can get the MOPD daemon from the Linux/VAX project:

http://linux-vax.sourceforge.net/index.html

They're using MOP to download a Linux kernel to a VAX. I've heard elsewhere that this daemon works for DECservers, too.

You might also find DECnet for Linux useful:

http://linux-decnet.wiki.sourceforge.net/FAQ

[Steve-Thompson]

Thank you for your reply Stanley.

I've looked at this mopd deamon and while it hasnt worked yet, it may well with a bit of investigation.
The help text hidden away in the source suggests it "only" works for VAX.

I didnt mean to exclude other enthusiastic members from helping out but my opening question "was" targeted at Stanley.
He had already alluded to a solution without actually giving it to me.

I hope this also explains the glibness and elusivity of the original question.

Thanks to everyone for their interest.

Steven

[H_Bachner]

As an alternative to the bootp/MOP load host, many (if not all) DECservers 7xx have a slot for a flash card (at least internally). You could get a flash card with the firmware from Vnetek if you need one, yielding a completely autonomous DECserver without the need for a load host.

Hans.