[syslinux] Adding memdisk or similar when booting linux

[Luciano Rocha]

On Wed, Mar 26, 2008 at 09:39:28AM +0100, Kjetil.Mikkelborg at kongsberg.com wrote:
> > Kjetil.Mikkelborg at kongsberg.com wrote:
> >>
> >> Thanks for your reply, but stil  no luck.
> >> changed the last arg to -1, but still no sign of /dd.img in initrd after booting.
> >> So, am i looking at the wrong end here? is an initrd image handled the same way as
> >> a cpio archive regarding initramfs? Since i suspect redhat is stil using initrd image
> >> (with ext2 filesystems).
> >>
> >
> >No, you can't add files to an initrd filesystem.
> >
> >Don't know about RHEL, but Fedora has been initramfs for soem time.
> >
> >> Ive also just for testing tried to change to using initramfs_load_file instead of the code above,
> >> but still no luck with that either.
> >>
> >> Any more hints to were to look?
> >
> >Well, finding out what your initrd is would be a first step.
> >
> >        -hpa
> 
> 
> Ok, then what I am trying cannot work then ;) since redhat enterprise 4 did use initrd instead of initramfs (which actually redhat enterprise 5 does).

No, RHEL4 uses initramfs also. In a CentOS (RHEL clone):
# cat /etc/redhat-release
CentOS release 4.4 (Final)
# uname -r
2.6.9-42.0.3.ELsmp
# zcat /boot/initrd-2.6.9-42.0.3.ELsmp.img | cpio -t | head -5
2168 blocks
.
loopfs
etc
etc/udev
etc/udev/udev.conf

> is there any way I could get memdisk work with linux? (without pxelinux -> loading memdisk - > loading syslinux approach -> loading linux)?
> 
> is there anyway I can make memdisk emulate a floppy for linux?
> I know this problem now only is valid for older than initramfs distros, and I did fiddle with the tought of making a initrd -> initramfs converter as a comboot module, but that would require handling of ext2 filesystem in comboot (or I could make a initramfs image which does the converting,.. need to check in to that)..
> 

Actually, just converting between initrd and initramfs isn't enough. The
boot scripts probably depend on being started in an initrd (the kernel
boot process changes), and the kernel itself may not have support for
initramfs.

-- 
lfr
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