[syslinux] vesamenu back to text before booting

[Ady]

> On Fri, 5 Dec 2014, Ady wrote:
> 
> > > > If so: http://www.syslinux.org/wiki/index.php/Mboot.c32
> > > 
> > > I´m not permitted to edit either that page or its talk page.
> > > Do I submit the content addition here, then?
> >  
> > Please do.
> 
> Okay, MediaWiki syntax docs follow. Note I have tested those
> only a bit, and not within the vesamenu context, but if mboot.c32
> resets to text mode, all will be fine.
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> === MirBSD ===
> 
> The MirBSD [https://www.mirbsd.org/mani386/boot.8 second-stage
> bootloader] acts as faux MultiBoot "OS kernel". It can either
> load the boot.cfg file and the kernel from disc, or have them
> passed as faux MultiBoot "OS modules".
> 
> In SYSLINUX scenarios, the bootloader is commonly renamed as
> "ldbsd.com", although upstream places it under "/boot" normally.
> 
> ==== just the bootloader ====
> 
> <pre>
> LABEL mirbsd
>   KERNEL mboot.c32
>   APPEND /ldbsd.com
> </pre>
> 
> ==== bootloader, config, and kernel ====
> 
> <pre>
> LABEL mirbsd
>   KERNEL mboot.c32
>   APPEND /ldbsd.com --- /boot.cfg --- /bsd
> </pre>
> 
> ==== example with differently named kernel ====
> 
> (editorial note: bsd4grml actually uses a boot.cfg file, too)
> 
> <pre>
> LABEL bsd4grml
>   KERNEL /boot/isolinux/mboot.c32
>   APPEND /boot/addons/bsd4grml/ldbsd.com set image bsd4me.rd`set timeout 5 --- /boot/addons/bsd4grml/bsd.rd
> </pre>
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> > Alternatively (or, even better), you could send a link to 
> > original documentation about your boot loader.
> 
> *ahem* does CVSweb to the sources count? ;-) Well, I´ve gone
> back to the above and put a link to its manpage, although that
> will be way too high-level and user-oriented for this...
 
The Syslinux wiki _is_ for common users.

A link to original documentation is very useful. Links to manpages 
and/or to CVSweb are both fine. Some users might prefer the man page 
(which might or might not be up-to-date and/or enough), and the CVSweb 
content might be valuable for others.
 
> 
> > About additional possibilities, there are 2 KERNEL-like directives for 
> > boot sectors files (IIRC, valid for SYSLINUX only, but I could be 
> 
> OK, that would work too, but these files would need to be
> produced first. (Not working within PXE, and tricky within
> ISO, and even more so within EXT.) Probably easier to write
> a .c32 that loads the second-stage loader to the right address
> and jumps there the same way the native bootsector does.
> 

IIRC, the BS/BSS directives are not supported in ISOLINUX.

Regarding EXTLINUX, why would it be trickier than for SYSLINUX? Do you 
mean that the bootloader (as boot sector file) is (or behaves) very 
differently in a FAT fs than in other filesystems? (FWIW, EXTLINUX has 
now merged with SYSLINUX).

Regarding the c32 module, have you actually tried with chain.c32 as 
suggested? There are options already available in chain.c32 regarding 
the address. As previously suggested, read the 2 wiki pages about 
chain.c32.

If the current chain.c32 is not enough for this purpose, perhaps it 
could be enhanced? Patches are welcome.

Regards,
Ady.