Installing Debian GNU/Linux 2.2 For Alpha
                 -----------------------------------------

                               Bruce Perens

                               Sven Rudolph

                               Igor Grobman

                               James Treacy

                               Adam Di Carlo

                     version 2.2.20, 25 November, 2000


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Abstract
--------

     This document contains installation instructions for the Debian
     GNU/Linux 2.2 system, for the Alpha (``alpha'') architecture.  It also
     contains pointers to more information and information on how to make
     the most of your new Debian system.  The procedures in this document
     are _not_ to be used for users upgrading existing systems; if you are
     upgrading, see the Release Notes for Debian 2.2
     (http://www.debian.org/releases/2.2/alpha/release-notes/).


Copyright Notice
----------------

     This document may be distributed and modified under the terms of the
     GNU General Public License.
     (C) 1996 Bruce Perens
     (C) 1996, 1997 Sven Rudolph
     (C) 1998 Igor Grobman, James Treacy
     (C) 1998-2000 Adam Di Carlo

     This manual is free software; you may redistribute it and/or modify it
     under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the
     Free Software Foundation; either version 2, or (at your option) any
     later version.

     This manual is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
     _without any warranty_; without even the implied warranty of
     merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.  See the GNU
     General Public License for more details.

     A copy of the GNU General Public License is available as
     `/usr/doc/copyright/GPL' in the Debian GNU/Linux distribution or on
     the World Wide Web at the GNU website
     (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html).  You can also obtain it by
     writing to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite
     330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.

     We require that you properly attribute Debian and the authors of this
     document on any materials derived from this document.  If you modify
     and improve this document, we request that you notify the authors of
     this document, via <debian-boot@lists.debian.org>.

     The table of Alpha architectures was derived from information
     contributed by Jay Estabrook, with kind permission.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Contents
--------

     1.        Welcome to Debian
     1.1.      What is Debian?
     1.2.      What is GNU/Linux?
     1.3.      What is Debian GNU/Linux?
     1.4.      What is Debian GNU/Hurd?
     1.5.      Getting Debian
     1.6.      Getting the Newest Version of This Document
     1.7.      Organization of This Document
     1.8.      WARNING: This Document Has Known Problems
     1.9.      About Copyrights and Software Licenses

     2.        System Requirements
     2.1.      Supported Hardware
     2.2.      Installation Media
     2.3.      Memory and Disk Space Requirements
     2.4.      Peripherals and Other Hardware
     2.5.      Purchasing Hardware Specifically for GNU/Linux

     3.        Before You Start
     3.1.      Backups
     3.2.      Information You Will Need
     3.3.      Pre-installation Hardware and Operating System Setup

     4.        Partitioning Your Hard Drive
     4.1.      Background
     4.2.      Planning Use of the System
     4.3.      Device Names in Linux
     4.4.      Recommended Partitioning Scheme
     4.5.      Example Partitioning
     4.6.      Partitioning Prior to Installation

     5.        Methods for Installing Debian
     5.1.      Overview of the Installation Process
     5.2.      Choosing the Right Installation Set
     5.3.      Installation Sources for Different Installation Stages
     5.4.      Description of Installation System Files
     5.5.      TFTP
     5.6.      Diskettes
     5.7.      CD-ROM
     5.8.      Hard Disk
     5.9.      Installing from NFS

     6.        Booting the Installation System
     6.1.      Boot Parameter Arguments
     6.2.      Interpreting the Kernel Startup Messages
     6.3.      Booting from a Hard Disk
     6.4.      Installing from a CD-ROM
     6.5.      Booting from TFTP
     6.6.      Alpha Console Firmware
     6.7.      Booting From the SRM Console
     6.8.      Booting from the ARC or AlphaBIOS Console
     6.9.      Booting with MILO
     6.10.     Troubleshooting the Boot Process

     7.        Using `dbootstrap' for Initial System Configuration
     7.1.      Introduction to `dbootstrap'
     7.2.      ``Release Notes''
     7.3.      ``Debian GNU/Linux Installation Main Menu''
     7.4.      ``Configure the Keyboard''
     7.5.      Preload Drivers
     7.6.      Last Chance!
     7.7.      ``Partition a Hard Disk''
     7.8.      ``Initialize and Activate a Swap Partition''
     7.9.      ``Initialize a Linux Partition''
     7.10.     ``Mount a Previously-Initialized Partition''
     7.11.     ``Install Operating System Kernel and Modules''
     7.12.     ``Configure Device Driver Modules''
     7.13.     ``Configure the Network''
     7.14.     ``Install the Base System''
     7.15.     ``Configure the Base System''
     7.16.     ``Make Linux Bootable Directly From Hard Disk''
     7.17.     The Moment of Truth
     7.18.     Set the Root Password
     7.19.     Create an Ordinary User
     7.20.     Shadow Password Support
     7.21.     Select and Install Profiles
     7.22.     Log In
     7.23.     Setting up PPP
     7.24.     Installing the Rest of Your System

     8.        Next Steps and Where to Go From Here
     8.1.      If You Are New to Unix
     8.2.      Orienting Yourself to Debian
     8.3.      Further Reading and Information
     8.4.      Compiling a New Kernel

     9.        Technical Information on the Boot Floppies
     9.1.      Source Code
     9.2.      Rescue Floppy
     9.3.      Replacing the Rescue Floppy Kernel
     9.4.      The Base Floppies

     10.       Appendix
     10.1.     Further Information and Obtaining Debian GNU/Linux
     10.2.     Linux Devices

     11.       Administrivia
     11.1.     About This Document
     11.2.     Contributing to This Document
     11.3.     Major Contributions
     11.4.     Trademark Acknowledgement


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


1. Welcome to Debian
--------------------

     We are delighted that you have decided to try Debian, and sure that
     you will find that Debian's GNU/Linux distribution is unique.  Debian
     GNU/Linux brings together high-quality free software from around the
     world, integrating it into a coherent whole.  We believe that you will
     find that the result is truly more than the sum of the parts.

     This chapter provides an overview of the Debian Project and Debian
     GNU/Linux.  If you already know about the Debian Project's history and
     the Debian GNU/Linux distribution, feel free to skip to the next
     chapter.


1.1. What is Debian?
--------------------

     Debian is an all-volunteer organization dedicated to developing free
     software and promoting the ideals of the Free Software Foundation.
     The Debian Project began in 1993, when Ian Murdock issued an open
     invitation to software developers to contribute to a complete and
     coherent software distribution based on the relatively new Linux
     kernel.  That relatively small band of dedicated enthusiasts,
     originally funded by the Free Software Foundation
     (http://www.gnu.org/fsf/fsf.html) and influenced by the GNU
     (http://www.gnu.org/) philosophy, has grown over the years into an
     organization of around 500 _Debian Developers_.

     Debian Developers are involved in a variety of activities, including
     Web (http://www.debian.org/) and FTP (ftp://ftp.debian.org/) site
     administration, graphic design, legal analysis of software licenses,
     writing documentation, and, of course, maintaining software packages.

     In the interest of communicating our philosophy and attracting
     developers who believe in the principles that Debian stands for, the
     Debian Project has published a number of documents that outline our
     values and serve as guides to what it means to be a Debian Developer:
        * The Debian Social Contract
          (http://www.debian.org/social_contract) is a statement of
          Debian's commitments to the Free Software Community.  Anyone who
          agrees to abide to the Social Contract may become a maintainer
          (http://www.debian.org/doc/maint-guide/).  Any maintainer can
          introduce new software into Debian --- provided that the software
          meets our criteria for being free, and the package follows our
          quality standards.
        * The Debian Free Software Guidelines
          (http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines) are a clear
          and concise statement of Debian's criteria for free software.
          The DFSG is a very influential document in the Free Software
          Movement, and was the foundation of the Open Source Free Software
          Guidelines (http://opensource.org/osd.html).
        * The Debian Policy Manual
          (http://www.debian.org/doc/debian-policy/) is an extensive
          specification of the Debian Project's standards of quality.

     Debian developers are also involved in a number of other projects;
     some specific to Debian, others involving some or all of the Linux
     community.  Some examples include:
        * The Linux Standard Base (http://www.linuxbase.org/) (LSB) is a
          project aimed at standardizing the basic GNU/Linux system, which
          will enable third-party software and hardware developers to
          easily design programs and device drivers for Linux-in-general,
          rather than for a specific GNU/Linux distribution.
        * The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (http://www.pathname.com/fhs/)
          (FHS) is an effort to standardize the layout of the Linux
          filesystem.  The FHS will allow software developers to
          concentrate their efforts on designing programs, without having
          to worry about how the package will be installed in different
          GNU/Linux distributions.
        * Debian Jr. (http://www.debian.org/devel/debian-jr/) is an
          internal project, aimed at making sure Debian has something to
          offer to our youngest users.

     For more general information about Debian, see the Debian FAQ
     (http://www.debian.org/doc/FAQ/).


1.2. What is GNU/Linux?
-----------------------

     The GNU Project has developed a comprehensive set of free software
     tools for use with Unix(TM) and Unix-like operating systems such as
     Linux.  These tools enable users to perform tasks ranging from the
     mundane (such as copying or removing files from the system) to the
     arcane (such as writing and compiling programs or doing sophisticated
     editing in a variety of document formats).

     An operating system consists of various fundamental programs which are
     needed by your computer so that it can communicate and receive
     instructions from users; read and write data to hard disks, tapes, and
     printers; control the use of memory; and run other software.  The most
     important part of an operating system is the kernel.  In a GNU/Linux
     system, Linux is the kernel component.  The rest of the system
     consists of other programs, many of which were written by or for the
     GNU Project.  Because the Linux kernel alone does not form a working
     operating system, we prefer to use the term ``GNU/Linux'' to refer to
     systems that many people casually refer to as ``Linux''.

     The Linux kernel (http://www.kernel.org/) first appeared in 1991, when
     a Finnish computing science student named Linus Torvalds announced an
     early version of a replacement kernel for Minix to the Usenet
     newsgroup `comp.os.minix'.  See Linux International's Linux History
     Page (http://www.li.org/linuxhistory.php).

     Linus Torvalds continues to coordinate the work of several hundred
     developers with the help of a few trusty deputies.  An excellent
     weekly summary of discussions on the `linux-kernel' mailing list is
     Kernel Traffic (http://kt.linuxcare.com/kernel-traffic/).  More
     information about the `linux-kernel' mailing list can be found on the
     linux-kernel mailing list FAQ (http://www.tux.org/lkml/).


1.3. What is Debian GNU/Linux?
------------------------------

     The combination of Debian's philosophy and methodology and the GNU
     tools, the Linux kernel, and other important free software, form a
     unique software distribution called Debian GNU/Linux.  This
     distribution is made up of a large number of software _packages_.
     Each package in the distribution contains executables, scripts,
     documentation, and configuration information, and has a _maintainer_
     who is primarily responsible for keeping the package up-to-date,
     tracking bug reports, and communicating with the upstream author(s) of
     the packaged software.  Our extremely large user base, combined with
     our bug tracking system ensures that problems are found and fixed
     quickly.

     Debian's attention to detail allows us to produce a high-quality,
     stable, and scalable distribution.  Installations can be easily
     configured to serve many roles, from stripped-down firewalls to
     desktop scientific workstations to high-end network servers.

     The feature that most distinguishes Debian from other GNU/Linux
     distributions is its package management system.  These tools give the
     administrator of a Debian system complete control over the packages
     installed on that system, including the ability to install a single
     package or automatically update the entire operating system.
     Individual packages can also be protected from being updated.  You can
     even tell the package management system about software you have
     compiled yourself and what dependencies it fulfills.

     To protect your system against ``trojan horses'' and other malevolent
     software, Debian's servers verify that uploaded packages come from
     their registered Debian maintainers.  Debian packagers also take great
     care to configure their packages in a secure manner.  When security
     problems in shipped packages do appear, fixes are usually available
     very quickly.  With Debian's simple update options, security fixes can
     be downloaded and installed automatically across the Internet.

     The primary, and best, method of getting support for your Debian
     GNU/Linux system and communicating with Debian Developers is through
     the many mailing lists maintained by the Debian Project (there are
     more than 90 at this writing).  The easiest way to subscribe to one or
     more of these lists is visit Debian's mailing list subscription page
     (http://www.debian.org/MailingLists/subscribe) and fill out the form
     you'll find there.


1.4. What is Debian GNU/Hurd?
-----------------------------

     Debian GNU/Hurd is a Debian GNU system that replaces the Linux
     monolithic kernel with the GNU Hurd --- a set of servers running on
     top of the GNU Mach microkernel.  The Hurd is still unfinished, and is
     unsuitable for day-to-day use, but work is continuing.  The Hurd is
     currently only being developed for the i386 architecture, although
     ports to other architectures will be made once the system becomes more
     stable.

     For more information, see the Debian GNU/Hurd ports page
     (http://www.debian.org/ports/hurd/) and the
     <debian-hurd@lists.debian.org> mailing list.


1.5. Getting Debian
-------------------

     For information on how to download Debian GNU/Linux from the Internet
     or from whom official Debian CDs can be purchased, see the
     distribution web page (http://www.debian.org/distrib/).  The list of
     Debian mirrors (http://www.debian.org/distrib/ftplist) contains a full
     set of official Debian mirrors.

     Debian can be upgraded after installation very easily.  The
     installation procedure will help setup up the system so that you can
     make those upgrades once installation is complete, if need be.


1.6. Getting the Newest Version of This Document
------------------------------------------------

     This document is constantly being revised.  Be sure to check the
     Debian 2.2 pages (http://www.debian.org/releases/2.2/) for any
     last-minute information about the 2.2 release of the Debian GNU/Linux
     system.  Updated versions of this installation manual are also
     available from the official Install Manual pages
     (http://www.debian.org/releases/2.2/alpha/install).


1.7. Organization of This Document
----------------------------------

     This document is meant to serve as a manual for first-time Debian
     users.  It tries to make as few assumptions as possible about your
     level of expertise.  However, we do assume that you have a general
     understanding of how the hardware in your computer works.

     Expert users may also find interesting reference information in this
     document, including minimum installation sizes, details about the
     hardware supported by the Debian installation system, and so on.  We
     encourage expert users to jump around in the document.

     In general, this manual is arranged in a linear fashion, walking you
     through the installation process from start to finish.  Here are the
     steps in installing Debian GNU/Linux, and the sections of this
     document which correlate with each step:

     1.   Determine whether your hardware meets the requirements for using
          the installation system, in Chapter 2, `System Requirements'.

     2.   Backup your system, and perform any necessary planning and
          hardware configuration prior to installing Debian, in Chapter 3,
          `Before You Start'.

     3.   Getting the partitions on your system set up correctly is very
          important, because once you've done the install, you may have to
          live with your choices for a long time.

     4.   In Chapter 5, `Methods for Installing Debian', several different
          ways to install Debian are presented and discussed.  Select your
          favorite method and prepare your installation media as described.

     5.   Chapter 6, `Booting the Installation System', describes booting
          into the installation system.  This chapter also discusses
          troubleshooting procedures in case you have problems with this
          step.

     6.   Perform the initial system configuration, which is discussed in
          Chapter 7, `Using `dbootstrap' for Initial System Configuration'
          (Sections Section 7.1, `Introduction to `dbootstrap'' through
          Section 7.13, ```Configure the Network''').

     7.   Section 7.14, ```Install the Base System'''.

     8.   Boot into your newly installed base system and run through some
          additional configuration tasks, from Section 7.17, `The Moment of
          Truth'.

     9.   Install the rest of the system, using `dselect' or `apt-get', in
          Section 7.24, `Installing the Rest of Your System'.

     Once you've got your system installed, you can read Chapter 8, `Next
     Steps and Where to Go From Here'.  That chapter explains where to look
     to find more information about Unix and Debian, and how to replace
     your kernel.  If you want to build your own install system from
     source, be sure to read Chapter 9, `Technical Information on the Boot
     Floppies'.

     Finally, information about this document and how to contribute to it
     may be found in Chapter 11, `Administrivia'.


1.8. WARNING: This Document Has Known Problems
----------------------------------------------

     This document is still in a rather rough form.  It is known to be
     incomplete, and probably also contains errors, grammatical problems,
     and so forth.  If you see the words ``FIXME'' or ``TODO'', you can be
     sure we already know that section is not complete.  As usual, _caveat
     emptor_ (buyer beware).  Any help, suggestions, and, especially,
     patches, would be greatly appreciated.

     The non-x86 versions of this document may be particularly incomplete,
     inaccurate, and untested.  Your help is definitely wanted!

     Working versions of this document can be found at
     http://www.debian.org/releases/2.2/alpha/install.  There you will find
     a list of all the different architectures and languages for which this
     document is available.

     Source is also available publicly; look for more information
     concerning how to contribute in Chapter 11, `Administrivia'.  We
     welcome suggestions, comments, patches, and bug reports (use the
     package `boot-floppies', but check first to see if the problem is
     already reported).


1.9. About Copyrights and Software Licenses
-------------------------------------------

     We're sure that you've read some of the licenses that come with most
     commercial software --- they usually say that you can only use one
     copy of the software on a single computer.  The Debian GNU/Linux
     system's license isn't like that at all.  We encourage you to put a
     copy of Debian GNU/Linux on every computer in your school or place of
     business.  Lend your installation media to your friends and help them
     install it on their computers!  You can even make thousands of copies
     and _sell_ them --- albeit with a few restrictions.  Your freedom to
     install and use the system comes directly from Debian being based on
     _free software_.

     Calling software ``free'' doesn't mean that the software isn't
     copyrighted, and it doesn't mean that CDs containing that software
     must be distributed at no charge.  Free software, in part, means that
     the licenses of individual programs do not require you to pay for the
     privilege of distributing or using those programs.  Free software also
     means that not only may anyone extend, adapt, and modify the software,
     but that they may distribute the results of their work as well.[1]

     Many of the programs in the system are licensed under the _GNU_
     _General Public License_, often simply referred to as ``the GPL''.
     The GPL requires you to make the _source code_ of the programs
     available whenever you distribute a binary copy of the program; that
     provision of the license ensures that any user will be able to modify
     the software.  Because of this provision, the source code for all such
     programs is available in the Debian system.[2]

     There are several other forms of copyright statements and software
     licenses used on the programs in Debian.  You can find the copyrights
     and licenses for every package installed on your system by looking in
     the file `/usr/doc/<package-name>/copyright' once you've installed a
     package on your system.

     For more information about licenses and how Debian determines whether
     software is free enough to be included in the main distribution, see
     the Debian Free Software Guidelines
     (http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines).

     The most important legal notice is that this software comes with _no
     warranties_.  The programmers who have created this software have done
     so for the benefit of the community.  No guarantee is made as to the
     suitability of the software for any given purpose.  However, since the
     software is free, you are empowered to modify that software to suit
     your needs --- and to enjoy the benefits of the changes made by others
     who have extended the software in this way.

[1]  Note that the Debian project, as a pragmatic concession to its users,
     does make some packages available that do not meet our criteria for
     being free. These packages are not part of the official distribution,
     however, and are only available from the `contrib' or `non-free' areas
     of Debian mirrors or on third-party CD-ROMs; see the Debian FAQ
     (http://www.debian.org/doc/FAQ/), under ``The Debian FTP archives'',
     for more information about the layout and contents of the archives. 

[2]  For information on how to locate, unpack, and build binaries from
     Debian source packages, see the Debian FAQ
     (http://www.debian.org/doc/FAQ/), under ``Basics of the Debian Package
     Management System''. 


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


2. System Requirements
----------------------

     This section contains information about what hardware you need to get
     started with Debian.  You will also find links to further information
     about hardware supported by GNU and Linux.


2.1. Supported Hardware
-----------------------

     Debian does not impose hardware requirements beyond the requirements
     of the Linux kernel and the GNU tool-sets.  Therefore, any
     architecture or platform to which the Linux kernel, libc, `gcc', etc.
     have been ported, and for which a Debian port exists, can run Debian.

     There are, however, some limitations in our boot floppy set with
     respect to supported hardware.  Some Linux-supported platforms might
     not be directly supported by our boot floppies.  If this is the case,
     you may have to create a custom rescue disk (see Section 9.3,
     `Replacing the Rescue Floppy Kernel'), or investigate network
     installations.

     Rather than attempting to describe all the different hardware
     configurations which are supported for Alpha, this section contains
     general information and pointers to where additional information can
     be found.

2.1.1. Supported Architectures
------------------------------

     Debian 2.2 supports six architectures: Intel x86-based architectures;
     Motorola 680x0 machines such as Atari, Amiga, and Macintoshes; DEC
     Alpha machines; Sun SPARC machines; ARM and StrongARM machines; and
     some IBM/Motorola PowerPC machines, including CHRP, PowerMac and PReP
     machines.  These are referred to as _i386_, _m68k_, _alpha_, _sparc_,
     _arm_, and _powerpc_, respectively.

     This document covers installation for the _alpha_ architecture.  If
     you look for information on other architectures take a look at the
     Debian-Ports (http://www.debian.org/ports/) pages.

2.1.2. CPU, Mainboards, and Video Support
-----------------------------------------

     Complete information regarding supported DEC Alphas can be found at
     Linux Alpha HOWTO (http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/Alpha-HOWTO.html).
     The purpose of this section is to describe the systems supported by
     the boot disks.

     Alpha machines are subdivided into different system types because
     there are a number of generations of motherboard and supporting
     chip-sets.  Different systems (``sub-architectures'') often have
     radically different engineering and capabilities.  Therefore, the
     process of installing and, more to the point, booting, can vary from
     system to system.

     The following table lists the system types supported by the Debian
     installation system.  The table also indicates the _code name_ for
     these system types.  You'll need to know this code name when you
     actually begin the installation process:

          Family/Model                     Code Name
          =============                    =========
          ALPHAbook 1                      book1
          
          ALCOR
            AS 600                         alcor
            AS 500 5/3xx                   alcor
            AS 500 5/5xx                   alcor
            XL-300/366/433                 xlt
          
          AVANTI
            AS 200 4/*                     avanti
            AS 205 4/*                     avanti
            AS 250 4/*                     avanti
            AS 255 4/*                     avanti
            AS 300 4/*                     avanti
            AS 400 4/*                     avanti
          
          DP264                            dp264
            DP264                          dp264
            AS DP10                        dp264
            AS DP20                        dp264
            AS ES40                        dp264
            AS XP1000                      dp264
            UP2000                         dp264
          
          EB164                            eb164
            AlphaPC164                     pc164
            AlphaPC164-LX                  lx164
            AlphaPC164-SX                  sx164
          
          EB64+
            EB64+                          eb64p
            AlphaPC64                      cabriolet
            AlphaPCI-64                    cabriolet
          
          EB66                             eb66
          
          EB66+                            eb66p
          
          JENSEN
            DECpc 150                      jensen
            DEC 2000 Model 300             jensen
          
          MIKASA
            AS 1000 4/xxx                  mikasa
            AS 1000 5/xxx                  mikasa-p
          
          NAUTILUS
            UP1000                         nautilus
          
          NONAME
            AXPpci33                       noname
            UDB                            noname
          
          NORITAKE
            AS 1000A 4/xxx                 noritake
            AS 1000A 5/xxx                 noritake-p
            AS 600A 5/xxx                  noritake-p
            AS 800 5/xxx                   noritake-p
          
          Personal Workstation
            PWS 433a or 433au              miata
            PWS 500a or 500au              miata
            PWS 600a or 600au              miata
          
          RAWHIDE
            AS 4000                        rawhide
            AS 4100                        rawhide
            AS 1200                        rawhide
          
          RUFFIAN
            Deskstation RPX164-2           ruffian
            Samsung AlphaPC164-UX/BX       ruffian
          
          SABLE
            AS 2100 4/xxx                  sable
            AS 2000 4/xxx                  sable
            AS 2100 5/xxx                  sable-g
            AS 2000 5/xxx                  sable-g
          
          TAKARA                           takara
          
          XL
            XL-233/266                     xl

2.1.3. Multiple Processors
--------------------------

     Multi-processor support -- also called ``symmetric multi-processing''
     or SMP -- is supported for this architecture.  However, the standard
     Debian 2.2 kernel image does not support SMP.  This should not prevent
     installation, since the standard, non-SMP kernel should boot on SMP
     systems; the kernel will simply use the first CPU.

     In order to take advantage of multiple processors, you'll have to
     replace the standard Debian kernel.  You can find a discussion of how
     to do this in Section 8.4, `Compiling a New Kernel'.  At this time
     (kernel version 2.2.18pre21) the way you enable SMP is to select
     ``symmetric multi-processing'' in the ``General'' section of the
     kernel config.  If you compile software on a multiprocessor system,
     look for the `-j' flag in the documentation on make(1).


2.2. Installation Media
-----------------------

     There are four different media which can be used to install Debian:
     floppies, CD-ROMs, local disk partitions, or the network.  Different
     parts of the same Debian installation can mix and match these options;
     we'll go into that in Chapter 5, `Methods for Installing Debian'.

     Floppy disk installation is a common option, although generally, the
     least desirable.  In many cases, you'll have to do your first boot
     from floppies, using the Rescue Floppy.  Generally, all you will need
     is a high-density (1440 kilobytes) 3.5 inch floppy drive.

     CD-ROM based installation is also supported for some architectures.
     On machines which support bootable CD-ROMs, you should be able to do a
     completely floppy-less installation.  Even if your system doesn't
     support booting from a CD-ROM, you can use the CD-ROM in conjunction
     with the other techniques to install your system, once you've booted
     up by other means; see Section 6.4, `Installing from a CD-ROM'.

     Installation from local disk is another option.  If you have free
     space on partitions other than the partitions you're installing to,
     this is definitely a good option.  Some platforms even have local
     installers, i.e., for booting from AmigaOS, TOS, or MacOS.

     The last option is network installation.  You can install your base
     system via HTTP or NFS.  You can also _boot_ your system over the
     network.  Diskless installation, using network booting and
     NFS-mounting of all local filesystems, is another option -- you'll
     probably need at least 16MB of RAM for this option.  After your base
     system is installed, you can install the rest of your system via any
     sort of network connection (including PPP), via FTP, HTTP, or NFS.

     More complete descriptions of these methods, and helpful hints for
     picking which method is best for you, can be found in Chapter 5,
     `Methods for Installing Debian'.  Please be sure to continue reading
     to make sure the device you intend to boot and install from is
     supported by the Debian installation system.

2.2.1. Supported Storage Systems
--------------------------------

     The Debian boot disks contain a kernel which is built to maximize the
     number of systems it runs on.  Unfortunately, this makes for a larger
     kernel, with a lot of drivers which will never be used (see Section
     8.4, `Compiling a New Kernel' to learn how to build your own).
     However, support for the widest possible range of devices is desirable
     in order to ensure that Debian can be installed on the widest array of
     hardware.  Any storage system supported by the Linux kernel is also
     supported by the boot system.  The following SCSI drivers are
     supported in the default kernel:

        * Qlogic ISP

        * NCR and Symbios 53c8xx

        * Adaptec AIC7xxx

     IDE disks are also supported.  Note, however, that on many systems,
     the SRM console is unable to boot from IDE drives, and the Jensen is
     unable to boot from floppies.  (see
     http://www.alphalinux.org/faq/FAQ-9.html for more information on
     booting the Jensen)


2.3. Memory and Disk Space Requirements
---------------------------------------

     You must have at least 16MB of memory and 100MB of hard disk.  If you
     want to install a reasonable amount of software, including the X
     Window System, and some development programs and libraries, you'll
     need at least 300MB.  For a more or less complete installation, you'll
     need around 800MB.  To install _everything_ available in Debian,
     you'll probably need around 2 GB.  Actually, installing everything
     doesn't even make sense, since some packages conflict with others.


2.4. Peripherals and Other Hardware
-----------------------------------

     Linux supports a large variety of hardware devices such as mice,
     printers, scanners, modems, network cards, PCMCIA devices, etc.
     However, none of these devices are required while installing the
     system.  This section contains information about peripherals
     specifically _not_ supported by the installation system, even though
     they may be supported by Linux.

     Any network interface card (NIC) supported by the Linux kernel should
     also be supported by the boot disks.  Support for the built-in DECChip
     (Tulip) Ethernet on many Alpha models is compiled directly into the
     kernel.  (FIXME: the kernel maintainer screwed up and forgot this,
     make sure this is fixed for the release) For other cards, you may need
     to load your network driver as a module.


2.5. Purchasing Hardware Specifically for GNU/Linux
---------------------------------------------------

     There are several vendors, now, who ship systems with Debian or other
     distributions of GNU/Linux pre-installed.  You might pay more for the
     privilege, but it does buy a level of peace of mind, since you can be
     sure that the hardware is well-supported by GNU/Linux.

     Whether or not you are purchasing a system with Linux bundled, or even
     a used system, it is still important to check that your hardware is
     supported by the Linux kernel.  Check if your hardware is listed in
     the references found above.  Let your salesperson (if any) know that
     you're shopping for a Linux system.  Support Linux-friendly hardware
     vendors.

2.5.1. Avoid Proprietary or Closed Hardware
-------------------------------------------

     Some hardware manufacturers simply won't tell us how to write drivers
     for their hardware.  Others won't allow us access to the documentation
     without a non-disclosure agreement that would prevent us from
     releasing the Linux source code.  One example is the IBM laptop DSP
     sound system used in recent ThinkPad systems -- some of these systems
     also couple the sound system to the modem.  Another example is the
     proprietary hardware in the older Macintosh line.

     Since we haven't been granted access to the documentation on these
     devices, they simply won't work under Linux.  You can help by asking
     the manufacturers of such hardware to release the documentation.  If
     enough people ask, they will realize that the free software community
     is an important market.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


3. Before You Start
-------------------


3.1. Backups
------------

     Before you start, make sure to back up every file that is now on your
     system.  The installation procedure can wipe out all of the data on a
     hard disk!  The programs used in installation are quite reliable and
     most have seen years of use; still, a false move can cost you.  Even
     after backing up be careful and think about your answers and actions.
     Two minutes of thinking can save hours of unnecessary work.

     Even if you are installing a multi-boot system, make sure that you
     have on hand the distribution media of any other present operating
     systems.  Especially if you repartition your boot drive, you might
     find that you have to reinstall your operating system's boot loader,
     or in some cases (i.e., Macintosh), the whole operating system itself.


3.2. Information You Will Need
------------------------------

     Besides this document, you'll need the cfdisk (cfdisk.txt) manual
     page, the fdisk (fdisk.txt) manual page, the dselect Tutorial
     (dselect-beginner), and the Linux/Alpha FAQ
     (http://www.alphalinux.org/faq/FAQ.html).

     If your computer is connected to a network 24 hours a day (i.e., an
     Ethernet or equivalent connection -- not a PPP connection), you should
     ask your network's system administrator for this information:

        * Your host name (you may be able to decide this on your own).

        * Your domain name.

        * Your computer's IP address.

        * The IP address of your network.

        * The netmask to use with your network.

        * The broadcast address to use on your network.

        * The IP address of the default gateway system you should route to,
          if your network _has_ a gateway.

        * The system on your network that you should use as a DNS (Domain
          Name Service) server.

        * Whether you connect to the network using Ethernet.

     If your computer's only network connection is via a serial line, using
     PPP or an equivalent dialup connection, you are probably not
     installing the base system over a network.  You don't need to worry
     about getting your network setup until your system is already
     installed.  See Section 7.23, `Setting up PPP' below for information
     on setting up PPP under Debian.


3.3. Pre-installation Hardware and Operating System Setup
---------------------------------------------------------

     There is sometimes some tweaking to your system that must be done
     prior to installation.  The x86 platform is the most notorious of
     these; pre-installation hardware setup on other architectures is
     considerably simpler.

     This section will walk you through pre-installation hardware setup, if
     any, that you will need to do prior to installing Debian.  Generally,
     this involves checking and possibly changing firmware settings for
     your system.  The ``firmware'' is the core software used by the
     hardware; it is most critically invoked during the bootstrap process
     (after power-up).

3.3.1. Over-Clocking your CPU
-----------------------------

     Many people have tried operating their 90 MHz CPU at 100 MHz, etc.  It
     sometimes works, but is sensitive to temperature and other factors and
     can actually damage your system.  One of the authors of this document
     over-clocked his own system for a year, and then the system started
     aborting the `gcc' program with an unexpected signal while it was
     compiling the operating system kernel.  Turning the CPU speed back
     down to its rated value solved the problem.

3.3.2. Bad Memory Modules
-------------------------

     The `gcc' compiler is often the first thing to die from bad memory
     modules (or other hardware problems that change data unpredictably)
     because it builds huge data structures that it traverses repeatedly.
     An error in these data structures will cause it to execute an illegal
     instruction or access a non-existent address.  The symptom of this
     will be `gcc' dying from an unexpected signal.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


4. Partitioning Your Hard Drive
-------------------------------


4.1. Background
---------------

     Partitioning your disk simply refers to the act of breaking up your
     disk into sections.  Each section is then independent of the others.
     It's roughly equivalent to putting up walls in a house; if you add
     furniture to one room it doesn't affect any other room.

     If you already have an operating system on your system (Windows95,
     Windows NT, OS/2, MacOS, Solaris, FreeBSD, ...) and want to stick
     Linux on the same disk, you will probably need to repartition the
     disk.  In general, changing a partition with a filesystem already on
     it will destroy any information there.  Thus you should always make
     backups before doing any repartitioning.  Using the analogy of the
     house, you would probably want to move all the furniture out of the
     way before moving a wall or you risk destroying it.

     At a bare minimum, GNU/Linux needs one partition for itself.  You can
     have a single partition containing the entire operating system,
     applications, and your personal files.  Most people feel that the swap
     partition is also a necessity, although it's not strictly true.
     ``Swap'' is scratch space for an operating system, which allows the
     system to use cheap disk storage as ``virtual memory''.  By putting
     swap on a separate partition, Linux can make much more efficient use
     of it.  It is possible to force Linux to use a regular file as swap,
     but it is not recommended.

     Most people choose to give GNU/Linux more than the minimum number of
     partitions, however.  There are two reasons you might want to break up
     the filesystem into a number of smaller partitions.  The first is for
     safety.  If something happens to corrupt the file system, generally
     only one partition is affected.  Thus, you only have to replace (from
     the backups you've been carefully keeping) a portion of your system.
     At a bare minimum, you should consider creating what is commonly
     called a ``root partition''.  This contains the most essential
     components of the system.  If any other partitions get corrupted, you
     can still boot into GNU/Linux to fix the system.  This can save you
     the trouble of having to reinstall the system from scratch.

     The second reason is generally more important in a business setting,
     but it really depends on your use of the machine.  Suppose something
     runs out of control and starts eating disk space.  If the process
     causing the problem happens to have root privileges (the system keeps
     a percentage of the disk away from users), you could suddenly find
     yourself out of disk space.  This is not good as the OS needs to use
     real files (besides swap space) for many things.  It may not even be a
     problem of local origin.  For example, getting spammed with e-mail can
     easily fill a partition.  By using more partitions, you protect the
     system from many of these problems.  Using mail as an example again,
     by putting `/var/spool/mail' on its own partition, the bulk of the
     system will work even if you get spammed.

     The only real drawback to using more partitions is that it is often
     difficult to know in advance what your needs will be.  If you make a
     partition too small then you will either have to reinstall the system
     or you will be constantly moving things around to make room in the
     undersized partition.  On the other hand, if you make the partition
     too big, you will be wasting space that could be used elsewhere.  Disk
     space is cheap nowadays, but why throw your money away?

4.1.1. The Directory Tree
-------------------------

     The following list describes some important directories.  It should
     help you to find out what your partitioning scheme should be.  If this
     is too confusing for you, just ignore it and reread it when you read
     the rest of the installation manual.

        * `/': root represents the starting point of the directory
          hierarchy.  It contains the essential programs that the computer
          can boot.  This includes the kernel, system libraries,
          configuration files in `/etc' and various other needed files.
          Typically 30-50 MB are needed but this may vary.

          Note: do _not_ partition `/etc', `/bin', `/sbin', `/lib' or
          `/dev' as its own partition; you won't be able to boot.

        * `/dev': this directory contains the various device files which
          are interfaces to the various hardware components.  For more
          information see Section 4.3, `Device Names in Linux'.

        * `/usr': all user programs (`/usr/bin'), libraries (`/usr/lib'),
          documentation (`/usr/share/doc'), etc., are in this directory.
          This part of the filesystem needs most of the space.  You should
          at least provide 300-500 MB of disk space.  If you want to
          install more packages you should increase the amount of space you
          give this directory.

        * `/home': every user will put his data into a subdirectory of this
          directory.  The size of this depends on how many users will be
          using the system and what files are to be stored in their
          directories.  Depending on your planned usage you should reserve
          about 100 MB for each user, but adapt this value to your needs.

        * `/var': all variable data like news articles, e-mails, websites,
          APT's cache, etc.  will be placed under this directory.  The size
          of this directory depends greatly on the usage of your computer,
          but for most people will be dictated by the package management
          tool's overhead.  If you are going to do a full installation of
          just about everything Debian has to offer, all in one session,
          setting aside 2 or 3 gigabytes of space for `/var' should be
          sufficient.  If you are going to install in pieces (that is to
          say, install services and utilities, followed by text stuff, then
          X, ...), you can get away with 2-5 hundred megabytes of room in
          `/var'.  If harddrive space is at a premium and you don't plan on
          using APT, at least not for major updates, you can get by with as
          little as 30 or 40 megabytes in `/var'.

        * `/tmp': if a program creates temporary data it will most likely
          go in there.  20-50 MB should be usually enough.

        * `/proc': this is a virtual file system which doesn't reside on
          the harddisk.  Thus no harddisk space is needed.  It provides
          interesting and also vital information about the running system.


4.2. Planning Use of the System
-------------------------------

     It is important to decide what type of machine you are creating.  This
     will determine disk space requirements and affect your partitioning
     scheme.

     This has changed for Potato -- we need to update it.  There are a
     number of common task applications What does this need to be called?
     which Debian offers for your convenience (see Section 7.21, `Select
     and Install Profiles').  Common task applications are simply sets of
     package selections which make it easier for you, in that a number of
     packages are automatically marked for installation.

     Each given common task application has a size of the resulting system
     after installation is complete.  Even if you don't use these common
     task applications, this discussion is important for planning, since it
     will give you a sense of how large your partition or partitions need
     to be.

     The following are some of the available common task applications and
     their sizes: The various applications and sizes should probably go
     here.

     Server_std
          This is a small server profile, useful for stripped down server
          which does not have a lot of niceties for shell users.  It
          basically has an FTP server, a web server, DNS, NIS, and POP.  It
          will take up around 50MB.  Of course, this is just size of the
          software; any data you serve up would be additional.

     Dialup
          A standard desktop box, including the X window system, graphics
          applications, sound, editors, etc.  Size of the packages will be
          around 500MB.

     Work_std
          A more stripped-down user machine, without the X window system or
          X applications.  Possibly suitable for a laptop or mobile
          computer.  The size is around 140MB.  (Note that the author has a
          pretty simple laptop setup including X11 in even less, around
          100MB).

     Devel_comp
          A desktop setup with all the development packages, such as Perl,
          C, C++, etc.  Size is around 475MB.  Assuming you are adding X11
          and some additional packages for other uses, you should plan
          around 800MB for this type of machine.

     Remember that these sizes don't include all the other materials which
     are usually to be found, such as user files, mail, and data.  It is
     always best to be generous when considering the space for your own
     files and data.  Notably, the Debian `/var' partition contains a lot
     of state information.  The `dpkg' files (with information on all
     installed packages) can easily consume 20MB; with logs and the rest,
     you should usually allocate at least 50MB for `/var'.


4.3. Device Names in Linux
--------------------------

     Linux disks and partition names may be different from other operating
     systems.  You need to know the names that Linux uses when you create
     and mount partitions.  Here's the basic naming scheme:

        * The first floppy drive is named ``/dev/fd0''.

        * The second floppy drive is named ``/dev/fd1''.

        * The first SCSI disk (SCSI ID address-wise) is named ``/dev/sda''.

        * The second SCSI disk (address-wise) is named ``/dev/sdb'', and so
          on.

        * The first SCSI CD-ROM is named ``/dev/scd0'', also known as
          ``/dev/sr0''.

        * The master disk on IDE primary controller is named ``/dev/hda''.

        * The slave disk on IDE primary controller is named ``/dev/hdb''.

        * The master and slave disks of the secondary controller can be
          called ``/dev/hdc'' and ``/dev/hdd'', respectively.  Newer IDE
          controllers can actually have two channels, effectively acting
          like two controllers.

     The partitions on each disk are represented by appending a decimal
     number to the disk name: ``sda1'' and ``sda2'' represent the first and
     second partitions of the first SCSI disk drive in your system.

     Here is a real-life example.  Let's assume you have a system with 2
     SCSI disks, one at SCSI address 2 and the other at SCSI address 4.
     The first disk (at address 2) is then named ``sda'', and the second
     ``sdb''.  If the ``sda'' drive has 3 partitions on it, these will be
     named ``sda1'', ``sda2'', and ``sda3''.  The same applies to the
     ``sdb'' disk and its partitions.

     Note that if you have two SCSI host bus adapters (i.e., controllers),
     the order of the drives can get confusing.  The best solution in this
     case is to watch the boot messages, assuming you know yourself the
     drive models.


4.4. Recommended Partitioning Scheme
------------------------------------

     As described above, you should definitely have a separate smaller root
     partition, and a larger `/usr' partition, if you have the space.  For
     examples, see below.  For most users, the two partitions initially
     mentioned are sufficient.  This is especially appropriate when you
     have a single small disk, since breaking out lots of partitions can
     waste space.

     In some cases, you might need a separate `/usr/local' partition if you
     plan to install many programs that are not part of the Debian
     distribution.  If your machine will be a mail server, you might need
     to make `/var/spool/mail' a separate partition.  Often, putting `/tmp'
     on its own partition, for instance 20 to 32MB, is a good idea.  If you
     are setting up a server with lots of user accounts, it's generally
     good to have a separate, large `/home' partition.  In general, the
     partitioning situation varies from computer to computer depending on
     its uses.

     For very complex systems, you should see the Multi Disk HOWTO
     (http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/Multi-Disk-HOWTO.html).  This contains
     in-depth information, mostly of interest to ISPs and people setting up
     servers.

     With respect to the issue of swap partition size, there are many
     views.  One rule of thumb which works well is to use as much swap as
     you have system memory, although there probably isn't much point in
     going over 64MB of swap for most users.  It also shouldn't be smaller
     than 16MB, in most cases.  Of course, there are exceptions to these
     rules.  If you are trying to solve 10000 simultaneous equations on a
     machine with 256MB of memory, you may need a gigabyte (or more) of
     swap.

     On 32-bit architectures (i386, m68k, 32-bit SPARC, and PowerPC), the
     maximum size of a swap partition is 2GB (on Alpha and SPARC64, it's so
     large as to be virtually unlimited).  This should be enough for nearly
     any installation.  However, if your swap requirements are this high,
     you should probably try to spread the swap across different disks
     (also called ``spindles'') and, if possible, different SCSI or IDE
     channels.  The kernel will balance swap usage between multiple swap
     partitions, giving better performance.


4.5. Example Partitioning
-------------------------

     As an example, one of the authors' home machine has 32MB of RAM and a
     1.7GB IDE drive on `/dev/hda'.  There is a 500MB partition for another
     operating system on `/dev/hda1' (should have made it 200MB as it never
     gets used).  A 32MB swap partition is used on `/dev/hda3' and the rest
     (about 1.2GB on `/dev/hda2') is the Linux partition.


4.6. Partitioning Prior to Installation
---------------------------------------

     There are two different times that you can partition: prior to the
     installation of Debian, or during installation of Debian.  If your
     computer will be solely dedicated to Debian, you should partition as
     part of the installation process (Section 7.7, ```Partition a Hard
     Disk''').  If you have a machine with more than one operating system
     on it, you generally should let the native operating system create its
     own partitions.

     The following sections contain information regarding partitioning in
     your native operating system prior to installation.  Note that you'll
     have to map between how the other operating system names partitions,
     and how Linux names partitions; see Section 4.3, `Device Names in
     Linux'.

4.6.1. Partitioning in Tru64 UNIX
---------------------------------

     Tru64 UNIX, formerly known as Digital UNIX, which is in turn formerly
     known as OSF/1, uses the partitioning scheme similar to the BSD `disk
     label', which allows for up to eight partitions per disk drive.  The
     partitions are numbered `1' through to `8' in Linux and ``lettered''
     `a' through to `h' in UNIX.  Linux kernels 2.2 and higher always
     correspond `1' to `a', `2' to `b' and so on.  For example, `rz0e' in
     Tru64 UNIX would most likely be called `sda5' in Linux.

     Partitions in the disk label may overlap.  Moreover, the `c' partition
     is required to span the entire disk (thus overlapping all other
     non-empty partitions).  Under Linux this makes `sda3' identical to
     `sda' (`sdb3' to `sdb', if present, and so on).  Apart from satisfying
     this requirement, there is, however, not much point in creating
     overlapping partitions.

     Another conventional requirement is for the `a' partition to start
     from the beginning of the disk, so that it always includes the boot
     block with the disk label.

     Disks can be partitioned with the graphical disk configuration tool
     that is accessible through the Application Manager, or with the
     command-line `disklabel' utility.  Partition type for the Linux file
     system should be set to `resrvd8'.  This can only be done via
     `disklabel'; however, all other configuration can easily be performed
     with the graphical tool.

     It is possible, and indeed quite reasonable, to share a swap partition
     between UNIX and Linux.  In this case it will be needed to do a
     `mkswap' on that partition every time the system is rebooted from UNIX
     into Linux, as UNIX will damage the swap signature.  You may want to
     run `mkswap' from the Linux start-up scripts before adding swap space
     with `swapon -a'.

     If you want to mount UNIX partitions under Linux, note that Digital
     UNIX can use two different file system types, UFS and AdvFS, of which
     Linux only understands the former.

4.6.2. Partitioning in Windows NT
---------------------------------

     Windows NT uses the PC-style partition table.  If you are manipulating
     existing FAT or NTFS partitions, it is recommended that you use the
     native Windows NT tools (or, more conveniently, you can also
     repartition your disk from the AlphaBIOS setup menu).  Otherwise, it
     is not really necessary to partition from Windows; the Linux
     partitioning tools will generally do a better job.  Note that when you
     run NT, the Disk Administrator may offer you to write a ``harmless
     signature'' on non-Windows disks if you have any.  _Never_ let it do
     that, as this signature will destroy the partition information.

     If you plan to boot Linux from an ARC/AlphaBIOS/ARCSBIOS console, you
     will need a (small) FAT partition for MILO.  One megabyte is quite
     sufficient.  If Windows NT is installed, its 6 Mb bootstrap partition
     can be employed for this purpose.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


5. Methods for Installing Debian
--------------------------------

     You can install Debian from a variety of sources, both local (CD, hard
     disk, floppies) and remote (FTP, NFS, PPP, HTTP).  Debian also
     supports various hardware configurations, so you may still have a few
     choices to make before you get going.  This chapter lays out the
     choices and some suggestions for how to make them.

     You can make different choices for different steps in the
     installation.  For example, you may start the installation by booting
     off diskettes, but then feed later steps in the install process files
     from your hard disk.

     As the installation progresses you will move from a scrawny, incapable
     system which lives only in RAM to a full-featured Debian GNU/Linux
     system installed on the hard disk.  One of the key goals of the early
     installation steps is to increase the variety of hardware (e.g.,
     interface cards) and software (e.g., network protocols and file system
     drivers) the system supports.  Consequently, later installation steps
     can use a broader range of sources than earlier ones.

     The easiest route for most people will be to use a set of Debian CDs.
     If you have such a set, and if your machine supports booting directly
     off the CD, great!  Simply insert your CD, reboot, and proceed to the
     next chapter.  If it turns out the standard installation doesn't work
     for your hardware, you can come back here to see about alternate
     kernels and installation methods which may work for you.  In
     particular, note that some CD sets provide different kernels on
     different CDs, so that booting off some CD other than the first may
     work for you.


5.1. Overview of the Installation Process
-----------------------------------------

     This overview highlights the points for which you must choose an
     installation media, or make a choice which will affect which sources
     you can choose later.  The following steps will occur:

     1.   You begin by booting the installation system.

     2.   You answer a series of questions to perform the initial system
          configuration.

     3.   You provide a media source for the kernel and drivers.

     4.   You select which drivers to load.

     5.   You provide a media source for the base system.

     6.   You reboot the system and then do some final configuration.

     7.   You install additional software, packages, at your discretion.

     In making your choices, you need to bear a few factors in mind.  The
     first involve your choice of kernel.  The kernel that you pick for the
     initial system boot is the same kernel that your fully configured
     system will use.  Since drivers are kernel-specific, you must pick a
     package containing drivers which go with your kernel.  We'll turn
     shortly to the details of picking the right kernel, or rather,
     installation set.

     Different kernels also have different networking abilities out of the
     box, and so also expand or limit your source choices, particularly
     early in the install process.

     Finally, the particular drivers that you choose to load can enable
     additional hardware (e.g., network interface cards, hard drive
     controllers) or file systems (e.g., NTFS or NFS).  This therefore
     widens the choices of installation source media.


5.2. Choosing the Right Installation Set
----------------------------------------

     Your hardware will dictate your choice of installation.  Choose the
     appropriate sub-architecture directory, review the documentation
     there, and proceed.

     If you are booting from CD, different CDs use different installation
     sets.  Consult your CD documentation for more information.  Details on
     kernel arrangement for specific CDs needed.


5.3. Installation Sources for Different Installation Stages
-----------------------------------------------------------

     This section indicates the type of hardware which _may_, and usually
     _will_, work at different stages of the installation.  It is not a
     guarantee that all hardware of the indicated type will work with all
     kernels.  For example, RAID disks generally will not be accessible
     until you install the appropriate drivers.

5.3.1. Booting the Initial Installation System
----------------------------------------------

     The initial boot of the installation system is perhaps the most
     idiosyncratic step.  The next chapter provides additional details, but
     your choices generally include

        * the Rescue Floppy (note that on installations using `MILO' as a
          bootloader, you will need several disks to boot - see Chapter 6,
          `Booting the Installation System' for more information)

        * a bootable CD-ROM

        * over the network, using TFTP

5.3.2. Source Media and Installation Stages
-------------------------------------------

     The following table indicates which media sources you can use at each
     stage of the installation process.  The columns indicate different
     install stages, ordered from left to right in the sequence which they
     occur.  The far right column is the installation media.  A blank cell
     indicates that given source media is not available at that
     installation stage; `Y' indicates that it is, and `S' means that it is
     in some cases.

          Boot | Kernel Image | Drivers | Base System | Packages | media
          -----+--------------+---------+-------------+----------+------------
           S   |              |         |             |          | tftp
           S   |     Y        |   Y     |     Y       |          | diskette
           S   |     Y        |   Y     |     Y       |   Y      | CD-ROM
           S   |     Y        |   Y     |     Y       |   Y      | hard disk
               |     Y        |   Y     |     Y       |   Y      | NFS
               |              |   S     |     Y       |   Y      | LAN
               |              |         |             |   Y      | PPP

     For example, the table shows that only use for PPP in the installation
     process is the installation of packages.

     Note that you will only be prompted for a source for the kernel images
     and drivers in some installation methods.  If you boot off a CD-ROM,
     it will automatically pick those items off the CD.  The important
     point is that _as soon as you boot off a diskette, you can immediately
     switch to some superior installation source_.  Remember, though, that
     you _must_ not mix up the different install sets, i.e., using a Rescue
     Floppy from one subarchitecture and Driver Floppies from another.

     The `Boot' column is all `S's because media support for booting varies
     widely for different architectures.

     The `LAN' and `PPP' rows refer to Internet-based file transfer (FTP,
     HTTP, and the like) over Ethernet or phone lines.  In general this is
     not available, but certain kernels may permit you to do this earlier.
     Experts can also use these connections to mount disks and perform
     other operations to accelerate the process.  Providing help in such
     cases is beyond the scope of this document.

5.3.3. Recommendations
----------------------

     Get a set of Debian GNU/Linux CDs.  Boot off them if you can.

     Since you've read this far, you probably couldn't or wouldn't.  If
     your problem is simply that your CD drive is not bootable, you can
     pull the files you need for the initial boot off the CD and use them
     to make floppies or do a boot from alternate operating system.

     Failing this, you may have an existing operating system with some free
     disk space.  The early installation system can read many filesystems
     (NTFS being a prominent exception --- you must load the appropriate
     driver).  If it can read yours, you should download documentation,
     initial boot images, and utilities.  Then get the appropriate drivers
     archive as a single file, and the base system as a single file.
     Perform your initial boot, and then point the installation program at
     the files you have downloaded when it asks for the appropriate source.

     These are only suggestions.  You should choose whatever sources are
     most convenient for you.  Floppies are neither convenient nor
     reliable, so we urge you to get off them as soon as possible.
     However, compared to booting off an existing operating system they may
     provide a cleaner environment and an easier path, so they are
     appropriate for the initial boot, if your system supports them.


5.4. Description of Installation System Files
---------------------------------------------

     This section contains an annotated list of files you will find in the
     `disks-alpha' directory.  You may not need to download these at all;
     it all depends on the booting and base system installation media you
     have chosen.

     Most files are floppy disk images; that is, a single file which can be
     written to a disk to create the necessary floppy disk.  These images
     are, obviously, dependent on the size of the target floppy.  For
     instance, 1.44MB is the normal quantity of data which is what fits on
     standard 3.5 inch floppies.  This is the only floppy size supported on
     your architecture.  The images for 1.44MB floppy disks can be found in
     the `images-1.44' directory.

     If you are using a web browser on a networked computer to read this
     document, you can probably retrieve the files by selecting their names
     in your web browser.  Depending on your browser you may need to take
     special action to download directly to a file, in raw binary mode.
     For example, in Netscape you need to hold the shift key when clicking
     on the URL to retrieve the file.  Files can be downloaded from the
     URLs in this document, or you can retrieve them from
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main/disks-alpha/current/,
     or the corresponding directory on any of the Debian mirror sites
     (http://www.debian.org/distrib/ftplist).

5.4.1. Documentation
--------------------

     _Installation Manual:_
     install.en.txt
     install.en.html
     install.en.pdf
          This file you are now reading, in plain ASCII, HTML or PDF
          format.

     _Partitioning Program Manual Pages:_
     fdisk.txt
     cfdisk.txt
          Instructions for using your available partitioning programs.

     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/base-contents.txt
          Listing of the contents of the base system.

     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/md5sum.txt
          List of MD5 checksums for the binary files.  If you have the
          `md5sum' program, you can ensure that your files are not corrupt
          by running `md5sum -v -c md5sum.txt'.

5.4.2. Files for the Initial System Boot
----------------------------------------

     _Rescue Floppy images:_
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/rescue.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/jensen/images-1.44/rescue.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/nautilus/images-1.44/rescue.bin
          These are the Rescue Floppy disk images.  The Rescue Floppy is
          used for initial setup and for emergencies, such as when your
          system doesn't boot for some reason.  Therefore it is recommended
          you write the disk image to the floppy even if you are not using
          floppies for installation.

          Select the floppy image for your supported sub-architecture, as
          indicated in Section 2.1.2, `CPU, Mainboards, and Video Support'.

     _Root image(s):_
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/root.bin
          This file contains an image of a temporary filesystem that gets
          loaded into memory when you boot from the Rescue Floppy.  This is
          used for installations from CD-ROM, hard disk and floppies.

     _Linux kernel:_
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/linux
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/jensen/linux
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/nautilus/linux
          This is the Linux kernel image to be used for hard disk and CD
          installations.  You don't need it if you are installing from
          floppies.

     _TFTP boot images_
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/tftpboot.img
          Boot images used for network booting, see Section 6.5, `Booting
          from TFTP'.  Generally, they contain the Linux kernel and the
          `root.bin' root filesystem.

5.4.3. Driver Files
-------------------

     These files contain kernel modules, or drivers, for all kinds of
     hardware that are not necessary for initial booting.  Getting the
     drivers you want is a two step process: first you identify an archive
     of drivers you want to use, and then you select which particular
     drivers you want.

     Remember that your driver archive must be consistent with your initial
     kernel choice.

     _Driver Floppies images:_
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/driver-1.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/jensen/images-1.44/driver-1.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/nautilus/images-1.44/driver-1.bin
          These are the Driver Floppies disk images.

     _Driver Floppies archive_
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/drivers.tgz
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/jensen/drivers.tgz
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/nautilus/drivers.tgz
          If you are not limited to diskettes, choose one of these files.

5.4.4. Base System Files
------------------------

     The ``Debian base system'' is a core set of packages which are
     required to run Debian in a minimal, stand-alone fashion.  Once you
     have configured and installed the base system, your machine can
     ``stand on its own''.

     _Base system images:_
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/base2_2.tgz
     or
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-1.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-2.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-3.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-4.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-5.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-6.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-7.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-8.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-9.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-10.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-11.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-12.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-13.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-14.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-15.bin
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main
     /disks-alpha/current/images-1.44/base-16.bin
          These files contain the base system which will be installed on
          your Linux partition during the installation process.  This is
          the bare minimum necessary for you to be able to install the rest
          of the packages.  The
          `http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main/disks-alpha/current/base2_2.tgz'
          file is for installation from non-floppy media, i.e., CD-ROM,
          harddisk, or NFS.

     We turn now to concerns specific to particular kind of sources.  For
     convenience, they appear in the same order as the rows in the earlier
     table discussing different installation sources.


5.5. TFTP
---------

     Booting from the network requires that you have a network connection
     supported by the boot floppies, a BOOTP server, and a TFTP server.
     This installation method is described in Section 6.5, `Booting from
     TFTP'.


5.6. Diskettes
--------------

5.6.1. Floppy Disk Reliability
------------------------------

     The biggest problem for people installing Debian for the first time
     seems to be floppy disk reliability.

     The Rescue Floppy is the floppy with the worst problems, because it is
     read by the hardware directly, before Linux boots.  Often, the
     hardware doesn't read as reliably as the Linux floppy disk driver, and
     may just stop without printing an error message if it reads incorrect
     data.  There can also be failures in the Driver Floppies and the base
     floppies, most of which indicate themselves with a flood of messages
     about disk I/O errors.

     If you are having the installation stall at a particular floppy, the
     first thing you should do is re-download the floppy disk image and
     write it to a _different_ floppy.  Simply reformatting the old floppy
     may not be sufficient, even if it appears that the floppy was
     reformatted and written with no errors.  It is sometimes useful to try
     writing the floppy on a different system.

     One user reports he had to write the images to floppy _three_ times
     before one worked, and then everything was fine with the third floppy.

     Other users have reported that simply rebooting a few times with the
     same floppy in the floppy drive can lead to a successful boot.  This
     is all due to buggy hardware or firmware floppy drivers.

5.6.2. Booting from Floppies
----------------------------

     Booting from floppies is supported for most platforms.

     To boot from floppies, simply download the Rescue Floppy image and the
     Driver Floppies image.

     If you need to, you can also modify the Rescue Floppy; see Section
     9.3, `Replacing the Rescue Floppy Kernel'.

     The Rescue Floppy couldn't fit the root filesystem image, so you'll
     need the root image to be written to a disk as well.  You can create
     that floppy just as the other images are written to floppies.  Once
     the kernel has been loaded from the Rescue Floppy, you'll be prompted
     for the root disk.  Insert that floppy and continue.

     On Alpha, if you choose to boot from ARC console firmware using
     `MILO', you will also need to obtain MILO and LINLOAD.EXE and write
     them to a DOS FAT formatted floppy disk.  See Section 6.6, `Alpha
     Console Firmware' for more information on Alpha firmware and
     bootloaders.

     MILO binaries are platform-specific.  See Section 2.1.2, `CPU,
     Mainboards, and Video Support' to determine the appropriate MILO image
     for your Alpha.

5.6.3. Installing Base from Floppies
------------------------------------

     NOTE: This is not a recommended way of installing Debian, because
     floppies are generally the least reliable type of media.  This is only
     recommended if you have no extra, pre-existing filesystems on any of
     the hard drives on your system.

     Complete these steps:

     1.   Obtain these disk images (these files are described in greater
          detail in Section 5.4, `Description of Installation System
          Files'):

             * a Rescue Floppy image

             * MILO and LINLOAD.EXE binaries and a DOS FAT-formatted disk,
               if you choose to boot from the ARC console.  LINLOAD.EXE is
               platform-independent, but MILO is specific to the particular
               Alpha model used.  See Section 2.1.2, `CPU, Mainboards, and
               Video Support' for more information on the different Alpha
               platforms.

             * the Driver Floppies images

             * the base system disk images, i.e., `base-1.bin',
               `base-2.bin', etc.

             * and a root filesystem image

     2.   Locate sufficient floppies for all the images you need to write.

     3.   Create the floppies, as discussed in Section 5.6.4, `Creating
          Floppies from Disk Images'.

     4.   Insert the Rescue Floppy into your floppy drive, and reboot the
          computer.

     5.   Skip down to Chapter 6, `Booting the Installation System'.

5.6.4. Creating Floppies from Disk Images
-----------------------------------------

     Disk images are files containing the complete contents of a floppy
     disk in _raw_ form.  Disk images, such as `rescue.bin', cannot simply
     be copied to floppy drives.  A special program is used to write the
     image files to floppy disk in _raw_ mode.  This is required because
     these images are raw representations of the disk; it is required to do
     a _sector copy_ of the data from the file onto the floppy.

     There are different techniques for creating floppies from disk images,
     which depend on your platform.  This section describes how to create
     floppies from disk images for different platforms.

     No matter which method you use to create your floppies, you should
     remember to flip the tab on the floppies once you have written them,
     to ensure they are not damaged unintentionally.

5.6.4.1. Writing Disk Images From a Linux or Unix System
--------------------------------------------------------

     To write the floppy disk image files to the floppy disks, you will
     probably need root access to the system.  Place a good, blank floppy
     in the floppy drive.  Next, use the command

          dd if=<file> of=/dev/fd0 bs=1024 conv=sync ; sync

     where <file> is one of the floppy disk image files.  `/dev/fd0' is a
     commonly used name of the floppy disk device, it may be different on
     your workstation (on Solaris, it is `/dev/fd/0').  The command may
     return to the prompt before Unix has finished writing the floppy disk,
     so look for the disk-in-use light on the floppy drive and be sure that
     the light is out and the disk has stopped revolving before you remove
     it from the drive.  On some systems, you'll have to run a command to
     eject the floppy from the drive (on Solaris, use `eject', see the
     manual page).

     Some systems attempt to automatically mount a floppy disk when you
     place it in the drive.  You might have to disable this feature before
     the workstation will allow you to write a floppy in _raw mode_.
     Unfortunately, how to accomplish this will vary based on your
     operating system.  On Solaris, you can work around volume management
     to get raw access to the floppy.  First, make sure that the floppy is
     automounted (using `volcheck' or the equivalent command in the file
     manager).  Then use a `dd' command of the form given above, just
     replace `/dev/fd0' with `/vol/rdsk/<floppy_name>', where <floppy_name>
     is the name the floppy disk was given when it was formatted (unnamed
     floppies default to the name `unnamed_floppy').  On other systems, ask
     your system administrator.


5.7. CD-ROM
-----------

     CD-ROM booting is one of the easiest ways to install.  If you're
     unlucky and the kernel on the CD-ROM doesn't work for you, you'll have
     to fall back to another technique.

     Installing from CD-ROM is described in Section 6.4, `Installing from a
     CD-ROM'.

     Note that certain CD drives may require special drivers, and so be
     inaccessible in the early installation stages.


5.8. Hard Disk
--------------

     Booting from an existing operating system is often a convenient
     option; for some systems it is the only supported method of
     installation.  This method is described in Section 6.3, `Booting from
     a Hard Disk'.

     Exotic hardware or filesystems may render files on the hard disk
     inaccessible early in the installation process.  If they aren't
     supported by the Linux kernel, they may be inaccessible even at the
     end!


5.9. Installing from NFS
------------------------

     Due to the nature of this method of installation, only the base system
     can be installed via NFS.  You will need to have the Rescue Floppy and
     the Driver Floppies available locally using one of the above methods.
     To install the base system via NFS, you'll have to go through the
     regular installation as explained in Chapter 7, `Using `dbootstrap'
     for Initial System Configuration'.  Do not forget to insert the module
     (driver) for your Ethernet card, and the file system module for NFS.

     When `dbootstrap' asks you where the base system is located (Section
     7.14, ```Install the Base System'''), you should choose NFS, and
     follow the instructions.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


6. Booting the Installation System
----------------------------------

     This chapter begins with some general information about booting Debian
     GNU/Linux, then moves to individual sections on particular
     installation methods, and concludes with some troubleshooting advice.


6.1. Boot Parameter Arguments
-----------------------------

     Boot parameters are Linux kernel parameters which are generally used
     to make sure that peripherals are dealt with properly.  For the most
     part, the kernel can auto-detect information about your peripherals.
     However, in some cases you'll have to help the kernel a bit.

     Depending on the console firmware from which you will be
     bootstrapping, different methods apply for passing parameters to the
     kernel.  These methods will be described below, separately for each
     bootstrap procedure.  Full information on boot parameters can be found
     in the Linux BootPrompt HOWTO
     (http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/BootPrompt-HOWTO.html); this section
     contains only a sketch of the most salient parameters.

     If this is the first time you're booting the system, try the default
     boot parameters (i.e., don't try setting arguments) and see if it
     works correctly.  It probably will.  If not, you can reboot later and
     look for any special parameters that inform the system about your
     hardware.

     When the kernel boots, a message `Memory: <avail>k/<total>k available'
     should be emitted early in the process.  <total> should match the
     total amount of RAM, in kilobytes.  If this doesn't match the actual
     of RAM you have installed, you need to use the `mem=<ram>' parameter,
     where <ram> is set to the amount of memory, suffixed with ``k'' for
     kilobytes, or ``m'' for megabytes.  For example, both `mem=65536k' and
     `mem=64m' mean 64MB of RAM.

     If your monitor is only capable of black-and-white, use the `mono'
     boot argument.  Otherwise, your installation will use color, which is
     the default.

     If you are booting with a serial console, generally the kernel will
     autodetect this.  If you have a videocard (framebuffer) and a keyboard
     also attached to the computer which you wish to boot via serial
     console, you may have to pass the `console=<device>' argument to the
     kernel, where <device> is your serial device, which is usually
     something like ``ttyS0''.

     Again, full details on boot parameters can be found in the Linux
     BootPrompt HOWTO
     (http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/BootPrompt-HOWTO.html), including tips
     for obscure hardware.  Some common gotchas are included below in
     Section 6.10, `Troubleshooting the Boot Process'.

6.1.1. `dbootstrap' Arguments
-----------------------------

     The installation system recognizes a few arguments which may be
     useful.

     quiet
          This will cause the installation system to suppress confirmation
          messages and try to do the right thing without fuss.  If you are
          familiar and comfortable with what the installation system is
          going to expect, this is a nice option to quieten the process.

     verbose
          Ask even more questions than usual.

     debug
          Emit additional debug messages to the installation system log
          (see Section 7.1.1, `Using the Shell and Viewing the Logs'),
          including every command run.

     bootkbd=<...>
          Pre-select the keyboard you want to use, e.g.,
          `bootkbd=qwerty/us'

     mono
          Use monochrome rather than color mode.


6.2. Interpreting the Kernel Startup Messages
---------------------------------------------

     During the boot sequence, you may see many messages in the form `can't
     find something', or `something not present', `can't initialize
     something', or even `this driver release depends on something'.  Most
     of these messages are harmless.  You see them because the kernel for
     the installation system is built to run on computers with many
     different peripheral devices.  Obviously, no one computer will have
     every possible peripheral device, so the operating system may emit a
     few complaints while it looks for peripherals you don't own.  You may
     also see the system pause for a while.  This happens when it is
     waiting for a device to respond, and that device is not present on
     your system.  If you find the time it takes to boot the system
     unacceptably long, you can create a custom kernel later (see Section
     8.4, `Compiling a New Kernel').


6.3. Booting from a Hard Disk
-----------------------------

     In some cases, you may wish to boot from an existing operating system.
     You can also boot into the installation system using other means, but
     install the base system from disk.

6.3.1. Installing from a Linux Partition
----------------------------------------

     You can install Debian from an ext2fs partition or from a Minix
     partition.  This installation technique may be appropriate if you are
     completely replacing your current Linux system with Debian, for
     instance.

     Note that the partition you are installing _from_ should not be the
     same as the partitions you are installing Debian _to_ (e.g., `/',
     `/usr', `/lib', etc.).

     To install from an already existing Linux partition, follow these
     instructions.

     1.   Get the following files and place them in a directory on your
          Linux partition:

             * a Rescue Floppy image, see Section 5.4.2, `Files for the
               Initial System Boot'

             * one of the Driver Floppies archives from Section 5.4.3,
               `Driver Files'

             * http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main/disks-alpha/current/base2_2.tgz

     2.   You can use any other functional boot method when installing from
          a partition.  The following assumes you are booting with
          floppies; however, any boot installation can be used.

     3.   Create the Rescue Floppy as discussed in Section 5.6.4, `Creating
          Floppies from Disk Images'.  Note that you won't need the Driver
          Floppies.

     4.   Insert the Rescue Floppy into your floppy drive, and reboot the
          computer.

     5.   Skip down to Chapter 6, `Booting the Installation System'.


6.4. Installing from a CD-ROM
-----------------------------

     If you have a CD which is bootable, and if your architecture and
     system supports booting from a CD-ROM, you don't need any floppies.
     Booting from CD-ROM on Alpha is somewhat more involved than on i386.
     However, the reduction in the number of floppies required makes it
     worthwhile.  See Chapter 6, `Booting the Installation System' for more
     information on booting Alpha systems from CD and floppy.

     Even if you cannot boot from CD-ROM, you can install the base Debian
     system from CD-ROM.  Simply boot using a different media, such as
     floppies.  When it is time to install the base system and any
     additional packages, point the installation system at the CD-ROM drive
     as described in Section 7.14, ```Install the Base System'''.


6.5. Booting from TFTP
----------------------

     You need to setup a BOOTP server and a TFTP server.

     BOOTP is an IP protocol that informs a computer of its IP address and
     where on the network to obtain a boot image.  Unlike the Open Firmware
     found on Sparc and PowerPC machines, the SRM console will _not_ use
     RARP to obtain its IP address, and therefore you must use BOOTP for
     netbooting your Alpha.  You can also enter the IP configuration for
     network interfaces directly in the SRM console.  [1]

     The Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) is used to serve the boot
     image to the client.  Theoretically, any server, on any platform,
     which implements these protocols, may be used.  In the examples in
     this section, we shall provide commands for SunOS 4.x, SunOS 5.x
     (a.k.a.  Solaris), and GNU/Linux.

[1]  Alpha systems can also be net-booted using the DECNet MOP (Maintenance
     Operations Protocol), but this is not covered here. Presumably, your
     local OpenVMS operator will be happy to assist you should you have
     some burning need to use MOP to boot Linux on your Alpha. 

6.5.1. Setting up BOOTP server
------------------------------

     There are two BOOTP servers available for GNU/Linux, the CMU bootpd
     and the ISC dhcpd, which are contained in the `bootp' and `dhcp'
     packages on Debian GNU/Linux.

     To use CMU bootpd, you must first uncomment (or add) the relevant line
     in `/etc/inetd.conf'.  On Debian GNU/Linux, you can run `update-inetd
     --enable bootps', then `/etc/init.d/inetd reload' to do so.
     Elsewhere, the line in question should look like:

bootps         dgram   udp     wait    root    /usr/sbin/bootpd        bootpd -i -t 120

     Now, you must create an `/etc/bootptab' file.  This has the same sort
     of familiar and cryptic format as the good old BSD printcap(5),
     termcap(5), and disktab(5) files.  See the bootptab(5) manual page for
     more information.  For CMU bootpd, you will need to know the hardware
     (MAC) address of the client.

     By contrast, setting up BOOTP with ISC `dhcpd' is really easy, because
     it treats BOOTP clients as a moderately special case of DHCP clients.
     You don't really need to know the hardware (MAC) address of the client
     unless you wish to specify some options such as boot image filename or
     NFS root path on a client-by-client basis, or unless you wish to
     assign fixed addresses to your machines using BOOTP and/or DHCP.
     Simply add the `allow bootp' directive to the configuration block for
     the subnet containing the client, and restart `dhcpd' with
     `/etc/init.d/dhcpd restart'.

6.5.2. Enabling the TFTP Server
-------------------------------

     To get the TFTP server ready to go, you should first make sure that
     `tftpd' is enabled.  This is usually enabled by having the following
     line in `/etc/inetd.conf':

          tftp dgram udp wait root /usr/etc/in.tftpd in.tftpd /tftpboot

     Look in that file and remember the directory which is used as the
     argument of `in.tftpd'; you'll need that below.  The `-l' argument
     enables some versions of `in.tftpd' to log all requests to the system
     logs; this is useful for diagnosing boot errors.  If you've had to
     change `/etc/inetd.conf', you'll have to notify the running `inetd'
     process that the file has changed.  On a Debian machine, run
     `/etc/init.d/netbase reload' (for potato/2.2 and newer systems use
     `/etc/init.d/inetd reload'); on other machines, find out the process
     ID for `inetd', and run `kill -HUP <inetd-pid>'.

6.5.3. Move TFTP Images Into Place
----------------------------------

     Next, place the TFTP boot image you need, as found in Section 5.4,
     `Description of Installation System Files', in the `tftpd' boot image
     directory.  Generally, this directory will be `/tftpboot'.  Next
     you'll have to make a link from that file to the file which `tftpd'
     will use for booting a particular client.  Unfortunately, the file
     name is determined by the TFTP client, and there are no strong
     standards.

     Often, the file that the TFTP client will look for is
     <client-ip-in-hexclient-architecture>.  To compute <client-ip-in-hex>,
     take each byte of the client IP address and translate it into
     hexadecimal notation.  If you have a machine handy with the `bc'
     program, you can use the program.  First issue the `obase=16' command
     to set the output to hex, then enter the individual components of the
     client IP one at a time.  As for <client-architecture>, try out some
     values.

     On Alpha, you must specify the filename (as a relative path to the
     boot image directory) using the `-file' argument to the SRM `boot'
     command, or by setting the `BOOT_FILE' environment variable.
     Alternatively, the filename can be given via BOOTP (in ISC dhcpd, use
     the `filename' directive).  Unlike Open Firmware, there is _no default
     filename_ on SRM, so you _must_ specify a filename by either one of
     these methods.

     Once you've determined the name, make the link like this: `ln
     /boot/tftpboot.img /boot/<file-name>'.

     Now you should be ready to actually boot your system.  In SRM,
     Ethernet interfaces are named with the `ewa' prefix, and will be
     listed in the output of the `show dev' command, like this (edited
     slightly):

          >>>show dev
          ewa0.0.0.9.0               EWA0              08-00-2B-86-98-65
          ewb0.0.0.11.0              EWB0              08-00-2B-86-98-54
          ewc0.0.0.2002.0            EWC0              00-06-2B-01-32-B0

     So, to boot from the first Ethernet interface, you would type:

          >>>boot ewa0

     If you wish to use a serial console, you _must_ pass the `console='
     parameter to the kernel.  This can be done using the `-flags' argument
     to the SRM `boot' command.  The serial ports are named the same as
     their corresponding files in `/dev'.  For example, to boot from `ewa0'
     and use a console on the first serial port, you would type:

          >>>boot ewa0 -flags console=ttyS0

     _NOT YET WRITTEN_

6.5.4. Installing with TFTP and NFS Root
----------------------------------------

     It is closer to "tftp install for lowmem..."  because you don't want
     to load the ramdisk anymore but boot from the newly created nfs-root
     fs.  You then need to replace the symlink to the tftpboot image by a
     symlink to the kernel image (eg.  linux-a.out).  My experience on
     booting over the network was based exclusively on RARP/TFTP which
     requires all daemons running on the same server (the sparc workstation
     is sending a tftp request back to the server that replied to its
     previous rarp request).  However, Linux supports BOOTP protocol, too,
     but I don't know how to set it up :-(( Does it have to be documented
     as well in this manual?


6.6. Alpha Console Firmware
---------------------------

     Console firmware is stored in a flash ROM and started when an Alpha
     system is powered up or reset.  There are two different console
     specifications used on Alpha systems, and hence two classes of console
     firmware available:

        * _SRM console_, based on the Alpha Console Subsystem
          specification, which provides an operating environment for
          OpenVMS, Tru64 UNIX, and Linux operating systems.

        * _ARC, AlphaBIOS, or ARCSBIOS console_, based on the Advanced RISC
          Computing (ARC) specification, which provides an operating
          environment for Windows NT.

     From the user's perspective, the most important difference between SRM
     and ARC is that the choice of console constrains the possible
     disk-partitioning scheme for the hard disk which you wish to boot off
     of.

     ARC requires that you use an MS-DOS partition table (as created by
     `cfdisk') for the boot disk.  Therefore MS-DOS partition tables are
     the ``native'' partition format when booting from ARC.  In fact, since
     AlphaBIOS contains a disk partitioning utility, you may prefer to
     partition your disks from the firmware menus before installing Linux.

     Conversely, SRM is _incompatible_ with MS-DOS partition tables.  [1]
     Since Tru64 Unix uses the BSD disklabel format, this is the ``native''
     partition format for SRM installations.

     Because GNU/Linux is the only operating system on Alpha that can be
     booted from both console types, the choice will also depend on what
     other operating systems you wish to run on the same machine.  All
     other Unix-like operating systems (Tru64 Unix, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, and
     NetBSD) and OpenVMS can only boot from SRM, whereas Windows NT can
     only boot from ARC.

     The following table summarizes available and supported system
     type/console combinations (see Section 2.1.2, `CPU, Mainboards, and
     Video Support' for the system type names).  The word `ARC' below
     denotes any of the ARC-compliant consoles.

          System Type    Console Type Supported
          ===========    ======================
          alcor          ARC or SRM
          avanti         ARC or SRM
          book1          SRM only
          cabriolet      ARC or SRM
          dp264          SRM only
          eb164          ARC or SRM
          eb64p          ARC or SRM
          eb66           ARC or SRM
          eb66p          ARC or SRM
          jensen         SRM only
          lx164          ARC or SRM
          miata          ARC or SRM
          mikasa         ARC or SRM
          mikasa-p       SRM only
          nautilus       ARC only (see motherboard manual)
          noname         ARC or SRM
          noritake       SRM only
          noritake-p     SRM only
          pc164          ARC or SRM
          rawhide        SRM only
          ruffian        ARC only
          sable          SRM only
          sable-g        SRM only
          sx164          ARC or SRM
          takara         ARC or SRM
          xl             ARC only
          xlt            ARC or SRM

     Generally, none of these consoles can boot Linux directly, so the
     assistance of an intermediary bootloader is required.  There are two
     mainstream Linux loaders: `MILO' and `aboot'.

     `MILO' is itself a console, which replaces ARC or SRM in memory.
     `MILO' can be booted from both ARC and SRM and is the only way to
     bootstrap Linux from the ARC console.  `MILO' is platform-specific (a
     different `MILO' is needed for each system type) and exist only for
     those systems, for which ARC support is shown in the table above.  See
     also the (unfortunately outdated) MILO HOWTO
     (http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/MILO-HOWTO.html).

     `aboot' is a small, platform-independent bootloader, which runs from
     SRM only.  See the (also unfortunately outdated) SRM HOWTO
     (http://www.linuxdoc.org/HOWTO/SRM-HOWTO/) for more information on
     `aboot'.

     Thus, three scenarios are generally possible, depending on the
     system's console firmware and whether or not `MILO' is available:

          SRM -> aboot
          SRM -> MILO
          ARC -> MILO

     The UP1000 motherboard (subarchitecture name `nautilus') from Alpha
     Processor, Inc.  is different from all the others, in that it uses an
     API-specific bootloader that runs under AlphaBIOS firmware.  There are
     no install disks (yet) for the UP1000, but you should be able to
     install by booting a `generic' or `nautilus' kernel with the root.bin
     from the install disks, following the instructions in the manual.

     Because `MILO' is not available for any of the Alpha systems currently
     in production (as of February 2000), and because it is no longer
     necessary to buy an OpenVMS or Tru64 Unix license to have SRM firmware
     on your older Alpha, it is recommended that you use SRM and `aboot' on
     new installations of GNU/Linux, unless you wish to dual-boot with
     Windows NT, or you have existing DOS-partitioned disks.

     The majority of AlphaServers and all current server and workstation
     products contain both SRM and AlphaBIOS in their firmware.  For
     "half-flash" machines such as the various evaluation boards, it is
     possible to switch from one version to another by reflashing the
     firmware.  Also, once SRM is installed, it is possible to run
     ARC/AlphaBIOS from a floppy disk (using the `arc' command).

     As on other architectures, you should install the newest available
     revision of the firmware [2] before installing Debian.  For Alpha,
     firmware updates can be obtained from Alpha Firmware Updates
     (http://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/firmware/).

[1]  Specifically, the bootsector format required by the Console Subsystem
     Specification conflicts with the placement of the DOS partition table.

[2]  Except on Jensen, where Linux is not supported on firmware versions
     newer than 1.7 - see http://www.alphalinux.org/faq/FAQ-9.html for more
     information 


6.7. Booting From the SRM Console
---------------------------------

     At the SRM prompt (`>>>'), issue the following command:

          >>> boot dva0 -flags 0

     possibly replacing `dva0' with the actual device name.  Usually,
     `dva0' is the floppy; type

          >>> show dev

     to see the list of devices (e.g., if you want to boot from a CD).
     Note that if you are booting via MILO, `-flags' argument is ignored,
     so you can just type `boot dva0'.

     If everything works OK, you will eventually see the Linux kernel boot.

     If you want to specify kernel parameters when booting via `aboot', use
     the following command:

          >>> boot dva0 -file linux.gz -flags
          "root=/dev/fd0 load_ramdisk=1 arguments"

     (typed on one line), substituting, if necessary, the actual SRM boot
     device name for `dva0', the Linux boot device name for `fd0', and the
     desired kernel parameters for `arguments'.

     If you want to specify kernel parameters when booting via `MILO', you
     will have to interrupt bootstrap once you get into MILO.  See Section
     6.9, `Booting with MILO'.


6.8. Booting from the ARC or AlphaBIOS Console
----------------------------------------------

     In the OS Selection menu, set `linload.exe' as the boot loader, and
     `milo' as the OS Path.  Bootstrap using the newly created entry.


6.9. Booting with MILO
----------------------

     To bootstrap the installation system, enter the following command at
     the MILO prompt:

          MILO> boot fd0:linux.gz root=/dev/fd0 load_ramdisk=1

     If you are booting from something other than a floppy, substitute
     `fd0' in the above example with the appropriate device name in Linux
     notation.  The `help' command would give you a brief MILO command
     reference.


6.10. Troubleshooting the Boot Process
--------------------------------------

     If you have problems and the kernel hangs during the boot process,
     doesn't recognize peripherals you actually have, or drives are not
     recognized properly, the first thing to check is the boot parameters,
     as discussed in Section 6.1, `Boot Parameter Arguments'.

     Often, problems can be solved by removing add-ons and peripherals, and
     then trying booting again.

     If you still have problems, please submit a bug report.  Send an email
     to <submit@bugs.debian.org>.  You _must_ include the following as the
     first lines of the email:

          Package: boot-floppies
          Version: <version>

     Make sure you fill in <version> with the version of the boot-floppies
     set that you used.  If you don't know the _version_, use the date you
     downloaded the floppies, and include the distribution you got them
     from (e.g., ``stable'', ``frozen'').

     You should also include the following information in your bug report:

          architecture:  alpha
          model:         <your general hardware vendor and model>
          memory:        <amount of RAM>
          scsi:          <SCSI host adapter, if any>
          cd-rom:        <CD-ROM model and interface type, e.g., ATAPI>
          network card:  <network interface card, if any>
          pcmcia:        <details of any PCMCIA devices>

     Depending on the nature of the bug, it also might be useful to report
     whether you are installing to IDE or SCSI disks, other peripheral
     devices such as audio, disk capacity, and the model of video card.

     In the bug report, describe what the problem is, including the last
     visible kernel messages in the event of a kernel hang.  Describe the
     steps that you did which brought the system into the problem state.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


7. Using `dbootstrap' for Initial System Configuration
------------------------------------------------------


7.1. Introduction to `dbootstrap'
---------------------------------

     `dbootstrap' is the name of the program which is run after you have
     booted into the installation system.  It is responsible for initial
     system configuration and the installation of the ``base system''.

     The main job of `dbootstrap', and the main purpose of your initial
     system configuration, is to configure essential elements of your
     system.  For instance, you may need to use certain ``kernel modules'',
     which are drivers which are linked into the kernel.  These modules
     include storage hardware drivers, network drivers, special language
     support, and support for other peripherals which are not automatically
     built in to the kernel you are using.

     Disk partitioning, disk formatting, and networking setup are also
     handled by `dbootstrap'.  This fundamental setup is done first, since
     it is often necessary for the proper functioning of your system.

     `dbootstrap' is a simple, character-based application, designed for
     maximum compatability in all situations (such as installation over a
     serial line).  It is very easy to use.  It will guide you through each
     step of the installation process in a linear fashion.  You can also go
     back and repeat steps if you find you have made a mistake.

     Navigation within `dbootstrap' is accomplished with the arrow keys,
     _Enter_, and _Tab_.

7.1.1. Using the Shell and Viewing the Logs
-------------------------------------------

     If you are an experienced Unix or Linux user, press _Left Alt-F2_ to
     get to the second _virtual console_.  That's the _Alt_ key on the
     left-hand side of the space bar, and the _F2_ function key, at the
     same time.  This is a separate window running a Bourne shell clone
     called `ash'.  At this point you are booted from the RAM disk, and
     there is a limited set of Unix utilities available for your use.  You
     can see what programs are available with the command `ls /bin /sbin
     /usr/bin /usr/sbin'.  Use the menus to perform any task that they are
     able to do -- the shell and commands are only there in case something
     goes wrong.  In particular, you should always use the menus, not the
     shell, to activate your swap partition, because the menu software
     can't detect that you've done this from the shell.  Press _Left
     Alt-F1_ to get back to menus.  Linux provides up to 64 virtual
     consoles, although the Rescue Floppy only uses a few of them.

     Error messages are redirected to the third virtual terminal (known as
     `tty3').  You can access this terminal by pressing _Left Alt-F3_ (hold
     the _Alt_ key while pressing the _F3_ function key); get back to
     `dbootstrap' with _Left Alt-F1_.

     These messages can also be found in `/var/log/messages'.  After
     installation, this log is copied to `/var/log/installer.log' on your
     new system.


7.2. ``Release Notes''
----------------------

     The first screen `dbootstrap' will present you with is the ``Release
     Notes''.  This screen presents the version information for the
     `boot-floppies' software you are using, and gives a brief introduction
     to Debian developers.


7.3. ``Debian GNU/Linux Installation Main Menu''
------------------------------------------------

     You may see a dialog box that says ``The installation program is
     determining the current state of your system and the next installation
     step that should be performed.''.  On some systems, this will go by
     too quickly to read.  You'll see this dialog box between steps in the
     main menu.  The installation program, `dbootstrap', will check the
     state of the system in between each step.  This checking allows you to
     re-start the installation without losing the work you have already
     done, in case you happen to halt your system in the middle of the
     installation process.  If you have to restart an installation, you
     will have to configure your keyboard, re-activate your swap partition,
     and re-mount any disks that have been initialized.  Anything else that
     you have done with the installation system will be saved.

     During the entire installation process, you will be presented with the
     main menu, entitled ``Debian GNU/Linux Installation Main Menu''.  The
     choices at the top of the menu will change to indicate your progress
     in installing the system.  Phil Hughes wrote in the Linux Journal
     (http://www.linuxjournal.com/) that you could teach a _chicken_ to
     install Debian!  He meant that the installation process was mostly
     just _pecking_ at the _Enter_ key.  The first choice on the
     installation menu is the next action that you should perform according
     to what the system detects you have already done.  It should say
     ``Next'', and at this point the next step in installing the system
     will be taken.


7.4. ``Configure the Keyboard''
-------------------------------

     Make sure the highlight is on the ``Next'' item, and press _Enter_ to
     go to the keyboard configuration menu.  Select a keyboard that
     conforms to the layout used for your national language, or select
     something close if the keyboard layout you want isn't represented.
     Once the system installation is complete, you'll be able to select a
     keyboard layout from a wider range of choices (run `kbdconfig' as root
     when you have completed the installation).

     Move the highlight to the keyboard selection you desire and press
     _Enter_.  Use the arrow keys to move the highlight -- they are in the
     same place in all national language keyboard layouts, so they are
     independent of the keyboard configuration.

     If you are installing a diskless workstation, the next few steps will
     be skipped, since there are no local disks to partition.  In that
     case, your next step will be Section 7.13, ```Configure the
     Network'''.  After that, you will be prompted to mount your NFS root
     partition in Section 7.10, ```Mount a Previously-Initialized
     Partition'''.


7.5. Preload Drivers
--------------------

     In certain unusual situations, you may wish to pre-load kernel modules
     from the floppy drive.  Generally, you can ignore this alternate.


7.6. Last Chance!
-----------------

     Did we tell you to back up your disks?  Here's your first chance to
     wipe out all of the data on your disks, and your last chance to save
     your old system.  If you haven't backed up all of your disks, remove
     the floppy from the drive, reset the system, and run backups.


7.7. ``Partition a Hard Disk''
------------------------------

     If you have not already partitioned your disks for Linux native and
     Linux swap filesystems, i.e., as described in Section 4.6,
     `Partitioning Prior to Installation', the next step will be
     ``Partition a Hard Disk''.  If you have already created at least one
     Linux native and one Linux swap disk partition, the ``Next'' menu
     selection will be ``Initialize and Activate a Swap Partition'', or you
     may even skip that step if your system had low memory and you were
     asked to activate the swap partition as soon as the system started.
     Whatever the ``Next'' menu selection is, you can use the down-arrow
     key to select ``Partition a Hard Disk''.

     The ``Partition a Hard Disk'' menu item presents you with a list of
     disk drives you can partition, and runs a partitioning application.
     You must create at least one ``Linux native'' (type 83) disk
     partition, and you probably want at least one ``Linux swap`` (type 82)
     partition, as explained in Chapter 4, `Partitioning Your Hard Drive'.
     If you are unsure how to partition your system, go back and read that
     chapter.

     Depending on your architecture, there are different programs which can
     be used.  These are the program or programs available on your
     architecture:

     `fdisk'
          The original Linux disk partitioner, good for gurus; read the
          fdisk manual page (fdisk.txt).

     `cfdisk'
          A simple-to-use, full-screen disk partitioner for the rest of us;
          read the cfdisk manual page (cfdisk.txt).

     One of these programs will be run by default when you select
     ``Partition a Hard Disk''.  If the one which is run by default isn't
     the one you want, quit the partitioner, go to the shell (tty2), and
     manually type in the name of the program you want to use (and
     arguments, if any).  Then skip the ``Partition a Hard Disk'' step in
     `dbootstrap' and continue to the next step.

     A swap partition is strongly recommended, but you can do without one
     if you insist, and if your system has more than 16MB RAM.  If you wish
     to do this, please select the ``Do Without a Swap Partition'' item
     from the menu.

     If you have chosen to boot from the SRM console, you must use `fdisk'
     to partition your disk, as it is the only partitioning program that
     can manipulate the BSD disklabels required by `aboot' (remember, the
     SRM boot block is incompatible with MS-DOS partition tables - see
     Section 6.6, `Alpha Console Firmware').  `dbootstrap' will run `fdisk'
     by default if you have not booted from `MILO'.

     If the disk that you have selected for partitioning already contains a
     BSD disklabel, `fdisk' will default to BSD disklabel mode.  Otherwise,
     you must use the `b' command to enter disklabel mode.

     Unless you wish to use the disk you are partitioning from Tru64 Unix
     or one of the free 4.4BSD-Lite derived operating systems (FreeBSD,
     OpenBSD, or NetBSD), it is suggested that you do _not_ make the third
     partition contain the whole disk.  This is not required by `aboot',
     and in fact, it may lead to confusion since the `swriteboot' utility
     used to install `aboot' in the boot sector will complain about a
     partition overlapping with the boot block.

     Also, because `aboot' is written to the first few sectors of the disk
     (currently it occupies about 70 kilobytes, or 150 sectors), you _must_
     leave enough empty space at the beginning of the disk for it.  In the
     past, it was suggested that you make a small partition at the
     beginning of the disk, to be left unformatted.  For the same reason
     mentioned above, we now suggest that you do not do this on disks that
     will only be used by GNU/Linux.

     For ARC installations, you should make a small FAT partition at the
     beginning of the disk to contain `MILO' and `linload.exe' - a megabyte
     should be sufficient, see Section 4.6, `Partitioning Prior to
     Installation'.  You will have to copy these files manually at present,
     by mounting the FAT partition under Linux, or by using `mtools'.  You
     can use `mkdosfs' to create FAT partitions from a shell on the
     installation disk.


7.8. ``Initialize and Activate a Swap Partition''
-------------------------------------------------

     This will be the next step once you have created one disk partition.
     You have the choice of initializing and activating a new swap
     partition, activating a previously-initialized one, and doing without
     a swap partition.  It's always permissible to re-initialize a swap
     partition, so select ``Initialize and Activate a Swap Partition''
     unless you are sure you know what you are doing.

     This menu choice will first present you with a dialog box reading
     ``Please select the partition to activate as a swap device.''.  The
     default device presented should be the swap partition you've already
     set up; if so, just press _Enter_.

     Next, there is a confirmation message, since initialization destroys
     any data previously on the partition.  If all is well, select ``Yes''.
     The screen will flash as the initialization program runs.


7.9. ``Initialize a Linux Partition''
-------------------------------------

     At this point, the next menu item presented should be ``Initialize a
     Linux Partition''.  If it isn't, it is because you haven't completed
     the disk partitioning process, or you haven't made one of the menu
     choices dealing with your swap partition.

     You can initialize a Linux partition, or alternately you can mount a
     previously-initialized one.  Note that `dbootstrap' will _not_ upgrade
     an old system without destroying it.  If you're upgrading, Debian can
     usually upgrade itself, and you won't need to use `dbootstrap'.  For
     help on upgrading to Debian 2.2, see the upgrade instructions
     (http://www.debian.org/releases/2.2/alpha/release-notes/).

     Thus, if you are using old disk partitions that are not empty, i.e.,
     if you want to just throw away what is on them, you should initialize
     them (which erases all files).  Moreover, you must initialize any
     partitions that you created in the disk partitioning step.  About the
     only reason to mount a partition without initializing it at this point
     would be to mount a partition upon which you have already performed
     some part of the installation process using this same set of
     installation floppies.

     Select ``Initialize a Linux Partition'' to initialize and mount the
     `/' disk partition.  The first partition that you mount or initialize
     will be the one mounted as `/' (pronounced ``root'').

     You will be asked whether to preserve ``Pre-2.2 Linux Kernel
     Compatibility?''.  Saying ``No'' here means that you cannot run 2.0 or
     earlier Linux kernels on your system, since the file systems enable
     some features not supported in the 2.0 kernel.  If you know you'll
     never need to run a 2.0 or earlier vintage kernel, then you can
     achieve some minor benefits by saying ``No'' here.  The default is
     ``Yes'' in the name of compatibility.

     You will also be asked about whether to scan for bad blocks.  The
     default here is to skip the bad block scan, since the scan can be very
     time consuming, and modern disk drive controllers internally detect
     and deal with bad blocks.  However, if you are at all unsure about the
     quality of your disk drive, or if you have a rather old system, you
     should probably do the bad block scan.

     The next prompts are just confirmation steps.  You will be asked to
     confirm your action, since initializing is destructive to any data on
     the partition, and you will be informed that the partition is being
     mounted as `/'.  (Technically, it's being mounted at `/target'; when
     you reboot into the system itself, that will become `/'.)

     Once you've mounted the `/' partition, if you have additional file
     systems that you wish to initialize and mount, you should use the
     ``Alternate'' menu item.  This is for those who have created separate
     partitions for `/boot', `/var', `/usr' or others, which ought to be
     initialized and mounted at this time.


7.10. ``Mount a Previously-Initialized Partition''
--------------------------------------------------

     An alternative to Section 7.9, ```Initialize a Linux Partition''' is
     the ``Mount a Previously-Initialized Partition'' step.  Use this if
     you are resuming an installation that was broken off, or if you want
     to mount partitions that have already been initialized or have data on
     it which you wish to preserve.

     If you are installing a diskless workstation, at this point, you want
     to NFS mount your root partition from the remote NFS server.  Specify
     the path to the NFS server in standard NFS syntax, namely,
     `<server-name-or-IP>:<server-share-path>'.  If you need to mount
     additional filesystems as well, you can do that at this time.

     If you have not already setup your network as described in Section
     7.13, ```Configure the Network''', then selecting an NFS install will
     prompt you to do so.


7.11. ``Install Operating System Kernel and Modules''
-----------------------------------------------------

     The next step is to install a kernel and kernel modules onto your new
     system.

     You will be offered a menu of devices from which you can install the
     kernel.  Choose the appropriate device from which to install the
     kernel and modules.  Remember that you can use any devices which is
     available to you, and that you are not restricted to using the same
     media you used to mount with (see Chapter 5, `Methods for Installing
     Debian').

     Note that the options presented to you will vary based on what
     hardware `dbootstrap' has detected.  If you are installing from an
     official CD-ROM, the software should do the right thing automatically.

     If you are installing from a local filesystem, you have a choice
     between two options.  Select ``harddisk'' if the disk partition is not
     yet mounted; select ``mounted'' if it is.  In both cases, you will be
     prompted to ``Choose Debian archive path'' -- this is the directory
     within the disk where you have placed the required installation files
     discussed in Section 6.3, `Booting from a Hard Disk'.  If you have a
     Debian archive mirrored locally, you can use that by giving the
     directory where that exists, which is often `/archive/debian'.  Such
     archives are characterized by directory structures such as
     `debian/dists/stable/main/disks-alpha/current'.  You can type in the
     path manually, or use the `<...>' button to browse through the
     filesystem tree.

     Continuing the discusssion on installation from a local disk or
     similar medium (such as NFS), you will next be prompted for the actual
     directory containing the needed files (which may be based on your
     subarchitecture).  Note that the system may be quite insistent that
     the files appear in the precise location indicated, including the
     subdirectories, if any.  See the logs in tty3 (see Section 7.1.1,
     `Using the Shell and Viewing the Logs') where `dbootstrap' will log
     the location of the files it's looking for.

     If the ``default'' option appears, then you should use that.
     Otherwise, try the ``list'' option to let `dbootstrap' try to find the
     actual files on its own (but note that this can be very slow if you're
     mounting over NFS).  As a last resort, use the ``manual'' option to
     specify the directory manually.

     If you're installing from floppies, you'll need to feed in the Rescue
     Floppy (which is probably already in the drive), followed by the
     Driver Floppies.

     If you wish to install the kernel and modules over the network, you
     can do this using the ``network'' (HTTP) or ``nfs'' options.  Your
     networking interfaces must be supported by the standard kernel (see
     Section 2.4, `Peripherals and Other Hardware').  If these ``nfs''
     options don't appear, you need to select ``Cancel'', then go back and
     select the ``Configure the Network'' step (see Section 7.13,
     ```Configure the Network'''), and then re-run this step.

7.11.1. NFS
-----------

     Select the ``nfs'' option, and then tell `dbootstrap' your NFS server
     name and path.  Assuming you've put the Rescue Floppy and Driver
     Floppies images on the NFS server in the proper location, these files
     should be available to you for installing the kernel and modules.  The
     NFS filesystem will be mounted under `/instmnt'.  Select the location
     of the files as for ``harddisk'' or ``mounted''.

7.11.2. Network
---------------

     Select the ``network'' option, and then tell `dbootstrap' the URL and
     path to the Debian archive.  The default will usually work fine, and
     in any case, the path part is probably correct for any official Debian
     mirror, even if you edit the server part.  You may choose to pull the
     files in through a proxy server; just enter the server _...this
     sentence isn't finished..._

7.11.3. NFS Root
----------------

     If you are installing a diskless workstation, you should have already
     configured your networking as described in Section 7.13, ```Configure
     the Network'''.  You should be given the option to install the kernel
     and modules from NFS.  Proceed using the ``nfs'' option described
     above.

     Other steps may need to be taken for other installation media.


7.12. ``Configure Device Driver Modules''
-----------------------------------------

     Select the ``Configure Device Driver Modules'' menu item and look for
     devices that are on your system.  Configure those device drivers, and
     they will be loaded whenever your system boots.

     You don't have to configure all your devices at this point; what is
     crucial is that any device configuration required for the installation
     of the base system is done here.  This includes Ethernet drivers.

     At any point after the system is installed, you can reconfigure your
     modules with the `modconf' program.


7.13. ``Configure the Network''
-------------------------------

     You'll have to configure the network even if you don't have a network,
     but you'll only have to answer the first two questions -- ``Choose the
     Host name'', and ``Is your system connected to a network?''.

     If you are connected to a network, you'll need the information you
     collected from Section 3.2, `Information You Will Need'.  However, if
     your primary connection to the network will be PPP, you should choose
     _NOT_ to configure the network.

     `dbootstrap' will ask you a number of questions about your network;
     fill in the answers from Section 3.2, `Information You Will Need'.
     The system will also summarize your network information and ask you
     for confirmation.  Next, you need to specify the network device that
     your primary network connection uses.  Usually, this will be ``eth0''
     (the first Ethernet device).

     Some technical details you might, or might not, find handy: the
     program assumes the network IP address is the bitwise-AND of your
     system's IP address and your netmask.  It will guess the broadcast
     address is the bitwise OR of your system's IP address with the bitwise
     negation of the netmask.  It will guess that your gateway system is
     also your DNS server.  If you can't find any of these answers, use the
     system's guesses -- you can change them once the system has been
     installed, if necessary, by editing `/etc/network/interfaces'.


7.14. ``Install the Base System''
---------------------------------

     During the ``Install the Base System'' step, you'll be offered a menu
     of devices from which you may install the base system.  You should
     select the appropriate device.

     If you choose to install from a filesystem on the harddisk or from
     CD-ROM, you will be prompted to specify the path to the
     http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main/disks-alpha/current/base2_2.tgz
     file.  If you have official media, the default value should be
     correct.  Otherwise, enter the path where the base system can be
     found, relative to the media's mount point.  As with the ``Install
     Operating System Kernel and Modules'' step, you can either let
     `dbootstrap' find the file itself or type in the path at the prompt.

     If you choose to install from floppy disk, feed in the base floppies
     in order, as requested by `dbootstrap'.  If one of the base floppies
     is unreadable, you'll have to create a replacement floppy and feed all
     floppies into the system again.  Once the floppies have all been read,
     the system will install the files it had read from the floppies.  This
     could take 10 minutes or more on slow systems, less on faster ones.

     If you are installing the base system from NFS, then choose NFS and
     continue.  You'll be prompted to specify the server, the share on the
     server, and the subdirectory within that share where the
     `http://http.us.debian.org/debian/dists/potato/main/disks-alpha/current/base2_2.tgz'
     file can be found.  If you have problems mounting NFS, make sure that
     the system time on the NFS server more or less agrees with the system
     time on the client.  You can set your date on `tty2' using the `date'
     command; you'll have to set it by hand.  See the date(1) manual page.


7.15. ``Configure the Base System''
-----------------------------------

     At this point you've read in all of the files that make up a minimal
     Debian system, but you must perform some configuration before the
     system will run.

     You'll be asked to select your time zone.  There are many ways to
     specify your time zone; we suggest you go to the ``Directories:'' pane
     and select your country (or continent).  That will change the
     available time zones, so go ahead and select your geographic locality
     (i.e., country, province, state, or city) in the ``Timezones:'' pane.

     Next, you'll be asked if your system clock is to be set to GMT or
     local time.  Select GMT (i.e., ``Yes'') if you will only be running
     Unix on your computer; select local time (i.e., ``No'') if you will be
     running another operating system as well as Debian.  Unix (and Linux
     is no exception) generally keeps GMT time on the system clock and
     converts visible time to the local time zone.  This allows the system
     to keep track of daylight savings time and leap years, and even allows
     users who are logged in from other time zones to individually set the
     time zone used on their terminal.


7.16. ``Make Linux Bootable Directly From Hard Disk''
-----------------------------------------------------

     If you elect to make the hard disk boot directly to Linux, and you are
     _not_ installing a diskless workstation, you will be asked to install
     a master boot record.  If you aren't using a boot manager (and this is
     probably the case if you don't know what a boot manager is) and you
     don't have another different operating system on the same machine,
     answer ``Yes'' to this question.  If you answer ``Yes'', the next
     question will be whether you want to boot Linux automatically from the
     hard disk when you turn on your system.  This sets Linux root
     partition to be the _bootable partition_ -- the one that will be
     loaded from the hard disk.

     Note that multiple operating system booting on a single machine is
     still something of a black art.  This document does not even attempt
     to document the various boot managers, which vary by architecture and
     even by subarchitecture.  You should see your boot manager's
     documentation for more information.  Remember: when working with the
     boot manager, you can never be too careful.

     If you have booted from SRM, if you select this option, the installer
     will write `aboot' to the first sector of the disk on which you
     installed Debian.  Be _very_ careful - it is _not_ possible to boot
     multiple operating systems (e.g.  GNU/Linux, Free/Open/NetBSD, OSF/1
     a.k.a.  Digital Unix a.k.a.  Tru64 Unix, or OpenVMS) from the same
     disk.  If you also have a different operating system installed on the
     disk where you have installed Debian, you will have to boot GNU/Linux
     from a floppy instead.

     If you are installing a diskless workstation, obviously, booting off
     the local disk isn't a meaningful option, and this step will be
     skipped.


7.17. The Moment of Truth
-------------------------

     You system's first boot on its own power is what electrical engineers
     call the ``smoke test''.  If you have any floppies in your floppy
     drive, remove them.  Select the ``Reboot the System'' menu item.

     If are booting directly into Debian, and the system doesn't start up,
     either use your original installation boot media (for instance, the
     Rescue Floppy), or insert the Custom Boot floppy if you created one,
     and reset your system.  If you are _not_ using the Custom Boot floppy,
     you will probably need to add some boot arguments.  If booting with
     the Rescue Floppy or similar technique, you need to specify `rescue
     root=<root>', where <root> is your root partition, such as
     ``/dev/sda1''.

     Debian should boot, and you should see the same messages as when you
     first booted the installation system, followed by some new messages.


7.18. Set the Root Password
---------------------------

     The _root_ account is also called the _super-user_; it is a login that
     bypasses all security protection on your system.  The root account
     should only be used to perform system administration, and only used
     for as short a time as possible.

     Any password you create should contain from 6 to 8 characters, and
     should contain both upper- and lower-case characters, as well as
     punctuation characters.  Take extra care when setting your root
     password, since it is such a powerful account.  Avoid dictionary words
     or use of any personal information which could be guessed.

     If anyone ever tells you they need your root password, be extremely
     wary.  You should normally never give your root account out, unless
     you are administering a machine with more than one system
     administrator.


7.19. Create an Ordinary User
-----------------------------

     The system will ask you to create an ordinary user account.  This
     account should be your main personal log-in.  You should _not_ use the
     root account for daily use or as your personal login.

     Why not?  Well, one reason to avoid using root's privileges is that it
     is very easy to do irreparable damage as root.  Another reason is that
     you might be tricked into running a _Trojan-horse_ program -- that is
     a program that takes advantage of your super-user powers to compromise
     the security of your system behind your back.  Any good book on Unix
     system administration will cover this topic in more detail -- consider
     reading one if it is new to you.

     Name the user account anything you like.  If your name is John Smith,
     you might use ``smith'', ``john'', ``jsmith'' or ``js''.


7.20. Shadow Password Support
-----------------------------

     Next, the system will ask whether you want to enable shadow passwords.
     This is a system in which your Linux system is made to be a bit more
     secure.  In a system without shadow passwords, passwords are stored
     (encrypted) in a world-readable file, `/etc/passwd'.  This file has to
     be readable to anyone who can log in because it contains vital user
     information, for instance, how to map between numeric user identifiers
     and login names.  Therefore, someone could conceivably grab your
     `/etc/passwd' file and run a brute force attack (i.e.  run an
     automated test of all possible password combinations) against it to
     try to determine passwords.

     If you have shadow passwords enabled, passwords are instead stored in
     `/etc/shadow', which is readable and writable only by root, and
     readable by group shadow.  Therefore, we recommend that you enable
     shadow passwords.

     Reconfiguration of the shadow password system can be done at any time
     with the `shadowconfig' program.  After installation, see
     `/usr/share/doc/passwd/README.debian.gz' for more information.


7.21. Select and Install Profiles
---------------------------------

     The system will now ask you if you want to use the pre-rolled software
     configurations offered by Debian.  You can always choose, package by
     package, what do you want to install on your new machine.  This is the
     purpose of the `dselect' program, described below.  But this can be a
     long task with around 3750 packages available in Debian!

     So, you have the ability to choose _tasks_ or _profiles_ instead.  A
     _task_ is a work you will do with the machine such as ``Perl
     programming'' or ``HTML authoring'' or ``Chinese word processing''.
     You can choose several tasks.  A _profile_ is a category your machine
     will be a member of such as "Network server" or ``Personal
     workstation''.  Unlike the tasks, you can choose only one profile.

     In summary, if you are in a hurry, choose one profile.  If you have
     more time, choose the Custom profile and select a set of tasks.  If
     you have plenty of time and want very precise control on what is or is
     not installed, skip this step and use the full power of `dselect'.

     Soon, you will enter into `dselect'.  If you selected tasks or
     profiles, remember to skip the ``Select'' step of `dselect', since the
     selections have already been made.

     A word of warning about the size of the tasks as they are displayed:
     the size shown for each task is the sum of the sizes of its packages.
     If you choose two tasks that share some packages, the actual disk
     requirement will be less than the sum of the sizes for the two tasks.

     Once you've added both logins (root and personal), you'll be dropped
     into the `dselect' program.  The dselect Tutorial (dselect-beginner)
     is required reading before you run `dselect'.  `dselect' allows you to
     select _packages_ to be installed on your system.  If you have a
     CD-ROM or hard disk containing the additional Debian packages that you
     want to install on your system, or you are connected to the Internet,
     this will be useful to you right away.  Otherwise, you may want to
     quit `dselect' and start it later, once you have transported the
     Debian package files to your system.  You must be the super-user
     (root) when you run `dselect'.


7.22. Log In
------------

     After you've quit `dselect', you'll be presented with the login
     prompt.  Log in using the personal login and password you selected.
     Your system is now ready to use.


7.23. Setting up PPP
--------------------

     NOTE: In case you are installing from CD-ROM and/or are connected
     directly to the network, you can safely skip this section.  The
     installation system will only prompt you for this information if the
     network hasn't been configured yet.

     The base system includes a full `ppp' package.  This package allows
     you to connect to your ISP using PPP.  Below are some basic
     instructions for setting up your PPP connection.  The boot disks
     contain a program called `pppconfig' which will help you set up PPP.
     _Make sure, when it asks you for the name of your dialup connection,
     that you name it ``provider''._

     Hopefully, the `pppconfig' program will walk you through a pain-free
     PPP connection setup.  However, if it does not work for you, see below
     for detailed instructions.

     In order to setup PPP, you'll need to know the basics of file viewing
     and editing in Linux.  To view files, you should use `more', and
     `zmore' for compressed files with a `.gz' extension.  For example, to
     view `README.debian.gz', type `zmore README.debian.gz'.  The base
     system comes with two editors: `ae', which is very simple to use, but
     does not have a lot of features, and `elvis-tiny', a limited clone of
     `vi'.  You will probably want to install more full-featured editors
     and viewers later, such as `nvi', `less', and `emacs'.

     Edit `/etc/ppp/peers/provider' and replace ``/dev/modem'' with
     ``/dev/ttyS<#>'' where <#> stands for the number of your serial port.
     In Linux, serial ports are counted from 0; your first serial port is
     `/dev/ttyS0' under Linux.  The next step is to edit
     `/etc/chatscripts/provider' and insert your provider's phone number,
     your user-name and password.  Please do not delete the ``\q'' that
     precedes the password.  It hides the password from appearing in your
     log files.

     Many providers use PAP or CHAP for login sequence instead of text mode
     authentication.  Others use both.  If your provider requires PAP or
     CHAP, you'll need to follow a different procedure.  Comment out
     everything below the dialing string (the one that starts with
     ``ATDT'') in `/etc/chatscripts/provider', modify
     `/etc/ppp/peers/provider' as described above, and add `user <name>'
     where <name> stands for your user-name for the provider you are trying
     to connect to.  Next, edit `/etc/ppp/pap-secrets' or
     `/etc/ppp/chap-secrets' and enter your password there.

     You will also need to edit `/etc/resolv.conf' and add your provider's
     name server (DNS) IP addresses.  The lines in `/etc/resolv.conf' are
     in the following format: `nameserver <xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx>' where the <x>s
     stand for numbers in your IP address.  Optionally, you could add the
     `usepeerdns' option to the `/etc/ppp/peers/provider' file, which will
     enable automatic choosing of appropriate DNS servers, using settings
     the remote host usually provides.

     Unless your provider has a login sequence different from the majority
     of ISPs, you are done!  Start the PPP connection by typing `pon' as
     root, and monitor the process using `plog' command.  To disconnect,
     use `poff', again, as root.

     Read `/usr/share/doc/ppp/README.Debian.gz' file for more information
     on using PPP on Debian.


7.24. Installing the Rest of Your System
----------------------------------------

     Information about the installation of the rest of your Debian system
     is contained in a separate document, the dselect Tutorial
     (dselect-beginner).  Remember to skip the ``Select'' step in `dselect'
     if you are using the profiles and tasks from Section 7.21, `Select and
     Install Profiles'.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


8. Next Steps and Where to Go From Here
---------------------------------------


8.1. If You Are New to Unix
---------------------------

     If you are new to Unix, you probably should go out and buy some books
     and do some reading.  The Unix FAQ
     (ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/unix-faq/faq/) contains a
     number of references to books and Usenet news groups which should help
     you out.  You can also take a look at the User-Friendly Unix FAQ
     (http://www.camelcity.com/~noel/usenet/cuuf-FAQ.htm).

     Linux is an implementation of Unix.  The Linux Documentation Project
     (LDP) (http://www.linuxdoc.org/) collects a number of HOWTOs and
     online books relating to Linux.  Most of these documents can be
     installed locally; just install the `doc-linux-html' package (HTML
     versions) or the `doc-linux-text' package (ASCII versions), then look
     in `/usr/doc/HOWTO'.  International versions of the LDP HOWTOs are
     also available as Debian packages.

     Information specific to Debian can be found below.


8.2. Orienting Yourself to Debian
---------------------------------

     Debian is a little different from other distributions.  Even if you're
     familiar with Linux in other distributions, there are things you
     should know about Debian to help you to keep your system in a good,
     clean state.  This chapter contains material to help you get oriented;
     it is not intended to be a tutorial for how to use Debian, but just a
     very brief glimpse of the system for the very rushed.

     The most important concept to grasp is the Debian packaging system.
     In essence, large parts of your system should be considered under the
     control of the packaging system.  These include:

        * `/usr' (excluding `/usr/local')

        * `/var' (you could make `/var/local' and be safe in there)

        * `/bin'

        * `/sbin'

        * `/lib'

     For instance, if you replace `/usr/bin/perl', that will work, but then
     if you upgrade your `perl' package, the file you put there will be
     replaced.  Experts can get around this by putting packages on ``hold''
     in `dselect'.


8.3. Further Reading and Information
------------------------------------

     If you need information about a particular program, you should first
     try `man <program>', or `info <program>'.

     There is lots of useful documentation in `/usr/doc' as well.  In
     particular, `/usr/doc/HOWTO' and `/usr/doc/FAQ' contain lots of
     interesting information.

     The Debian web site (http://www.debian.org/) contains a large quantity
     of documentation about Debian.  In particular, see the Debian FAQ
     (http://www.debian.org/doc/FAQ/) and the Debian Mailing List Archives
     (http://www.debian.org/Lists-Archives/).  The Debian community is
     self-supporting; to subscribe to one or more of the Debian mailing
     lists, see the Mail List Subscription
     (http://www.debian.org/MailingLists/subscribe) page.


8.4. Compiling a New Kernel
---------------------------

     Why would someone want to compile a new kernel?  It is often not
     necessary since the default kernel shipped with Debian handles most
     configurations.  However, it is useful to compile a new kernel in
     order to:

        * handle special hardware needs, or hardware conflicts with the
          pre-supplied kernels

        * handle hardware or options not included in the stock kernel, such
          as APM or SMP

        * optimize the kernel by removing useless drivers to speed up boot
          time

        * use options of the kernel which are not supported by the default
          kernel (such as network firewalling)

        * run a updated or development kernel

        * impress your friends, try new things

     Don't be afraid to try compiling the kernel.  It's fun and profitable.

     To compile a kernel the Debian way, you need some packages:
     `kernel-package', `kernel-source-2.2.18pre21' (the most recent version
     at the time of this writing), `fakeroot' and a few others which are
     probably already installed (see
     `/usr/share/doc/kernel-package/README.gz' for the complete list).

     Note that you don't _have_ to compile your kernel the ``Debian way'';
     but we find that using the packaging system to manage your kernel is
     actually safer and easier.  In fact, you can get your kernel sources
     right from Linus instead of `kernel-source-2.2.18pre21', yet still use
     the `kernel-package' compilation method.

     Note that you'll find complete documentation on using `kernel-package'
     under `/usr/share/doc/kernel-package'.  This section just contains a
     brief tutorial.

     Hereafter, we'll assume your kernel source will be located in
     `/usr/local/src' and that your kernel version is 2.2.18pre21.  As
     root, create a directory under `/usr/local/src' and change the owner
     of that directory to your normal non-root account.  As your normal
     non-root account, change your directory to where you want to unpack
     the kernel sources (`cd /usr/local/src'), extract the kernel sources
     (`tar xIf /usr/src/kernel-source-2.2.18pre21.tar.bz2'), change your
     directory to it (`cd kernel-source-2.2.18pre21/').  Now, you can
     configure your kernel.  Run `make xconfig' if X11 is installed,
     configured and being run, `make menuconfig' otherwise (you'll need
     `ncurses-dev' installed).  Take the time to read the online help and
     choose carefully.  When in doubt, it is typically better to include
     the device driver (the software which manages hardware peripherals,
     such as Ethernet cards, SCSI controllers, and so on) you are unsure
     about.  Be careful: other options, not related to a specific hardware,
     should be left at the default value if you do not understand them.  Do
     not forget to select ``Kernel module loader'' in ``Loadable module
     support'' and ``Enhanced Real Time Clock Support'' in ``Character
     devices'' (they are not selected by default).  If not included, your
     Debian installation will experience problems.  If you don't need the
     full power of the Real Time Clock driver, you may want (and are
     encouraged) to apply the Light-weight RTC patch
     (ftp://genie.ucd.ie/pub/alpha/patches-2.2.x/rtclight-2.2.12.diff) and
     then select the light-weight option in the kernel configuration.

     Clean the source tree and reset the `kernel-package' parameters.  To
     do that, do `make-kpkg clean'.

     Now, compile the kernel: `fakeroot make-kpkg --revision=custom.1.0
     kernel_image'.  The version number of ``1.0'' can be changed at will;
     this is just a version number that you will use to track your kernel
     builds.  Likewise, you can put any word you like in place of
     ``custom'' (e.g., a host name).  Kernel compilation may take quite a
     while, depending on the power of your machine.

     Once the compilation is complete, you can install your custom kernel
     like any package.  As root, do `dpkg -i
     ../kernel-image-2.2.18pre21-<subarch>_custom.1.0_alpha.deb'.  The
     <subarch> part is an optional sub-architecture, depending on what
     kernel options you set.  `dpkg -i kernel-image...'  will install the
     kernel, along with some other nice supporting files.  For instance,
     the `System.map' will be properly installed (helpful for debugging
     kernel problems), and `/boot/config-2.2.18pre21' will be installed,
     containing your current configuration set.  Your new
     `kernel-image-2.2.18pre21' package is also clever enough to
     automatically use you're platform's boot-loader to run an update on
     the booting, allowing you to boot without re-running the boot loader.
     If you have created a modules package, e.g., if you have PCMCIA,
     you'll need to install that package as well.

     It is time to reboot the system: read carefully any warning that the
     above step may have produced, then `shutdown -r now'.

     For more information on `kernel-package', read documentation in
     `/usr/doc/kernel-package'.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


9. Technical Information on the Boot Floppies
---------------------------------------------


9.1. Source Code
----------------

     The `boot-floppies' package contains all of the source code and
     documentation for the installation floppies.


9.2. Rescue Floppy
------------------

     The Rescue Floppy has an Ext2 filesystem (or a FAT filesystem,
     depending on your architecture), and you should be able to access it
     from anything else that can mount Ext2 or FAT disks.  The Linux kernel
     is in the file `linux'.  The file `root.bin' is a `gzip'-compressed
     disk image of a 1.4MB Minix or Ext2 filesystem, and will be loaded
     into the RAM disk and used as the root filesystem.


9.3. Replacing the Rescue Floppy Kernel
---------------------------------------

     If you find it necessary to replace the kernel on the Rescue Floppy,
     you must configure your new kernel with these features linked in, not
     in loadable modules:

        * RAM disk support (`CONFIG_BLK_DEV_RAM')

        * Initial RAM disk (initrd) support (`CONFIG_BLK_DEV_INITRD')

        * Kernel support for ELF binaries (`CONFIG_BINFMT_ELF')

        * Loop device support (`CONFIG_BLK_DEV_LOOP')

        * FAT, Minix, and Ext2 filesystems (some architectures don't need
          FAT and/or Minix filesystems -- see the source)

     _Documentation not complete, text missing._

     You'll also want to replace the `modules.tgz' file on the Driver
     Floppies.  This file simply contains a `gzip'-compressed tar file of
     `/lib/modules/<kernel-ver>'; make it from the root filesystem so that
     all leading directories are in the tar file as well.


9.4. The Base Floppies
----------------------

     The base floppies contain a 512-byte header followed by a portion of a
     gzip-compressed `tar' archive.  If you strip off the headers and then
     concatenate the contents of the base floppies, the result should be
     the compressed tar archive.  The archive contains the base system that
     will be installed on your hard disk.

     Once this archive is installed, you must go through the steps
     described in Section 7.15, ```Configure the Base System''', and other
     `dbootstrap' menu items to configure the network, and you must install
     the operating system kernel and modules on your own.  Once you have
     done that, the system should be usable.

     As for the post-installation tasks, those are mostly handled by the
     `base-config' package.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


10. Appendix
------------


10.1. Further Information and Obtaining Debian GNU/Linux
--------------------------------------------------------

10.1.1. Further Information
---------------------------

     A general source of information on Linux is the Linux Documentation
     Project (http://www.linuxdoc.org/).  There you will find the HOWTOs
     and pointers to other very valuable information on parts of a
     GNU/Linux system.

10.1.2. Obtaining Debian GNU/Linux
----------------------------------

     If you want to buy a CD set to install Debian GNU/Linux system from
     CD-ROM you should look at the CD vendors page
     (http://www.debian.org/distrib/vendors).  There you get a list of
     addresses which sell Debian GNU/Linux on CD-ROMs.  The list is sorted
     by country so you shouldn't have a problem to find a vendor near you.

10.1.3. Debian Mirrors
----------------------

     If you live outside of the USA and you want to download Debian
     packages, you can also use one of many mirrors which reside outside
     the USA.  A list of countries and mirrors can be found at the Debian
     FTP server website (http://www.debian.org/distrib/ftplist).

10.1.4. GPG, SSH and other Security Software
--------------------------------------------

     United States laws place restrictions on the export of defense
     articles, which, unfortunately, includes some types of cryptographic
     software.  PGP and ssh, among others, fall into this category.  It is
     legal however, to import such software into the US.

     To prevent anyone from taking unnecessary legal risks, some Debian
     packages are available from a server outside the US which serves the
     various cryptographic programs: Debian non-US Server
     (ftp://nonus.debian.org/debian-non-US/).

     This text is taken from the README.non-US file, which you can find on
     any Debian FTP archive mirror.  It also contains a list of mirrors of
     the non-US server.


10.2. Linux Devices
-------------------

     In Linux you have various special files in `/dev'.  These files are
     called devices files.  In the Unix world accessing hardware is
     different.  There you have a special file which actually runs a driver
     which in turn accesses the hardware.  The device file is an interface
     to the actual system component.  Files under `/dev' also behave
     differently than ordinary files.  Below are the most important device
     files listed.

          fd0	1. Floppy Drive
          fd1	2. Floppy Drive

          hda	IDE Harddisk / CD-ROM on the first IDE port (Master)
          hdb	IDE Harddisk / CD-ROM on the first IDE port (Slave)
          hdc	IDE Harddisk / CD-ROM on the second IDE port (Master)
          hdd	IDE Harddisk / CD-ROM on the second IDE port (Slave)
          hda1	1. partition of the first IDE harddisk
          hdd15	15. partition of the fourth IDE harddisk

          sda	SCSI Harddisk with lowest SCSI ID (e.g. 0)
          sdb	SCSI Harddisk with next higher SCSI ID (e.g. 1)
          sdc	SCSI Harddisk with next higher SCSI ID (e.g. 2)
          sda1	1. partition of the first SCSI harddisk
          sdd10	10. partition of the fourth SCSI harddisk

          sr0     SCSI CD-ROM with the lowest SCSI ID
          sr1     SCSI CD-ROM with the next higher SCSI ID

          ttyS0    Serial port 0, COM1 under DOS
          ttyS1    Serial port 1, COM2 under DOS
          psaux    PS/2 mouse device
          gpmdata  Pseudo device, repeater data from GPM (mouse) daemon

          cdrom	Symbolic link to the CD-ROM drive
          mouse	Symbolic link to the mouse device file

          null	everything pointed to this device will disappear
          zero	one can endlessly read zeros out of this device


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


11. Administrivia
-----------------


11.1. About This Document
-------------------------

     This document is written in SGML, using the ``DebianDoc'' DTD.  Output
     formats are generated by programs from the `debiandoc-sgml' package.

     In order to increase the maintainability of this document, we use a
     number of SGML features, such as entities and marked sections.  These
     play a role akin to variables and conditionals in programming
     languages.  The SGML source to this document contains information for
     each different architecture -- marked sections are used to isolate
     certain bits of text as architecture-specific.


11.2. Contributing to This Document
-----------------------------------

     If you have problems or suggestions regarding this document, you
     should probably submit them as a bug report against the package
     `boot-floppies'.  See the `bug' or `reportbug' package or read the
     online documentation of the Debian Bug Tracking System
     (http://www.debian.org/Bugs/).  It would be nice if you could check
     the open bugs against boot-floppies
     (http://www.debian.org/Bugs/db/pa/lboot-floppies.html) to see whether
     your problem has already been reported.  If so, you can supply
     addition corroboration or helpful information to
     <XXXX@bugs.debian.org>, where <XXXX> is the number for the
     already-reported bug.

     Better yet, get a copy of the SGML source for this document, and
     produce patches against it.  The SGML source can be found in the
     `boot-floppies'; try to find the newest revision in the unstable
     (ftp://ftp.debian.org/debian/dists/unstable/) distribution.  You can
     also browse the source via CVSweb
     (http://cvs.debian.org/boot-floppies/); for instructions on how to
     check out the sources via CVS, see README-CVS
     (http://cvs.debian.org/~checkout~/boot-floppies/README-CVS?tag=HEAD%26content-type=text/plain)
     from the sources.

     Please do _not_ contact the authors of this document directly.  There
     is also a discussion list for `boot-floppies', which includes
     discussions of this manual.  The mailing list is
     <debian-boot@lists.debian.org>.  Instructions for subscribing to this
     list can be found at the Debian Mailing List Subscription
     (http://www.debian.org/MailingLists/subscribe) page; an online
     browsable copy can be found at the Debian Mailing List Archives
     (http://www.debian.org/Lists-Archives/).


11.3. Major Contributions
-------------------------

     Many, many Debian users and developers contributed to this document.
     Particular note must be made for Michael Schmitz (m68k support), Frank
     Neumann (original author of the Debian Installation Instructions for
     Amiga
     (http://www.informatik.uni-oldenburg.de/~amigo/debian_inst.html)),
     Arto Astala, Eric Delaunay/Ben Collins (SPARC information), Tapio
     Lehtonen, and Stéphane Bortzmeyer for numerous edits and text.

     Extremely helpful text and information was found in Jim Mintha's HOWTO
     for network booting (no URL available), the Debian FAQ
     (http://www.debian.org/doc/FAQ/), the Linux/m68k FAQ
     (http://www.linux-m68k.org/faq/faq.html), the Linux for SPARC
     Processors FAQ (http://www.ultralinux.org/faq.html), the Linux/Alpha
     FAQ (http://www.alphalinux.org/faq/FAQ.html), amongst others.  The
     maintainers of these freely available and rich sources of information
     must be recognized.


11.4. Trademark Acknowledgement
-------------------------------

     All trademarks are property of their respective trademark owners.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------


     Installing Debian GNU/Linux 2.2 For Alpha

     Bruce Perens
     Sven Rudolph
     Igor Grobman
     James Treacy
     Adam Di Carlo

     version 2.2.20, 25 November, 2000