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Core Linux Installation Guide

This version of the documentation is no longer maintained. It is kept on-line for reference, as it may be of use to some. However, an installation guide for the latest version of Core Linux can be found from the index page

Preparation

  1. Download the mass-2.tar file.
    • Visit the Core Linux Website and click on the "Files" link.
    • From the list of files click on mass-2.tar to download it via HTTP.
    • You will be asked to choose a mirror site to use. Choose one closest to you.
    • You will be asked where you wish to save the file to. Chose a safe place and make a note of it.
    • The download is a little under 30Mb and will take at least three hours over a modem, but a lot less over a broadband connection.
    • If you are using a download accelerator program, it will save the file to your default download directory.
  2. Download the latest Linux kernel from www.kernel.org. You will need the full source code, not just an update or patch. Download it in .tar.gz format. This guide is based on a 2.4 series kernel.
    • Visit www.kernel.org
    • Look for the text "The latest stable version of the Linux kernel is:"
    • Follow that line along the screen until you reach a link named F
    • Click on the F to download the full kernel source via HTTP.
    • You will be asked to where you wish to save the file. Chose a safe place and make a note of it.
    • The download is a little over 30Mb and will take at least three hours over a modem, but a lot less over a broadband connection.
    • If you are using a download accelerator program, it will save the file to your default download directory.
    • This document uses kernel 2.4.19, and so the file downloaded was called linux-2.4.19.tar.gz though this will differ if you choose a different kernel version.
  3. Download any other applications you plan to install (eg Apache)
    • If you know you want to install certain pieces of software on your Core Linux distribution, download the source code from the appropriate website.
    • Be sure to read the documentation included with the source code or on the website and download any pre-requisite programs.
  4. Extract all the files from mass-2.tar.
    • Under a Linux environment:
      • Switch to the directory containing the mass-2.tarfile:
        cd full-directory-path
    • Untar the file using:
      tar xvf mass-2.tar
    • The files will then be untarred to the directory mass-2.
    • Under a Windows environment:
      • You will need to use WinRar, available from www.rarlab.com
      • If you don't have it, download and install the WinRar software before continuing.
      • Double click on the mass-2.tar icon to open it in WinRar.
      • Highlight all the files listed in the WinRar window, and drag them all to a safe known directory. This will extract the files.
  5. Burn the contents of mass-2.tar and the kernel .tar.gz file to a CD. Burn any additional applications to a subdirectory (perhaps called /apps). The CD-ROM can be a multi-session disk, allowing you to add any files you have forgotten.
    • Use your CD burning software to create an ISO9660 disc image with the following contents:
      • The files extracted from the mass-2.tar file in the root of the disk.
      • The Linux kernel .tar.gz file also in the root directory.
      • Any additional applications in the /apps directory.
    • Burn the CD and verify the data stored on it.
  6. Create the boot disk, the root disk and the "util" disk. Label the disks clearly. The fourth disk will be a backup disk. If you will be backing up to a MS-DOS/Windows system, ensure that the backup disk is formatted with FAT.
    • Under a Linux environment:
      • Insert the first blank floppy in the floppy disk drive.
      • Change to the mass-2 directory:
        cd /full-directory-path/mass-2
      • Write the boot.i disk image to the floppy:
        dd if=boot.i of=/dev/fd0
      • Wait for the disk write to complete.
      • Remove the disk from the drive and label it "Core Linux Boot Disk"
      • Insert the second blank floppy in the floppy disk drive.
      • Write the root.gz disk image to the floppy:
        dd if=root.gz of=/dev/fd0
      • Wait for the disk write to complete.
      • Remove the disk from the drive and label it "Core Linux Root Disk"
      • Insert the third blank floppy in the floppy disk drive.
      • Write the util.i disk image to the floppy:
        dd if=util.i of=/dev/fd0
      • Wait for the disk write to complete.
      • Remove the disk from the drive and label it "Core Linux Utilities Disk"
    • Under a Windows environment:
      • You will need to use RawWrite, available from here.
      • If you don't have it, download and install the RawWrite software before continuing.
      • Insert the first blank floppy in the floppy disk drive.
      • Run RawWrite.
      • Click on the "Write" tab.
      • In the "Image File" box type the full path of the boot.i disk image, for example:
        c:\windows\desktop\core\boot.i
      • Alternatively, navigate to the image file using the "browse" button to the right of the "Image File" box.
      • Click on the "Write" button and wait for the process to complete.
      • Remove the disk from the drive and label it "Core Linux Boot Disk".
      • Insert the second blank floppy in the floppy disk drive.
      • In the "Image File" box type the full path of the root.gz disk image, for example:
        c:\windows\desktop\core\root.gz
      • Alternatively, navigate to the image file using the "browse" button to the right of the "Image File" box.
      • Click on the "Write" button and wait for the process to complete.
      • Remove the disk from the drive and label it "Core Linux Root Disk".
      • Insert the third blank floppy in the floppy disk drive.
      • In the "Image File" box type the full path of the util.i disk image, for example:
        c:\windows\desktop\core\util.i
      • Alternatively, navigate to the image file using the "browse" button to the right of the "Image File" box.
      • Click on the "Write" button and wait for the process to complete.
      • Remove the disk from the drive and label it "Core Linux Utilities Disk".
      • Close RawWrite.
      • If you need to format your backup floppy with FAT, insert the floppy into the disk drive.
      • Click on the "My Computer" icon on the desktop.
      • Right-click on the floppy disk drive icon and select "Format..."
      • Unselect the "Quick Format" option. (The exact procedure varies between different Windows versions.)
      • Wait for the process to complete.
      • Remove the disk from the drive and label "Core Linux Backup Disk".

Back to simple version

Booting

  1. Boot from the Core Linux Boot disk.
    • Power on the computer with the "Core Linux Boot Disk" in the floppy disk drive.
    • Ensure that your BIOS is set to boot from the floppy drive.
      • Read your motherboard manufacturer's manual for advice on how to do this if you are not sure.
    • The following prompt will appear:
      LILO 22.1 boot :
    • Press Enter to start booting from the disk.
  2. Insert the Core Linux Root Disk when prompted.
    • Wait for the following line to appear:
      VFS: Insert root floppy disk to be loaded into RAM disk and press ENTER
    • Remove the Core Linux Boot Disk from the floppy disk drive and replace it with the Core Linux Root Disk.
    • Press Enter. The boot process will continue.
  3. Login as root. You are not prompted to enter a password.
    • Wait for the following text to appear:
      localhost login:
    • Type root and press Enter.
    • You will be shown a prompt that looks like this:
      [/]#
  4. Mount the Core Linux Utilies Disk under /mnt/floppy.
    • Remove the Core Linux Root Disk and replace it with the Core Linux Utiliies Disk.
    • At the prompt enter:
      mount /dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy
    • You may see the following line appear:
      EXT2-fs warning: mounting unchecked fs, running e2fsck is recommended

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Configuring Hard Disks

  1. Use fdisk to create hard disk partitions as required.
    • Write out a quick list of how you want your hard disk setup.
      • At the very least you will require two partitions, a main "root" partition and a swap partition.
      • Many people suggest that the swap partition should be twice the size of the installed RAM on your machine, although this is not compulsory.
      • You may wish to have separate partitions for some directories, such as /usr which holds a lot of programs and source code and /home which may be a busy directory if you are using the computer for SMB File and Printer Sharing with your network.
      • This example will use separate partitions for both /usr and /home directories.
      • Remember to include partition sizes in your list.
    • The desired partitions can be listed as:
      /dev/hda1   /     300Mb
      /dev/hda2   swap  128Mb
      /dev/hda3   /usr  1200Mb
      /dev/hda4   /home 1200Mb
    • As there are only four partitions, they can all be primary partitions on the hard disk.
    • Run fdisk on the hard disk using the command:
      fdisk /dev/hda
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command (m for help):
    • First Partition
      Type n to create a new partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command action
      e extended
      p primary partition (1-4)
    • Type p to create a primary partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Partition number (1-4):
    • Type 1 to create a primary partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      First cylinder (1-780, default 1)
      The second number in the prompt depends on the number of cylinders on your hard disk, and won't be 780 on all systems.
    • Press enter to accept the default.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Last cylinder or +size or +sizeM or +sizeK (1-780, default 780)
    • As you want /dev/hda1 to be 300Mb in size, enter this:
      +300M
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command (m for help):
    • Second Partition
      Type n to create a new partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command action
      e extended
      p primary partition (1-4)
    • Type p to create a primary partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Partition number (1-4):
    • Type 2 to create the second primary partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      First cylinder (78-780, default 78)
      The new default is the first cylinder after the last partition we created. This means that there will be no unused disc space between the two partitions. (Remember that the default value won't be 78 on all systems.
    • Press enter to accept the default.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Last cylinder or +size or +sizeM or +sizeK (78-780, default 780)
    • As you want /dev/hda2 to be 128Mb in size, enter this:
      +128M
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command (m for help):
    • Third Partition
    • Type n to create a new partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command action
      e extended
      p primary partition (1-4)
    • Type p to create a primary partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Partition number (1-4):
    • Type 3 to create the second primary partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      First cylinder (111-780, default 111)
      The new default is the first cylinder after the last partition we created. This means that there will be no unused disc space between the two partitions. (Remember that the default value won't be 111 on all systems.
    • Press enter to accept the default.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Last cylinder or +size or +sizeM or +sizeK (111-780, default 780)
    • As you want /dev/hda3 to be 1200Mb in size, enter this:
      +1200M
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command (m for help):
    • Fourth Partition
      Type n to create a new partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command action
      e extended
      p primary partition (1-4)
    • Type p to create a primary partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Partition number (1-4):
    • Type 4 to create the second primary partition.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      First cylinder (416-780, default 111)
      The new default is the first cylinder after the last partition we created. This means that there will be no unused disc space between the two partitions. (Remember that the default value won't be 111 on all systems.
    • Press enter to accept the default.
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Last cylinder or +size or +sizeM or +sizeK (416-780, default 780)
    • As you want /dev/hda4 to be 1200Mb in size, enter this:
      +1200M
    • You will then see the prompt:
      Command (m for help):
    • Writing the changes
      Type w to save your new configuration and exit fdisk.
    • You will text appear on the screen as fdisk processes the changes to your hard disk:
      The partition table has been altered!

      Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
       hda: hda1 hda2 hda3 hda4
       hda: hda1 hda2 hda3 hda4
      Syncing disks.
  2. Use mke2fs to format new ext2 partitions.
    • Three of the four partitions need to be formatted with the ext2 filesystem:
      /dev/hda1 /dev/hda3 /dev/hda4
    • Use the mke2fs program to format all three of the devices, one after the other.
      mke2fs /dev/hda1 && mke2fs /dev/hda3 && mke2fs /dev/hda4
    • The program will run, finishing by printing a line saying:
      This filesystem will be automatically checked every 26 mounts or 180 days, whichever comes first. Use tune2fs -c or -i to override.
  3. Use mkswap to format the swap partition.
    • The last remaining partition, /dev/hda2 needs to be formatted as a swap partition using mkswap. Run the mkswap program by entering:
      mkswap /dev/hda2
    • The program will run, finishing by printing a line saying:
      Setting up swapspace version 1, size = 136456248 bytes
      Of course, the exact size of your swap partition may vary from that shown here.
  4. Mount the partition you will use as the root partition for your installation under /mnt/root.
    • At the system prompt type:
      mount /dev/hda1 /mnt/root
    • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
  5. Use mkdir to create empty directories under /mnt/root where you will mount other hard disk partitions (eg /usr or /home).
    • Change to the /mnt/root directory:
      cd /mnt/root
    • The prompt will change to:
      [/mnt/root]#
    • Make the directory under which you will mount /dev/hda3:
      mkdir usr
    • Make the directory under which you will mount /dev/hda4:
      mkdir home
  6. Mount the other partitions at the directories you have just created.
    • At the system prompt enter:
      mount /dev/hda3 /mnt/root/usr
    • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    • At the system prompt enter:
      mount /dev/hda4 /mnt/root/home
    • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.

Back to simple version

Installing the "Core"

  1. Mount the CD with the Core source files at /mnt/cdrom.
    • Insert the CD that you made in the "Preparation" section into the CD-ROM drive.
    • Mount the CD-ROM drive at /mnt/cdrom using the command:
      mount /dev/hdb /mnt/cdrom
    • The system will display a message telling you that the device is read-only:
      mount: block device /dev/hdb is write-protected, mounting read-only
  2. Change to /mnt/cdrom and run the ./install_core script with the argument:./install_core /mnt/root.
    • To do this, first change to the directory under which we just mounted the CD-ROM drive:
      cd /mnt/cdrom
    • Then run the install script with an argument giving the location of the destination directory (your new root filesystem):
      ./install_core /mnt/root
    • This may take a minute or two depending on your system.
    • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
  3. Copy the Linux kernel .tar.gz file to the directory /mnt/root/usr/src.
    • Using the example of the linux-2.4.19.tar.gz file:
      cp linux-2.4.19.tar.gz /mnt/root/usr/src
    • This will take a few seconds to complete and the system will not display a message if everything is OK.
  4. Unmount the floppy disk drive and the CD drive.
    • Move out of the mounted directory:
      cd /
    • Unmount the CD-ROM drive:
      umount /dev/hdb
    • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    • Unmount the floppy drive:
      umount /dev/fd0
    • The system will not display a message if everything is OK. You may remove the floppy disk from the drive.
  5. Change to the new root directory, using the command:
    chroot /mnt/root /usr/bin/env HOME=/root /bin/bash --login
    • The system will not display a message if everything is OK. You are now working within your new root filesystem.

Back to simple version

The Kernel

  • Change to /usr/src. Unzip and untar the kernel source.
  • Add a symlink called linux in the /usr/src directory to the unzipped Linux kernel source directory (eg linux-2.4.19).
  • Change to the Linux kernel source directory.
  • At the system prompt enter:
    make mrproper && make menuconfig
  • Configure your kernel with the features you predict will be necessary for your machine, given its planned purpose. If you have a network card fitted in your system, or will fit one in the near future, remember to select the correct drivers in the Network Configuration section of the kernel configuration interface.
  • Save the configuration file with a memorable name (eg myconfig).
  • At the system prompt enter:
    make dep && make bzImage
  • Copy the file System.map to /boot.
  • Copy the file arch/i386/boot/bzImage to /boot.

    • Back to simple version

    Take time to backup

    1. Insert your backup floppy into the drive.
    2. Mount the floppy, remembering to use the -t msdos switch if necessary.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        mount /dev/fd0 -t msdos /mnt/floppy
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    3. Copy the file /boot/System.map to /mnt/floppy.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cp /boot/System.map /mnt/floppy
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    4. Copy the file /boot/bzImage to /mnt/floppy.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cp /boot/bzImage /mnt/floppy
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
      • If you have a "heavy" kernel, with many features compiled in, then it may not fit on a floppy disk! In which case, backup the config file so you can compile the kernel again if you need to.
    5. You could also backup your kernel config settings if you wish to use them again.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cp /usr/src/linux-2.4.19/myconfig /mnt/floppy
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.

    Back to simple version

    Configure LILO

    1. Change to the /etc directory.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cd /etc
      • The system prompt will change to:
        [/etc]#
    2. Edit the file lilo.conf.
      • Run the nano editor on the lilo.conf file by entering:
        nano lilo.conf
      • The screen will show the contents of lilo.conf with information about the file at the top and bottom of the screen.
    3. Change the line
      image = /boot/vmlinuz
      to read
      image = /boot/bzImage
      • Navigate the file using the arrow keys. Use the backspace key to erase the existing line, and type in the new line.
    4. You may want to add the line
      label = Core
      after the image = /boot/bzImage line.
    5. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: lilo.conf
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    6. At the system prompt enter:
      lilo
      • The system will display the message:
        Warning: LBA32 addressing assumed
        Added Core *
        .

    Back to simple version

    Configure boot settings

    1. Edit /etc/fstab.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano /etc/fstab
    2. Add lines for the swap partition and any other partitions you want mounted on startup.
      • Navigate the file using the arrow keys.
      • Underneath the two existing lines in the file, you need to add lines for the additional partitions on your hard disk.
      • For the swap partition add the following line:
        /dev/hda2  swap  swap  defaults  0  0
      • For the other partitions add the following lines:
        /dev/hda3  /usr  ext2  defaults  1  1
        /dev/hda4  /home ext2  defaults  1  1
    3. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: fstab
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    4. Change to the /sbin directory.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cd /sbin
      • The system prompt will change to:
        [/sbin]#
    5. Add a symlink to swapon called swapoff.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        ln -s swapon swapoff
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    6. Change to the /etc/rc.d directory.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cd /etc/rc.d
      • The system prompt will change to:
        [/etc/rc.d]#
    7. Locally backup the files: rc.si rc.ha rc.rb rc.mu
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cp rc.si rc.si.bak && cp rc.ha rc.ha.bak && cp rc.rb rc.rb.bak && cp rc.mu rc.mu.bak
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    8. Edit rc.si, the system initialisation script.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano rc.si
    9. Add the line
      swapon -a
      after the line mount -a or mount -av
      • Navigate the file using the arrow keys.
    10. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: rc.si
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    11. Edit rc.ha, the system halt script.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano rc.ha
    12. Add the line
      swapoff -a
      before the line umount -a. Change the line umount -a to read
      umount -afv
      • Navigate the file using the arrow keys.
    13. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: rc.ha
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    14. Edit rc.rb, the system reboot script.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano rc.rb
    15. Add the line
      swapoff -a
      before the line umount -a. Change the line umount -a to read
      umount -afv
      • Navigate the file using the arrow keys.
    16. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: rc.rb
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    17. Edit rc.mu, the system initialisation script.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano rc.mu
    18. Change the line
      hostname localhost
      to read
      hostname corebox
      where corebox is the name you want to give your system. This is name that appears at the login prompt.
      • Navigate the file using the arrow keys.
    19. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: rc.mu
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.

    Back to simple version

    Configure basic networking - optional

    1. You should already be in the /etc/rc.d directory. If not, change to it.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cd /etc/rc.d
      • The system prompt will change to:
        [/etc/rc.d]#
    2. Edit the file rc.mu, the initialistaion script for runlevel 3.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano rc.mu
    3. Add the following lines to the end of the file, after the comment # network setup:
      ifconfig eth0 192.168.0.10 netmask 255.255.255.0 up
      • Navigate the file using the arrow keys.
    4. Add additional lines in a similar way for any other ethernet cards on your system.
    5. Add routing rules to the local network and the default gateway:
      route add -net 192.168.0.0/24 dev eth0
      route add -net default gw 192.168.0.1
      Thanks to DJ Ruden for the correction on this section!
    6. You may wish to add comments or echoes to the file for your own information.
    7. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: rc.mu
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    8. Edit the file rc.rb.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano rc.rb
    9. At the second line of the file add the line:
      ifconfig eth0 down
      • Navigate the file using the arrow keys.
    10. Add similar lines for any other ethernet cards on your system, adapting the above example as necessary.
    11. You may wish to add comments or echoes to the file for your own information.
    12. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: rc.rb
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    13. Edit the file rc.ha
      • At the system prompt enter
        nano rc.ha
    14. At the second line of the file add the line
      ifconfig eth0 down
    15. Add similar lines for any other ethernet cards.
    16. You may wish to add comments of echoes to the file for your own information.
    17. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:<
        File Name to write: rc.ha
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    18. Edit /etc/resolv.conf.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano /etc/resolv.conf
    19. Add the following lines to the file:
      domain localhost
      search
      nameserver 192.168.0.1
      nameserver 192.168.1.1
    20. If you have a FQDN for your machine, then you may substitute it into the domain line instead of localhost.
    21. Save the file and exit the text editor.
      • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
      • Type y.
      • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
        File Name to write: /etc/resolv.conf
      • Press Enter.
      • You will be returned to the system prompt.

    Back to simple version

    Another Backup point

    1. Copy /etc/lilo.conf to /mnt/floppy.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cp /etc/lilo.conf /mnt/floppy
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    2. Copy /etc/fstab to /mnt/floppy.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cp /etc/fstab /mnt/floppy
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    3. Copy /etc/rc.d/* to /mnt/floppy.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cp /etc/rc.d/* /mnt/floppy
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
    4. Copy /etc/resolv.conf to /mnt/floppy.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        cp /etc/resolv.conf /mnt/floppy
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.

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    Rebooting to your new system

    1. Unmount the floppy drive and remove the disk.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        umount /dev/fd0
      • The system will not display a message if everything is OK.
      • Remove the floppy from the disk drive.
    2. Reboot the system using:
      shutdown -r now
    3. If you receive an error message at this command and the system does not reboot, use the command:
      shutdown -rn now
      • This command shuts the system down without unmounting the drives.
      • This causes a file system check when the system is restarted, but subsequently, rc.ha and rc.rb control the unmouting of the drives.
    4. When the system has rebooted log in as root.
      • Wait for the following text to appear:
        localhost login:
      • Type root and press Enter.
      • You will be shown a prompt that looks like this:
        [~]#
    5. At the system prompt enter:
      passwd
    6. Type and confirm a new password.
      • The screen displays the following message:
        Changing the password for root
        Enter the new password (minimum of 5, maximum of 8 characters)
        Please use a combination of upper and lower case letters and numbers.
        New password:
      • Enter your new password and press enter.
      • The screen displays the message:
        Re-enter new password:
      • Re-enter your password and press enter.
      • The screen displays the message:
        Password changed.

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    Converting to ext3

    1. Convert your ext2 partitions to ext3 using the tune2fs command.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        tune2fs -j /dev/hdaX
        where hdaX is the partition you wish to convert.
      • The system will display the following message:
        Creating journal inode:done
        followed by two lines of help information.
      • Repeat the operation for the other partitions you wish to convert.
    2. Edit /etc/fstab.
      • At the system prompt enter:
        nano /etc/fstab
    3. Change the lines listing ext2 to read ext3. For example:
      /dev/hda1 / ext3 defaults 1 1
      • Save the file and exit the text editor.
        • Press Ctrl+x on the keyboard.
        • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
          Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?
        • Type y.
        • The contents of the white line at the bottom of the screen will change to read:
          File Name to write: /etc/fstab
        • Press Enter.
        • You will be returned to the system prompt.
    4. Reboot the system using:
      shutdown -r now

    Back to simple version

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