Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

max_sipos · 2005-03-09 22:32:56

Hello,

I am working for some while now with another person trying to install Arch onto a Thinkpad 240. I've even ordered one for myself as they are great, cheap used machines. However, at the moment, it seems impossible to install Arch onto these laptops. Note that these laptops do not have internal cd-rom (only PCMCIA). The BIOS does not allow booting using the PCMCIA cdrom. The floppy image (ether-pcmcia-wireless) does not have the ide-cs module which is needed when the pcmcia cdrom is inserted into the machine (cardctl says so). The floppy image also lacks the xirc2ps_cs needed to use the Xircom PCMCIA network card. All of these drivers are available in /lib/modules of the full arch distribution. I do not understand why they were not included as the part of the pcmcia floppy image.

I've tried writing a floppy with the two modules from my desktop Arch machine, however that just results in an incompability error message. We've also tried using te Smart Boot Manager, however it does not detect the PCMCIA cdrom.

Is there any other way to install onto these laptops? Is it possible to obtain these modules required compiled for the kernel that is in the floppy image.

Best regards,
Maksim

max_sipos · 2005-03-11 02:45:53

Bumpy bump.

I'm working on editing the boot floppy disks. Is there a way to obtain the config used to make the floppy kernel?? A script I found that supposedly pulls out the config from a built kernel said t was stripped.

cactus · 2005-03-11 04:36:57

does the laptop have built in networking? Is there a pxe boot option in the bios?

Another possability is building a pxe boot floppy, specific to the network device (could even be pcmcia nic if that is all it has), and setting up a pxe server and just booting and installing from that.

noobohno · 2006-11-15 01:18:28

max_sipos wrote:

Hello,
I am working for some while now ... trying to install Arch onto a Thinkpad 240.

I'm trying to do the same with my old Thinkpad 240. It's a great little laptop, and its a shame to see it go to waste. I think Arch can revive it.

The 240 has only a pcmcia CD-Rom, which my experience of other distros tells me is grief itself to try to boot from. I'm now trying to bypass it with the Arch floppy boot disks and a FTP installation. The LAN card needed for a net connection, though, is also pcmcia, so I expect, and get, a further challenge.

After loading 4 floppies (boot, root, pcmcia and ethernet), the installation suggests, for machines with pcmcia network cards, running command 'cardmgr'. But 'cardmgr' isn't loaded with the floppies.

Moreover, the card configuration database, usually stored I think in /etc/pcmcia/config, is absent, which I can't figure out, as I thought that and a load of card drivers was what the Arch pcmcia floppy would have installed.

Anyhow, I download cardmgr and write it to a floppy, but I find can't access it. 'Mount -t vfat /dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy' fails, with message 'No such file or directory'. I can't understand that, as the 4 Arch floppies loaded fine with 'loaddisk /dev/fd0'.

Can anyone offer any help on these issues?

filoktetes · 2006-11-15 02:39:48

Just, are you sure the directory /mnt/floppy exist?
The error message, at least, claims that it doesn't. If it's there, something is strange. If it isn't, just create it before mounting.

noobohno · 2006-11-15 09:07:02

filoktetes wrote:

Just, are you sure the directory /mnt/floppy exist?
The error message, at least, claims that it doesn't. If it's there, something is strange. If it isn't, just create it before mounting.

Yes, it exists alright. I'm assuming 'No such device' refers to /dev/fd0 rather than the mount point /mnt/floppy.

filoktetes · 2006-11-15 14:26:23

max_sipos wrote:

'Mount -t vfat /dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy' fails, with message 'No such file or directory'.

Ok, you just quoted the wrong error message, then.
It is strange, though, if loaddisk can mount /dev/fd0. I checked, and it doesn't create any device nodes.

noobohno · 2006-11-15 14:31:10

filoktetes wrote:

max_sipos wrote:
'Mount -t vfat /dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy' fails, with message 'No such file or directory'.
Ok, you just quoted the wrong error message, then.
It is strange, though, if loaddisk can mount /dev/fd0. I checked, and it doesn't create any device nodes.

I did indeed quote the wrong error message, sorry. Loaddisk does mount it, though, and loads the install floppies. I'm stumped.

Arch Linux

#1 2005-03-09 22:32:56

Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

#2 2005-03-11 02:45:53

Re: Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

#3 2005-03-11 04:36:57

Re: Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

#4 2006-11-15 01:18:28

Re: Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

#5 2006-11-15 02:39:48

Re: Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

#6 2006-11-15 09:07:02

Re: Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

#7 2006-11-15 14:26:23

Re: Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

#8 2006-11-15 14:31:10

Re: Floppy installation on Thinkpad 240

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