Debian on the n900 / Configuring NOLO

Hello all,

I'm interested in exploring installing Debian on the n900. I assume
that for the most part, if I loosely follow these instructions:
http://www.debian.org/releases/stable/arm/apds03.html.en

... that it may be possible to do so.

However, I realize I need to configure the bootloader to load off the SD
card. This is proving a bit hard to do, however, as I cannot find any
documentation on configuring the NOLO bootloader. So even if I install
the system, I don't know how to get it to boot! :)

Advice on this is appreciated. (Any other advice to heed while
exploring this I am receptive to hearing as well...)

Thanks,
- cwebb

On Thu, 2009-11-26 at 05:10 +0100, ext Christopher Allan Webber wrote:
> Hello all,
>
> I'm interested in exploring installing Debian on the n900. I assume
> that for the most part, if I loosely follow these instructions:
> http://www.debian.org/releases/stable/arm/apds03.html.en
>
> ... that it may be possible to do so.
>
> However, I realize I need to configure the bootloader to load off the SD
> card. This is proving a bit hard to do, however, as I cannot find any
> documentation on configuring the NOLO bootloader. So even if I install
> the system, I don't know how to get it to boot! :)
>
> Advice on this is appreciated. (Any other advice to heed while
> exploring this I am receptive to hearing as well...)

Did you try giving it as the kernel command line:
./flasher -broot=/dev/mmcblk1

Didn't work for me, though. It seems the kernel module needed for the
memory cards is not loaded yet.

-Kimmo

>
> Thanks,
> - cwebb

On Thu, Nov 26, 2009 at 4:10 AM, Christopher Allan Webber
<cwebber@dustycloud.org> wrote:
> Hello all,
>
Hiya,

> However, I realize I need to configure the bootloader to load off the SD
> card.  This is proving a bit hard to do, however, as I cannot find any
> documentation on configuring the NOLO bootloader.  So even if I install
> the system, I don't know how to get it to boot!  :)
>
> Advice on this is appreciated.  (Any other advice to heed while
> exploring this I am receptive to hearing as well...)
>

Thanks to Carsten Munk, bootmenu gained N900 support:
http://talk.maemo.org/showpost.php?p=344412&postcount=16
> Thanks,
>  - cwebb
> _______

Best Regards,
Faheem
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> maemo-developers mailing list
> maemo-developers@maemo.org
> https://lists.maemo.org/mailman/listinfo/maemo-developers
>

Kimmo Hämäläinen wrote:
> On Thu, 2009-11-26 at 05:10 +0100, ext Christopher Allan Webber wrote:
>> However, I realize I need to configure the bootloader to load off the SD
>> card. This is proving a bit hard to do, however, as I cannot find any
>> documentation on configuring the NOLO bootloader. So even if I install
>> the system, I don't know how to get it to boot! :)

This was not possible (or documented if possible) on previous devices.
It would be great to have bootloder configurable. But anyway, it is
quite unlikely there is mmc and ext2 support inside NOLO.

Workaround was changing root early in boot sequence. For previous
devices it was like this even for stock system - initfs (/dev/mtd3) is
set as root in kernel command line and it does some initialization and
then does pivot_root into real root (/dev/mtd4). bootmenu was the
solution. See https://wiki.maemo.org/Booting_from_a_flash_card

With N900 initfs is not used (even if currently present on device !?)
and root is hardcoded in kernel command line. Initial bootmenu changes
for N900 is there but I am still not sure whant option is the best when
there is no initfs.

The current easy way is to change /sbin/preinit in rootfs in flash but
it is not optimal.

I am thinking about some way to modify kernel command line in currently
flashed kernel on the fly and possibly also attaching small initramfs
filesystem to it. Any tips regarding this would be helpful. I guess
unzipping, changing commandline and re-gzipping and reflashing kernel is
doable but I am not sure if initramfs can be attached to kernel or it
needs to be loaded by bootloader separately.

>>
>> Advice on this is appreciated. (Any other advice to heed while
>> exploring this I am receptive to hearing as well...)
>
> Did you try giving it as the kernel command line:
> ./flasher -broot=/dev/mmcblk1

Is this commandline stored somewhere in config partition for N900? It
would be great to have it there. Sounds like good enhancement request
for bugzilla :-)

So far the -b option was only one time option when you have usb cable
with flasher attached so it is not usable for changing boot sequence
permanently.


> Didn't work for me, though. It seems the kernel module needed for the
> memory cards is not loaded yet.

True. mmc interface is compiled as module now. I wonder why (when
considering that we have one mmc card hardwired inside).

Frantisek