Re: Can you install Solaris x86 via serial terminal?

From: Darren Dunham (ddunham_at_redwood.taos.com)
Date: 05/08/03 

Date: Wed, 07 May 2003 23:47:54 GMT

Tom <tom@nospam.techbait.net> wrote:
> I was wondering if it's possible to plug in a serial terminal or cable
> to a laptop running a COM program, pop in the install CD, and install
> Solaris the way I can on a sparc box?

Not that way. You have to boot into the install program, so your COM
program isn't running.

It is possible to get the boot environment to sent the console through a
com port, but it's a bit tricky if you haven't done it before.

Best is if you could get to the machine first and try to boot from a DCA
floppy (it's writable, and the cdrom is not). If that works, you can go
into the menu and set up the boot tasks so that input and output is to
com1.

If anything goes wrong before I/O is on com1, you're hosed over the
serial line. You dont have an OBP to talk to like you do on SPARC.

Finally, some models of PC hardware have firmware that will allow
redirection of the console to a com port. I know some Compaq and Dell
models do this. Once you've got that going, you're pretty well set.

You can't generally set up the kdmconfig that way though. Just skip it
and let the installation continue. 

-- 
Darren Dunham                                           ddunham@taos.com
Unix System Administrator                    Taos - The SysAdmin Company
Got some Dr Pepper?                           San Francisco, CA bay area
         < This line left intentionally blank to confuse you. >

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