Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

[Janina Sajka]

I've just compiled up a 2.4.0 kernel without a hitch -- until I get to
issuing the lilo command for the new configuration. This gives me a
geo_comp_addr too big error.

The hd hasn't changed since last I booted with 2.2.18. It's been the size
it /hda1 has been the size it is for some time, actually. But 2.4.0
doesn't like it. If I comment out the new kernel and execute lilo,
everything is OK.

Is there anything that I can do short of sizing hda1 down? That doesn't
sound like progress!


-- 

				Janina Sajka, Director
				Technology Research and Development
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				American Foundation for the Blind (AFB)

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Re: Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

[Kirk Reiser]

Hi Again Janina:  Check the size of the kernel you built.  Did you
compile it as a zImage or a bzImage?  Looks more like lilo is
complaning about the size of the kernel rather than the size of the
drive.

  Kirk

-- 

Kirk Reiser				The Computer Braille Facility
e-mail: kirk@braille.uwo.ca		University of Western Ontario
phone: (519) 661-3061

Re: Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

[Janina Sajka]

The kernel is a bzImage of 651,696 bytes. Is that too large? Seems to me
that this should just make it.

The exact error lilo is reporting is:

geo_comp_addr: Cylinder number is too big (1530 > 1023)

Sure sounds like the old "keep it below 1024"

There was one other problem, now that I look back at the logs. 'make
modules_install' complained about depmod -f. I ran depmod -a 2.4.0 by
hand, but is this perhaps not the same thing? Might this be a modules
issue?



On 8 Jan 2001, Kirk Reiser wrote:

> Hi Again Janina:  Check the size of the kernel you built.  Did you
> compile it as a zImage or a bzImage?  Looks more like lilo is
> complaning about the size of the kernel rather than the size of the
> drive.
> 
>   Kirk
> 
> -- 
> 
> Kirk Reiser				The Computer Braille Facility
> e-mail: kirk@braille.uwo.ca		University of Western Ontario
> phone: (519) 661-3061
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Speakup mailing list
> Speakup@braille.uwo.ca
> http://speech.braille.uwo.ca/mailman/listinfo/speakup
> 

Re: Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

[Kirk Reiser]

Hi Janina: You may be suffering on both accounts from out of date
utilities.  I don't know the later version on lilo but modutils came
out with a 2.4.0 at the same time that version of linux was released.
Now I know you don't need to have that version exactly because I don't
but you do need a fairly recent version.

  Kirk

-- 

Kirk Reiser				The Computer Braille Facility
e-mail: kirk@braille.uwo.ca		University of Western Ontario
phone: (519) 661-3061

Re: Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

[Kirk Wood]

Janina,

One thing that comes to mind here for me. I know that slackware puts the
kernel image in the root directory with a softlink in the /boot
directory. This can cause confusion as far as I can see. What I have found
is that you can put the image in the /root directory (which I go ahead and
put on the first available partition) and skip the softlink altogether. I
name the kernel something that will help me remember when I compiled it
and any special features. I can find nothing sacred about vmlinuz other
then that it is the common name scheme. But I have seen the same (or a
similar) problem where someone continued following the slackware original
setup.

=======
Kirk Wood
Cpt.Kirk@1tree.net

Cluelessness
	There are no stupid questions, but there are a lot of 
	inquisitive idiots

Re: Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

[John Covici]

I would use the lba32 keyword in your lilo.conf and if lilo doesn't
like it you have an old (by our standards) version of lilo.


-- 
         John Covici
         covici@ccs.covici.com

Re: Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

[Kerry Hoath]

If you have a new enough version of lilo set lba32
in the global section to allow the bios to talk to cylinders above >1024.
Lilo needs the bios to load the kernel so most people create a 10-20meg /boot
partition <1024 to hold lilo boot maps and kernel images.

If your bios supports the phoenix int13 extentions (most do) then setting lba32
in the global section should make lilo work.

Regards, Kerry.
On Mon, Jan 08, 2001 at 10:43:22PM -0500, Janina Sajka wrote:
> The kernel is a bzImage of 651,696 bytes. Is that too large? Seems to me
> that this should just make it.
> 
> The exact error lilo is reporting is:
> 
> geo_comp_addr: Cylinder number is too big (1530 > 1023)
> 
> Sure sounds like the old "keep it below 1024"
> 
> There was one other problem, now that I look back at the logs. 'make
> modules_install' complained about depmod -f. I ran depmod -a 2.4.0 by
> hand, but is this perhaps not the same thing? Might this be a modules
> issue?
> 
> 
> 
> On 8 Jan 2001, Kirk Reiser wrote:
> 
> > Hi Again Janina:  Check the size of the kernel you built.  Did you
> > compile it as a zImage or a bzImage?  Looks more like lilo is
> > complaning about the size of the kernel rather than the size of the
> > drive.
> > 
> >   Kirk
> > 
> > -- 
> > 
> > Kirk Reiser				The Computer Braille Facility
> > e-mail: kirk@braille.uwo.ca		University of Western Ontario
> > phone: (519) 661-3061
> > 
> > _______________________________________________
> > Speakup mailing list
> > Speakup@braille.uwo.ca
> > http://speech.braille.uwo.ca/mailman/listinfo/speakup
> > 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Speakup mailing list
> Speakup@braille.uwo.ca
> http://speech.braille.uwo.ca/mailman/listinfo/speakup
> 

-- 
--
Kerry Hoath: kerry@gotss.eu.org
Alternates: kerry@emusys.com.au kerry@gotss.spice.net.au or khoath@lis.net.au
ICQ UIN: 62823451

Re: Lilo geo_comp_addr Error with 2.4.0

[Kerry Hoath]

There is a reason for the simlink aproach.
make zlilo or make bzlilo will copy a kernel to /vmlinuz
and automatically run lilo. This means if the default kernel is
vmlinuz in the root, thinks will just go.
Many people however only create a 10-20 megabyte partition for /boot
keeping the intire contents below cylinder 1024. The simlink keeps /vmlinuz
below this magic cylinder. Now that most bioses and
lilo support lba32 adressing, this problem should go away
in the long term.

The simlink aproach also means you have 1 simlink cluttering up the root
directory and can put the rest of the kernels in /boot/* and
referr to them as /boot/blah
Most comercial unixes stored the kernel image (not images) in the root
of the tree hence the historic convention.

REgards, Kerry
On Tue, Jan 09, 2001 at 07:40:27AM -0600, Kirk Wood wrote:
> Janina,
> 
> One thing that comes to mind here for me. I know that slackware puts the
> kernel image in the root directory with a softlink in the /boot
> directory. This can cause confusion as far as I can see. What I have found
> is that you can put the image in the /root directory (which I go ahead and
> put on the first available partition) and skip the softlink altogether. I
> name the kernel something that will help me remember when I compiled it
> and any special features. I can find nothing sacred about vmlinuz other
> then that it is the common name scheme. But I have seen the same (or a
> similar) problem where someone continued following the slackware original
> setup.
> 
> =======
> Kirk Wood
> Cpt.Kirk@1tree.net
> 
> Cluelessness
> 	There are no stupid questions, but there are a lot of 
> 	inquisitive idiots
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Speakup mailing list
> Speakup@braille.uwo.ca
> http://speech.braille.uwo.ca/mailman/listinfo/speakup
> 

-- 
--
Kerry Hoath: kerry@gotss.eu.org
Alternates: kerry@emusys.com.au kerry@gotss.spice.net.au or khoath@lis.net.au
ICQ UIN: 62823451