Re: Booting a CD using grub-0.93

[Robert Millan]

On Wed, Oct 15, 2003 at 10:11:17AM +0100, Chris Lingard wrote:
> On Tuesday 14 October 2003 7:12 pm, Robert Millan wrote:
> >
> > I'm all for getting this patch integrated, but don't think I'm the most
> > indicate for that as I'm unfamiliar with stage1 internals and it'd take me
> > a lot of time to figure out what the i386 assembler code in stage1 is
> > doing.
> 
> I am sorry, I did not know that there was so much "politics" involved.
> 
> I have read stage1.S, both in its original form, and the new version, and
> find the new version well documented.  But it is some years since I did
> assembler coding.

Actualy, I think it's more important to update with latest CVS. This way it
can be useful for everyone by just applying the patch on their own.

> I am not a grub developer, I came here because Linux from Scratch is switching
> to grub for version 5; and I make a bootable CD to distribute it.

That's nice.. I have two suggestions for you:

1- You could use the patch without merging it into CVS (Debian does this sort
   of things many times)
2- PUPA (the next generation of GNU GRUB) supports Linux and vfat, maybe you
   can build and vfat image, put a base GNU/Linux system on it and boot it
   from CD via El Torito.

As for #2, I'm going to try it as i'm interested on it myself. I'll tell/give
you the results.

> I think that you should decide a strategy.  Does grub exist solely for 
> Debian/Hurd; or do you want to become a "global" boot loader?

If you look at "info multiboot Overview Motivation", you'll find that GRUB
is the only bootloader that really intends to be "global" by supporting the
multiboot specification.

Asides from this, it's capable to boot most popular non-multiboot compliant
kernels like Linux and kernels of *BSD.

-- 
Robert Millan

"[..] but the delight and pride of Aule is in the deed of making, and in the
thing made, and neither in possession nor in his own mastery; wherefore he
gives and hoards not, and is free from care, passing ever on to some new work."

 -- J.R.R.T, Ainulindale (Silmarillion)