path: root/distrib/notes/i386/install

Installing OpenBSD is a relatively complex process, but if you have
this document in hand and are careful to read and remember the
information which is presented to you by the install program, it
shouldn't be too much trouble.

Before you begin, you should know the geometry of your hard disk, i.e.
the sector size (note that sector sizes other than 512 bytes are not
currently supported), the number of sectors per track, the number of
tracks per cylinder (also known as the number of heads), and the
number of cylinders on the disk.  The OpenBSD kernel will try to
discover these parameters on its own, and if it can it will print them
at boot time.  If possible, you should use the parameters it prints.
(You might not be able to because you're sharing your disk with
another operating system, or because your disk is old enough that the
kernel can't figure out its geometry.)

If OpenBSD will be sharing the disk with DOS or another operating
system, you should have already completed the section of these notes
that instructed you on how to prepare your hard disk.  You should know
the size of the OpenBSD area of the disk and its offset from the
beginning of the disk.  You will need this information when setting up
your OpenBSD partitions.  If you BIOS uses translated geometry, you
should use this geometry for the remainder of the install.  This is
only neccecary if you are sharing the disk with other operating systems
that use the translated geometry.

You should now be ready to install OpenBSD.  It might be handy for you
to have a pencil, some paper, and a calculator handy.

The following is a walk-through of the steps you will take while
getting OpenBSD installed on your hard disk.  If any question has a
default answer, it will be displayed in brackets ("[]") after the
question.  If you wish to stop the installation, you may hit Control-C
at any time, but if you do, you'll have to begin the installation
process again from scratch.  If, at any point, the kernel panics
with "ffs_valloc" your inst floppy is probably corrupted.  You
should make a new inst floppy or fsck your existing one (if you can).

	Boot your machine using of the floppy.fs floppy.  When
	presented with the boot prompt hit return.  If the boot prompt
	does not appear in a reasonable amount of time, you either
	have a bad boot floppy or a hardware problem.  Try writing the
	floppy.fs floppy image to a different disk, and using that.
	If that doesn't work, try booting after disabling your CPU's
	internal and external caches (if any).  If it still doesn't
	work, OpenBSD probably can't be run on your hardware.  This can
	probably be considered a bug, so you might want to report it.
	If you do, please include as many details about your system
	configuration as you can.

	It will take a while to load the kernel from the floppy,
	most likely more than a minute.  If some action doesn't
	eventually happen, or the spinning cursor has stopped and
	nothing further has happened, either your boot floppy is
	bad or you are having hardware problems, and should proceed
	as outlined above.

	You will then be presented with the OpenBSD kernel boot
	messages.  You will want to read them, to determine your
	disk's name and geometry.  Its name will be something like
	"sd0" or "wd0" and the geometry will be printed on a line that
	begins with its name.  As mentioned above, you will need your
	disk's geometry when creating OpenBSD's partitions.  You will
	also need to know the name, to tell the install tools what
	disk to install on.  If you cannot read the messages as they
	scroll by, do not worry -- you can get at this information
	later inside the install program.

	While booting, you will probably see several warnings.  You
	should be warned that no swap space is present, and that
	init(8) cannot find /etc/rc.  Do not be alarmed, these are
	completely normal.  When you reach the prompt asking you for a
	shell name, just hit return.

	You will be presented with a welcome message and a prompt.  At
	this time you should enter the command "install" to start the
	installation process.

	You will be asked which terminal type to use, you should just
	hit return to select the default (pc3).

	The install program will then tell you which disks of that
	type it can install on, and ask you which it should use.  The
	name of the disk is typically "wd0" for IDE/RLL/ESDI/ST506
	drives or "sd0" for SCSI drives.  Reply with the name of your
	disk.

	Next you will have to edit or create a disklabel for the disk
	OpenBSD is being installed on.  If there are any existing
	partitions defined (for any operating system), and a disk label
	is not found, you will first be given an opportunity to run
	fdisk and create an OpenBSD partition.

	If fdisk is being invoked on your behalf, it will start by
	displaying the current partitions defined and then allow you
	to modify this information, add new partitions and change
	which partition to boot from by default.  If you make a mistake,
	you will be allowed to repeat this procedure as neccecary to
	correct this.  Note that you should make OpenBSD be the active
	partition at least until the install has been completed.

	Next the disk label which defines the layout of the OpenBSD file
	systems must be set up.  The installation script will invoke an
	editor allowing you to do this.  Note that partition 'c' inside
	this disk label should ALWAYS reflect the entire disk, including
	any non-OpenBSD portions.  The root file system should be in
	partition 'a', and swap is usually in partition 'b'.  If you have
	DOS or Linux partitions defined on the disk, these will usually
	show up as partition 'h', 'i' and so on.  It is recommended that
	you create seperate partitions for /usr and /var, and if you have
	room for it, also for /home.

	Note that all OpenBSD partitions in the disk label must have an
	offset that makes it start within the OpenBSD part of the disk,
	and a size that keeps it inside of that portion of the disk.  This
	is within the bounds of the 'c' partition if the disk is not being
	shared with other operating systems, and within the OpenBSD fdisk
	partition if the disk is being shared.

	The swap partition (usually 'b') should have a type of "swap", all
	other native OpenBSD partitions should have a type of "4.2BSD".
	Block and fragment sizes are usually 8192 and 1024 bytes, but can
	also be 4096 and 512 or even 16384 and 2048 bytes.

	The install program will now label your disk and ask which file
	systems should be created on which partitions.  It will auto-
	matically select the 'a' partition to be the root file system.
	Next it will ask for which disk and partition you want a file
	system created on.  This will be the same as the disk name (eg.
	"wd0") with the letter identifying the partition (eg. "d")
	appended (eg. "wd0d").  Then it will ask where this partition is
	to be mounted, eg. /usr.  This process will be repeated until
	you just hit return.

	At this poing you will be asked to confirm that the file system
	information you have entered is correct, and given an opportunity
	to change the file system table.  Next it will create the new file
	systems as specified, OVERWRITING ANY EXISTING DATA.  This is the
	point of no return.

	After all your file systems have been created, the install program
	will give you an opportunity to configure the network.  The network
	configuration you enter (if any) can then be used to do the install
	from another system using NFS, HTTP or FTP, and will also be the
	configuration used by the system after the installation is complete.

	If you select to configure the network, the install program will
	ask you for a name of your system and the DNS domain name to use.
	Note that the host name should be without the domain part, and that
	the domain name should NOT include the host name part.

	Next the system will give you a list of network interfaces you can
	configure.  For each network interface you select to configure, it
	will ask for the IP address to use, the symbolic host name to use,
	the netmask to use and any interface-specific flags to set.  The
	interface-specific flags are usually used to determine which media
	the network card is to use.  The flags usually carry the following
	meaning:

		-link0 -link1	Use BNC (coaxial) port [default]
		link0 -link1	Use AUI port
		link0 link1	Use UTP (twisted pair) port

	After all network interfaces has been configured the install pro-
	gram will ask for a default route and IP address of the primary
	name server to use.  You will also be presented with an opportunity
	to edit the host table.

	At this point you will be allowed to edit the file system table
	that will be used for the remainder of the installation and that
	will be used by the finished system, following which the new file
	systems will be mounted to complete the installation.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
	To install from floppy:
		The first thing you should do is pick a temporary
		directory where the distribution files can be stored.
		To do this, enter the command "Set_tmp_dir", and enter
		the name of the temporary directory.  (Don't forget
		that if your disk is still mounted under /mnt; you
		should probably pick a directory under /mnt/usr.)

		After you have picked a temporary directory, enter the
		"Load_fd" command, to load the distribution sets from
		your floppies.

		You will be asked which floppy drive to use.  Enter
		"0" (zero) if you're using the first floppy drive
		(i.e. what DOS would call "A:"), or enter "1" if
		you're using the second.  (Unlike previous installers,
		you may use the floppy drive that you booted from.
		Simply eject the install floppy -- the installation
		process does not need it like it used to).

		You will be prompted to insert a floppy into the drive,
		to have its contents copied to your hard disk.  Do so,
		and hit return to begin copying.  When that is done,
		read the remainder of the floppies that contain the
		distribution sets that you want to install, one by
		one.  When the last is read, and you are being
		prompted for another, hit Control-C.

		Run the "Extract" command once for each distribution
		set you wish to install.  For instance, if you wish to
		install the "base21" distribution set, followed by the
		"man21" distribution set, and finally the "etc21"
		distribution set, use the commands:
			Extract base21
			Extract man21
			Extract etc21

		For each extraction, it will ask you if the extraction
		should be verbose.  If you reply affirmatively, it
		will print out the name of each file that's being
		extracted.

		(Note: if you know that you will be running low on
		disk space when installing OpenBSD, you can load and
		extract one distribution set at a time.  To do this,
		load only the floppies which contain the files for the
		first distribution set, extract them, and then change
		to the temporary directory and remove them with the
		command "rm set_name.??".)

		Once you are finished extracting all of the sets that
		you wish to install, you should proceed to the
		instructions below (after the last install medium
		type-specific instructions), that explain how you
		should configure your system.

	To install from tape:
		The first thing you should do is pick a temporary
		directory where the distribution files can be stored.
		To do this, enter the command "Set_tmp_dir", and enter
		the name of the temporary directory.  (Don't forget
		that your disk is mounted under /mnt; you should
		probably pick a directory under /mnt/usr.)  The
		default is /mnt/usr/distrib.

		After you have picked a temporary directory, enter the
		"Load_tape" command, to load the distribution sets from
		tape.

		You will be asked which tape drive to use.  The
		default is "rst0", which is correct if you're using
		the SCSI tape drive with the lowest SCSI ID number.
		(For the SCSI tape drive with the next lowest SCSI ID
		number, you should use "rst1", and so on.)

		You will be prompted to hit return when you have
		inserted the tape into the tape drive.  When you do,
		the contents of the tape will be extracted into the
		temporary directory, and the names of the files being
		extracted will be printed.

		After the tape has been extracted, to go the directory
		containing the first distribution set you wish to
		install.  (Depending on how you made the tape, it's
		probably a subdirectory of the temporary directory you
		specified above.)  Once there, run the "Set_tmp_dir"
		command again, and accept its default answer by
		hitting return at the prompt.

		Use the "Extract" command to extract the distribution
		set.  For instance, if you're extracting the "base21"
		set, use the command:
			Extract base21
		You will be asked if you wish the extraction to be
		verbose.  If you reply affirmatively, the name of each
		file being extracted will be printed.

		Repeat the previous two steps for each distribution
		set you wish to install.  Change to the set's
		directory, run "Set_tmp_dir", and then run
		"Extract <set_name>" to extract the set.

		Once you are finished extracting all of the sets that
		you wish to install, you should proceed to the
		instructions below (after the last install medium
		type-specific instructions), that explain how you
		should configure your system.

	To install via FTP or NFS:
		The first thing you should do is pick a temporary
		directory where the distribution files can be stored.
		To do this, enter the command "Set_tmp_dir", and enter
		the name of the temporary directory.  (Don't forget
		that your disk is mounted under /mnt; you should
		probably pick a directory under /mnt/usr.)  The
		default is /mnt/usr/distrib.

		Configure the appropriate ethernet interface (e.g.
		ed0, ep0, etc.) up, with a command like:

		ifconfig <ifname> <ipaddr> [netmask <netmask>]

		where "<ifname>" is the interface name, like those
		listed above, and "<ipaddr>" is the numeric IP address
		of the interface.  If the interface has a special
		netmask, supply the word "netmask" at and that netmask
		at the end of the command line.  (The brackets
		indicate that those arguments are optional.)  For
		instance, to configure interface ed0 with IP address
		129.133.10.10, use the command:

		ifconfig ed0 129.133.10.10

		and to configure interface ep0 with IP address
		128.32.240.167 and a special netmask, 0xffffff00, use
		the command:

		ifconfig ep0 128.32.240.167 netmask 0xffffff00

		If your board selects software selection of the
		ethernet interface to use, you might have to add
		special flags to the "ifconfig" command you use.
		Consult the table below for the appropriate flags:

		Interface Type	Connector	Flags
		--------- ----	---------	-----
		ed with WD/SMC*	BNC		[none necessary]
		ed with WD/SMC*	UTP		[none necessary]
		ed with WD/SMC*	AUI		link0
		ed with 3c503	BNC		[none necessary]
		ed with 3c503	AUI		link0
		ep		BNC		[none necessary]
		ep		AUI		link0
		ep		UTP		link0 link1

		* Older WD boards do not support software configuration,
		  and must be configured via jumpers.  These flags
		  will have no effect on them.

		In other words, if, in the last example, the AUI port
		of the board were being used, you would use the
		command:

		ifconfig ep0 128.32.240.167 netmask 0xffffff00 link0

		If the NFS server or FTP server is not on a directly-
		connected network, you need to set up a route to it
		using a command like:

		route add default <gate_ipaddr>

		where <gate_ipaddr> is your gateway's numeric IP
		address.

		If you are NFS-mounting the distribution sets, mount
		them on the temporary directory with a command like:

		mount -t nfs <serv_ipaddr>:<dist_dir> <tmp_dir>

		where <serv_ipaddr> is the server's numeric IP address,
		<dist_dir> is the path to the distribution files on
		the server, and <tmp_dir> is the name of the local
		temporary directory.

		Once this is done, proceed as if you had loaded the
		files from tape, changing to the appropriate
		directories, running "Set_tmp_dir", and running
		"Extract" as appropriate.

		If you are retrieving the distribution sets using ftp,
		change into the temporary directory, and execute the
		command:

		ftp <serv_ipaddr>

		where <serv_ipaddr> is once again the server's numeric
		IP address.  Get the files with FTP, taking care to
		use binary mode when transferring the files.

		Once you have all of the files for the distribution
		sets that you wish to install, you can proceed using
		the instructions above, as if you had installed from a
		floppy.  (Note that as with the floppy install, if
		you're short on disk space, you can transfer only one
		set at a time, extract it, then delete it, to save
		space.)

	Once you have finished extracting all of the distribution sets
	that you wish to install, and are back at the "#" prompt, you
	are ready to configure your system.  The configuration utility
	expects that you have installed the "base21" and "etc21"
	distribution sets.  If you have not, you will not be able to
	run it successfully (nor will you have a functional system, in
	any case).  To configure your newly-installed OpenBSD system,
	run the command "Configure".  It will ask you for the system's
	host name, domain name, and other network configuration
	information.  It will set up your configuration files and make
	the device nodes for the newly-installed system.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

	When all the selected distribution sets has been extracted, you
	will be allowed to select which time zone your system will be
	using, all the device nodes needed by the installed system will
	be created for you and the file systems will be unmounted.


Congratulations, you have successfully installed OpenBSD 2.1. When you
reboot into OpenBSD, you should log in as "root" at the login prompt.
There is no initial password, but if you're using the machine in a
networked environment, you should create yourself an account and
protect it and the "root" account with good passwords.

Some of the files in the OpenBSD 2.1 distribution might need to be
tailored for your site.  In particular, the /etc/sendmail.cf file will
almost definitely need to be adjusted, and other files in /etc will
probably need to be modified, as well.  If you are unfamiliar with
UN*X-like system administration, it's recommended that you buy a book
that discusses it.