Next
Previous
Contents
This section describes the choices available, which options are practical,
which ones I decided on and why.
The best tool for this is a mini-Linux. There's a wide selection of small
Linuces available on the net, but most of them won't boot in 4mb RAM. I found
two that will:
- SmallLinux
http://smalllinux.netpedia.net/
SmallLinux will boot in as little as 2mb RAM but its
root disk can't be taken out of the drive, which is a shame since otherwise
it has everything we need (i.e. fdisk, mkswap and mkfs.ext2). SmallLinux can
create the needed partitions but can't be used to copy the root partition.
- muLinux
http://sunsite.auc.dk/mulinux/
muLinux will boot in 4mb but only in a limited single-user
mode. In this mode fdisk and mkswap are available but mkfs.ext2 and the libraries
needed to run it are on the /usr partition which is not available in maintenance
mode. To use muLinux to do the whole pre-installation procedure the files needed
to create ext2 file-systems must be extracted from the usr disk image and copied
onto a floppy.
This gives the option of either using SmallLinux to create the partitions
and muLinux to copy the root partition or using muLinux to do the whole job.
Since I had two laptops I tried both.
It didn't take much time to choose Slackware. Apart from the fact that
I like it but haven't used it much and want to learn more, I considered the
following points:
- Slackware has possibly the most low-tech DIY install of all the major distributions.
It is also one of the most flexible, coming with a wide range of boot-disk
kernels to suit many different machines. This makes it well suited to the kind
of hacking about required in this scenario.
- Slackware supports all the methods listed in
Which Installation method to use?.
- Slackware is a distribution designed by one person. I'm sure Patrick Volkerding
won't object if I say this means its configuration tools are simpler and more
streamlined. In my opinion this makes the job of trimming the installation
to fit cramped conditions easier.
Version 7.0 was the latest version when I tried this so that's what I used.
But I don't like Slackware!
You don't have to use it. I can't answer for all the distributions but
I know that Debian, Red Hat and SuSE offer a range of installation methods
and have an "expert" installation procedure
Does Debian do any other kind?
which can be used here. Most of the steps in this document would apply
to any of the distributions without change.
If you haven't used the expert method with your preferred distribution
before, do a trial run on a simple desktop machine to get the feel of it and
to explore the options it offers.
- Floppy Install
This means churning out 15 floppies - which only gives
you an absolute minimal install and requires a second stage to get the apps
you want on. It's also very slow on such low-spec machines. This is a last
resort if you can't make the others work.
- Parallel-port Install
Where the parallel port has an IDE device,
parallel cable or pocket ethernet adaptor
A pocket lan adaptor installation onto these machines will be very slow.
attached. This would be a good choice for the Aero, leaving the
PCMCIA slot free to run the floppy drive.
- PCMCIA Install
As above, this could be a CD-ROM or network install.
This would be the best method for the T1910 - on the Aero it's a bit more awkward.
- ISA/PCI Ethernet Install
Not an option for the laptops, obviously,
but included in case your target machine is a desktop PC.
The tools I had to hand dictated a PCMCIA network install. I will point
out where steps differ for the other methods. Whichever method you choose,
you need to have a higher-spec machine available - even if only to create the
disks for a floppy install.
Basic Requirement
This procedure requires at least two Linux Native partitions in addition
to a Swap partition. Since one of the ext2 partitions will be in use as temporary
root during the installation it will not be available as a target partition
and so should be small - though no smaller than 5mb. It makes sense to create
for this a partition that you will re-use as /home after installation is complete.
Another option would be to re-create it as a DOS partition to give you a dual
boot laptop.
How complex a layout?
There isn't room to get too clever here. There is an argument for having
a single ext2 partition and using a swap file to avoid wasting space but I
would strongly urge creating a separate partition for /usr. If you have only
one partition and something goes wrong with it you may well be faced with a
complete re-installation. Separating /usr and having a small partition for
/ makes disaster recovery a more likely prospect. On both machines I created
4 partitions in total:
- A swap partition -- 16mb on the T1910, 20 on the Aero (I'm more likely
to upgrade the memory on the Aero).
- /home (temporary root during installation) -- 10mb
- / -- 40mb on the T1910, 30mb on the Aero.
- /usr -- All the remainder.
In addition, the Aero uses hda3 for a 2mb DOS partition containing configuration
utilities. See the Aero FAQs for details.
The full glibc libraries alone would nearly fill the hard disks so there's
no question of building a development machine. It looks as if a minimal X installation
can be squeezed in but I'm sure it would crawl and I don't want it anyway.
I decide to install the following (for a full listing see
Appendix A):
- The core Linux utilities
- Assorted text apps from the ap1 file set:
- Info/FAQ/HOWTO documentation
- Basic networking utilities
- The BSD games
This selection matches the kind of machine described in
What use is a small laptop?.
Next
Previous
Contents
|