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README.altboot revision 1.3 
      1  1.1  nisimura /// notes about altboot ///
      2  1.1  nisimura 
      3  1.3       phx $NetBSD: README.altboot,v 1.3 2011/04/08 08:29:07 phx Exp $
      4  1.1  nisimura 
      5  1.1  nisimura Altboot is a functional bridge to fill the gap between a NAS product
      6  1.1  nisimura custom bootloader and the NetBSD kernel startup environment.  Altboot
      7  1.1  nisimura irons out and rectifies erroneously configured HW by product
      8  1.3       phx bootloaders and prepares a sane runtime, better suited for booting
      9  1.1  nisimura NetBSD kernels.
     10  1.1  nisimura 
     11  1.1  nisimura - provides the foundation of a fast NetBSD porting cycle with functionalities
     12  1.1  nisimura   product bootloaders don't have.
     13  1.1  nisimura - facilitates a flexible and clean NetBSD implementation tailoured
     14  1.1  nisimura   to target HW in detail, minimizing bumpy adjustments and hacks in
     15  1.1  nisimura   locore asm and machdeps in very early kernel startup stage.
     16  1.1  nisimura - levels out differences among similar-but-not-the-same porting
     17  1.1  nisimura   targets to make it possible having common NetBSD kernels for them.
     18  1.1  nisimura - builds and hands a bootinfo list to the NetBSD kernel.
     19  1.1  nisimura 
     20  1.3       phx Altboot is known working on at least these models:
     21  1.3       phx 
     22  1.3       phx - KuroBox or LinkStation with a popular U-Boot as the replacement of
     23  1.3       phx   vendor proprietary
     24  1.1  nisimura 
     25  1.1  nisimura    U-Boot 1.1.4 LiSt 2.1.0 (Sep 21 2006 - 00:22:56) LinkStation / KuroBox
     26  1.1  nisimura 
     27  1.1  nisimura - Synology 101g+ with vendor custom PPCboot
     28  1.1  nisimura 
     29  1.1  nisimura    PPCBoot 2.0.0 (Mar  1 2005 - 15:31:41)
     30  1.1  nisimura 
     31  1.2       phx - D-Link DSM-G600 with heavily restricted vendor custom U-Boot
     32  1.2       phx 
     33  1.2       phx    U-Boot 0.2.0 (May 26 2005 - 19:38:32)
     34  1.2       phx 
     35  1.3       phx - QNAP TS-101 (V200) with vendor custom U-Boot
     36  1.3       phx 
     37  1.3       phx    U-Boot 1.1.2 (Aug 28 2005 - 13:37:25) QNAP System, Inc.
     38  1.3       phx 
     39  1.1  nisimura The standard use of altboot is to invoke it with a short script from
     40  1.3       phx U-Boot/PPCboot, where the altboot.bin image is stored in an unoccupied 128KB
     41  1.1  nisimura section of the target's HW NOR flash.  Combined with standard
     42  1.1  nisimura U-Boot/PPCboot functions, it is possible to boot a NetBSD kernel off
     43  1.1  nisimura it right after power-on, without the help of manual intervention.  Note
     44  1.1  nisimura that the original U-Boot/PPCboot still remains useful and altboot works
     45  1.1  nisimura as a functional extension for them.
     46  1.1  nisimura 
     47  1.3       phx In case the firmware was crippled by the vendor so that it only boots
     48  1.3       phx Linux U-Boot images (D-Link), you can still use altboot by uploading
     49  1.3       phx altboot.img instead of the Linux kernel.
     50  1.3       phx 
     51  1.1  nisimura Altboot hands the following bootinfo records to the NetBSD/sandpoint
     52  1.1  nisimura kernel.
     53  1.1  nisimura - processor clock tick value driving MPC8241/8245.
     54  1.1  nisimura - serial console selection.
     55  1.1  nisimura - booted kernel filename and which device it was fetched from.
     56  1.1  nisimura - Ethernet MAC address, if target HW lacks SEEPROM to store a unit unique
     57  1.1  nisimura   value.
     58  1.1  nisimura - product family indication.
     59  1.1  nisimura - preloaded kernel module names (under development).
     60  1.1  nisimura 
     61  1.1  nisimura                              ### ### ###
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