To: Edwin Foo <efoo@crl.dec.com>
Subject: Re: bootloader
References: <Pine.NEB.4.21.0006141121240.2332-100000@r2d2.crl.dec.com>
From: nathanw@mit.edu (Nathan J. Williams)
Date: 14 Jun 2000 12:27:12 -0400
In-Reply-To: Edwin Foo's message of "Wed, 14 Jun 2000 11:23:47 -0400 (EDT)"
Message-ID: <mtuog54qlcv.fsf@contents-vnder-pressvre.mit.edu>
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Xref: contents-vnder-pressvre.mit.edu netbsd.ipaq:15

Edwin Foo <efoo@crl.dec.com> writes:

> I was poking through the bootloader source on handhelds.org last night. To
> me, it seems that you need to change is bootloader.c -- the new bootloader
> doesn't grok a.out, unfortunately, and we'll need to add that support
> back. You've got my Skiff now, so I can't test it, but I think that's the
> route you need to take. It shouldn't be possible to kill the bootloader
> this way unless you compile it strangely, since the core code that
> initializes the CPU and sets up the serial console is not changing.

Okay...

> I'd stick with a linux build environment for the bootloader until you
> figure out how to create a bootloader that loads a.out NetBSD kernels --
> don't build it under NetBSD until we have a means to re-flash the board
> via JTAG. You can download the cross-compile tools we're using (for
> linux) off of handhelds.org too I believe.

Current state:
 - The bootloader that was on the board can boot some NetBSD kernels
   (1.4.2 EBSA285, 1.4Z EBSA285)
 - That same bootloader can not boot equivalent-vintage kernels
   cross-compiled with the pkgsrc arm-netbsd tools on my netbsd box.

I feel like I'm missing something from what you said, though. While
the above evidence clearly indicates that something is borked with my
cross-compiler setup, why is building the bootloader under Linux
instead of NetBSD relevant?

        - Nathan
