*BSD News Article 25054


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Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.questions
Path: sserve!newshost.anu.edu.au!munnari.oz.au!bunyip.cc.uq.oz.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!yeshua.marcam.com!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!ufo!bret!ceg
From: ceg@bret.jpl.nasa.gov (Chuck Goodhart)
Subject: [NetBSD] memory requirements
Message-ID: <1993Dec16.064939.21289@jpl-devvax.jpl.nasa.gov>
Sender: usenet@jpl-devvax.jpl.nasa.gov (For NNTP so rrn will be able to post)
Nntp-Posting-Host: hyper-bret.jpl.nasa.gov
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory; Pasadena, CA
Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1993 06:49:39 GMT
Lines: 41

I have a 386sx with 3Meg, 100Meg hard disk, NE2000 ethernet card, and
a 16550 serial port.  I'd like to use it as a dedicated modem server,
allowing dial-in SLIP access or network modem dial-out.

In "[comp.os.386bsd] BNR/2 derived BSD for PCs FAQ (Part 2 of 10)" I read:
> 1.4   Minimum hardware configuration recommended
>
[deleted]
>
>       The smallest install-able platform is an 80386, using an MGA card, 
>       with at least 2Meg of RAM and a 20 Megabyte hard disk.

However, in "INSTALL_NOTES" of "NetBSD-0.9" I read:
> INSTALLATION NOTES for NetBSD/i386 0.9			<1.21>
[deleted]
> System Requirements and Supported Devices:
> ------ ------------ --- --------- -------
[deleted]
> The minimal configuration includes
> 4Meg of RAM, and a 60Meg hard disk,

Hoping that my 3Meg would be sufficient, I booted the "kc-aha-09p1.fs"
floppy and fed it the "inst1-09.fs" floppy.  The resultant messages
included something like (please forgive the approximate messages, I can't
get to the machine right now):

real mem    41xxxxx
avail mem   28xxxxx

followed by a screen-full of blather about the hardware in my system.
Its last words before locking up were something about switching root
to the floppy drive.

My questions:
1) Is NetBSD installable on my 3Meg 386sx?
2) If so, what's going wrong?
3) Why the difference between the FAQ and the INSTALL_NOTES?

advTHANKSance
-- 
Chuck Goodhart, ceg@pizza.jpl.nasa.gov