HOW-TO: Mandrake 9.2 with nForce2 based ethernet controller

SpiritAuthor · 12-15-2003, 08:27 AM

I did type the /sbin/depmod -a and I apologize for not mentioning in my post that the output was inconsistent. What I mean was that it did something but I also got a few "permission denied" errors.

So I guess the real question should have been, should I log in as root and run that again to get past those few errors?

Don't you just hate working with dumb-as-rocks newbies? :-) Insert disk, press enter, scroll down... :-)

Poulpy · 12-15-2003, 09:23 AM

Of course, everything needs to be done as root, as it touches to critical files on the system. I'll add this detail to my first post.

I'll sugest you to get back to the beginning and redo everything as root.

Regards,
Poulpy.

/bin/bash · 12-15-2003, 12:14 PM

Quote:

From Kernel README file
To do the actual install you have to be root, but none of the normal
build should require that. Don't take the name of root in vain.

Of course this requires you untar the sources as user in a directory where you have write permission.

Poulpy · 12-15-2003, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by /bin/bash
Of course this requires you untar the sources as user in a directory where you have write permission.

Well, my solution does not involve the use of tar as it's based on the RPM release of the source kernel, which needs to be installed by root...

SpiritAuthor · 12-15-2003, 11:22 PM

I did what /bin/bash has suggested and re-ran everything logged in as root. But when I tried to install the NVIDIA driver it said it was already installed so I went to Drakconnect and I'm back to square one again.

Even though I downloaded and installed the kernel-source-2.4.22-10mdk.i586.rpm suggested in a previous post, when I do uname -r, I still get only 2.4.22-10mdk. No source, no enterprise, etc.

This is getting to be way too much trouble just to tinker with something that I'd like to switch to. I see all kinds of posts that tell us newbies to untar this and just rpm that and run /whatever and I have no clue if I'm doing this right or not. The output flys by so fast that things like "xxx exited abnormally" get lost in a hundred lines of output so how do I even know if it ran correctly when I don't know what to look for?

Do I want to continue paying tribute to uncle Bill? No. I've hated Bill for 20 years because he's trying to take over the world. By the same token do I have time to spend (about 10 hours now) running command lines to get my year-old network card to work? No, I don't.

Yes, this is frustration and sadness at it's worst because I really do want to switch to Linux if I can. In my old machine I had no problems installing Mandrake 9.0 and I only had one issue with lilo but a year ago I upgraded and decided to get the newest AMD on the market and wait for Linux to catch up. Guess that didn't happen.

Can anyone out there suggest what I might be doing wrong in plain no tarball, no bz, no /// language? That'd be great if it's at all possible.

Since I've now lost my floppy, CD and Windows data drive mount, I'll ask again. Do I just start over with a clean install? Do I buy a CD with a newer kernel than the 10.22mdk I have? What would be the best fix for this? Do I flash the BIOS on my mb?

Sorry for the long post but I'm at the end of my command line rope here.

Thoughts?

Poulpy · 12-16-2003, 04:07 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by SpiritAuthor I did what /bin/bash has suggested and re-ran everything logged in as root. But when I tried to install the NVIDIA driver it said it was already installed so I went to Drakconnect and I'm back to square one again.

Can't help you there, I did not do it that way.

Quote:

Originally posted by SpiritAuthor Even though I downloaded and installed the kernel-source-2.4.22-10mdk.i586.rpm suggested in a previous post, when I do uname -r, I still get only 2.4.22-10mdk. No source, no enterprise, etc.

That should be fine, uname -r returns the version of the running kernel, so you'll never get source in the return string. The linux kernel you are running is selected at boot time, in the LILO (or GRUB) menu.

Quote:

Originally posted by SpiritAuthor This is getting to be way too much trouble just to tinker with something that I'd like to switch to. I see all kinds of posts that tell us newbies to untar this and just rpm that and run /whatever and I have no clue if I'm doing this right or not. The output flys by so fast that things like "xxx exited abnormally" get lost in a hundred lines of output so how do I even know if it ran correctly when I don't know what to look for?

When you're running a command that displays too much information, append 2>&1 | more
at the end of the command line (i.e. ls -lR 2>&1 | more). Once you get error messages, copy and paste them here with the command you typed.

Quote:

Originally posted by SpiritAuthor Do I want to continue paying tribute to uncle Bill? No. I've hated Bill for 20 years because he's trying to take over the world. By the same token do I have time to spend (about 10 hours now) running command lines to get my year-old network card to work? No, I don't.

Hey, it takes time to learn new things, I've myself been programming and hacking computers for almost 20 years now and still learn new stuff everyday.

Quote:

Originally posted by SpiritAuthor Yes, this is frustration and sadness at it's worst because I really do want to switch to Linux if I can. In my old machine I had no problems installing Mandrake 9.0 and I only had one issue with lilo but a year ago I upgraded and decided to get the newest AMD on the market and wait for Linux to catch up. Guess that didn't happen.

The problem here is more related to the NVidia drivers than to the CPU or the kernel.

Quote:

Originally posted by SpiritAuthor Can anyone out there suggest what I might be doing wrong in plain no tarball, no bz, no /// language? That'd be great if it's at all possible.

That would be difficult, as it certainly involves several commands to be typed.

Quote:

Originally posted by SpiritAuthor Since I've now lost my floppy, CD and Windows data drive mount, I'll ask again. Do I just start over with a clean install? Do I buy a CD with a newer kernel than the 10.22mdk I have? What would be the best fix for this? Do I flash the BIOS on my mb?

I'd go for a clean install of Mandrake 9.2, following my first and third posts step by step.

Quote:

Originally posted by SpiritAuthor Sorry for the long post but I'm at the end of my command line rope here.

Thoughts?

Well, I won't push you anywhere, I'm just trying to help you, answering your questions...
A few hints:

be sure to read everything carefully, a little typo or a missed step can cause the whole thing to fail;
pay attention to every error message, most of them will inform you that you're doing something wrong;
be the most acurate possible when posting your error messages;
be sure to be logged in as root (type su -) when installing RPMs and playing with system files.

Regards,
Poulpy.

/bin/bash · 12-16-2003, 09:38 AM

Here is what the HOWTO that Poulpy linked to is telling you to do in simpler terms.

You want to build an nvidia module so you need the kernel sources installed. To get the proper sources you need to know what version kernel you have. To find the kernel version run uname -r. Lets say that gives you 2.4.22-10mdk. So now you need an rpm named kernel-source-2.4.22-10mdk.i586.rpm. Install that rpm and you should have sources installed at /usr/src. Also note that should already set a symlink /usr/src/linux -> /usr/src/linux-2.4.22-10mdk. If it doesn't make the symlink you can make it yourself:

cd /usr/src
rm -f linux
ln -s linux-2.4.22-10mdk linux

Now the original HOWTO post doesn't mention make mrproper but that is a necessary step. When you go into /usr/src/linux you can type ls -a and you will see a file like .need_mrproper. That means you need to run make mrproper from the /usr/src/linux directory. After running make mrproper then you can copy the config file to /usr/src/linux/.config and run make oldconfig.

Something you are getting stuck on is the -enterprise. The writer of the HOWTO was obviously booting an enterprise kernel but if you are booting a standard mandrake kernel then the config file you need it /usr/src/linux/arch/i386/defconfig, copy that to /usr/src/linux/.config and run make oldconfig. Alternately like I posted previously Mandrake will store a copy of the kernel config file in the /boot directory, so you could use that one.

Once you get to this point then you go to the nvidia driver source directory and make the module and install it. If you get the error that the module is already installed then first run make uninstall. If you cant run make uninstall then go into the /lib/modules/`uname -`r/kernel directory and look for the nvidia driver probably in driver/net directory and delete the driver.

Remember any errors means you have problems and you need to start over. Warnings during the module build are not fatal so dont worry about them too much. depmod warnings/errors are bad too.

Poulpy · 12-16-2003, 09:51 AM

Nice summary!

SpiritAuthor · 12-16-2003, 10:35 PM

Thanks guys for putting up with my rantings here. Want to hear something funny? At age 40 (13 years ago) I went back to school and got a programming and system analyst degree. I never did much development but ended up in support doing everything from building machines from scratch to networking, cabling and training. After 7 years of working more hours each week than the calender actually listed, I got burned out and I've been a technical writer and author for the past 6 years. Guess I made it longer than a lot or people. A friend of mine who wanted to be a techie so bad she could taste it, got a few certifications and after about 18 months, quit. She got tired of being treated like dirt and getting called at 2 AM from a CEO who couldn't sleep and wanted to send emails to his wife or something stupid like that.

I still like to tinker (thus my Linux experiments) but I guess I forgot (or maybe Uncle Bill made me forget; scary!) that true knowledge comes from experimentation and a few crashes.

I'll do a clean install and start at the top once again. Time to put my techie hat back on.

I'll get back to you guys in a few days or so when I have some time to dedicate to the project.

Thanks again for being so patient.

/bin/bash · 12-17-2003, 11:10 AM

Well good luck. Don't worry we've all been where you are now.

My LinuxQuestions Philosophy:
If you're not getting paid for this then you're doing it for fun. If it's no longer fun then whats the point?

SpiritAuthor · 12-19-2003, 09:05 PM

One more question before I start this process over. On my first install I took the defaults for everything but after poking around a bit I realized that many of the tools you guys were recommending we use weren't there. (ifconfig, for example).

Should I NOT allow Mandrake to pick the packages? If not, which packages are a necessity to get this thing off the ground properly and make the fix work?

Thanks for your help

/bin/bash · 12-20-2003, 03:10 PM

You could put this on a vfat formatted floppy and call it auto_inst.cfg. I can't guarantee it will have everything you need but you should be able to build a module with it and get your network going.

Code:

# You should always check the syntax with 'perl -cw auto_inst.cfg.pl'
# before testing.  To use it, boot with ``linux defcfg=floppy''
$o = {
       'default_packages' => [
			       'locales',
			       'locales-en',
			       'msec',
			       'perl',
			       'devfsd',
			       'bootsplash',
			       'mandrake_desk',
			       'vim-enhanced',
			       'vim-X11',
			       'urw-fonts',
			       'binutils',
			       'gcc',
			       'lynx',
			       'libstdc++5-devel',
			       'libtool',
			       'hotplug',
			       'wget',
			       'gnupg',
			       'apache2',
			       'eject',
			       'urpmi',
			       'python',
			       'XFree86',
			       'aspell',
			       'ghostscript-module-X',
			       'myspell-en_AU',
			       'myspell-en_CA',
			       'myspell-en_GB',
			       'myspell-en_US',
			       'myspell-hyph-en',
			       'aspell-en',
			       'kdegraphics-kghostview',
			       'apache2-mod_php',
			       'tmpwatch',
			       'galaxy-kde-kwin',
			       'mandrake-mime',
			       'libkdecore4-devel',
			       'kdebase-kdm',
			       'kdebase-progs',
			       'kdebase-servicemenu',
			       'mdkkdm',
			       'm4',
			       'man',
			       'perl-libwww-perl',
			       'autoconf',
			       'links',
			       'automake',
			       'galeon',
			       'gcc-c++',
			       'patch',
			       'efax',
			       'perl-devel',
			       'rpm-build',
			       'kdebase-kate',
			       'kdebase-kdeprintfax',
			       'kdebase-konsole',
			       'openssh-clients',
			       'perl-Mysql',
			       'procmail',
			       'sudo',
			       'php-gd',
			       'libncurses5-devel',
			       'ImageMagick',
			       'postgresql',
			       'gurpmi',
			       'userdrake',
			       'xmms',
			       'bind-utils',
			       'ispell-en',
			       'iptables',
			       'words',
			       'apache2-mod_perl',
			       'gimp',
			       'groff',
			       'kdegames',
			       'kdepim-kaddressbook',
			       'kdepim-knotes',
			       'kdepim-kpilot',
			       'mkisofs',
			       'psutils',
			       'xemacs',
			       'cdrecord',
			       'cvs',
			       'gettext-devel',
			       'gtk-engines2',
			       'kdeutils-ark',
			       'kdeutils-kcalc',
			       'kdeutils-kcharselect',
			       'kdeutils-kdepasswd',
			       'kdeutils-kfloppy',
			       'nautilus',
			       'zip',
			       'gdb',
			       'gnome-applets',
			       'gnucash',
			       'gphoto2',
			       'kdemultimedia-common',
			       'kdeutils',
			       'metacity',
			       'tkinter',
			       'xchat',
			       'cdrecord-cdda2wav',
			       'gnome-control-center',
			       'gnome-panel',
			       'gnome-terminal',
			       'icewm-light',
			       'mtools',
			       'libkdepim2-devel',
			       'enlightenment',
			       'evolution',
			       'freeciv-client',
			       'kdegraphics-kdvi',
			       'kdegraphics-kfax',
			       'kdegraphics-kpaint',
			       'kdegraphics-kruler',
			       'kdegraphics-ksnapshot',
			       'kdegraphics-kuickshow',
			       'kdegraphics-mrmlsearch',
			       'kdemultimedia-kaudiocreator',
			       'kdemultimedia-kmix',
			       'kdemultimedia-kscd',
			       'kdesdk',
			       'mailx',
			       'nfs-utils-clients',
			       'recode',
			       'rxvt',
			       'sharutils',
			       'WindowMaker-devel',
			       'XFree86-75dpi-fonts',
			       'apache2-mod_suexec',
			       'cdparanoia',
			       'chromium',
			       'cooledit',
			       'dev86',
			       'enscript',
			       'flphoto',
			       'giftrans',
			       'gqview',
			       'gtk-engines',
			       'gtkam',
			       'hdparm',
			       'kdeedu',
			       'kdenetwork-kget',
			       'kdenetwork-kit',
			       'kdenetwork-kmail',
			       'kdenetwork-knewsticker',
			       'kdenetwork-knode',
			       'kdenetwork-korn',
			       'kdenetwork-krfb',
			       'kdenetwork-ksirc',
			       'kdenetwork-ktalk',
			       'lsb',
			       'menudrake',
			       'metamail',
			       'proftpd',
			       'qiv',
			       'quanta',
			       'rsync',
			       'samba-client',
			       'strace',
			       'telnet-client-krb5',
			       'traceroute',
			       'wv',
			       'libkdebase4-devel',
			       'libkdeedu1-devel',
			       'libkdegames1-devel',
			       'libkdesdk1-devel',
			       'libkdetoys1-devel',
			       'libkdeutils1-devel',
			       'libkdevelop2-devel',
			       'GXedit',
			       'LinNeighborhood',
			       'MySQL',
			       'WindowMaker',
			       'XFree86-100dpi-fonts',
			       'XFree86-cyrillic-fonts',
			       'alsa-utils',
			       'ami',
			       'apache2-manual',
			       'apache2-mod_ssl',
			       'armagetron',
			       'at',
			       'aterm',
			       'bash-completion',
			       'bash-doc',
			       'bison',
			       'blackbox',
			       'bzflag',
			       'clanbomber',
			       'coreutils-doc',
			       'csmash',
			       'cxhextris',
			       'dev86-devel',
			       'dia',
			       'diffstat',
			       'drakconf',
			       'drakfirsttime',
			       'draksync',
			       'dump',
			       'ee',
			       'emacs-X11',
			       'eroaster',
			       'ethemes',
			       'file-roller',
			       'flex',
			       'frozen-bubble',
			       'ftp-client-krb5',
			       'gaim',
			       'galaxy-gnome',
			       'galaxy-kde',
			       'gawk-doc',
			       'gconf-editor',
			       'gedit',
			       'gftp',
			       'gimp-data-extras',
			       'gnome-audio',
			       'gnome-chess',
			       'gnome-games',
			       'gnome-iconedit',
			       'gnome-media',
			       'gnome-pim',
			       'gnome-telnet',
			       'gnome-utils',
			       'gnome-vfs-extras',
			       'gnomemeeting',
			       'gnorpm',
			       'gnucash-hbci',
			       'gnucash-ofx',
			       'gnuplot',
			       'grip',
			       'grub',
			       'grub-doc',
			       'gtk-themes',
			       'gucharmap',
			       'harddrake',
			       'hexedit',
			       'howto-html-en',
			       'icepref',
			       'icewm',
			       'info',
			       'jed',
			       'jed-xjed',
			       'joe',
			       'k3b',
			       'kbear',
			       'kde-i18n-af',
			       'kde-i18n-ar',
			       'kde-i18n-az',
			       'kde-i18n-bg',
			       'kde-i18n-bs',
			       'kde-i18n-ca',
			       'kde-i18n-cs',
			       'kde-i18n-da',
			       'kde-i18n-de',
			       'kde-i18n-el',
			       'kde-i18n-en_GB',
			       'kde-i18n-eo',
			       'kde-i18n-es',
			       'kde-i18n-et',
			       'kde-i18n-eu',
			       'kde-i18n-fa',
			       'kde-i18n-fi',
			       'kde-i18n-fr',
			       'kde-i18n-he',
			       'kde-i18n-hr',
			       'kde-i18n-hu',
			       'kde-i18n-is',
			       'kde-i18n-it',
			       'kde-i18n-ja',
			       'kde-i18n-ko',
			       'kde-i18n-lt',
			       'kde-i18n-lv',
			       'kde-i18n-mk',
			       'kde-i18n-nb',
			       'kde-i18n-nl',
			       'kde-i18n-nn',
			       'kde-i18n-pl',
			       'kde-i18n-pt',
			       'kde-i18n-pt_BR',
			       'kde-i18n-ro',
			       'kde-i18n-ru',
			       'kde-i18n-se',
			       'kde-i18n-sk',
			       'kde-i18n-sl',
			       'kde-i18n-sr',
			       'kde-i18n-sv',
			       'kde-i18n-ta',
			       'kde-i18n-th',
			       'kde-i18n-tr',
			       'kde-i18n-uk',
			       'kde-i18n-vi',
			       'kde-i18n-zh_CN.GB2312',
			       'kde-i18n-zh_TW.Big5',
			       'kde-i18n-zu',
			       'kdeaddons',
			       'kdeaddons-atlantik',
			       'kdeaddons-konqimagegallery',
			       'kdeaddons-noatun',
			       'kdeartwork',
			       'kdeartwork-kde-classic',
			       'kdebase-nsplugins',
			       'kdegraphics-kooka',
			       'kdegraphics-kview',
			       'kdenetwork-kppp',
			       'kdepim-korganizer',
			       'kdetoys',
			       'kdevelop',
			       'kernel-doc',
			       'kinput2-wnn4',
			       'koffice-i18n-nb',
			       'koffice-i18n-nn',
			       'koffice-i18n-zh_CN',
			       'koffice-i18n-zh_TW',
			       'kon2',
			       'kopete',
			       'krozat',
			       'kterm',
			       'lbreakout2',
			       'ldetect',
			       'lftp',
			       'lilo-doc',
			       'lisa',
			       'ltrace',
			       'man-pages',
			       'mandrake-galaxy',
			       'mandrake_doc-en',
			       'mc',
			       'methane',
			       'mirrordir',
			       'mkxauth',
			       'mod_sxnet',
			       'mountloop',
			       'mozilla-irc',
			       'mrproject',
			       'mures',
			       'nautilus-cd-burner',
			       'ncftp',
			       'nedit',
			       'nmap-frontend',
			       'numlock',
			       'open',
			       'pan',
			       'perl-GTK-Glade',
			       'perl-GTK-Gnome',
			       'perl-Term-Readline-Gnu',
			       'php-imap',
			       'php-ldap',
			       'php-mysql',
			       'php-pgsql',
			       'php-readline',
			       'postgresql-server',
			       'powermanga',
			       'rcs',
			       'rdist',
			       'reiserfsprogs',
			       'rfbdrake',
			       'rgrep',
			       'rocksndiamonds',
			       'routed',
			       'rpmdrake',
			       'rxvt-CJK',
			       'samba-swat',
			       'screem',
			       'screen',
			       'sketch',
			       'slocate',
			       'symlinks',
			       'taipeifonts',
			       'texinfo',
			       'toppler',
			       'totem',
			       'tree',
			       'tuxracer',
			       'usbview',
			       'vlock',
			       'webmin',
			       'xcin',
			       'xfce',
			       'xine-ui',
			       'xlockmore',
			       'xmms-arts',
			       'xmms-kjofol-skins',
			       'xmms-more-vis-plugins',
			       'xmms-skins',
			       'xpdf',
			       'xterm',
			       'xvnkb',
			       'xwpick',
			       'yudit',
			       'zsh',
			       'zsh-doc',
			       'x3270'
			     ]
     };

/bin/bash · 12-20-2003, 03:18 PM

To use it, when you get to the package selection point in the install just click on the floppy icon and insert the floppy and Mandrake will get the package list from the file.

BattleAxe_19 · 12-20-2003, 06:48 PM

I'm a newbie to Linux and I have mandrake 9.2. Like you said, I upgraded my kernel to 2.4.22. When rebuilding the nvidia source rpm, i get problems. As root, I got to the directory with the rpm file and type
' rpm --rebuilddb (because --rebuild doesnt work) <package name>-1.0-1.src.rpm ' just like the help file says. The help file says after the command is completed it supposed to have a line that says ' Wrote: /usr/src/<RPM root dir>/RPMS/....-1.0-1.rpm ' but when i do it...nothing happens.

So...after i give up...i try making the rpm with the tar file. So i extract the files to their own directory. The next step it says is the use the 'make' command. I type 'make' in the new directory and i get many errors.
For instance:

cc : Command not found
*** [nvnet.o] Error 127
leaving directory .../nforce/nvnet
[nvnet_make] Error 12

If anybody can help me with either of these problems...I would greatly appreciate it.

/bin/bash · 12-20-2003, 08:51 PM

Make sure you have the kernel sources installed. Read this thread and the links provided by Poulpy.

cc : Command not found
Try this:
urpmi gcc-3.3.1-2mdk

If you have any more problems or errors just post them.