Oh man don't hate me.

I'm trying to learn Linux both @ home and at work, for use at work. Have posted home problems previously today...

Work problem is: Slackware 9.1 installed on 1RU server w/ ibase IB800 P4 "computer on a card" w/ Intel 845 chipset. CD-ROM is primary slave. Highpoint RAID controller w/ 2 120GB IDEs configured pre-slack install as RAID 1 (this hides the second disk and just presents one physical device to Linux, this is /dev/hde). Note that I don't think that disk config is the problem, just full disclosure...IB800 also has onboard NIC ID'd as eth0 82801-based Intel nic (this is the suspect, read below)

Installation proceeded normally via boot off of Slack CD, including partitioning etc. Used default (bare.i) kernel both for load and installed to hard disk, did full install. Upon reboot and select Linux build from LILO, the text loads, then the penguin appears, then it loads a whole mess of stuff (including the /usr, /home partitions etc and then it seems like it's loading the NIC up when it says:

eth0: Intel Corp. 82801BA/BAM/CA/CAM Ethernet controller
Board assembly 000000-000, Physical conectors present: RJ45
Primary interface chip i82555 PHY #1
General self-test: passed
Serial sub-system self-test: passed
Internal registers self-test: passed
ROM checksum self-test: passed (0x04f4518b)

and then it just STOPS, no ifs ands or buts just hangs. KB won't respond, reset button is only option. I don't know if it's something having to do with the nic or the load step after that, as I don't have the experience.

Very frustrating ALSO because I don't even know how to disable items on startup (like the NIC) - what's the Linux version of the F8 key?

Another option- As a guess...maybe load kernel off of CD, then mount...some drive containing some config file somewhere, then edit that config file using "some program" (I really don't know d*ck about Linux, sorry - I know all about the Conspiracy but I just don't have the flight time on Linux) to exclude the NIC on boot? Or to disable the USB support that's mentioned as potentially problematic in Grogan's install directions on bitbender.com...

Have changed Pnp OS in BIOS to Disabled with no love, cannot find way to disable on board NIC in BIOS, will be pulling hood off in a moment in search of jumpers to do this.

Final option would be to blow it away and go again, declining network setup this time...would maybe take less time but I'll have to figure out the (supposed) NIC problem eventually...

If you've got any advice, you've got to treat my like a retard re: every key
stroke in Linux, I just don't know how to even walk in this world...

Thanks -
ReallyWildStuff

Have a look at the different options that can be passed to lilo (or grub) on boot up. I don't have all the details at my finger tips, but for example it is possible to tell the system to boot up into maintenance mode, or a basic shell, or run level 1 (does Slackware have these levels?).

Doing so may or may not help your problems, but it is one way to stop network interfaces being brought up for example.

Something like this works on RedHat at least:

boot: linux init 1

or

boot: linux /bin/sh

but check the details somewhere to make sure.

Still, in my experience a complete lockup like that is usually hardware related (faulty memory, video card, or HDD).

Mick

Just now got to Mick's suggestion, which worked, and I am now running around in the box.

MuchosGracias -

RWS