bootsplash screen doesn't appear!
 

Hi all,
I use Redhat 9, kernel 2.4.21, my display adapter is Riva TNT2 32MB. I patch my kernel, then in the Console drivers > Frame Buffer, enabel "Use splash screen instead of boot logo", choose built-in for "nVidia Riva Support". After rebuild the kernel, copy new kernel to /etc/boot/vmlinuz-2.4.21-splash, then I create a initrd file like this:
splash -s -f /etc/bootsplash/themes/Linux/config/bootsplash-1024x768.cfg >> /boot/initrd-2.4.21-splash
I add a option to Grub to use new kernel, but I still see bootlogo instead of bootsplash screen, and there's no /proc/splash .
Am I wrong somewhere?

In lilo, I had to add "inittd = /boot/initrd-2.4.21-splash"
There might some something similar required for grub.

Since the kernel can't access any files at boot time, the splash screen is loaded in a ram-disk at boot time. Your kernel also needs to have support for ram-disks off course. (which is well explained in the readme file of bootsplash.org)

I've already added that line to Grub config file, my kernel has loaded initrd-2.4.21-splash, but no splash screen, only boot logo.

Do you have a framebuffer? (where you console runs at 1024x786 for example, with a nice penguin above it?)

btw.. how can you verify it has loaded the initrd?


I've noticed a double '>' sign in your post fist. That will cause splash to append the new data to the file, instead of overwriting it. :rolleyes:

I included here 2 kernel logs

****This log is when I use single '>', so initrd-2.4.21-slpash is overwrited:

...
ACPI: APM is already active, exiting
rivafb: RIVA MTRR set to ON
Console: switching to colour frame buffer device 80x30
rivafb: PCI nVidia NV4 framebuffer ver 0.9.4 (RIVA-VTNT2, 32MB @ 0xE4000000)
pty: 2048 Unix98 ptys configured
Serial driver version 5.05c (2001-07-08) with MANY_PORTS MULTIPORT SHARE_IRQ SERIAL_PCI ISAPNP enabled
...
RAMDISK driver initialized: 16 RAM disks of 4096K size 1024 blocksize
...
RAMDISK: Couldn't find valid RAM disk image starting at 0.
Freeing initrd memory: 38k freed
...

****This log is when I use double '>', so initrd-2.4.21-splash is appended:
...
ACPI: APM is already active, exiting
rivafb: RIVA MTRR set to ON
Console: switching to colour frame buffer device 80x30
rivafb: PCI nVidia NV4 framebuffer ver 0.9.4 (RIVA-VTNT2, 32MB @ 0xE4000000)
pty: 2048 Unix98 ptys configured
...
RAMDISK driver initialized: 16 RAM disks of 4096K size 1024 blocksize
...
RAMDISK: Compressed image found at block 0
Freeing initrd memory: 185k freed
...

I've see a penguin logo on my screen. I've tried all the way I've known with my initrd file, included compressed, non-compressed, overwrited, appended initrd, but the splash screen doesn't apper at all.:Pengy:
I need help, any help would be appreciate

Did you check all these options, and haven't compiled them as modules?
The file /etc/bootsplash/themes/Linux/config/bootsplash-1024x768.cfg might point to the background image in /etc/bootsplash/current/, so try to use the symlink trick:
ln -s /etc/bootsplash/themes/Linux /etc/bootsplash/current
Then use /etc/bootsplash/current/config/bootsplash-1024x768.cfg instead in the 'splash' arguments list.

Just replacing (or overwriting) it would be sufficient. :) There is no reason to append the file. If you append a file, the data is written at the end of the file. (it grows). Try playing with the "echo" statement, and plain text files ;) you'll quickly see what happens.

Thank you for answering me. Unfortunately, my Linux crashed yesterday, when I reset my computer, my file system is damaged seriously and it can not be recovered :( :( . I have to reinstall it, then, OLD PROBLEM comes. If you know about multi boot Linux and Windows using System Commander, please help me, or if you know someone know about it, please tell me. Thanks in advance.
My hard disk is organized like this:

hda1 <-- FAT32: Windows 98 & System Commander 7
hda5 <-- NTFS: Windows XP Pro
hda6 <-- Ext3: Redhat 9
hda7 <-- Swap

When I reinstall Redhat (several times), System Commander 7 (SC) could not detect it, I then using Setting>Order and Add>Add>Partition to toggle bootable of hda6. But it can't help, SC still doesn't detect Redhat. I toggle it again to make it become non-bootable. The weird thing is, after using (both Windows and Linux) for some time (I don't remember how long), when I try to toggle again, SC recognize Redhat and I can boot to GRUB from SC !!!! I really don't know how? But now, this time, I have to use floppy to boot my Linux, so, build new kernel and make a new boot floppy disk to use that kernel to experiment with bootsplash? Hopefully I don't have to do that.

Why are you using system commander? Grub or lilo can be used as boot loader for windows too. Then re-install grub in the boot sector. (not the MBR though)

...upgrade your ext2 file system to ext3, to use the journal-feature. It could save you all these troubles.... and a Linux total crash is quite odd.. Aren't there any bad blocks / bad memory area's?

I've checked all things you said and I think I did right, but I noticed something: My Frame-buffer driver is ALWAYS rivafb or vga16fb, not vesafb:

Console drivers>Frame-buffer support:
[] nVidia Riva Support
[] VESA VGA graphics console
[] VGA 16-color graphics console

If I compiled riva or vga16 or both as built-in, I could see penguin logo (again, no bootsplash screen). If only vesafb is compiled as built-in, there would no penguin logo on the screen. Could these things lead to the trouble?

sigh.. this is really getting confusing isn't it?

Are these features compiled inside the kernel? (not as modules), and are the file-locations inside the configuration file correct?

Do you always run lilo after updating your initrd?

Does the the image have the same size as the resolution of your framebuffer? (1024x786 for example)

Is there anything you can find at www.bootsplash.org? The author of that program might now some other reasons why the kernel fails to show the boot image.

yes, really confusing it is :(
I compiled all those features as built-in (an asterisk before each feature, right). File locations are correct, I'm sure (I've check them at least 3 times), I use Grub as bootloader.
I've noticed your post about image resolution, I tried 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, but things are the same, I get only a penguin bootlogo.
Could it be a problem in my patch?
I think I want to find a new bootsplash patch.

Yeah just one thing.
How did you apply the patch to the kernel? where there any rejected chunks?

The 2.4.22 kernel already has the bootsplash feature, but it gave me a headache before I got the framebuffer working in 2.4.22. (you might want to use my .config if you compile 2.4.22 ;))

I now use the 2.4.22 kernel, there was no failed when I applied patch to my kernel. You said that the 2.4.22 kernel already has bootsplash feature built-in? What does that mean? I didn't see the option "Use splash screen instead of boot logo", it only appeared after I patched the kernel.
Could you give me the URL you get the bootsplash patch against the 2.4.22 kernel from?

It was already visible in my kernel tree :confused: I think I'd applied some patches myself then :rolleyes: I can't believe it. :o Maybe I'd ran my apply-patches.sh script :p I'm sorry, because I was really convinced about this. (since I did download the entire source of 2.4.22) Actually, I was a little amazed they did insert the bootsplash patch :p

Are you able to apply the bootsplash patch to 2.4.22? Try patch --dry-run -p1 < /path/to/patch from /usr/src/linux first.

I get the bootsplash patch against 2.4.22 and applied it to 2.4.22:
cd /usr/src/linux-2.4.22
patch -p1 < /path/to/bootsplash-patch
<Patching completed successfully, there was no FAILED or reject message>

All the things needed to make a bootsplash screen appear are completed successfully, but it doesn't work :( .
I think there are 2 last reasons:
The first, my patch has some thing wrong (hope it's).
The second, the worst, the Linux kernel hasn't got a suitable console driver for my graphic card, if it is, then may be I should wait for the new kernel release.
I now want to try a new patch. Could you give me the URL you get the bootsplash patch against the 2.4.22 kernel from?, I want to try it first.
BTW, what type (name) of the chipset your graphic card use?
Thanks in advance