Using Slackware 13.37, I built a new kernel, specifically to take advantage of more than 4gb of memory.

After building, I edited lilo.conf adding the new kernel. Then I ran lilo.

What happens after that is that any of the kernels I have configured in lilo.conf will boot until a couple of lines after "PCI Probing PCI Hardware."

I have no problem booting the system from the Slackware 13.37 install DVD, using hugesmp.s root=/dev/sda1 initrd= ro

As near as I can figure out, I should not need initrd, but I haven't experimented with it.

I'm wondering if anyone can give me some pointers?

Thanks.

If you do not use an initrd, are you sure you have compiled support for the necessary file system in the kernel?

In my case, this would be ext4:

Yes, I have FS support which is appropriate.

I believe the boot is failing when doing something with the PCI system, and can't find allot about that part of the boot to give me hints. I did go through a config to make certain I didn't have any PCI stuff turned off.

Which are the exact lines where the boot stops?

pci 0000:001c.2 PCI bridge to [bus 02-02] Is the last line printed.

It appears that perhaps my PCI bus / bridge initialization is not working right, when I boot from my harddrive (after rebuilding the kernel). Since booting from the USB stick seems to work, I am trying to figure out where the PCI bus initialization configuration is stored, and how it is used.

http://tldp.org/LDP/tlk/dd/pci.html

Dead end. Ran config again a couple of times. Have a real fast booting kernel now, that stops at the same point. Tomorrow.

Suggestion: Take the Slackware kernel config of your choice (huge or generic), make one change at a time, try again, until you come to the setting that prevents the boot. Time-consuming, but guaranteed to find your issue.

Actually, I took the huge distribution config (found in /boot), which is what I was running before, built straight with that, and the problem persists.

Subsequently I took the hugesmp.s kernel, added that to my lilo.conf, ran lilo, and booted with that and the problem persists.

However, it still remains that if I boot from a USB stick, things come up OK, which is how I continue to experiment.

Oh, one other thing, this is not the first time I ran LILO. A while ago I was modifying LILO as I tried various graphics cards, with no difficulty such a this. Therefore, this problem, as near as I can tell, is unique to the installation of a new kernel, modifying lilo.conf, running lilo, and then booting.

Changing from vga=normal in lilo.conf appears to have solved the problem. Not sure why, but it did.

Now I need to dig further to understand that parameter.