slack64 dual booting with OSX Snow Leopard
There is a topic about this is the installation forums but the OP split and didn't bother explaining how he got around to installing Slackware when the installer and installer kernel isn't GPT/EFI aware.
I went through this same thing when I bought my Macbook Pro and here it is 4 years later and Slackware still chokes with GPT. Bought a New Imac for my girlfriend and just got Slackware64 on it the same way I put Slackware32 on my macbook Pro years ago. By using a gentoo minimal CD. They have had GPT/EFI aware kernels for years now. For those of you interested, you can download the install-amd64-minimal-20091203.iso That one is likely to change but you can always find the latest in: http://mirrors.kernel.org/gentoo/rel...s/current-iso/ Disassemble it. Throw pkgtools 13.0 on it, tar-1.13 and the xz package. Just mount the iso, copy all the contents over to a new folder, cd into it, explode those packages into the root on the directory (don't forget to run the doinst.sh from the root of the CD), mount your Slackware 64 disk, and copy over the Slackware64 directory and anything else you may want from the Slackware64 DVD. You can ditch some of the echoed Gentoo stuff on boot and change the /etc/motd greeting in the squashfs image. resquash it with v 4.0 to make a new image with mkisofs and your off. I did all this on a 32bit linux system so no need to have a running 64 bit box if the only 64 system you have is your new Mac. As of this writing and the linked CD above, you need to use squashfs-4.0. If you don't use the same binary version and the patched kernel version on the gentoo disk, it will fail to extract the squashfs image during bootup of the CD. If that happens, you know you need to use another version of the squashfs binary to make your new image.squashfs. First, split your OSX partition via bootcamp in Snow Leopard. Then boot up with your gentoo cd and use "parted" to change the filesystem type and volume label of the partition you made with the bootcamp assistant.. parted may only let you use ext2. Reboot if/when prompted after parted back into the gentoo CD. Use mkfs.jfs or whatever you want on your new partition to get your desired filesystem. Reboot if prompted to. Mount your new linux partition into /mnt/gentoo or /mnt/slackware64 if you went so far as to really modify the gentoo minimal CD like I do. Since you have a working pkgtools bundled in the gentoo image.squashfs, installpkg is already in your path for the live cd. Install each package set manually. I did this: Code:
installpkg --root /mnt/slackware64 /mnt/cdrom/slackware64/a/*.t{gz,xz,lz,bz} After you have you new partition populated, chroot into it. Make your /etc/fstab along with your /etc/lilo.conf. Run "pwconv" and then "grpconv" then "passwd root" to set the root password. Then reboot. Here are the minimal fstab and lilo.conf files I created in chroot: fstab Code:
/dev/sda3 / jfs defaults 0 0 Code:
#boot = After writing out the adjusted MBR through refit, you'll probably have to boot back up with your gentoo minimal CD and chroot back into Slackware64. Run "lilo". It will probably spit 2 warnings at you. One is LBA32 addresing assumed or something which is fine and the other will probably complain of a missing /proc/something directory. Reboot the machine and then select the linux icon under refit. It should boot you into Slackware. If it makes you feel better, you can rerun "lilo" at that time. The wireless keyboard is picked up fine but the wireless mouse is dead in the water. I need to trouble shoot that one. Also, when rebooting from the gentoo CD or Slackware64 itself, the machine will hang on: Code:
Restarting system. I'll post back with a link to a modified gentoo 64 bit CD if anyone will find it useful. pkgtools on it, gentoo specific crap removed from the bootup and greeting, pkgtools in the path. The only thing I won't do is throw all the Slackware64 packages onto the root of the CD. I really don't have the bandwidth to be offering a 4GB DVD for download. I'll post back with a link to it once I'm done tweaking it out. Sometime later tonite maybe. Hopefully the Slackware team can look into this sometime and maybe make the installer work on Macs someday. Would be really nice instead of having to jump through hoops all the time. |
O.k... Took me all day but I'm done for anyone interested....
http://www.jaguarlinux.com/pub/slack...4-install-iso/ I may modify the "make-dvd.sh" script soon to just download all the Slackware64 packages from a mirror and include them onto the root of the ISO, so you don't have to download the minimal one and remaster it. |
And when something goes wrong with this dual-booted iMac OSX/Linux such as the video card (as happened to me), the Apple store will tell you that you voided your warranty dual booting to anything but Windows and will refuse to honor the warranty.
|
That's funny, seeing as how I sent my Macbook pro back in 2 times with linux on it. But hey, thanks for the info. Always good to know. There could be some truth to that now-a-days because apple underclocks their GPU's via software so they don't burn to a cinder because they were and always have been about asthetics and not quality (think thin and no air flow). I had these problems with my macbook under linux. the damn thing would get so hot it would burn your lap. That's why they refuse to call it a "laptop" and instead call it a "portable" or whatever term they came up with. Moronic. That's also why I finally sold it. And that's probably why they could be doing as you say now. They've took the final and ultimate step by declaring what software you can and cant run on it. What they should be doing is releasing software for linux that hobbles the machine just like it is in Windows and OSX....
Besides, you can restore the GPT table exactly as it was in the blink of an eye so tell me how are they are ever going to know anyway? But seriously, don't shit on my parade man. Took me almost 8 hours yesterday writing and testing that script for the community here. |
I've done some massive updating to the script. It will pretty much hand hold you through the entire process. The way I've set the variables now, it will build a live DVD with all the package sets of Slackware64 13.0 on the root of the DVD as well as updating the original packages with the new ones found under "patches".
Basically, it will give you a fully updated Slackware64 13.0 install DVD for use on GPT disks. Pkgtools are integrated into the cd as well as a mount point in /mnt/slackware64. Read the initial greeting after the DVD has boot up and it will point you to a more detailed walk through, specifically on how to install Slackware64 13.0 on a MAC but you can use it also to just install Slackware64 13.0 on a PC GPT disk. http://www.jaguarlinux.com/pub/slack...so/make-dvd.sh I'll go ahead and post it here just incase something ever happens to my web server: Code:
#!/bin/sh |
Wow, thanks, jong357! I have a Mac and I was considering putting Slackware on it until I hit its limitations with GPT, etc. Now I'll most likely put Slackware on my mac and enjoy the magic of Linux with the great OS X as a backup (far more reliable than Windows).
I really hope support for installing Slackware64 on Macs becomes official soon; I plan to purchase a new computer in a year or so and I've decided it is to be a Mac. Hopefully Pat and the others can take your script and put this upstream. I would love for this to become part of the official software! Beautiful work, jong357. Your efforts are not wasted! |
Yea, I can do all that script does by hand in just 20 minutes or so but I spent over 2 full days writing and testing the script. As long as one person uses it then it'll be worth it. ;)
It should be pretty foolproof. Meaning it shouldn't crap out or screw things up at all. If it does crap out, then it was designed to do so because of missing support for something. If anyone can make it break, please let me know so I can fix it. I'll probably be tweaking it even more over the next couple weeks so always grab it from my web server. I may forget to update it here. BTW, the wireless bluetooth magic mouse and the wireless keyboard work just fine. Takes 2-4 seconds after hitting the prompt for the keyboard to start working and takes anywhere from 4-8 seconds for the mouse to start working under X. Probably my imagination, but the mouse seems to be picked up quicker if you start mashing on the buttons and moving it around. Pretty sure this is all handled by the kernel as well and not rc.bluetooth... Keep an eye on: http://github.com/cosmonaut/xf86-input-magicmouse to get the "touchpad" features of the magic mouse working under Linux. ie- scrolling. Slackware 13 ships with a rather old X so forget about compiling it under Slackware unless your running atleast X11R7.5... The driver is in very early stages ATM anyway so I wouldn't expect much from it right now but definitely keep an eye on it. |
Quote:
I have the 9400M on this iMac using NVIDIA-Linux-x86_64-190.53-pkg2.run... It uses adaptive GPU throttling down to 200mhz when inactive which keeps the chip at about 65 Celcius. Not so sure I'd want to play games on this for fear of frying something. My past expierence with my older macbook pro and what DonnieP is talking about should make one semi cautious of how hard you push your mac under linux. |
It's great to hear you recommend an NVIDIA card. I have one in my Sony laptop, but it causes all sorts of problems that I just switched it to "Stamina" mode. That switch makes the computer use the weaker Intel GPU. I have a minimal setup in Linux, so I don't care about missing 3D and effects and all that. I was almost afraid to consider getting a Mac for my next computer because of the NVIDIA cards. I was considering a Mac or an IBM or something with Intel everything to ensure Linux compatibility, but the open source community is really making some great strides.
It looks like Apple is pretty much switching to the more powerful NVIDIA cards since they offer so much more compared to the ATI ones. As usual, when they advertise it, they go all out, so it'll be easy to make sure I'm getting the right GPU for the job. |
An alternative method to installing Slack64 on MacBook Pro 3,1..
I cruised in here looking for info on the EFI, and am glad I just removed the hard drive, popped it into my workstation, blew all HFS SHIT off the thing, partitioned with Partition Manager 1.0.1 on top of parted 1.8.8, put it back into the MacBook, booted my Slack64 DVD, ran the install, and voila! I have a perfect instllation. I just have to use Ctl-O to detect what the EFI calls a "Windows" MBR, and I then boot Lilo and start Slacking! This might be a good way to go if you have no attachment to OSuX...
|
Jong357, is your website down at the moment?
|
I think I read in another thread that he's given up Slackware.
|
No! Hopefully Pat will get the next version of Slackware ready to dual-boot on Macs as well as it works on Windows computers. I really hope this becomes official soon (13.2? 14.0?).
Does Pat hang around on these forums? Maybe he'll see this. |
As GPT becomes more common on the *other* OS we commonly dual boot with, ie Windows 64 bit, this'll be more of an issue not just for Macs... and I think jong357 deserves thanks for the hard work he put into it.
|
The EASY way to set up your MacBook Pro w Slack64 13.x
All,
Though I'd share that I've had zero problems with using LiLo and Slackware64 13.x on my MacBook Pro v 3 (2.2 GHz duo core). I just completely wiped the HFS+ infested hard drive by removing it and attaching it to the SATA adapter on my Slack64 workstation, then partitioning it while it was hooked up. I returned it to the MacBook then, and ran an install DVD of Slack64 13.0. I just used the firmware bootloader (Ctl+O) to boot the DVD, ran the installer, installing LiLo to the MBR of the HD when called for. Upon reboot, one merely needs use the firmware bootloader to nudge EFI into booting your LiLo authored MBR. I've had nil problem with this configuration, even after upgrading LiLo and the kernels, initrd, et al.... Provided one rests content with using two bootloaders, this is a stable, feasible configuration. |
Quote:
|
Thanks.
I don't have a Mac, but this guide helped me dual-boot Slackware and Snow Leopard on my new 'Hackintosh' Instead of installing Slackware manually, I just installed it on LVM volumes then moved /boot to a separate GPT partition. |
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:22 AM. |