freebsd-nq/share/doc/FAQ/freebsd-faq.sgml

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<!DOCTYPE linuxdoc PUBLIC "-//FreeBSD//DTD linuxdoc//EN">
<article>
<title>Frequently Asked Questions for FreeBSD 2.X
<author>The FreeBSD FAQ Team, <tt/FAQ@FreeBSD.ORG/
<date> $Id: freebsd-faq.sgml,v 1.7 1995/07/29 18:12:50 roberto Exp $
<abstract>
This is the FAQ for FreeBSD systems version 2.X All entries are
assumed to be relevant to FreeBSD 2.0.5+, unless otherwise noted.
Any entries with a &lt;XXX&gt; are under construction.
</abstract>
<toc>
<sect>Preface
<p>
Welcome to the FreeBSD 2.X FAQ ! This document tries to answer
some of the most frequently asked questions about FreeBSD 2.X (or
later, unless specifically indicated). If there's something you're
having trouble with and you just don't see it here, then please
send mail to:
<verb>
questions@FreeBSD.ORG
</verb>
The latest released version is FreeBSD 2.0.5R. FreeBSD-current
refers to the future FreeBSD 2.2. The 2.1 release will be issued
from a special branch of the -current sources and is intended as a
even more stable version of 2.0.5.
There are regular snapshots extracted from 2.2-CURRENT. Check on
<tt>ftp.FreeBSD.ORG in <tt>/pub/FreeBSD/*-SNAP*</tt>.
The current snapshot is 2.1.0-950726-SNAP.
This version of the FAQ use the <tt>linuxdoc-sgml</tt> utility
written for Linux by Matt Welsh. The initial SGML translation was made
by Ollivier Robert <tt/&lt;roberto@FreeBSD.ORG&gt;/
Some of the instructions here will also refer to auxiliary
utilities in the <tt>/usr/src/share/FAQ directory</tt>. If you do
not have this directory, or if it does not contain the file that
you want, you are probably using a version of FreeBSD prior to
2.0.5R. In this case, install the FreeBSD sources and look in
<tt>/usr/src/share/FAQ</tt> (instead of <tt>/usr/share/FAQ</tt>).
CDROM purchasers and net folks who've grabbed the FreeBSD 2.X
``<tt/srcdist/'' will have these files. If you don't have the
source distribution, then you can either grab the whole thing from:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/FreeBSD-current"
name="FreeBSD-current base directory">
Or you can grab only those files you're interested in straight out
of the FreeBSD-current distribution in:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/FreeBSD-current/src"
name="FreeBSD-current src directory">
<sect1>What is FreeBSD?
<p>
FreeBSD 2.X is a UN*X type operating system based on
U.C. Berkeley's 4.4BSD-lite release for the i386 platform. It is
also based indirectly on William Jolitz's port of U.C. Berkeley's
Net/2 to the i386, 386BSD. There have been many additions and
bug fixes made throughout the entire system, some of the
highlights of which are:
<itemize>
<item>More robust and extensive PC device support
<item>System V-style IPC, messaging and semaphores
<item>Shared Libraries
<item>Much improved virtual memory code
<item>Better console driver support
<item>Network booting (diskless) support
<item>YP support
<item>Full support of the PCI bus
<item>Loadable kernel modules
<item>Serial Console Support
<item>Merged VM/Buffer Cache
<item>On demand PPP
<item>Sync PPP
<item>Improved SCSI support
</itemize>
<sect1>What do I need to run FreeBSD?
<p>
See section 2, "Hardware compatibility", of this FAQ.
<sect1>Where can I get FreeBSD?
<p>
The distribution is available via anonymous ftp from:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/" name="FreeBSD
home directory">
For the current release, 2.0.5R, look in:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/2.0.5-RELEASE/"
name="FreeBSD 2.0.5-RELEASE">
FreeBSD is also available via CDROM, from the following place(s):
Walnut Creek CDROM<newline>
4041 Pike Lane, Suite D-386<newline>
Concord, CA 94520 USA<newline>
Orders: (800)-786-9907<newline>
Questions: (510)-674-0783<newline>
FAX: (510)-674-0821<newline>
email: <url url="mailto:orders@cdrom.com" name="WC Orders
address"> <newline>
WWW: <url url="http://www.cdrom.com/" name="WC Home
page"><newline>
<sect1>What are the FreeBSD mailing lists, and how can I get on them?
<p>
The following mailing lists are provided for FreeBSD users and
developers. For more information, send to
&lt;majordomo@FreeBSD.ORG&gt; and include a single line saying
``help'' in the body of your message.
<descrip>
<tag/announce/ For announcements about or on FreeBSD.
<tag/hackers/ Useful for persons wishing to work on the internals.
<tag/questions/ General questions on FreeBSD.
<tag/bugs/ Where bugs should be sent.
<tag/SCSI/ Mailing list for SCSI developers.
<tag/current/ This is the mailing list for communications
between the developers and users of freebsd-current. It also
carries announcements and discussions on current.
<tag/security/ For issues dealing with system security.
<tag/platforms/ Deals with ports to non-Intel platforms
<tag/ports/ Discussion of <tt>/usr/ports/???</tt>
<tag/fs/ Discussion of FreeBSD Filesystems
<tag/hardware/ Discussion on hardware requirements for
FreeBSD.
<tag/committers/ CVS commit messages for -current users
<tag/users-groups/ This is the mailing list for the
coordinators from each of the local area Users Groups to
dicuss matters with each other and a designated individual
from the Core Team. This mail list should be limited to
meeting synopsis and coordination of projects that span User
Groups
</descrip>
<p>
The FreeBSD-commit list has been broken up into groups dealing
with different areas of interest. Please see the FreeBSD mailing
list FAQ in:
<verb>
/usr/src/share/FAQ/mailing-list.FAQ
</verb>
<sect1>What are the various FreeBSD news groups?
<p>
There are two newsgroups currently dedicated to FreeBSD:
<descrip>
<tag/comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.announce/ For announcements
<tag/comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc/ General discussion
</descrip>
The following newsgroups may also be of interest to
general BSD enthusiasts:
<descrip>
<tag/Comp.unix.bsd/ General BSD topics
</descrip>
</sect1>
<sect1>Books on FreeBSD
<p>
There currently aren't any books written specifically for
FreeBSD, although some people are supposedly working on some.
However, as FreeBSD 2.X is based upon Berkeley 4.4BSD-Lite, most
of the 4.4BSD manuals are applicable to FreeBSD 2.X. O'Reilly
and Associates publishes these manuals:
4.4BSD System Manager's Manual <newline>
By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley <newline>
1st Edition June 1994, 804 pages <newline>
ISBN: 1-56592-080-5 <NEWLINE>
4.4BSD User's Reference Manual <newline>
By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley <newline>
1st Edition June 1994, 905 pages <newline>
ISBN: 1-56592-075-9 <NEWLINE>
4.4BSD User's Supplementary Documents <newline>
By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley <newline>
1st Edition July 1994, 712 pages <newline>
ISBN: 1-56592-076-7 <NEWLINE>
4.4BSD Programmer's Reference Manual <newline>
By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley <newline>
1st Edition June 1994, 886 pages <newline>
ISBN: 1-56592-078-3 <NEWLINE>
4.4BSD Programmer's Supplementary Documents <newline>
By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley <newline>
1st Edition July 1994, 596 pages <newline>
ISBN: 1-56592-079-1 <NEWLINE>
A description of these can be found via WWW as:
<url url="http://gnn.com/gnn/bus/ora/category/bsd.html"
name="4.4BSD books description">
A good book on system administration is:
Evi Nemeth, Garth Snyder, Scott Seebass, & Trent R. Hein,<newline>
"Unix System Administraion Handbook", Prentice-Hall, 1995,<newline>
ISBN: 0-13-151051-7<newline>
<bf/Note/ make sure you get the second edition, with a red cover,
instead of the first edition.
This book covers the basics, as well as TCP/IP, DNS, NFS,
SLIP/PPP, sendmail, INN/NNTP, printing, etc.. It's expensive
(approx. US&dollar;45-&dollar;55), but worth it. It also
includes a CDROM with the sources for various tools; most of
these, however, are also on the FreeBSD 2.0.5R CDROM (and the
FreeBSD CDROM often has newer versions).
<sect1>Other sources of information.
<p>
One good source of additional information is the
``&lsqb;comp.unix.bsd&rsqb; NetBSD, FreeBSD, and 386BSD (0.1)
FAQ''. Much of the information is relevant to FreeBSD, and this
FAQ is posted around twice a month to the following newsgroups:
<verb>
comp.unix.bsd.netbsd.announce
comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.announce
comp.answers
news.answers
</verb>
If you have WWW access, the FreeBSD home page is at:
<url url="http://www.freebsd.org/" name="Main FreeBSD page">
A FreeBSD ``handbook'' is being created, and can be found as:
<url url="http://www.freebsd.org/How/handbook/" name="FreeBSD's
Handbook">
Note that this is a work in progress, and so parts may be incomplete.
<sect>FreeBSD goals
<p>
<sect1>Copyrights
<p>
The goals of the FreeBSD Project are to provide software that may
be used for any purpose and without strings attached. Many of us
have a significant investment in the code (and project) and would
certainly not mind a little financial renumeration now and then,
but we're definitely not prepared to insist on it. We believe
that our first and foremost "mission" is to provide code to any
and all comers, and for whatever purpose, so that the code gets
the widest possible use and provides the widest possible benefit.
This is, I believe, one of the most fundamental goals of Free
Software and one that we enthusiastically support.
Our GNU code does make for some strings, which we dislike and
endevour to replace whenver possible, but at least those strings
are in the direction of greater, rather than lesser, "openness"
in how the code is shared and distributed and so is a string we
can reasonably live with.
<sect>Installation
<p>
<sect1>How do I install FreeBSD?
<p>
<bf/IMPORTANT NOTE/ if you are installing 2.0.5R from tape, see
the question titled, <ref id="install-tape" name="Help! I can't
install from tape!">
Installation instructions can be found as:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/2.0.5-RELEASE/INSTALL"
name="INSTALL from 2.0.5R">
Release notes are also available as:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/2.0.5-RELEASE/RELNOTES"
name="RELNOTES from 2.0.5R">
On the CDROM, the following files are in the top-most directory:
<verb>
INSTALL -- Installation instructions
README.TXT -- Basic README file
RELNOTES -- Release notes
</verb>
<sect1>Help! I can't install from tape! The install fails with a
``record too big'' error! <label id="install-tape">
If you are installing 2.0.5R from tape, you must create the tape
using a tar blocksize of 10 (5120 bytes). The default tar
blocksize is 20 (10240 bytes), and tapes created using this
default size cannot be used to install 2.0.5R; with these tapes,
you will get an error that complains about the record size being
too big.
<sect1>I want to install FreeBSD onto a SCSI disk that has more than
1024 cylinders. How do I do it?
<p>
This depends. If you don't have DOS (or another operating
system) on the system, you can just keep the drive in native mode
and simply make sure that your root partition is below 1024 so
the BIOS can boot the kernel from it. It you also have DOS/some
other OS on the drive then your best bet is to find out what
parameters that it thinks you have before installing FreeBSD.
When FreeBSD's installation procedure prompts you for these
values, you should then enter them rather than simply going with
the defaults.
There is a freely available utility distributed with FreeBSD
called ``<tt/pfdisk/'' (located in the <tt>tools/dos-tools</tt>
subdirectory) which can be used for this purpose.
<sect1>When I boot FreeBSD it says ``Missing Operating System''.
<p>
See question above. This is classically a case of FreeBSD and
DOS or some other OS conflicting over their ideas of disk
geometry. You will have to reinstall FreeBSD, but obeying the
instructions given above will almost always get you going.
<sect1>When I install the boot manager and try to boot FreeBSD for
the first time, it just comes back with the boot manager prompt
again.
<p>
This is another symptom of the problem described in the preceding
question. Your BIOS geometry and FreeBSD geometry settings do
not agree! If your controller or BIOS supports cylinder
translation (often marked as ``&gt;1GB drive support''), try
toggling its setting and reinstalling FreeBSD.
<sect1>I'm having lots of trouble trying to disklabel a new SCSI
drive. I have made an entry in <tt>/etc/disktab</tt>, but when I
try to label the drive the following happens:
<p>
<verb>
mips# disklabel -w /dev/sd1 sea32550N
disklabel: ioctl DIOCWDINFO: Operation not supported by device
</verb>
What am I doing wrong?
Doing this using <tt/disklabel/ (and <tt/fdisk/) is probably
harder than using <tt/sysinstall/. The following should work to
put FreeBSD-2.0.5 on the whole of an <bf/empty/ disk assuming that
the <tt/disktab/ entry is correct.
<verb>
disklabel -r -w /dev/rsd1 sea32550N
^^ ^
</verb>
The first <tt/-r/ is essential for writing new labels and using
the raw device instead of the block device is good technique. To
be ``empty'' the disk should have 0's at critical points on the
first two sectors. In particular, the 2 byte signature at the
end of the first sector must not be <tt/0xaa55/ or the disk will
be interpreted as having a slice (partition) table and it will be
difficult to write to it where you want unless the slice table is
initialized correctly. All bootable hard disks will have the
<tt/0xaa55/ signature so they won't be empty. Empty disks may be
created by copying zeros over the first 2 sectors:
<verb>
dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/rsd1 bs=1k count=1
</verb>
Note that this will (appear to) destroy all data on the disk.
The above is not the best method. Normally you will have a slice
table or a label that you want to preserve or modify slightly.
This can be done using
<verb>
fdisk -u /dev/rsd1 # install or change slice table
disklabel -r -w sd1 sea32550N # install label
^no /dev/r
</verb>
<tt/fdisk/ is unintuitive and has poor error handling so it is
difficult to change slice tables using it. However, to install a
new slice table on an empty drive you just have to accept all the
defaults except for ``n'' to write at the end.
Note that the <tt/sd1/ drive in the above is different from
<tt>/dev/rsd1</tt>. <tt/disklabel/ modifies path names that
don't start with a slash by prefixing <tt>/dev/r</tt> and
suffixing the ``raw'' partition letter. <tt/sd1/ thus means
<tt>/dev/rsd1c</tt>, i.e., the ``<tt/c/'' partition on the first
BSD slice on drive <tt/sd1/, i.e., the whole of the first BSD
slice on drive sd1, while <tt>/dev/rsd1</tt> is the whole of
drive sd1. Thus ``<tt>disklabel ... sd1</tt>'' will fail if
there is no FreeBSD slice, while ``<tt>disklabel /dev/rsd1</tt>''
will print the in-core label for the whole drive. Oops, this
assumes that slices are enabled by the 0xaa55 signature. If
slices aren't enabled, then /dev/rsd1c means the whole drive. In
practice, slices have to be enabled to make the disk bootable.
If there are no BSD slices, then <tt>/dev/rsd1c</tt> will be
empty instead of unconfigured and attempts to label <tt/sd1/ will
fail with a bogus error message about <tt>/dev/rsd1c</tt> not
existing.
<tt>/dev/sd1</tt> didn't exist in previous versions of FreeBSD or
386BSD so your ``<tt>disklabel -w /dev/sd1 ...</tt>'' would have
printed a less confusing error message before failing.
<verb>
The disklabel I'm trying is
sea32550N|Seagate 32550N:\
:ty=winchester:dt=SCSI:se#512:nc#3510:nt#11:ns#108:\
:rm#7200:\
:pa#2433024:oa#0:ta=4.2BSD:\
:pc#4169880:oc#0:
</verb>
Note that <tt/ns/ has to be < 64 in the slice table. I would use
<tt/nt&num;22:ns&num;54/. This only matters if you don't accept
<tt/fdisk/'s default (bogus) slice table. You have to use a
valid table if you want multiple slices, or the first slice
starting at a nonzero offset. Starting a nonempty slice at
offset 0 is invalid so <tt/sysinstall/ doesn't support creating
such slices.
<sect1>I have an IDE drive with lots of bad blocks on it and FreeBSD
doesn't seem to install properly.
<p>
FreeBSD's bad block (the ``<tt/bad144/'' command) handling is
still not 100&percnt; (to put it charitably) and it must
unfortunately be said that if you've got an IDE or ESDI drive
with lots of bad blocks, then FreeBSD is probably not for you!
That said, it does work on thousands of IDE based systems, so
you'd do well to try it first before simply giving up.
IDE drives are <em/supposed/ to come with built-in bad-block
remapping; if you have documentation for your drive, you may want
to see if this feature has been disabled on your drive. However,
ESDI, RLL, and ST-506 drives normally do not do this.
<sect1>I have 32MB of memory, should I expect any special problems?
<label id="bigram">
<p>
No. FreeBSD 2.X comes with bounce buffers which allows your bus
mastering controller access to greater than 16MB.
<sect1>My network card keeps getting errors like, ``<tt/ed1:
timeout/''. What's going on?
<p>
This is usually caused by an interrupt conflict (e.g., two boards
using the same IRQ). FreeBSD prior to 2.0.5R used to be tolerant
of this, and the network driver would still function in the
presence of IRQ conflicts. However, with 2.0.5R and later, IRQ
conflicts are no longer tolerated.
<sect1>Do I need to install the complete sources?
<p> In general, no. However, we would strongly recommend that you
install, at a minimum, the ``<tt/base/'' source kit, which
includes several of the files mentioned here, and the
``<tt/sys/'' (kernel) source kit, which includes sources for the
kernel. There is nothing in the system which requires the
presence of the sources to operate, however, except for the
kernel-configuration program <tt/config(8)/. With the exception
of the kernel sources, our build structure is set up so that you
can read-only mount the sources from elsewhere via NFS and still
be able to make new binaries. (Because of the kernel-source
restriction, we recommend that you not mount this on
<tt>/usr/src</tt> directly, but rather in some other location
with appropriate symbolic links to duplicate the top-level
structure of the source tree.)
Having the sources on-line and knowing how to build a system with
them will make it much easier for you to upgrade to future
releases of FreeBSD.
<sect1>DES encryption software can not be exported from the United
States. If I live outside the US, how can I encrypt passwords?
<p> If it is not absolutely imperative that you use DES style
encryption, you can use FreeBSD's default encryption for even
<bf/better/ security, and with no export restrictions. FreeBSD
2.0's password default scrambler is now <bf/MD5/-based, and is
more CPU-intensive to crack with an automated password cracker
than DES.
Since the DES encryption algorithm cannot legally be exported
from the US, non-US users should not download this software (as
part of the <tt/secrdist/ from US FTP sites.
There is however a replacement libcrypt available, based on
sources written in Australia by David Burren. This code is now
available on some non-US FreeBSD mirror sites. Sources for the
unencumbered libcrypt, and binaries of the programs which use it,
can be obtained from the following FTP sites:
<descrip>
<tag/South Africa/
<tt>skeleton.mikom.csir.co.za:/pub/FreeBSD</tt><newline>
<tt>storm.sea.uct.ac.za:/pub/FreeBSD</tt>
</descrip>
The non-US <tt/securedist/ can be used as a direct replacement
for the encumbered US <tt/securedist/. This <tt/securedist/
package is installed the same way as the US package (see
installation notes for details). If you are going to install DES
encryption, you should do so as soon as possible, before
installing other software.
Non-US users should please not download any encryption software
from the USA. This can get the maintainers of the sites from
which the software is downloaded into severe legal difficulties.
A non-US distribution of Kerberos is also being developed, and
current versions can generally be obtained by anonymous FTP from
<tt>braae.ru.ac.za</tt>.
There is a mailing list for the discussion of non-US encryption
software. For more information, send an email message with a
single line saying ``<tt/help/'' in the body of your message to
<tt>&lt;majordomo@braae.ru.ac.za&gt;</tt>.
</sect1>
</sect>
<sect>Hardware compatibility
<sect1>What kind of hard drives does FreeBSD run on?
<p>
FreeBSD supports ST-506 (sometimes called ``MFM''), RLL, and ESDI
drives, which are usually connected to WD-1002, WD-1003, or
WD-1006 controllers (although clones should also work).
FreeBSD also supports IDE and SCSI hard drives.
<sect1>What SCSI controllers are supported?
<p>
FreeBSD supports the following SCSI controllers:
<descrip>
<tag/Adaptec/
AH-154x Series &lt;ISA&gt; <newline>
AH-174x Series &lt;EISA&gt; <newline>
AH-152x Series &lt;ISA&gt; <newline>
Sound Blaster SCSI (AH-152x compat) &lt;ISA&gt; <newline>
AH-2742/2842 Series &lt;ISA/EISA&gt; <newline>
AH-2820/2822/2825 Series &lt;VLB&gt; <newline>
<tag/Buslogic/
BT-445 Series &lt;VLB&gt; (but see section <ref id="bigram"
name="on 32 MB machines">) <newline>
BT-545 Series &lt;ISA&gt; <newline>
BT-742 Series &lt;EISA&gt;<newline>
BT-747 Series &lt;EISA&gt;<newline>
BT-946 Series &lt;PCI&gt; <newline>
<tag/Future Domain/
TMC-950 Series &lt;ISA&gt; <newline>
<tag/PCI Generic/
NCR 53C810 based controllers &lt;PCI&gt; <newline>
<tag/ProAudioSpectrum/
Zilog 5380 based controllers &lt;ISA&gt; <newline>
<tag/Seagate/
ST-01/02 Series &lt;ISA&gt;<newline>
<tag/UltraStor/
UH-14f Series &lt;ISA&gt;<newline>
UH-24f Series &lt;EISA&gt; <newline>
UH-34f Series &lt;VLB&gt;<newline>
<tag/Western Digital/
WD7000 &lt;ISA&gt; &lt;No scatter/gather&gt;
<tag/Adaptec/
AH-294x and aic7870 MB controllers &lt;PCI&gt;
<tag/ProAudioSpectrum/
Trantor 130 based controllers &lt;ISA&gt;
</descrip>
<sect1>What CD-ROM drives are supported by FreeBSD?
<p>
Any SCSI drive connected to a supported controller.
Mitsumi LU002 (8bit), LU005 (16bit) and FX001D (16bit 2x Speed).
Sound Blaster Non-SCSI CD-ROM
FreeBSD does not support any of the ``IDE'' CD-ROM interfaces.
All non-SCSI cards are known to be extremely slow compared to
SCSI drives.
<sect1>What multi-port serial cards are supported by FreeBSD?
<p>
<itemize>
<item>AST/4
<item>BOCA 4/8/16 port cards.
<item>Cyclades 8/16 port &lt;Alpha&gt;
</itemize>
Some unnamed clone cards have also been known to work, especially
those that claim to be AST compatible.
Check the <tt/sio(4)/ man page to get more information on
configuring such cards.
<sect1>Does FreeBSD support the AHA-2xxx SCSI adapters from Adaptec?
<p>
FreeBSD supports the AHA-2xxx line of disks. The GPL portions
of the old drivers have been re-written and now it is fully
under the Berkeley style copyright.
<sect1>I have a Mumbleco bus mouse. Is it supported and if so, how
do I set it up for XFree86?
<p>
FreeBSD supports the Logitech and ATI Inport bus mice. You need
to add the following line to the kernel config file and recompile
for the Logitech and ATI mice:
<verb>
device mse0 at isa? port 0x23c tty irq6 vector mseintr
</verb>
<sect1>I have a PS/2 mouse (``keyboard'' mouse) (Alternatively: I
have a laptop with a track-ball mouse). How do I use it?
<sect1>What types of tape drives are supported under FreeBSD?
<p>
FreeBSD supports SCSI, QIC-02 and QIC-40/80 (Floppy based) tape
drives. This includes 8-mm (aka Exabyte) and DAT drives.
<sect1>What sound cards are supported by FreeBSD?
<p>
FreeBSD supports the SoundBlaster, SoundBlaster Pro, Pro Audio
Spectrum 16, AdLib and Gravis UltraSound sound cards. There is
also limited support for MPU-401 and compatible MIDI cards. The
SoundBlaster 16 and SoundBlaster 16 ASP cards are not yet
supported.
<bf/NOTE/ This is only for sound! This driver does not support
CD-ROMs, SCSI or joysticks on these cards.
<sect1>What network cards does FreeBSD support?
<p>
There is support for the following cards:
<descrip>
<tag/``de'' driver/
DEC and compatible PCI controllers <newline>
<tag/``ed'' driver/
NE2000 and 1000<newline>
WD/SMC 8003, 8013 and Elite Ultra (8216)<newline>
3Com 3c503 <newline>
And clones of the above <newline>
<tag/``le'' driver/
DEC EtherWORKS II and EtherWORKS III controllers. <newline>
<tag/``ie'' driver/
AT&amp;T EN100/StarLAN 10 <newline>
<tag/``is'' driver/
Isolan AT 4141-0 <newline>
Isolink 4110 <newline>
<tag/``el'' driver/
3com 3c501 (does not support Multicast or DMA) <newline>
<tag/``ze'' driver/
IBM PCMCIA credit card adapter <newline>
<tag/``lnc'' drive/
Unknown Lance based (*) <newline>
<tag/``ep'' driver/
3com 3c509 (*)
<tag/``cx'' driver/
Cronyx/Sigma multiport Sync/Async (Cisco and PPP framing)
<tag/``zp'' driver/
3Com PCMCIA Etherlink III
<tag/``fea'' driver/
DEC DEFEA EISA FDDI controller
<tag/``fpa'' driver/
DEC DEFPA PCI FDDI controller
</descrip>
<bf/NOTE/ Drivers marked with (*) are known to have problems.
<bf/NOTE/ We also support TCP/IP over parallel lines. At this point
we are incompatiable with other versions, but we hope to correct
this in the near future.
<sect1>I have a 386/486sx/486SLC machine without a math co-processor.
Will this cause me any problems?
<p>
Generally no, but there are circumstances where you will take a
hit, either in performance or accuracy of the math emulation code
(see the section <ref id="emul" name="on FP emulation">). In
particular, drawing arcs in X will be VERY slow. It is highly
recommended that you buy a math co-processor; it's well worth it.
<bf/NOTE/ Some math co-processors are better than others. It pains
us to say it, but nobody ever got fired for buying Intel. Unless
you're sure it works with FreeBSD, beware of clones.
<sect1>What other devices does 2.X support?
<p>
Here is a listing of drivers that do not fit into any of the
above areas.
<descrip>
<tag><tt/b004.c/</tag>
Driver for B004 compatiable Transputer boards <newline>
<tag><tt/ctx.c/</tag>
Driver for CORTEX-I Frame grabber <newline>
<tag><tt/gpib.c/</tag>
Driver for National Instruments AT-GPIB and
AT-GPIB/TNT boards <newline>
<tag><tt/pcaudio.c/</tag>
Driver for PC speakers to allow the playing of audio files
<newline>
<tag><tt/tw.c/</tag>
Driver for the X-10 POWERHOUSE <newline>
<tag><tt/spigot.c/</tag>
Driver for the Creative Labs Video Spigot <newline>
<tag><tt/gsc.c/</tag>
Driver for the Genuis GS-4500 Hand scanner <newline>
<tag><tt/joy.c/</tag>
Driver for a joystick <newline>
</descrip>
<sect1>I am about to buy a new machine to run FreeBSD on and want an
idea of what other people are running. Is there list of other
systems anywhere?
<p>
Yes. Please look at the file <tt>Systems.FAQ</tt>. This file is
a listing of hardware that people are running in their machines.
Please note, this is a raw listing of equipment that other users
have sent in, and does not constitute any kind of endorsement by
the FreeBSD Project.
<sect1>I have a lap-top with power management. Can FreeBSD take
advantage of this?
<p>
Yes it can on certain machines. Please look in the <tt/LINT/
kernel config file under <tt/APM/.
<sect>Commercial Applications
<p>
<bf/NOTE/ This section is still very sparse, though we're hoping, of
course, that companies will add to it! :) The FreeBSD group has no
financial interest in any of the companies listed here but simply
lists them as a public service (and feels that commercial interest
in FreeBSD can have very positive effects on FreeBSD's long-term
viability). We encourage commercial software vendors to send their
entries here for inclusion.
<sect1>Where can I get Motif for FreeBSD?
<p>
You can purchase Motif 1.2.3 for FreeBSD (SWiM) from the ACC
Bookstore, P.O. Box 3364, Westport CT. 06880. 1-800-546-7274 or
FAX: 1-203-454-2582
This software works flawlessly for for FreeBSD 1.1.5 but has
shown one problem with 2.0 in that the "uil" program core dumps.
This is apparently because of the way uil is installed, and it's
quite possible that ACC will have a fixed version by the time you
read this. No other compatibility problems with the programs or
libraries have been found, and ACC can hardly be blamed for
failing to work perfectly with a brand-new release they haven't
even seen yet! :)
<sect1>Are there any commercial X servers for some of the high-end
graphics cards like the Matrox or &num;9 I-128, or offering
8/16/24 bit deep pallettes?
<label id="xinside">
<p>
Yes, X Inside Incorporated sells their Accelerated-X product for
FreeBSD and other Intel based systems.
This high performance X Server offers easy configuration, support
for multiple concurrent video boards and is distributed in binary
form only.
Price is &dollar;99.50 (promotional price for Linux/FreeBSD
version) for the 1.1 version, which is available now.
This product is for FreeBSD 1.1 and runs under 2.0 with the
FreeBSD 1.1 compatibility libs (``<tt/compat1xdist/'').
<descrip>
<tag/More info/
<url url="http://www.xinside.com/" name="X inside WWW page">
<tag/or/
<url url="ftp://ftp.xinside.com/accelx/1.1/prodinfo.txt"
name="Products information">
<tag/or/
email &lt;<tt/info@xinside.com/&gt;
<tag/or/
phone +1(303)384-9999
</descrip>
<sect1>Any other applications I might be interested in?
<p>
RenderMorphics, Ltd. sells a high-speed 3D rendering package for
FreeBSD called ``Reality Lab'' (tm). Send email to
<tt/info@render.com/ or call: +44(0)71-251-4411 / FAX:
+44(0)71-251-0939
This package is also for FreeBSD 1.1.5 but has been tested and
shown to run under FreeBSD 2.0 with the ``<tt/compat1xdist/''
installed.
Thanks must be extended to all of these companies for showing
enough faith in FreeBSD to port their products to it. While we
get no direct benefit from the sales of these products, the
indirect benefits of FreeBSD proving itself to be a successful
platform for such commercial interests will be immense! We wish
these companies every measure of success, and can only hope that
others are encouraged to follow suit.
</sect1>
<sect>User Applications
<sect1>I want to run X, how do I go about it?
<p>
First, get the XFree86(tm) distribution of X11R6 from
XFree86.cdrom.com The version you want for FreeBSD 2.X and
later is <tt/XFree86 3.1.1/. Follow the instructions for
installation carefully. You may then wish to read the
documentation for the <tt/ConfigXF86/ tool, which assists you in
configuring XFree86(tm) for your particular graphics
card/mouse/etc.
You may also wish to investigate the Xaccel server, which is
available at a very reasonable price. See section
<ref id="xinside" name="on Xaccel"> for more details.
<sect1>I've been trying to run ghostscript on a 386 (or 486sx) with
no math co-processor and I keep getting errors. What's up? <label
id="emul">
<p>
You will need to add the alternate math emulator to your kernel,
you do this by adding the following to your kernel config file
and it will be compiled in.
<verb>
options GPL_MATH_EMULATE
</verb>
<bf/NOTE/ You will need to remove the <tt/MATH&lowbar;EMULATE/
option when you do this.
<sect1>I want all this neat software, but I haven't got the space or
CPU power to compile it all myself. Is there any way of getting
binaries?
<p>
Yes. We support the concept of a ``package'', which is
essentially a gzipped binary distribution with a little extra
intelligence embedded in it for doing any custom installation
work required. Packages can also be installed or deinstalled
again easily without having to know the gory details. CDROM
people will have a <tt>packages/</tt> directory on their CD,
others can get the currently available packages from:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/packages"
name="FreeBSD's packages">
Note that all ports may not be available as packages, and that
new packages are constantly being added. It is always a good
idea to check periodically to see which packages are available.
A <tt/README/ file in the packages directory provides more
details on the care and feeding of the package software, so no
explicit details will be given here.
<sect>Miscellaneous Questions
<p>
<sect1>Hey! Chmod doesn't change the file permissions of symlinked
files! What's going on?
You have to use either ``<tt/-H/'' or ``<tt/-L/'' together with
the ``<tt/-R/'' option to make this work. See the <tt/chmod(1)/
and <tt/symlink(7)/ man pages for more info.
<bf/WARNING/ the ``<tt/-R/'' option does a <bf/RECURSIVE/
<tt/chmod/. Be careful about specifying directories or symlinks
to directories to <tt/chmod/. If you want to change the
permissions of a directory referenced by a symlink, use
<tt/chmod(1)/ without any options and follow the symlink with a
trailing slash (``<tt>/</tt>''). For example, if ``<tt/foo/'' is
a symlink to directory ``<tt/bar/'', and you want to change the
permissions of ``<tt/foo/'' (actually ``<tt/bar/''), you would do
something like:
<verb>
chmod 555 foo/
</verb>
With the trailing slash, <tt/chmod/ will follow the symlink,
``<tt/foo/'', to change the permissions of the directory,
``<tt/bar/''.
<sect1>How do I mount a CDROM? I've tried using <tt/mount(8)/, but
it keeps on giving me an error like, ``<tt>/dev/cd0a on /mnt:
Incorrect super block.</tt>''
<p>
You have to tell <tt/mount(8)/ the type of the device that you
want to mount. By default, <tt/mount(8)/ will assume the
filesystem is of type ``<tt/ufs/''. You want to mount a CDROM
filesystem, and you do this by specifying the ``<tt/-t cd9660/''
option to <tt/mount(8)/. This does, of course, assume that the
CDROM contains an ISO 9660 filesystem, which is what most CDROMs
have. As of 1.1R, FreeBSD also understands the Rock Ridge
(long filename) extensions.
As an example, if you want to mount the CDROM device,
``<tt>/dev/cd0c</tt>'', under <tt>/mnt</tt>, you would execute:
<verb>
mount -t cd9660 /dev/cd0c /mnt
</verb>
Note that your device name (``<tt//dev/cd0c</tt>'' in this
example) could be different, depending on the CDROM interface.
Note that the ``<tt/-t cd9660/'' option just causes the
``<tt/mount&lowbar;cd9660/'' command to be executed, and so the
above example could be shortened to:
<verb>
mount_cd9660 /dev/cd0c /mnt
</verb>
<sect1>When I try to mount a CDROM, I get a ``Device not configured''
error. What's going on?
<p>
This generally means that there is no CDROM in the CDROM drive.
Feed the drive something.
<sect1>My programs occasionally die with ``Signal 11'' errors.
What's going on?
This can be caused by bad hardware (memory, motherboard, etc.).
Try running a memory-testing program on your PC. Note that, even
though every memory testing program you try will report your
memory as being fine, it's possible for slightly marginal memory
to pass all memory tests, yet fail under operating conditions
(such as during busmastering DMA from a SCSI controller like the
Adaptec 1542).
<sect1>Help, some of my X Window menus and dialog boxes don't work
right! I can't select them.
<p>
Try turning off the Num Lock key.
If your Num Lock key is on by default at boot-time, you may add
the following line in the ``<tt/Keyboard/'' section of the
<tt/XF86config/ file.
<verb>
# Let the server do the NumLock processing. This should only be required
# when using pre-R6 clients
ServerNumLock
</verb>
<sect1>How do I access the virtual consoles?
<p>
If the console is not currently displaying X Window, just press
Alt-F1 to Alt-F12.
<bf/NOTE/ the default FreeBSD installation has
only three (3) virtual consoles enabled, and so only Alt-F1,
Alt-F2, and Alt-F3 will work to switch between three virtual
consoles. If you want to increase this number, see the next
question.
If the console is currently displaying X Window, you can use
Ctrl-Alt-F1, etc. to switch to a virtual console. Note, however,
that once you've switched away from X Window to a virtual
terminal, you use only the Alt- function key to switch to another
virtual terminal or back to X Window. You do not also press the
Ctrl key; the Ctrl-Alt-function key combination is used only when
switching from X Window to a virtual terminal.
<sect1>How do I increase the number of virtual consoles?
<p>
Edit <tt>/etc/ttys</tt> and add entries for ``<tt/ttyv4/'' to
``<tt/ttyvc/'' after the comment on ``Virtual terminals'' (delete
the leading whitespace in the following example):
<verb>
# Edit the existing entry for ttyv3 in /etc/ttys and change
# "off" to "on".
ttyv3 "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
ttyv4 "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
ttyv5 "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
ttyv6 "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
ttyv7 "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
ttyv8 "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
ttyv9 "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
ttyva "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
ttyvb "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
</verb>
Use as many or as few as you want. The more virtual terminals
you have, the more resources that are used; this can be important
if you have 8MB RAM or less. You may also want to change the
``<tt/secure/'' to ``<tt/insecure/''.
<bf/IMPORTANT NOTE/ if you want to run X Window, you <bf/MUST/
leave a virtual terminal unused (or turned off). For example, if
you want to attach a virtual terminal to all of your twelve
Alt-function keys, you can only attach virtual terminals to
eleven of them. The last must be left unused, because X Windows
will use it, and you will use the last Alt-function key to switch
back to X Window (after you have switched from X Window to a
virtual console via a Ctrl-Alt-function key). The easiest way to
do this is to disable a console by turning it off. For example,
if you have a keyboard with twelve function keys, you would
change settings for virtual terminal 12 from:
<verb>
ttyvb "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 on secure
</verb>
to:
<verb>
ttyvb "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 off secure
</verb>
If your keyboard has only ten function keys, you would end up with:
<verb>
ttyv9 "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 off secure
ttyva "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 off secure
ttyvb "/usr/libexec/getty Pc" cons25 off secure
</verb>
(You could also just delete these lines.)
Once you have edited <tt>/etc/ttys</tt>, the next step is to make
sure that you have enough virtual terminal devices. The easiest
way to do this is:
<verb>
cd /dev
./MAKEDEV vty12 # For 12 devices
</verb>
Next, the easiest (and cleanest) way to activate the virtual
consoles is to reboot. However, if you really don't want to
reboot, you can just shut down X Window and execute (as
<tt/root/):
<verb>
kill -HUP 1
</verb>
It's imperative that you completely shut down X Window if it is
running, before running this command. If you don't, your system
will probably appear to hang/lock up after executing the kill
command.
<sect1>I've heard of something called FreeBSD-current. How do I run
it, and where can I get more information?
<p>
Read the file <tt>/usr/src/share/FAQ/Text/current-policy.FAQ</tt>,
it will tell you all you need to know.
<sect1>What is this thing called ``<tt/sup/'', and how do I use it?
<p>
SUP stands for Software Update Protocol, and was developed by CMU
for keeping their development trees in sync. We use it to keep
remote sites in sync with our central development sources.
Unless you have direct internet connectivity, and don't care too
much about the cost/duration of the sessions, you shouldn't use
sup. For those ``low/expensive-bandwidth'' applications, we have
developed <tt/CTM/, see the section <ref id="ctm" name="on CTM">
for more about that.
To use it, you need to have direct internet connectivity (not
just mail or news). First, pick up the <tt/sup.tgz/ package
from:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/packages/sup.tgz"
name="The SUP package">
Second, read the file <tt>/usr/src/share/FAQ/Text/sup.FAQ</tt>.
This file describes how to setup sup on your machine. You may
also want to look at
<tt>/usr/src/share/FAQ/extras/*.supfile</tt>, or you may grab
updated supfiles from:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/FAQ/extras"
name="Updated SUP files">
which are a set of supfiles for supping from <tt/FreeBSD.ORG/.
<sect1>How do I create customized installation disks that I can give
out to other people at my site?
<p>
The entire process of creating installation disks and source and
binary archives is automated by various targets in
<tt>/usr/src/etc/Makefile</tt>. The information there should be
enough to get you started.
<sect1>How do I re-build my system without clobbering the existing
installed binaries?
<p>
If you define the environment variable <tt/DESTDIR/ while running
``<tt/make world/'' or ``<tt/make install/'', the newly-created
binaries will be deposited in a directory tree identical to the
installed one, rooted at <tt>&dollar;&lcub;DESTDIR&rcub;</tt>.
Some random combination of shared libraries modifications and
program rebuilds can cause this to fail in ``<tt/make world/'',
however.
<sect1>When my system booted, it told me that ``(bus speed
defaulted)''. What does that mean?
<p>
The Adaptec 1542 SCSI host adapters allow the user to configure
their bus access speed in software. Previous versions of the
1542 driver tried to determine the fastest usable speed and set
the adapter to that. We found that this breaks some users'
systems, so you now have to define the ``<tt/TUNE&lowbar;1542/'' kernel
configuration option in order to have this take place. Using it
on those systems where it works may make your disks run faster,
but on those systems where it doesn't, your data could be
corrupted.
<sect1>I would like to track changes to current and do not have net
access. Is there any way besides downloading the whole tree?
<label id="ctm">
<p>
Yes, you can use the <tt/CTM/ facility. Check out the
<tt/ctm.FAQ/ file or
<url url="ftp://freefall.cdrom.com/pub/CTM/README" name="README
for CTM">
for more information.
<sect1>How do I split up large binary files into smaller 240k files
like the distribution does?
<p>
Newer BSD based systems have a ``<tt/-b/'' option to split that
allows them to split files on arbitary byte bondaries.
Here is an example from <tt>/usr/src/Makefile</tt>.
<verb>
bin-tarball:
(cd $&lcub;DISTDIR&rcub;; \
tar cf - . \
gzip --no-name -9 -c | \
split -b 240640 - \
$&lcub;RELEASEDIR&rcub;/tarballs/bindist/bin_tgz.)
</verb>
<sect1>&lt;XXX&gt; I've had a couple of system panics and would like
to be able browse the system dumps. The normal kernel is
stripped and I don't want to run a bloated kernel. What can I
do?</>
<sect1>I've got this neato kernel extension I just know everyone will
will want. How do I get it included into the distribution?
<p>
Please take a look at the FAQ for submiting code to FreeBSD at:
<url
url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/FAQ/Text/submitters.FAQ"
name="Submitters' FAQ">
And thanks for the thought.
</sect1>
<sect>Kernel Configuration
<p>
<sect1>Ok, so how DO I compile my own kernel, anyway? <label
id="make-kernel">
<p>
Before you can compile a kernel, you need either the complete
<tt/srcdist/ or, at the minimum, the <tt/kerndist/ loaded on your
system. This provides the necessary sources for building the
kernel, as we have a policy of <bf/NOT/ shipping our kernels in
linkable object form as most commercial UNIX vendors do.
Shipping the source takes a bit more space, but it also means
that you can refer to the actual kernel sources in case of
difficulty or to further your understanding of what's
<bf/actually/ happening.
Anyway, to answer the question, once you have the <tt/kerndist/
or <tt/srcdist/ loaded, do this:
<enum>
<item> <tt>cd /usr/src/sys/i386/conf</tt>
<item> <tt/cp GENERIC MYKERNEL/
<item> <tt/vi MYKERNEL/
<item> <tt/config MYKERNEL/
<item> <tt>cd ../../compile/MYKERNEL</tt>
<item> <tt/make depend/
<item> <tt/make all/
<item> <tt/make install/
<item> <tt/reboot/
</enum>
Step 2 may not be necessary if you already have a kernel
configuration file from a previous release of FreeBSD 2.X. -
simply bring your old one over and check it carefully for any
drivers that may have changed boot syntax or been rendered
obsolete.
A good kernel config file to look into is <tt/LINT/, which
contains entries for <bf/all/ possible kernel options and
documents them fairly well. The <tt/GENERIC/ kernel config file
is used to build the initial release you probably loaded (unless
you upgraded in-place) and contains entries for the most common
configurations. It's a pretty good place to start from.
If you don't need to make any changes to <tt/GENERIC/, you can
also skip step 3, where you customize the kernel for your
configuration. Step 7 should only be undertaken if step 6
succeeds. This will copy the new kernel image to
<tt>/kernel</tt> and <bf/BACK UP YOUR OLD ONE IN/
<tt>/kernel.old</tt>! It's very important to remember this in
case the new kernel fails to work for some reason - you can still
select <tt>/kernel.old</tt> at the boot prompt to boot the old
one. When you reboot, the new kernel will boot by default.
If the compile in 6 falls over for some reason, then it's
recommended that you start from step 4 but substitute
<tt/GENERIC/ for <tt/MYKERNEL/. If you can generate a
<tt/GENERIC/ kernel, then it's likely something in your special
configuration file that's bad (or you've uncovered a bug!). If
the build of the <tt/GENERIC/ kernel does <bf/NOT/ succeed, then
it's very likely that your sources are somehow corrupted.
Finally, if you need to see your original boot messages again to
compile a new kernel that's better tailored to your hardware, try
the <tt/dmesg(8)/ command. It should print out all the boot-time
messages printed by your old kernel, some of which may be quite
helpful in configuring the new one.
<sect1>When I compile a kernel with multi-port serial code, it tells
me that only the first port is probed and the rest skipped due to
interrupt conflicts. How do I fix this?
<p>
The problem here is that FreeBSD has code built-in to keep the
kernel from getting trashed due t hardware or software
conflicts. The way to fix this is to leave out the IRQ settings
on other ports besides the first. Here is a example:
<verb>
#
# Multiport high-speed serial line - 16550 UARTS
#
device sio2 at isa? port 0x2a0 tty irq 5 flags 0x501 vector siointr
device sio3 at isa? port 0x2a8 tty flags 0x501 vector siointr
device sio4 at isa? port 0x2b0 tty flags 0x501 vector siointr
device sio5 at isa? port 0x2b8 tty flags 0x501 vector siointr
</verb>
<sect1>FreeBSD is supposed to come with support for QIC-40/80 drives
but when I look, I can't find it.
<p>
You need to uncomment the following line in the generic config
file (or add it to your config file), add a ``<tt/flags 0x1/''
on the <tt/fdc/ line and recompile.
<verb>
controller fdc0 at isa? port "IO_FD1" bio irq 6 drq 2 flags 0x1 vector fdintr
disk fd0 at fdc0 drive 0 ^^^^^^^^^
disk fd1 at fdc0 drive 1
#tape ft0 at fdc0 drive 2
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
</verb>
Next, you create a device called <tt>/dev/ft0</tt> by going into
<tt>/dev</tt> and run the following command:
<verb>
sh MAKEDEV ft0
</verb>
for the first device. <tt/ft1/ for a second one and so on.
You will have a device called <tt>/dev/ft0</tt>, which you can
write to through a special program to manage it called
``<tt/ft/'' - see the man page on <tt/ft/ for further details.
Versions previous to <tt/-current/ also had some trouble dealing
wiht bad tape media; if you have trouble where <tt/ft/ seems to
go back and forth over the same spot, try grabbing the latest
version of <tt/ft/ from <tt>/usr/src/sbin/ft</tt> in
<tt/-current/ and try that.
<sect1>Does FreeBSD support IPC primitives like those in System V?
<p>
Yes, FreeBSD supports System V-style IPC. This includes shared
memory, messages and semaphores. You need to add the following
lines to your kernel config to enable them.
<verb>
options SYSVSHM
options "SHMMAXPGS=64" # 256Kb of sharable memory
options SYSVSEM # enable for semaphores
options SYSVMSG # enable for messaging
</verb>
Recompile and install.
<sect1>Will FreeBSD ever support other architectures?
<p>
Several different groups have expressed interest in working on
multi-architecture support for FreeBSD. If you are interested in
doing so, please contact the developers at
<tt>&lt;hackers@FreeBSD.ORG&gt;</tt> for more information on our
strategy for porting.
<sect1>I just wrote a device driver for a Foobar Systems, Inc.
Integrated Adaptive Gronkulator card. How do I get the
appropriate major numbers assigned?
<p>
This depends on whether or not you plan on making the driver
publicly available. If you do, then please send us a copy of the
driver source code, plus the appropriate modifications to
<tt>files.i386</tt>, a sample configuration file entry, and the
appropriate <tt>MAKEDEV</tt> code to create any special files
your device uses. If you do not, or are unable to because of
licensing restrictions, then character major number 32 and block
major number 8 have been reserved specifically for this purpose;
please use them. In any case, we'd appreciate hearing about your
driver on <tt>&lt;hackers@FreeBSD.ORG&gt;</tt>.
</sect1>
<sect>System Administration
<sect1>How do I add a user easily? I read the man page and am more
confused than ever! (Alternatively: I didn't read the man page,
I never read man pages! :-) )
<p>
Use the <tt/adduser/ command.
There is another package called ``<tt/new-account/'' also written
in Perl by Ollivier Robert. Ask
<tt>&lt;roberto@FreeBSD.ORG&gt;</tt> about it. It is currently
under further development.
<sect1>&lt;XXX&gt; I'm trying to use my printer and keep running into
problems. I tried looking at <tt>/etc/printcap</tt>, but it's
close to useless. Any ideas?
<p>
Still under construction.
</sect1>
<sect1>My keyboard mappings are wrong for my system. How can I fix
them?
<p>
The kbdcontrol program has an option to load a keyboard map file.
Under <tt>/usr/share/syscons/keymaps</tt> are a number of map
files. Choose the one relevant to your system and load it.
<verb>
kbdcontrol -l uk.iso
</verb>
Both the <tt>/usr/share/syscons/keymaps</tt> and the <tt/.kbd/
extension are assumed by <tt/kbdcontrol(1)/.
This could be run at boot time by adding the command to
<tt>/etc/rc.local</tt>
<tt>/etc/rc.local</tt> also has a comment at the end of it
relating to loading fonts/keyboard examples. See
<tt>/usr/share/examples/syscons</tt>.
The following mappings are currently supported:
<itemize>
<item>Danish (both ISO and cp865),
<item>French (ISO only),
<item>German (both ISO and cp850),
<item>Russian
<item>Swedish (both ISO and cp850),
<item>U.K. (both ISO and cp850),
<item>U.S.A. (ISO only).
</itemize>
</sect1>
<sect>Networking
<sect1>Where can I get information booting FreeBSD ``diskless'', that
is booting and running a FreeBSD box from a server rather than
having a local disk?
<p>
Please read <tt>/sys/i386/boot/netboot/netboot.doc</tt>.
<sect1>I've heard that you can use a FreeBSD box as a dedicated
network router - is there any easy support for this?
<p>
Internet standards and good engineering practice prohibit us from
providing packet forwarding by default in FreeBSD. You can
enable this support by adding ``<tt/options GATEWAY/'' to your
kernel configuration file and recompiling. In most cases, you
will also need to run a routing process to tell other systems on
your network about your router; FreeBSD comes with the standard
BSD routing daemon <tt/routed(8)/, or for more complex situations
you may want to try <em/GaTeD/ (available by FTP from
<tt/gated.Cornell.edu/) which supports FreeBSD as of 3_5Alpha7.
It is our duty to warn you that, even when FreeBSD is configured
in this way, it does not completely comply with the Internet
standard requirements for routers; however, it comes close enough
for ordinary usage.
<sect1>Does FreeBSD support SLIP and PPP?</>
<p>
Yes. See the man pages for <tt/slattach(8)/ and/or <tt/pppd(8)/
if you're using FreeBSD to connect to another site. If you're
using FreeBSD as a server for other machines, look at the man
page for <tt/sliplogin(8)/. You may also want to take a look at
the slip FAQ in:
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FreeBSD/FAQ/Text/Slip.FAQ"
name="SLIP FAQ">
<sect1>How do I get my network set up? I don't see how to make my
<tt>/dev/ed0</tt> device!
<p>
In the Berkeley networking framework, network interfaces are only
directly accessible by kernel code. Please see the
<tt>/etc/netstart</tt> file and the manual pages for the various
network programs mentioned there for more information. If this
leaves you totally confused, then you should pick up a book
describing network administration on another BSD-related
operating system; with few significant exceptions, administering
networking on FreeBSD is basically the same as on SunOS 4.0 or
Ultrix.
<sect1>How do I get my 3C503 to use the other network port?
<p>
Use ``<tt/ifconfig ed0/'' to see whether the ALTPHYS flag is set,
and then use either ``<tt/ifconfig ed0 altphys/'' if it was off,
or ``<tt/ifconfig ed0 -altphys/'' if it was on.
<sect1>I'm having problems with NFS to/from FreeBSD and my
Wuffotronics Workstation / generic NFS appliance, where should I
look first?
<p>
Certain PC network cards are better than others (to put it
mildly) and can sometimes cause problems with network intensive
applications like NFS.
See
<url url="ftp://ftp.FreeBSD.ORG/pub/FAQ/Text/NFS.FAQ" name="NFS FAQ">
for more information on
this topic.
<sect1>I want to enable IP multicast support on my FreeBSD box, how
do I do it? (Alternatively: What the heck IS multicasting and
what applications make use of it?)
<p>
Multicast host operations are fully supported in FreeBSD 2.0 by
default. If you want your box to run as a multicast router, you
will need to load the <tt/ip_mroute_mod/ loadable kernel module
and run <tt/mrouted/.
For more information:
<verb>
Product Description Where
--------------- ----------------------- ---------------------------------------
faq.txt Mbone FAQ ftp.isi.edu:/mbone/faq.txt
imm/immserv IMage Multicast ftp.hawaii.edu:/paccom/imm.src.tar.Z
for jpg/gif images.
nv Network Video. ftp.parc.xerox.com:
/pub/net-reseach/exp/nv3.3alpha.tar.Z
vat LBL Visual Audio Tool. ftp.ee.lbl.gov:
/conferencing/vat/i386-vat.tar.Z
wb LBL White Board. ftp.ee.lbl.gov:
/conferencing/wb/i386-wb.tar.Z
mmcc MultiMedia Conference ftp.isi.edu:
Control program /confctrl/mmcc/mmcc-intel.tar.Z
rtpqual Tools for testing the ftp.psc.edu:/pub/net_tools/rtpqual.c
quality of RTP packets.
vat_nv_record Recording tools for vat ftp.sics.se:archive/vat_nv_record.tar.Z
and nv.
</verb>
</sect1>
<sect> Serial Communications
<p>
This section answers common questions about serial communications
with FreeBSD.
<sect1> How do I tell if FreeBSD found my serial ports or modem
cards?
<p>
As the FreeBSD kernel boots, it will probe for the serial ports
in your system for which the kernel was configured. You can
either watch your system closely for the messages it prints or
run the command
<verb>
dmesg | grep sio
</verb>
after your system's up and running.
Here's some example output from the above command:
<verb>
sio0 at 0x3f8-0x3ff irq 4 on isa
sio0: type 16550A
sio1 at 0x2f8-0x2ff irq 3 on isa
sio1: type 16550A
</verb>
This shows two serial ports. The first is on irq 4, is using
port address <tt/0x3f8/, and has a 16550A-type UART chip. The
second uses the same kind of chip but is on irq 3 and is at port
address <tt/0x2f8/. Internal modem cards are treated just like
serial ports---except that they always have a modem ``attached''
to the port.
The <tt/GENERIC/ kernel includes support for two serial ports
using the same irq and port address settings in the above
example. If these settings aren't right for your system, or if
you've added modem cards or have more serial ports than your
kernel is configured for, just reconfigure your kernel. See
section <ref id="make-kernel" name="about building a kernel"> for
more details.
<sect1>Hey, I just upgraded to 2.0.5 and my <tt/tty0X/ are missing !
<p>
Don't worry, they have been merged with the <tt/ttydX/
devices. You'll have to change old configuration files.
<sect1> How do I access the serial ports once FreeBSD is running?
<p>
The third serial port, <tt/sio2/ (known as COM3 in DOS), is on
<tt>/dev/cuaa2</tt> for dial-out devices, and on
<tt>/dev/ttyd2</tt> for dial-in devices. What's the difference
between these two classes of devices?
You use <tt/ttydX/ for dial-ins. The <tt/ttydX/ device acts like
the <tt/ttyXX/ device, but it also uses the modem control lines.
When opening <tt>/dev/ttydX</tt> in blocking mode, a process will
wait for the corresponding <tt/cuaaX/ device to become inactive,
and then wait for the carrier detect line to go active. When you
open the <tt/cuaaX/ device, it makes sure the serial port isn't
already in use by the <tt/ttydX/ device. If the port's
available, it ``steals'' it from the <tt/ttydX/ device. Also,
the <tt/cuaXX/ device doesn't care about carrier detect. With
this scheme and an auto-answer modem, you can have remote users
log in and you can still dialout with the same modem and the
system will take care of all the conflicts.
<sect1> How do I configure the kernel for my multiport serial card?
<p>
Again, the section on kernel configuration provides information
about configuring your kernel. For a multiport serial card,
place an <tt/sio/ line for each serial port on the card in the
kernel configuration file. But place the irq and vector
specifiers on only one of the entries. All of the ports on the
card should share one irq. For consistency, use the last serial
port to specify the irq. Also, specify the
<tt/COM&lowbar;MULTIPORT/ option.
The following example is for an AST 4-port serial card on irq 7:
<verb>
options "COM_MULTIPORT"
device sio4 at isa? port 0x2a0 tty flags 0x781
device sio5 at isa? port 0x2a8 tty flags 0x781
device sio6 at isa? port 0x2b0 tty flags 0x781
device sio7 at isa? port 0x2b8 tty flags 0x781 irq 7 vector siointr
</verb>
The flags indicate that the master port has minor number 7
(<tt/0x700/), diagnostics enabled during probe (<tt/0x080/), and
all the ports share an irq (<tt/0x001/).
<sect1> I have two multiport serial cards that can share irqs. Can
FreeBSD handle this?
<p>
Not yet. You'll have to use a different irq for each card.
<sect1> What's the difference between <tt/ttyd1/, <tt/ttyid1/, and
<tt/ttyld1/? Or, how can I set the default serial parameters for
a port?
<p>
The <tt/ttydX/ (or <tt/cuaaX/) device is the regular device
you'll want to open for your applications. When a process opens
the device, it'll have a default set of terminal I/O settings.
You can see these settings with the command
<verb>
stty -a -f /dev/ttyd1
</verb>
When you change the settings to this device, the settings are in
effect until the device is closed. When it's reopened, it goes
back to the default set. To make changes to the default set, you
can open and adjust the settings of the ``initial state'' device.
For example, to turn on <tt/CLOCAL/ mode, 8 bits, and
<tt>XON/XOFF</tt> flow control by default for ttyd5, do:
<verb>
stty -f /dev/ttyid5 clocal cs8 ixon ixoff
</verb>
A good place to do this is in <tt>/etc/rc.serial</tt>. Now, an
application will have these settings by default when it opens
<tt/tty05/. It can still change these settings to its liking,
though.
You can also prevent certain settings from being changed by an
application by making adjustments to the ``lock state'' device.
For example, to lock the speed of <tt/tty05/ to 57600 bps, do
<verb>
stty -f /dev/ttyl05 57600
</verb>
Now, an application that opens <tt/tty05/ and tries to change the
speed of the port will be stuck with 57600 bps.
Naturally, you should make the initial state and lock state
devices writable only by <tt/root/. The <tt/MAKEDEV/ script does
<bf/NOT/ do this when it creates the device entries.
<sect1> How can I enable dialup logins on my modem?
<p>
So you want to become an Internet service provider, eh? First,
you'll need one or more modems that can autoanswer. Your modem
will need to assert carrier-detect when it detects a carrier and
not assert it all the time. It will need to hang up the phone
and reset itself when the data terminal ready (<tt/DTR/) line
goes from on to off. It should probably use <tt>RTS/CTS</tt>
flow control or no local flow control at all. Finally, it must
use a constant speed between the computer and itself, but (to be
nice to your callers) it should negotiate a speed between itself
and the remote modem.
For many Hayes command-set--compatible modems, this command will
make these settings and store them in nonvolatile memory:
<verb>
AT &ero;C1 &ero;D3 &ero;K3 &ero;Q6 S0=1 &ero;W
</verb>
See the section <ref id="direct-at" name="on sending AT
commands"> below for information on how to make these settings
without resorting to an MS-DOS terminal program.
Next, make an entry in <tt>/etc/ttys</tt> for the modem. This
file lists all the ports on which the operating system will await
logins. Add a line that looks something like this:
<verb>
ttyd1 "/usr/libexec/getty std.57600" dialup on insecure
</verb>
This line indicates that the second serial port
(<tt>/dev/ttyd1</tt>) has a modem connected running at 57600 bps
and no parity (<tt/std.57600/, which comes from the file
<tt>/etc/gettytab</tt>). The terminal type for this port is
``dialup.'' The port is ``on'' and is ``insecure''---meaning
root logins on the port aren't allowed. For dialin ports like
this one, use the <tt/ttydX/ entry.
It's common practice to use ``dialup'' as the terminal type.
Many users set up in their .profile or .login files a prompt for
the actual terminal type if the starting type is dialup. The
example shows the port as insecure. To become root on this port,
you have to login as a regular user, then ``<tt/su/'' to
<tt/root/. If you use ``secure'' then <tt/root/ can login in
directly.
After making modifications to <tt>/etc/ttys</tt>, you need to
send a hangup or <tt/HUP/ signal to the <tt/init/ process:
<verb>
kill -1 1
</verb>
This forces the init process to reread <tt>/etc/ttys</tt>. The
init process will then start getty processes on all ``on'' ports.
You can find out if logins are available for your port by typing
<verb>
ps -ax | grep '[t]tyd1'
</verb>
You should see something like:
<verb>
747 ?? I 0:00.04 /usr/libexec/getty std.57600 ttyd1
</verb>
<sect1> How can I make my spare computer a dumb terminal connected to
my FreeBSD box?
<p>
If you're using another computer as a terminal into your FreeBSD
system, get a null modem cable to go between the two serial
ports. If you're using an actual terminal, see its accompanying
instructions.
Then, modify <tt>/etc/ttys</tt>, like above. For example, if
you're hooking up a WYSE-50 terminal to the fifth serial port,
use an entry like this:
<verb>
tty04 "/usr/libexec/getty std.38400" wyse50 on secure
</verb>
This example shows that the port on <tt>/dev/tty04</tt> has a
wyse50 terminal connected at 38400 bps with no parity
(<tt/std.38400/ from <tt>/etc/gettytab</tt>) and <tt/root/ logins
are allowed (secure). For directly-connected terminals, use the
<tt/ttyXX/ entry.
<sect1> Why can't I run <tt/tip/ or <tt/cu/?
<p>
On your system, the programs <tt/tip/ and <tt/cu/ are probably
executable only by <tt/uucp/ and group <tt/dialer/. You can use
the group <tt/dialer/ to control who has access to your modem or
remote systems. Just add yourself to group dialer.
Alternatively, you can let everyone on your system run <tt/tip/
and <tt/cu/ by typing:
<verb>
chmod 4511 /usr/bin/tip
</verb>
You don't have to run this command for <tt/cu/, since <tt/cu/ is
just a hard link to <tt/tip/.
<sect1> My stock Hayes modem isn't supported---what should I do?
<p>
Actually, the man page for <tt/tip/ is out of date. There is a
generic Hayes dialer already built in. Just use
``<tt/at=hayes/'' in your <tt>/etc/remote</tt> file.
The Hayes driver isn't smart enough to recognize some of the
advanced features of newer modems---messages like <tt/BUSY/,
<tt/NO DIALTONE/, or <tt/CONNECT 115200/ will just confuse it.
You should turn those messages off when you use <tt/tip/ (using
<tt/ATX0&amp;W/).
Also, the dial timeout for <tt/tip/ is 60 seconds. Your modem
should use something less, or else tip will think there's a
communication problem. Try <tt/ATS7=45&amp;W/.
Actually, as shipped <tt/tip/ doesn't yet support it fully. The
solution is to edit the file <tt/tipconf.h> in the directory
<tt>/usr/src/usr.bin/tip/tip</tt> Obviously you need the source
distribution to do this.
Edit the line ``<tt/#define HAYES 0/'' to ``<tt/#define HAYES
1/''. Then ``<tt/make/'' and ``<tt/make install/''. Everything
works nicely after that.
<sect1> How am I expected to enter these AT commands without resorting
to some DOS-based terminal program? <label id="direct-at">
<p>
Make what's called a ``<tt/direct/'' entry in your
<tt>/etc/remote</tt> file. For example, if your modem's hooked
up to the first serial port, <tt>/dev/cuaa0</tt>, then put in the
following line:
<verb>
cuaa0:dv=/dev/cuaa0:br#19200:pa=none
</verb>
Use the highest bps rate your modem supports in the br
capability. Then, type ``<tt/tip cuaa0/'' and you'll be
connected to your modem.
If there is no <tt>/dev/cuaa0</tt> on your system, do this:
<verb>
cd /dev
MAKEDEV cuaa0
</verb>
<sect1> Why doesn't the <tt/@/ sign for the phone number capability
work?
<p>
The <tt/@/ sign in the pn capability tells tip to look in
<tt>/etc/phones</tt> for a phone number. But the <tt/@/ sign is
also a special character in capability files like
<tt>/etc/remote</tt>. Escape it with a backslash:
<verb>
pn=\@
</verb>
<sect1> How can I dial a phone number on the command line?
<p>
Put what's called a ``<tt/generic/'' entry in your
<tt>/etc/remote</tt> file. For example:
<verb>
tip115200|Dial any phone number at 115200 bps:\
:dv=/dev/cuaa0:br#115200:at=hayes:pa=none:du:
tip57600|Dial any phone number at 57600 bps:\
:dv=/dev/cuaa0:br#57600:at=hayes:pa=none:du:
</verb>
Then you can things like ``<tt/tip -115200 5551234/''. If you
prefer <tt/cu/ over <tt/tip/, use a generic cu entry:
<verb>
cu115200|Use cu to dial any number at 115200bps:\
:dv=/dev/cuaa1:br#57600:at=hayes:pa=none:du:
</verb>
and type ``<tt/cu 5551234 -s 115200/''.
<sect1> Great---but how can I do that without having to specify the
bps rate on the command line?
<p>
Put in an entry for <tt/tip1200/ or <tt/cu1200/, but go ahead and
use whatever bps rate is appropriate with the br
capability. <tt/tip/ thinks a good default is 1200 bps which is
why it looks for a ``<tt/tip1200/'' entry. You don't have to use
1200 bps, though.
<sect1> I want separate entries for various hosts I access through a
terminal server, but I don't want to type ``<tt/CONNECT
&lt;host&gt;/'' each time once I'm connected. Can <tt/tip/ do
that for me?
<p>
Yes. Use the <tt/cm/ capability. For example, these entries in
<tt>/etc/remote</tt>:
<verb>
pain|pain.deep13.com|Forrester's machine:\
:cm=CONNECT pain\n:tc=deep13:
muffin|muffin.deep13.com|Frank's machine:\
:cm=CONNECT muffin\n:tc=deep13:
deep13:Gizmonics Institute terminal server:\
:dv=/dev/cua02:br#38400:at=hayes:du:pa=none:pn=5551234:
</verb>
will let you type ``<tt/tip pain/'' or ``<tt/tip muffin/'' to
connect to the hosts pain or muffin; and ``<tt/tip deep13/'' to
get to the terminal server.
<sect1> My university has 42 billion students but only 4 modem lines.
Can tip automatically try each line?
<p>
Sure. Make an entry for your university in <tt>/etc/remote</tt>
and use <tt>\@</tt> for the <tt/pn/ capability:
<verb>
big-university:\
:pn=\@:tc=dialout
dialout:\
:dv=/dev/cuaa3:br#9600:at=courier:du:pa=none:
</verb>
Then, list the phone numbers for the university in
<tt>/etc/phones</tt>:
<verb>
big-university 5551111
big-university 5551112
big-university 5551113
big-university 5551114
</verb>
<tt/tip/ will try each one in the listed order, then give up. If
you want to keep retrying, run <tt/tip/ in a while loop.
<sect1> How come I have to hit CTRL+P twice to send CTRL+P once?
<p>
CTRL+P is the default ``force'' character, used to tell <tt/tip/
that the next character is literal data. You can set the force
character to any other character with the <tt/~s/ escape, which
means ``set a variable.''
Type ``<tt/~sforce=&lt;single-char&gt;/'' followed by a newline.
<tt/&lt;single-char&gt;/ is any single character. If you leave
out <tt/&lt;single-char&gt;/, then the force character is the nul
character, which you can get by typing CTRL+2 or CTRL+SPACE. A
pretty good value for <tt/&lt;single-char&gt;/ is SHIFT+CTRL+6,
which I've seen only used on some terminal servers.
You can have the force character be whatever you want by
specifying the following in your <tt>&dollar;HOME/.tiprc</tt>
file:
<verb>
force=<single-char>
</verb>
<sect1> Suddenly everything I type is all UPPER CASE. What gives?
<p>
You must've pressed CTRL+A, <tt/tip/'s ``raise character,''
specially designed for people with broken caps-lock keys. Use
<tt/~s/ as above and set the variable ``raisechar'' to something
reasonable. In fact, you can set it to the same as the force
character, if you never expect to use either of these features.
Here's a sample .tiprc file perfect for Emacs users who need to
type CTRL+2 and CTRL+A a lot:
<verb>
force=^^
raisechar=^^
</verb>
The ^^ is SHIFT+CTRL+6.
<sect1> How can I do file transfers with <tt/tip/?
<p>
If you're talking to another UNIX system, you can send and
receive files with <tt/~p/ (put) and <tt/~t/ (take). These
commands run ``<tt/cat/'' and ``<tt/echo/'' on the remote system
to accept and send files. The syntax is:
<verb>
~p <local-file> [<remote-file>]
~t <remote-file> [<local-file>]
</verb>
There's no error checking, so you probably should use another
protocol, like zmodem.
<sect1> Okay, how can I run zmodem with <tt/tip/?
<p>
To receive files, start the sending program on the remote end.
Then, type ``<tt/~C rz/'' to begin receiving them locally.
To send files, start the receiving program on the remote end.
Then, type ``<tt/~C sz &lt;files&gt;/'' to send them to the
remote system.
</sect>
<sect>ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
<p>
<code>
If you see a problem with this FAQ, or wish to submit an entry,
please mail us at <FAQ@FreeBSD.ORG>. We appreciate your
feedback, and cannot make this a better FAQ without your help!
FreeBSD Core Team
</code>
<descrip>
<tag/Ollivier Robert/
FreeBSD FAQ maintenance man
<tag/Gary Clark II/
Ex-FreeBSD FAQ maintenance man
<tag/Jordan Hubbard/
Janitorial services (I don't do windows)
<tag/Garrett Wollman/
Networking and formatting
<tag/Robert Oliver, Jr./
Ideas and dumb questions (That made me think)
<tag/Jim Lowe/
Multicast information
<tag/The FreeBSD Team/
Kvetching, moaning, submitting data
</descrip>
And to any others we've forgotten, apologies and heartfelt thanks!
</article>