Description: HowTo for yaboot The bootloader for NewWorld PowerMacs
Keywords: boot bootloader yaboot ybin GNU Linux GNU/Linux OpenFirmware dual-boot dualboot multi-boot multiboot bootmenu menu bootstrap Apple_Bootstrap partition lilo

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# HOWTO-Booting with Yaboot on PowerPC
Chapter 4 - Creating the Bootstrap Partition

Be sure you have reviewed the `mac-fdisk` Basics page at `http://penguinppc.org/bootloaders/yaboot/doc/mac-fdisk-basics.shtml`. If you are creating a new Linux installation, the first partition you create with `mac-fdisk` should be the bootstrap partition. Just use the `mac-fdisk` `b` command to automatically create a bootstrap partition of the proper size and type. If your version of `mac-fdisk` doesn't include the `b` command, use:

              Command (? for help): C xxxx 800k bootstrap Apple_Bootstrap

(Replace xxxx with the starting block number.) A working tarball of a bootstrap-capable version of mac-fdisk (Debian users already have this version) is also distributed at `http://penguinppc.org/~eb/files/`. To install this, use

              su -
              cd /
              gzip -dc mac-fdisk.tar.gz | tar -xvp

The bootstrap partition only takes 800k of space. If you are adding a bootstrap partition to your existing setup, you may have enough free space on your existing drive without changing other partitions. If not, you could avoid re-partitioning the entire disk by stealing a little space from your swap partition. Or `parted` would allow you to resize partitions.

The bootstrap partition should end up being partition #2, after the partition map itself but before any other partitions on the disk. You can easily change the order of the partitions in the partition map using the `r` command (see the `mac-fdisk` tutorial). In other words, it's not the physical placement of the bootstrap partition that counts, it's the logical order within the partition map. Note, though, if you have an existing system and you shift the partition numbers around, you will need to make the appropriate changes in `/etc/fstab`.

The reason you want the bootstrap partition as partition #2, is so that it precedes all other partitions in the boot sequence. This helps tremendously to make the entire system more stable, since some OS's are very intrusive in their use of partitions.

When you're finished partitioning, use the `p` command and make note of the final partition numbers. You will need to know the partition number for the bootstrap partition, the location of your kernel, and if you intend to set up `yaboot` for multiple OS booting, partition numbers for your alternate OS's.

While it's possible to install `yaboot` on a mountable HFS `/boot` partition, that configuration is deprecated, discouraged and completely unsupported.

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HOWTO-Booting with Yaboot on PowerPC