How to boot Knoppix 4.0.2 from a floppy?

**chip.ling** · 02-23-2006, 08:56 PM

I have a very old PC, I cannot go to the bios. (It's a Compaq DeskPro 2000, pentium 166). It has a floppy drive and a cd rom.

I also have a copy of Knoppix 4.0.2 on cd which I proved it is working on another PC. (that one can boot from the cd-rom).

Now, I try to run Knoppix from the old machine.

I read the FAQ, it says I can create 2 boot floppy disks by running mkbootfloppy.

So I boot up the Knoppix on the other PC and run the mkbootfloppy. The program starts but failed in the middle complaining about the floppy disk has problem. I know I try to format 1.44 M disk to 1.72 M. I tried all floppy I have on hand (not much, I only have 5 of them) Cannot make one work.

So I search the internet and find there is another solution. (the SBM).

I download the SBM and copy it to the floppy.

Put the SBM floppy and the Knoppix cd into the PC, turn on the machine.

After a while, the SBM screen appears. But I cannot find my CD rom from the list. Browse around the SBM application, and cannot find a way to boot from the cd-rom.

I have to confess here, I upgrade this PC cd-rom to a dvd-rom many years ago so I think the old machine does not see the dvd-rom. But if I boot the windows 95 from the harddisk, it can see the DVD rom.

The closest one I can find from the SBM application is that there is a screen asking me to put it two hex numbers for the cd-rom, but I don't know what numbers I should be enter here.

Any one can help? Or is there any other way beside the two I mentioned above?

Rgds,
Chip

**Harry Kuhman** · 02-23-2006, 09:11 PM

Originally Posted by chip.ling

I read the FAQ, it says I can create 2 boot floppy disks by running....

You read the wrong FAQ, That is old, out of date information. See answer #1, read the booting from floppy information there and you'll have much better results. Can you give me a link to the information that told you to make 2 floppies? Maybe I can fix it or at least include the information to the one floppy method that never needs new floppies and virtually always works.

**Harry Kuhman** · 02-23-2006, 09:31 PM

By the way, I normally install XOSL to it's own tiny 2 meg partition on any system that is so old that it will not boot the CD. That way the computer will boot any bootable CD, as well as any and all OSs that I choose to install on that system (as well as booting from either floppy (A or B) or either CD or DVD drive, all without having to go back into the BIOS). Includes other nice stuff too like Ranish partition manager. Never a need to make or use a boot floppy again. Details in the FAQ referenced above.

**chip.ling** · 02-23-2006, 09:37 PM

Harry, sorry for the false info. I must have look at the FAQ not in the knoppix.net. I think I did a search for "boot from floppy in Knoppix" so it brings me to some other FAQ.

Anyway, I re-visit the download FAQ here, they only mentioned SBM and XOSL. I tried the SBM with problem and XOSL must be run from harddisk so it seems to me a dead end here.

Is it possible I can boot from the floppy up to the point the cheat-code screen appears and then I re-direct the boot to the cd-rom?

Or is it possible if I can boot the Knoppix from DOS? I have a windows 95 boot disk and I can boot the PC to DOS. And after the boot, I can see the cd-rom too.

Rgds,
Chip

**Harry Kuhman** · 02-23-2006, 11:50 PM

Originally Posted by chip.ling

I tried the SBM with problem and XOSL must be run from harddisk so it seems to me a dead end here.

What was the problem with SBM? It seems to me very likely that it can be resolved.

Yes, XOLS needs to be installed on the hard disk. I always give it its own tiny (about 2 meg) partition, although it can be installed to the existing Windows partition. It used the SBM logic to boot the CD (and it's own code to do the rest of it's magic), so if SBM acn't be made to work then likely XOSL will not either, but I have yet to run across a system where either of them will not work.

Can't answer your other questions.

**ruymbeke** · 02-24-2006, 12:29 AM

Originally Posted by chip.ling

Harry, sorry for the false info. I must have look at the FAQ not in the knoppix.net. I think I did a search for "boot from floppy in Knoppix" so it brings me to some other FAQ.
Anyway, I re-visit the download FAQ here, they only mentioned SBM and XOSL. I tried the SBM with problem and XOSL must be run from harddisk so it seems to me a dead end here.
Is it possible I can boot from the floppy up to the point the cheat-code screen appears and then I re-direct the boot to the cd-rom?
Or is it possible if I can boot the Knoppix from DOS? I have a windows 95 boot disk and I can boot the PC to DOS. And after the boot, I can see the cd-rom too.
Rgds,
Chip

It Looks like to me that an other solution to your problem could be to make/modify and use a GRUB boot floppy disk.
There are two options to make this grub floppy disk:
a) use your DOS 95 boot floppy and copy grub.exe on it and update your config.sys to remove all devices
(grub.exe do not work with emm386.exe loaded)
b) install grub in the floppy (boot sectors of the floppy), cf grub man pages
(or from xp use http://s94002264.onlinehome.us/grub/grube.zip makeflo directory)
From there using the proper grub menu.lst config file, grub should be able to read
the linux kernel and boot ramdisk (linux & minirt_usb4.gz) from your disk drive
and from there boot knoppix from the cd drive or from the cd file image (iso file) stored on your hdd.
Link to grubh.zip (grub.exe and minirt_usb4.gz): http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtop...?p=98940#98940
Hope this helps,
Gilles

**UnderScore** · 02-24-2006, 01:11 AM

I have booted a Compaq DeskPro 2000 pentium 166 with Knoppix 3.6. It was the original HW & original CDROM drive. I had to use many cheatcodes but it did work.

**Harry Kuhman** · 02-24-2006, 01:26 AM

Originally Posted by chip.ling

I have a very old PC, I cannot go to the bios. (It's a Compaq DeskPro 2000, pentium 166).

It is not clear to me what I cannot go to the bios means. Compaq used some strange keyboard combinations to get to the BIOS, not the standard DEL at boot time, but you should be able to find the proper code. The information should be on-line at the Compaq site. Of course. the BIOS might not even have a boot from CD option, but you'll have to get to it to know.

**|enouf|** · 02-24-2006, 05:29 AM

it's likely F10 to enter the BIOS setup
-- (while the cursor goes to the right top of screen? )

Once in the BIOS, set CDROM as 1st Boot device (Boot Order) - set HDD 2nd

**chip.ling** · 02-24-2006, 08:12 AM

Originally Posted by |enouf|

it's likely F10 to enter the BIOS setup
-- (while the cursor goes to the right top of screen? )

Once in the BIOS, set CDROM as 1st Boot device (Boot Order) - set HDD 2nd

But my machine don't have F10 to enter the BIOS setup when I boot up.

Well, the harddisk crashed at one point and I just brought a new one and replacing the old one. So the hardware is not really original. I upgrade the cd rom to dvd rom too.