Just -can't- get Etherboot to work

[Tec]

I've had no problems with Knoppix Terminal Server and a machine with an Intel Pro 1000/MT adapter in it using PXE, but a couple days ago I got a new board that has an Sis900 on board adapter with no PXE, so I tried Etherboot.

I've fought with it for days, ultimately swapping in Etherboot with an old DEC 21140 (Tulip) network card and an SMC 9452TX. I've dug so deep that I even got to the point of making the onboard SIS900 work with Etherboot by altering the transceiver discovery order.

But I just can't get it to work. It recognizes the card, get assigned an address, the initial bootstrap comes down (DOS Net?), and then as soon as I get the <pre>SYSLINUX 2.04 (Debian... etc) Copyright...</PRE> prompt, then it hangs.

I've run the term server script with every adapter, just to make sure it wasn't missing something. The target machine in question boots just fine off the CD.

I've torn up every network boot forum I can find, asked in LTSP IRC, you name it. Tried with both 3.3-11-19 and 3.3-02-16. I'm at a loss, suggestions would be welcome.

[rpcook]

"I've dug so deep that I even got to the point of making the onboard SIS900 work with Etherboot by altering the transceiver discovery order. "

Hmm, should I ask how you did this?

I am impressed. I have spent days looking for the same thing. I heard there was a problem with the sis900.c driver in 2.4.2x but messed things up trying to apply the patch.

I have reinstalled to HD, ver 3.3, and am now trying to do a network boot from a USB Flash Disk. My motherboard allows booting from USB-FDD and USB-HDD. I tried ROM-O-MATIC to build a sis900 bootrom but have never been able to get it to work passed the same point you got to.

Different approach, no answers yet. Sorry.

[Tec]

Hmm, should I ask how you did this?

In the end I did get everything up and running. I submitted my changes to the Etherboot devs but I'm not sure if they're going to be incorporated or not. In my case the Realtek 8201 transceiver was being detected as something else, so I changed the discovery order by reordering the transceiver lookup table (mii_something.)

Actually the changes DID work, and what I ultimately found was that there were issues with the version I had in ROM 'polluting' the system even when I hit Quit. I suspect Etherboot doesn't exit entirely cleanly, but once I got everything working well I didn't pursue it.

The motherboard in this case is a Syntax S635MP motherboard. I've made the new BIOS with Etherboot support available here in case anyone else needs it.