NAME

INSTALL - Installation procedure for NetBSD/vax.

DESCRIPTION

About this Document

This document describes the installation procedure for NetBSD1.5 on the vax platform. It is available in four different formats titled INSTALL.ext, where ext is one of .ps, .html, .more, or .txt:

.ps
PostScript.

.html
Standard Internet HTML.

.more
The enhanced text format used on UNIX-like systems by the more(1) and less(1) pager utility programs. This is the format in which the on-line man pages are generally presented.

.txt
Plain old ASCII.

You are reading the HTML version.

What is NetBSD?

The NetBSD Operating System is a fully functional Open Source UNIX-like operating system derived from the University of California, Berkeley Networking Release 2 (Net/2), 4.4BSD-Lite, and 4.4BSD-Lite2 sources. NetBSD runs on thirty-one different system architectures featuring twelve distinct families of CPUs, and is being ported to more. The NetBSD1.5 release contains complete binary releases for fifteen different machine types. (The sixteen remaining are not fully supported at this time and are thus not part of the binary distribution. For information on them, please see the NetBSD web site at http://www.netbsd.org/)

NetBSD is a completely integrated system. In addition to its highly portable, high performance kernel, NetBSD features a complete set of user utilities, compilers for several languages, the X Window System, firewall software and numerous other tools, all accompanied by full source code.

NetBSD is a creation of the members of the Internet community. Without the unique cooperation and coordination the net makes possible, it's likely that NetBSD wouldn't exist.

Changes Since The Last Release

The NetBSD1.5 release provides numerous significant functional enhancements, including support for many new devices, integration of hundreds of bug fixes, new and updated kernel subsystems, and many userland enhancements. The result of these improvements is a stable operating system fit for production use that rivals most commercially available systems.

It is impossible to completely summarize over one year of development that went into the NetBSD1.5 release. Some highlights include:

Kernel

  • Ports to new platforms including: arc, cobalt, hpcmips, news68k, sgimips, and sparc64.

  • Improved performance and stability of the UVM virtual memory subsystem.

  • Implementation of generic kernel locking code, as well as a restructure and re-tuning of the scheduler, to be used by the future symmetric multi-processing (SMP) implementation.

  • Improved compatibility support for Linux, OSF1, and SVR4 programs.

  • New compatibility support for Win32 programs.

  • Support for dynamically loaded ELF kernel modules.

  • Kernel process tracing using ktruss(1).

  • Deletion of swap devices using swapctl(8).

  • Easier hot-pluggability of keyboards and mice using a new wscons device - wsmux.

  • Improved PCMCIA and Cardbus support, including support for detaching of devices and cards, resulting in better support for notebooks and PDA devices.

  • Numerous hardware improvements, including areas such as: audio, UDMA/66 support for ATA drives, USB, and wireless networking.
Networking

  • Addition of IP version 6 (IPv6) and IPsec to the networking stack, from the KAME project. This includes addition of kernel code for IPv6/IPsec, IPv4/v6 dual-stack user applications and supporting libraries. Due to this, the shlib major version for pcap(3) is incremented and you may need to recompile userland tools. The KAME IPv6 part includes results from the unified-ipv6 effort.
File system

  • Significant Fast file system (FFS) performance enhancements via integration of Kirk McKusick's soft updates and trickle sync code.

  • Support for the Windows NT `NTFS' file system (read-only at this stage).

  • Support for revision 1 of the Linux `ext2fs' file system.

  • Enhanced stability and usability of LFS (the BSD log-structured file system).

  • Various RAIDframe enhancements including: auto-detection of RAID components and auto-configuration of RAID sets, and the ability to configure the root file system (/) on a RAID set.

  • Support for Microsoft Joliet extensions to the ISO9660 CD file system.

  • Improved file system vnode locking mechanisms, thus resolving a source of several panics in the past.

  • Support for NFS and RPC over IPv6.

  • Server part of NFS locking (implemented by rpc.lockd(8)) now works.
Security

  • Strong cryptographic libraries and applications integrated, including the AES cipher Rijndael, the OpenSSL library, more complete Kerberos IV and Kerberos V support, and an SSH server and client.

  • sysctl(3) interfaces to various elements of process and system information, allowing programs such as ps(1), dmesg(1) and the like to operate without recompilation after kernel upgrades, and remove the necessity to run setgid kmem (thus improving system security).

  • Disable various services by default, and set the default options for disabled daemons to a higher level of logging.

  • Several code audits were performed. One audit replaced string routines that were used without bound checking, and another one to identify and disable places where format strings were used in an unsafe way, allowing arbitrary data entered by (possibly) malicious users to overwrite application code, and leading from Denial of Service attacks to compromised system.
System administration and user tools

  • Conversion of the rc(8) system startup and shutdown scripts to an `rc.d' mechanism, with separate control scripts for each service, and appropriate dependency ordering provided by rcorder(8).

  • postfix(1) provided as alternative mail transport agent to sendmail(8).

  • User management tools useradd(8), usermod(8), userdel(8), groupadd(8), groupmod(8), and groupdel(8) added to the system.

  • Incorporation of a login class capability database (/etc/login.conf) from BSD/OS.

  • Improved support for usernames longer than eight characters in programs such as at(1) and w(1).

  • Many enhancements to ftpd(8) providing features found in larger and less secure FTP daemons, such as user classes, connection limits, improved support for virtual hosting, transfer statistics, transfer rate throttling, and support for various IETF ftpext working group extensions.

  • The ftp(1) client has been improved even further, including transfer rate throttling, improved URL support, command line uploads. See the man page for details.
Miscellaneous

  • Updates to the NetBSD source code style code (located in /usr/share/misc/style) to use ANSI C only (instead of K&R) and reflect current (best) practice, and begin migrating the NetBSD source code to follow it.

  • Implementation of many SUSv2 features to the curses(3) library, including support for color.

  • Updates of most third party packages that are shipped in the base system, including file(1), ipfilter(4), ppp(4), and sendmail(8) to the latest stable release.

  • Many new packages in the pkgsrc system, including standard desktops like KDE and GNOME as well as latest Tcl/Tk and perl and many of the components of the Java Enterprise platform. The package framework itself now has full wildcard dependency support.

As has been noted, there have also been innumerable bug fixes.

Kernel interfaces have continued to be refined, and more subsystems and device drivers are shared among the different ports. You can look for this trend to continue.

This is the fifth major release of NetBSD for the VAX.

Support for the following machines has been added:

  • VAXstation 4000/90

  • VAX 4000/200

  • VAX 4000/300

The following drivers were added:

  • Built-in LANCE chip on the VAX 3300/3400.

  • DEBNA/DEBNT/DEBNK ethernet controllers located on the BI bus.

  • NCR5380 SCSI DMA.

  • RL01/RL02 disk drives.

The Future of NetBSD

The NetBSD Foundation has been incorporated as a non-profit organization. Its purpose is to encourage, foster and promote the free exchange of computer software, namely the NetBSD Operating System. The foundation will allow for many things to be handled more smoothly than could be done with our previous informal organization. In particular, it provides the framework to deal with other parties that wish to become involved in the NetBSD Project.

The NetBSD Foundation will help improve the quality of NetBSD by:

  • providing better organization to keep track of development efforts, including co-ordination with groups working in related fields.

  • providing a framework to receive donations of goods and services and to own the resources necessary to run the NetBSD Project.

  • providing a better position from which to undertake promotional activities.

  • periodically organizing workshops for developers and other interested people to discuss ongoing work.

We intend to begin narrowing the time delay between releases. Our ambition is to provide a full release every six to eight months.

We hope to support even more hardware in the future, and we have a rather large number of other ideas about what can be done to improve NetBSD.

We intend to continue our current practice of making the NetBSD-current development source available on a daily basis.

We intend to integrate free, positive changes from whatever sources submit them, providing that they are well thought-out and increase the usability of the system.

Above all, we hope to create a stable and accessible system, and to be responsive to the needs and desires of NetBSD users, because it is for and because of them that NetBSD exists.

Sources of NetBSD

Refer to http://www.netbsd.org/Sites/net.html.

NetBSD 1.5 Release Contents

The root directory of the NetBSD1.5 release is organized as follows:

.../NetBSD-1.5/

CHANGES
Changes since earlier NetBSD releases.

LAST_MINUTE
Last minute changes.

MIRRORS
A list of sites that mirror the NetBSD1.5 distribution.

README.files
README describing the distribution's contents.

TODO
NetBSD's todo list (also somewhat incomplete and out of date).

patches/
Post-release source code patches.

source/
Source distribution sets; see below.

In addition to the files and directories listed above, there is one directory per architecture, for each of the architectures for which NetBSD1.5 has a binary distribution. There are also README.export-control files sprinkled liberally throughout the distribution tree, which point out that there are some portions of the distribution that may be subject to export regulations of the United States, e.g. code under src/crypto and src/sys/crypto. It is your responsibility to determine whether or not it is legal for you to export these portions and to act accordingly.

The source distribution sets can be found in subdirectories of the source subdirectory of the distribution tree. They contain the complete sources to the system. The source distribution sets are as follows:

gnusrc
This set contains the ``gnu'' sources, including the source for the compiler, assembler, groff, and the other GNU utilities in the binary distribution sets.
22.3 MB gzipped, 98.8 MB uncompressed

pkgsrc
This set contains the ``pkgsrc'' sources, which contain the infrastructure to build third-party packages.
5.6 MB gzipped, 57.0 MB uncompressed

sharesrc
This set contains the ``share'' sources, which include the sources for the man pages not associated with any particular program, the sources for the typesettable document set, the dictionaries, and more.
3.3 MB gzipped, 13.2 MB uncompressed

src
This set contains all of the base NetBSD1.5 sources which are not in gnusrc, sharesrc, or syssrc.
24.2 MB gzipped, 120.6 MB uncompressed

syssrc
This set contains the sources to the NetBSD1.5 kernel for all architectures, config(8), and dbsym(8).
17.6 MB gzipped, 88.6 MB uncompressed

xsrc
This set contains the sources to the X Window System.
35.2 MB gzipped, 176.8 MB uncompressed

All the above source sets are located in the source/sets subdirectory of the distribution tree.

The source sets are distributed as compressed tar files. They may be unpacked into /usr/src with the command:


       #( cd / ; tar -zxpf - ) < set_name.tgz

The sets/Split/ subdirectory contains split versions of the source sets for those users who need to load the source sets from floppy or otherwise need a split distribution. The split sets are named set_name.xx where set_name is the distribution set name, and xx is the sequence number of the file, starting with ``aa'' for the first file in the distribution set, then ``ab'' for the next, and so on. All of these files except the last one of each set should be exactly 240,640 bytes long. (The last file is just long enough to contain the remainder of the data for that distribution set.)

The split distributions may be reassembled and extracted with cat as follows:


       # cat set_name.?? | ( cd / ; tar -zxpf - )

In each of the source distribution set directories, there are files which contain the checksums of the files in the directory:

BSDSUM
Historic BSD checksums for the various files in that directory, in the format produced by the command: cksum -o 1 file

CKSUM
POSIX checksums for the various files in that directory, in the format produced by the command: cksum file.

MD5
MD5 digests for the various files in that directory, in the format produced by the command: cksum -m file.

SYSVSUM
Historic AT&T System V UNIX checksums for the various files in that directory, in the format produced by the command: cksum -o -2 file.

The MD5 digest is the safest checksum, followed by the POSIX checksum. The other two checksums are provided only to ensure that the widest possible range of system can check the integrity of the release files.

NetBSD/vax subdirectory structure
The vax-specific portion of the NetBSD1.5 release is found in the vax subdirectory of the distribution: .../NetBSD-1.5/vax/
INSTALL.html
INSTALL.ps
INSTALL.txt
INSTALL.more
Installation notes in various file formats, including this file. The .more file contains underlined text using the more(1) conventions for indicating italic and bold display.
binary/
kernel/
netbsd.GENERIC.gz
A gzipped NetBSD kernel containing code for everything supported in this release.
sets/
vax binary distribution sets; see below.
installation/
floppy/
vax boot and installation floppies; see below.
misc/
Miscellaneous vax installation utilities; see installation section, below.
Binary distribution sets
The NetBSD vax binary distribution sets contain the binaries which comprise the NetBSD1.5 release for the vax. There are eight binary distribution sets. The binary distribution sets can be found in the vax/binary/sets subdirectory of the NetBSD1.5 distribution tree, and are as follows:

base
The NetBSD1.5 vax base binary distribution. You must install this distribution set. It contains the base NetBSD utilities that are necessary for the system to run and be minimally functional. It includes shared library support, and excludes everything described below.
15.5 MB gzipped, 36.0 MB uncompressed

comp
Things needed for compiling programs. This set includes the system include files (/usr/include) and the various system libraries (except the shared libraries, which are included as part of the base set). This set also includes the manual pages for all of the utilities it contains, as well as the system call and library manual pages.
11.9 MB gzipped, 37.9 MB uncompressed

etc
This distribution set contains the system configuration files that reside in /etc and in several other places. This set must be installed if you are installing the system from scratch, but should not be used if you are upgrading. (If you are upgrading, it's recommended that you get a copy of this set and carefully upgrade your configuration files by hand.)
0.1 MB gzipped, 0.6 MB uncompressed

games
This set includes the games and their manual pages.
2.9 MB gzipped, 7.1 MB uncompressed

kern
This set contains a NetBSD/vax 1.5 GENERIC kernel, named /netbsd. You must install this distribution set.
0.7 MB gzipped, 1.4 MB uncompressed

man
This set includes all of the manual pages for the binaries and other software contained in the base set. Note that it does not include any of the manual pages that are included in the other sets.
5.0 MB gzipped, 19.9 MB uncompressed

misc
This set includes the (rather large) system dictionaries, the typesettable document set, and other files from /usr/share.
2.6 MB gzipped, 10.1 MB uncompressed

text
This set includes NetBSD's text processing tools, including groff(1), all related programs, and their manual pages.
1.3 MB gzipped, 4.7 MB uncompressed

NetBSD maintains its own set of sources for the X Window System in order to assure tight integration and compatibility. These sources are based on XFree86, and tightly track XFree86 releases. They are currently equivalent to XFree86 3.3.6. Binary sets for the X Window system are distributed with NetBSD. The sets are:

xbase
The basic files needed for a complete X client environment. This does not include the X servers.
2.5 MB gzipped, 7.3 MB uncompressed

xcomp
The extra libraries and include files needed to compile X source code.
1.6 MB gzipped, 7.0 MB uncompressed

xcontrib
Programs that were contributed to X.
0.2 MB gzipped, 0.6 MB uncompressed

xfont
Fonts needed by X.
6.2 MB gzipped, 7.5 MB uncompressed

The vax binary distribution sets are distributed as gzipped tar files named with the extension .tgz, e.g. base.tgz.

The instructions given for extracting the source sets work equally well for the binary sets, but it is worth noting that if you use that method, the files are /-relative and therefore are extracted below the current directory. That is, if you want to extract the binaries into your system, i.e. replace the system binaries with them, you have to run the tar -xpf command from /.

Note:
Each directory in the vax binary distribution also has its own checksum files, just as the source distribution does.

NetBSD/vax System Requirements and Supported Devices

Supported hardware

  • CPU types
    - VAX 11/750
    - VAX 11/78{0,5}
    - VAX 8200/8250/8300/8350
    - VAX 8600/8650
    - MicroVAX/VAXstation II
    - MicroVAX III
    - MicroVAX 3300/3400
    - MicroVAX 3500/3600
    - MicroVAX 3800/3900
    - MicroVAX 2000/VAXstation 2000
    - VAXstation 3100 model 30,38,40,48,76
    - MicroVAX 3100 (partly)
    - VAXstation 3200/3500
    - VAXstation 4000/60

  • Networking
    - DEUNA/DELUA Unibus ethernet
    - DEQNA/DELQA Q22 bus ethernet
    - LANCE chip (where available)

  • Serial lines
    - DHU11/DHV11/DL11/DLV11/DZ11/DZQ11/DZV11 Unibus/Q22 bus asynchronous lines
    - DZ11-compatible lines on VAXstations.

  • Disks
    - UDA50 Unibus MSCP controller
    - KDA50/RQDX1/2/3 Q22 bus
    - MSCP controller
    - KDB50 BI-bus MSCP controller
    - MFM and SCSI controllers on VAXstations
    - RP04/05/06/07 and RM02/03/05/80 Massbus disks
    - Console RL02 on VAX 8600.

    Some third-party controllers are also known to work, other do not.

  • Tapes
    - TMSCP on Q22 bus (TK50/70, TU81)
    - TMSCP on BI bus
    - SCSI tapes on VAXstations.

  • Floppy
    - RX33/RX50 on RQDX controllers
    - RX50 on VAX 8200

The minimal configuration requires 2 MB of RAM and ~40 MB of disk space, but the installation really requires 6 MB RAM unless you plan on using Jedi powers.

Here is a table of recommended HD partition sizes for a full install:

Partition Suggested Needed
/ (root) 32 MB 16 MB
/usr 110 MB 45 MB
/var 20 MB 5 MB
swap 2-3 *RAM

Anything else is up to you!

Getting the NetBSD System on to Useful Media

Installing on a `bare' machine requires some bootable device; either a tape or floppy drive or a NFS server together with a machine that can act as a MOP loader, such as another machine running NetBSD. NetBSD/vax can use both BOOTP/DHCP and BOOTPARAMS for netboot installations.

Installation is supported from several media types, including:

  • CD-ROM
  • FTP
  • Remote NFS partition
  • Tape
  • Existing NetBSD partitions, if performing an upgrade

The steps necessary to prepare the distribution sets for installation depend upon which installation medium you choose. The steps for the various media are outlined below.

CD-ROM
Find out where the distribution set files are on the CD-ROM.

Proceed to the instruction on installation.

FTP
The preparations for this installation/upgrade method are easy; all you need to do is make sure that there's an FTP site from which you can retrieve the NetBSD distribution when you're about to install or upgrade. You need to know the numeric IP address of that site, and, if it's not on a network directly connected to the machine on which you're installing or upgrading NetBSD, you need to know the numeric IP address of the router closest to the NetBSD machine. Finally, you need to know the numeric IP address of the NetBSD machine itself. If you don't have access to a functioning nameserver during installation, the IP address of ftp.netbsd.org is 204.152.184.75 (as of October, 2000).

Once you have this information, you can proceed to the next step in the installation or upgrade process. If you're installing NetBSD from scratch, go to the section on preparing your hard disk, below. If you're upgrading an existing installation, go directly to the section on upgrading.

Note:
This method of installation is recommended only for those already familiar with using BSD network configuration and management commands. If you aren't, this documentation should help, but is not intended to be all-encompassing.

NFS
Place the NetBSD distribution sets you wish to install into a directory on an NFS server, and make that directory mountable by the machine on which you are installing or upgrading NetBSD. This will probably require modifying the /etc/exports file on of the NFS server and resetting its mount daemon (mountd). (Both of these actions will probably require superuser privileges on the server.)

You need to know the numeric IP address of the NFS server, and, if the server is not on a network directly connected to the machine on which you're installing or upgrading NetBSD, you need to know the numeric IP address of the router closest to the NetBSD machine. Finally, you need to know the numeric IP address of the NetBSD machine itself.

Once the NFS server is set up properly and you have the information mentioned above, you can proceed to the next step in the installation or upgrade process. If you're installing NetBSD from scratch, go to the section on preparing your hard disk, below. If you're upgrading an existing installation, go directly to the section on upgrading.

Note:
This method of installation is recommended only for those already familiar with using BSD network configuration and management commands. If you aren't, this documentation should help, but is not intended to be all-encompassing.

Tape
To install NetBSD from a tape, you need to make a tape that contains the distribution set files, in `tar' format.

Note:
the tape devices with which NetBSD/vax is believed to work is the DEC TK-50. This is a very slow device. Installation via disk or network is recommended if at all possible.

If you're making the tape on a UNIX-like system, the easiest way to do so is probably something like:


       # tar -cf tape_device dist_directories

where tape_device is the name of the tape device that describes the tape drive you're using; possibly /dev/rst0, or something similar, but it will vary from system to system. (If you can't figure it out, ask your system administrator.) In the above example, dist_directories are the distribution sets' directories, for the distribution sets you wish to place on the tape. For instance, to put the misc, base, and etc distributions on tape (in order to do the absolute minimum installation to a new disk), you would do the following:


       # cd .../NetBSD-1.5
       # cd vax/binary
       # tar -cf tape_device misc etc kern

Note:
You still need to fill in tape_device in the example.

Once you have the files on the tape, you can proceed to the next step in the installation or upgrade process. If you're installing NetBSD from scratch, go to the section on preparing your hard disk, below. If you're upgrading an existing installation, go directly to the section on upgrading.

Upgrade
If you are upgrading NetBSD, you also have the option of installing NetBSD by putting the new distribution sets somewhere in your existing file system, and using them from there. To do that, you must do the following:

Place the distribution sets you wish to upgrade somewhere in your current file system tree. Please note that the /dev on the floppy used for upgrades only knows about wd0, wd1, sd0, sd1, and sd2. If you have more than two IDE drives or more than three SCSI drives, you should take care not to place the sets on the high numbered drives.

At a bare minimum, you must upgrade the base and kern binary distributions, and so must put the base and kern sets somewhere in your file system. If you wish, you can do the other sets, as well, but you should not upgrade the etc distribution; it contains contains system configuration files that you should review and update by hand.

Once you have done this, you can proceed to the next step in the upgrade process, actually upgrading your system.

Creating boot tapes
Fetch the bootable bootfs image from

       .../NetBSD-1.5/vax/installation/bootfs/boot.fs.gz

gunzip boot.fs.gz and write it on the beginning of the tape. Under NetBSD this is done (for MSCP tape, with SCSI tape the name is nrst0) via:


       # gunzip boot.fs.gz
       # mt -f /dev/nrmt0 rewind
       # dd if=boot.fs of=/dev/nrmt0
       # mt -f /dev/nrmt0 rewoffl

Under Ultrix the tape name is different:


       # gunzip boot.fs.gz
       # mt -f /dev/rmt0h rewind
       # dd if=boot.fs of=/dev/rmt0h
       # mt -f /dev/rmt0h rewoffl

Of course, if you have a tape unit other than unit 0 you have to use the corresponding unit number.

If you wish to install the sets from tape then stage you will need to download the *.tgz files from


       .../NetBSD-1.5/vax/binary/sets{50,33}

(if your disk is less than 200 MB you will probably want to exclude the X sets) and then before the mt ... rewoffl run


       # tar -cvf /dev/nrmt0 *.tgz

When you have booted the bootfs and completed the disk partitioning you will be prompted to select medium for install. At this point you will need to press CONTROL-Z to suspend the install tool, then


       # cd /mnt
       # mt -f /dev/nrmt0 rewind
       # mt -f /dev/nrmt0 fsf
       # tar -xvf /dev/nrmt0
       # fg

then select ``install from local dir'' and give /mnt.

Note:
If your disk is small you will need to be careful about filling it up.

If you are using any other OS to create bootable tapes, remember that the blocksize must be 512 for the file to be bootable! Otherwise it just won't work.

Creating boot floppies
Fetch the bootable bootfs image from


       .../NetBSD-1.5/vax/installation/bootfs/boot.fs.gz

and gunzip it. It is a 1 MB bootable image that will boot from any floppy of size 1 MB and bigger. Note that you cannot install from RX50 floppies due to the small size. This may change in the future.

All floppies except RX50 use a standardized format for storing data so writing the bootfs to the floppy can be done on any PC. From MS-DOS the preferred way to do this is using rawrite.exe.

Booting from NFS server
All VAXen that can boot over network uses MOP, a DEC protocol. To be able to use MOP, a MOP daemon must be present on one of the machines on the local network. The boot principle is:
  • The VAX broadcast a wish to load an image.
  • A mopd answers and send the boot program to the VAX.
  • The boot program does rarp/bootp requests, mounts the root file system and loads the kernel.
  • The kernel is loaded and starts executing.

If your machine has a disk and network connection, it may be convenient for you to install NetBSD over the network. This involves temporarily booting your machine over NFS, just long enough so you can initialize its disk. This method requires that you have access to an NFS server on your network so you can configure it to support diskless boot for your machine. Configuring the NFS server is normally a task for a system administrator, and is not trivial.

If you are using a NetBSD system as the boot-server, have a look at the diskless(8) manual page for guidelines on how to proceed with this. If the server runs another operating system, consult the documentation that came with it. (I.e. add_client(8) on SunOS.)

There is also very useful documentation at http://www.netbsd.org/Documentation/network/netboot/

You also must install a MOP loader. If you are booting from another NetBSD machine, the MOP daemons are included in the distribution, otherwise you may have to install a MOP loader. A loader can be found at ftp.stacken.kth.se:/pub/OS/NetBSD/mopd Fetch the latest and read the installation instructions.

The file that should be loaded is called boot.mop and is located in


       .../NetBSD-1.5/vax/installation/netboot/boot.mop

The kernel to load is the same kernel as the bootfs uses and can be found in


       .../NetBSD-1.5/vax/installation/netboot/netbsd.ram.gz

From the install program started in the kernel the rest of the system can be installed. There is also a very good (if somewhat out of date) FAQ for netbooting VAXen at http://world.std.com/~bdc/projects/vaxen/VAX-netboot-HOWTO.html that describes netbooting of VAXen from many different OS'es.

Preparing your System for NetBSD installation

VAX machines usually need little or no preparation before installing NetBSD, other than the usual, well advised precaution of BACKING UP ALL DATA on any attached storage devices.

If you are on a Q-bus or Unibus system the disk controller(s) need be at the standard CSR addresses for DUA (772150) or DUB (760334) to be recognized by the kernel and boot programs.

If you are installing on a VAXstation you may require a serial console.

Installing the NetBSD System

Installation of NetBSD/vax is now easier than ever! For the latest news, problem reports, and discussion, join the port-vax mainlist by mailing a line saying

       subscribe port-vax

to majordomo@netsbd.org. Also, see http://www.netbsd.org for more information.

If you encounter any problems, please report them via the mailing list or the send-pr(1) program so that they can be fixed for the next release.

To install or upgrade NetBSD, you need to first boot the installation program and then interact with the screen-menu program sysinst. The installation program actually consists of the NetBSD kernel plus an in-memory file system of utility programs.

The usual procedure is to write the installation system to the install media, as described earlier.

Booting from install media

The built-in console monitor understands a bunch of commands, dependent of which VAX you have. To just boot from a device, type `B' at the >>> prompt. Device naming in the console monitor differs a lot from the UNIX counterparts. A device looks like ddcu, where `dd' is the device type, `c' is the controller number and `u' is the device unit. Many console monitors also support the SHOW DEV command, which shows available units to boot from.

A summary of the most common boot devices and their name:

B DUA0
first MSCP controller, unit 0.

B MUA0
first TMSCP tape controller, unit 0.

B DKB0
second SCSI bus, unit 0.

B XQA0
first Q22 bus Ethernet controller.

B ESA0
first LANCE Ethernet controller on VAXstations.
Other devices may be appropriate for your configuration.

Then just proceed with the program sysinst. The install descriptions for sysinst that follows can be easily adopted to VAX.

Running the sysinst installation program

  1. Introduction

    Using sysinst, installing NetBSD is a relatively easy process. You still should read this document and have it in hand when doing the installation process. This document tries to be a good guideline for the installation and as such covers many details to be completed. Do not let this discourage you, the install program is not hard to use.

  2. Possible PCMCIA issues

    Machines with PCMCIA slots may have problems during installation. With the improvements of the PCMCIA code in this release, this will not happen very frequently. If you do not have PCMCIA on your machine (PCMCIA is only really used on laptop machines), you can skip this section, and ignore the ``[PCMCIA]'' notes. If you do have PCMCIA in your machine, you can safely ignore this section and the ``[PCMCIA]'' the first time, as you are likely to not have problems. Should troubles occur during floppy boot, they may be PCMCIA specific. You should then re-read this section and try again, following the instructions in the ``[PCMCIA]'' notes.

    This section explains how to work around the installation problem.

    The kernel keeps careful track of what interrupts and I/O ports are in use during autoconfiguration. It then allows the PCMCIA devices to pick unused interrupts and I/O ports. Unfortunately, the INSTALL kernel may not detect all devices in your system. This may be because the INSTALL kernel only supports the minimum set of devices to install NetBSD on your system, or it may be that NetBSD does not have support for the device causing the conflict.

    For example, suppose your laptop has a soundblaster device built in; the INSTALL kernel has no sound support. The PCMCIA code might allocate your soundblaster's IRQ and I/O ports to PCMCIA devices, causing them not to work, or to lock up the system. This is especially bad if one of the devices in question is your ethernet card.

    As of NetBSD1.5, the kernel attempts to probe for available interrupts that are usable by the PCIC (PCMCIA interrupt controller). Assuming that this functions correctly, it should alleviate interrupt conflicts; however, I/O port conflicts are still possible.

    This problem will impact some, but not all, users of PCMCIA. If this problem is affecting you, watch the ``[PCMCIA]'' notes that will appear in this document.

  3. General

    The following is a walk-through of the steps you will take while getting NetBSD installed on your hard disk. sysinst is a menu driven installation system that allows for some freedom in doing the installation. Sometimes, questions will be asked and in many cases the default answer will be displayed in brackets (``[ ]'') after the question. If you wish to stop the installation, you may press CONTROL-C at any time, but if you do, you'll have to begin the installation process again from scratch.

  4. Quick install

    First, let's describe a quick install. The other sections of this document go into the installation procedure in more detail, but you may find that you do not need this. If you want detailed instructions, skip to section 3. This section describes a basic installation, using a CD-ROM install as an example.

    • What you need.

      - The distribution sets (in this example, they are on CD).

      - One 1.44 MB 3.5" floppy.

      - A CD-ROM drive (SCSI), a harddisk and a minimum of of memory installed.

      - The harddisk should have at least + n megabytes of space free, where n is the number of megabytes of main memory in your system. If you wish to install the X window system as well, you will need at least 60 MB more.

    • The Quick Installation

      - Insert the boot floppy you just created. Boot the computer. The main menu will be displayed.

      - If you wish, you can configure some network settings immediately by choosing the utilities menu and then configure network. It isn't actually required at this point, but it may be more convenient. Go back to the main menu.

      - Choose install

      - You will be guided through some steps regarding the setup of your disk, and the selection of distributed components to install. When in doubt, refer to the rest of this document for details.

      - After your disk has been prepared, choose CD-ROM as the medium. The default values for the path and device should be ok.

      - After all the files have been unpacked, go back to the main menu and select reboot, after you have removed the bootfloppy from the drive.

      - NetBSD will now boot. If you haven't already done so in sysinst, you should log in as root, and set a password for that account. You are also advised to edit the file /etc/rc.conf to match your system needs.

      - Your installation is now complete.

      - For configuring the X window system, if installed, see the files in /usr/X11R6/lib/X11/doc. Further information can be found on http://www.xfree86.org/

  5. Booting NetBSD

    [PCMCIA
    ] Unplug your PCMCIA devices, so that they won't be found by NetBSD.

    Boot your machine. The boot loader will start, and will print a countdown and begin booting.

    If the boot loader messages do not appear in a reasonable amount of time, you either have a bad boot floppy or a hardware problem. Try writing the install floppy image to a different disk, and using that.

    It will take a while to load the kernel from the floppy, probably around a minute or so, then, the kernel boot messages will be displayed. This may take a little while also, as NetBSD will be probing your system to discover which hardware devices are installed. The most important thing to know is that wd0 is NetBSD's name for your first IDE disk, wd1 the second, etc. sd0 is your first SCSI disk, sd1 the second, etc.

    Note that once the system has finished booting, you need not leave the floppy in the disk drive.

    Once NetBSD has booted and printed all the boot messages, you will be presented with a welcome message and a main menu. It will also include instructions for using the menus.

  6. Network configuration

    [PCMCIA
    ] You can skip this section, as you will only get data from floppy in the first part of the install.

    If you will not use network operation during the installation, but you do want your machine to be configured for networking once it is installed, you should first go to the utilities menu, and select Configure network option. If you only want to temporarily use networking during the installation, you can specify these parameters later. If you are not using Domain Name Service (DNS), you can give an empty response in reply to answers relating to this.

  7. Installation drive selection and parameters

    To start the installation, select the menu option to install NetBSD from the main menu.

    The first thing is to identify the disk on which you want to install NetBSD. sysinst will report a list of disks it finds and ask you for your selection. Depending on how many disks are found, you may get a different message. You should see disk names like sd0 or sd1.

  8. Partitioning the disk

    • Which portion of the disk to use.

      You will be asked if you want to use the entire disk or only part of the disk. If you decide to use the entire disk for NetBSD, it will be checked if there are already other systems present on the disk, and you will be asked to confirm whether you want to overwrite these.

    • Editing the NetBSD disklabel

      The partition table of the NetBSD part of a disk is called a disklabel. There are 3 layouts for the NetBSD part of the disk that you can pick from: Standard, Standard with X and Custom. The first two use a set of default values (that you can change) suitable for a normal installation, possibly including X. The last option lets you specify everything yourself.

      You will be presented with the current layout of the NetBSD disklabel, and given a chance to change it. For each partition, you can set the type, offset and size, block and fragment size, and the mount point. The type that NetBSD uses for normal file storage is called 4.2BSD. A swap partition has a special type called swap. Some partitions in the disklabel have a fixed purpose.

      a
      Root partition. (/),

      b
      Swap partition.

      c
      The entire disk.

      d-h
      Available for other use. Traditionally, d is the partition mounted on /usr, but this is historical practice and not a fixed value.

      You will then be asked to name your disk's disklabel. The default response is mydisk. For most purposes this will be OK. If you choose to name it something different, make sure the name is a single word and contains no special characters. You don't need to remember this name.

  9. Preparing your hard disk

    You are now at the point of no return. Nothing has been written to your disk yet, but if you confirm that you want to install NetBSD, your hard drive will be modified. If you are sure you want to proceed, enter yes at the prompt.

    The install program will now label your disk and make the file systems you specified. The file systems will be initialized to contain NetBSD bootstrapping binaries and configuration files. You will see messages on your screen from the various NetBSD disk preparation tools that are running. There should be no errors in this section of the installation. If there are, restart from the beginning of the installation process. Otherwise, you can continue the installation program after pressing the return key.

  10. Getting the distribution sets

    The NetBSD distribution consists of a number of sets, that come in the form of gzipped tarfiles. A few sets must be installed for a working system, others are optional. At this point of the installation, you will be presented with a menu which enables you to choose from one of the following methods of installing the sets. Some of these methods will first load the sets on your hard disk, others will extract the sets directly.

    For all these methods, the first step is making the sets available for extraction, and then do the actual installation. The sets can be made available in a few different ways. The following sections describe each of those methods. After reading the one about the method you will be using, you can continue to section labeled `Extracting the distribution sets'

  11. Installation using ftp

    To be able to install using ftp, you first need to configure your network setup, if you haven't already at the start of the install procedure. sysinst will do this for you, asking you to provide some data, like IP number, hostname, etc. If you do not have name service set up for the machine that you are installing on, you can just press RETURN in answer to these questions, and DNS will not be used.

    You will also be asked to specify the host that you want to transfer the sets from, the directory on that host, and the account name and password used to log into that host using ftp. If you did not set up DNS when answering the questions to configure networking, you will need to specify an IP number instead of a hostname for the ftp server.

    sysinst will proceed to transfer all the default set files from the remote site to your hard disk.

  12. Installation using NFS

    To be able to install using NFS, you first need to configure your network setup, if you haven't already at the start of the install procedure. sysinst will do this for you, asking you to provide some data, like IP number, hostname, etc. If you do not have name service set up for the machine that you are installing on, you can just press RETURN in answer to these questions, and DNS will not be used.

    You will also be asked to specify the host that you want to transfer the sets from, and the directory on that host that the files are in. This directory should be mountable by the machine you are installing on, i.e. correctly exported to your machine.

    If you did not set up DNS when answering the questions to configure networking, you will need to specify an IP number instead of a hostname for the NFS server.

  13. Installation from CD-ROM

    When installing from a CD-ROM, you will be asked to specify the device name for your CD-ROM player (usually cd0), and the directory name on the CD-ROM where the distribution files are.

    sysinst will then check if the files are indeed available in the specified location, and proceed to the actual extraction of the sets.

  14. Installation from an unmounted file system

    In order to install from a local file system, you will need to specify the device that the file system resides on (for example sd1e) the type of the file system, and the directory on the specified file system where the sets are located. sysinst will then check if it can indeed access the sets at that location.

  15. Installation from a local directory

    This option assumes that you have already done some preparation yourself. The sets should be located in a directory on a file system that is already accessible. sysinst will ask you for the name of this directory.

  16. Extracting the distribution sets

    After the install sets containing the NetBSD distribution have been made available, you can either extract all the sets (a full installation), or only extract sets that you have selected. In the latter case you will be shown the currently selected sets, and given the opportunity to select the sets you want. Some sets always need to be installed (kern, base and etc) they will not be shown in this selection menu.

    Before extraction begins, you can elect to watch the files being extracted; the name of each file that is extracted will be shown. This can slow down the installation process considerably, especially on machines with slow graphics consoles or serial consoles.

    After all the files have been extracted, all the necessary device node files will be created. If you have already configured networking, you will be asked if you want to use this configuration for normal operation. If so, these values will be installed in the network configuration files. The next menu will allow you to select the time zone that you're in, to make sure your clock has the right offset from GMT. Finally you can set a password for the "root" account, to prevent the machine coming up without access restrictions.

  17. Finalizing your installation

    Congratulations, you have successfully installed NetBSD1.5. You can now reboot the machine, and boot NetBSD from harddisk.


Post installation steps

Once you've got the operating system running, there are a few things you need to do in order to bring the system into a properly configured state, with the most important ones described below.

  1. Configuring /etc/rc.conf

    If you or the installation software haven't done any configuration of /etc/rc.conf, the system will drop you into single user mode on first reboot with the message


           /etc/rc.conf is not configured. Multiuser boot aborted.

    and with the root file system (/) mounted read-write. When the system asks you to choose a shell, simply press RETURN to get to a prompt. If you are asked for a terminal type, respond with vt220 (or whatever is appropriate for your terminal type) and press RETURN. At this point, you need to configure at least one file in the /etc directory. Change to the /etc directory and take a look at the /etc/rc.conf file. Modify it to your tastes, making sure that you set rc_configured=YES so that your changes will be enabled and a multi-user boot can proceed. Default values for the various programs can be found in /etc/defaults/rc.conf, where some in-line documentation may be found. More complete documentation can be found in rc.conf(5).

    If your /usr directory is on a separate partition and you do not know how to use ed, you will have to mount your /usr partition to gain access to ex or vi. Do the following:


           # mount /usr

           # export TERM=vt220

    If you have /var on a separate partition, you need to repeat that step for it. After that, you can edit /etc/rc.conf with vi(1). When you have finished, type exit at the prompt to leave the single-user shell and continue with the multi-user boot.

    Other values that need to be set in /etc/rc.conf for a networked environment are hostname and possibly defaultroute, furthermore add an ifconfig_int for your interface <int>, along the lines of


           ifconfig_de0="inet 123.45.67.89 netmask 255.255.255.0"

    or, if you have myname.my.dom in /etc/hosts:


           ifconfig_de0="inet myname.my.dom netmask 255.255.255.0"

    To enable proper hostname resolution, you will also want to add an /etc/resolv.conf file or (if you are feeling a little more adventurous) run named(8). See resolv.conf(5) or named(8) for more information.

    Other files in /etc that may require modification or setting up include /etc/mailer.conf, /etc/nsswitch.conf, and /etc/wscons.conf.

  2. Logging in

    After reboot, you can log in as root at the login prompt. There is no initial password, but if you're using the machine in a networked environment, you should create an account for yourself (see below) and protect it and the ``root'' account with good passwords. Unless you have connected an unusual terminal device as the console you can just press RETURN when it prompts for Terminal type? [...]

  3. Adding accounts

    Use the useradd(8) command to add accounts to your system, do not edit /etc/passwd directly. See useradd(8) for more information on how to add a new user to the system.

  4. The X Window System

    If you have installed the X window system, look at the files in /usr/X11R6/lib/X11/doc for information.

    Don't forget to add /usr/X11R6/bin to your path in your shell's dot file so that you have access to the X binaries.

  5. Installing third party packages

    If you wish to install any of the software freely available for UNIX-like systems you are strongly advised to first check the NetBSD package system. This automatically handles any changes necessary to make the software run on NetBSD, retrieval and installation of any other packages on which the software may depend, and simplifies installation (and deinstallation), both from source and precompiled binaries.

  6. Misc

    • Edit /etc/mail/aliases to forward root mail to the right place (run newaliases(1) afterwards.)

    • The /etc/mail/sendmail.cf file will almost definitely need to be adjusted; files aiding in this can be found in /usr/share/sendmail. See the README file there for more information.

    • Edit /etc/rc.local to run any local daemons you use.

    • Many of the /etc files are documented in section 5 of the manual; so just invoking


             # man 5 filename

      is likely to give you more information on these files.


Upgrading a previously-installed NetBSD System

There is no upgrade program for NetBSD/vax; you will have to upgrade your system by hand. Here are some hints about how to do it:

  • First replace the kernel, /boot and the boot blocks with new ones. The boot system has changed since 1.3.

  • Reboot the system so you are running with the new kernel.

  • Untar the wanted distributions.

  • Reboot the system once again.

  • Now you will (hopefully) be up and running in the new world.

Note:
You should not extract the etc set if upgrading. Instead, you should extract that set into another area and carefully merge the changes by hand.

Compatibility Issues With Previous NetBSD Releases

Users upgrading from previous versions of NetBSD may wish to bear the following problems and compatibility issues in mind when upgrading to NetBSD1.5.

General issues

  • /etc/rc modified to use /etc/rc.d/*

    In previous releases of NetBSD, /etc/rc was a traditional BSD style monolithic file. As of NetBSD1.5, each discrete program or substem from /etc/rc and /etc/netstart has been moved into separate scripts in /etc/rc.d/.

    At system startup, /etc/rc uses rcorder(8) to build a dependency list of the files in /etc/rc.d and then executes each script in turn with an argument of `start'. Many rc.d scripts won't start unless the appropriate rc.conf(5) entry in /etc/rc.conf is set to `YES.'

    At system shutdown, /etc/rc.shutdown uses rcorder(8) to build a dependency list of the files in /etc/rc.d that have a ``KEYWORD: shutdown'' line, reverses the resulting list, and then executes each script in turn with an argument of `stop'. The following scripts support a specific shutdown method: cron, inetd, local, and xdm.

    Local and third-party scripts may be installed into /etc/rc.d as necessary. Refer to the other scripts in that directory and rc(8) for more information on implementing rc.d scripts.

Issues affecting an upgrading from NetBSD 1.4 or later

  • named(8) leaks version information

    Previous releases of NetBSD disabled a feature of named(8) where the version number of the server could be determined by remote clients. This feature has not been disabled in NetBSD1.5, because there is a named.conf(5) option to change the version string:

    option {
         version "newstring";
    };
    

  • sysctl(8) pathname changed

    sysctl(8) is moved from /usr/sbin/sysctl to /sbin/sysctl. If you have hardcoded references to the full pathname (in shell scripts, for example) please be sure to update those.

  • sendmail(8) configuration file pathname changed

    Due to sendmail(8) upgrade from 8.9.x to 8.10.x, /etc/sendmail.cf is moved to /etc/mail/sendmail.cf. Also, the default sendmail.cf(5) refers different pathnames than before. For example, /etc/aliases is now located at /etc/mail/aliases, /etc/sendmail.cw is now called /etc/mail/local-host-names, and so forth. If you have customized sendmail.cf(5) and friends, you will need to move the files to the new locations. See /usr/share/sendmail/README for more information.

Using online NetBSD documentation

Documentation is available if you first install the manual distribution set. Traditionally, the ``man pages'' (documentation) are denoted by `name(section)'. Some examples of this are

  • intro(1),
  • man(1),
  • apropros(1),
  • passwd(1), and
  • passwd(5).

The section numbers group the topics into several categories, but three are of primary interest: user commands are in section 1, file formats are in section 5, and administrative information is in section 8.

The man command is used to view the documentation on a topic, and is started by entering man[ section] topic. The brackets [] around the section should not be entered, but rather indicate that the section is optional. If you don't ask for a particular section, the topic with the lowest numbered section name will be displayed. For instance, after logging in, enter


       # man passwd

to read the documentation for passwd(1). To view the documentation for passwd(5), enter


       # man 5 passwd

instead.

If you are unsure of what man page you are looking for, enter apropos subject-word

where subject-word is your topic of interest; a list of possibly related man pages will be displayed.

Administrivia

If you've got something to say, do so! We'd like your input. There are various mailing lists available via the mailing list server at majordomo@netbsd.org. To get help on using the mailing list server, send mail to that address with an empty body, and it will reply with instructions.

There are various mailing lists set up to deal with comments and questions about this release. Please send comments to: netbsd-comments@netbsd.org.

To report bugs, use the send-pr(1) command shipped with NetBSD, and fill in as much information about the problem as you can. Good bug reports include lots of details. Additionally, bug reports can be sent by mail to: netbsd-bugs@netbsd.org.

Use of send-pr(1) is encouraged, however, because bugs reported with it are entered into the NetBSD bugs database, and thus can't slip through the cracks.

There are also port-specific mailing lists, to discuss aspects of each port of NetBSD. Use majordomo to find their addresses, or visit http://www.netbsd.org/MailingLists/. If you're interested in doing a serious amount of work on a specific port, you probably should contact the `owner' of that port (listed below).

If you'd like to help with this effort, and have an idea as to how you could be useful, send us mail or subscribe to: netbsd-help@netbsd.org.

As a favor, please avoid mailing huge documents or files to these mailing lists. Instead, put the material you would have sent up for FTP or WWW somewhere, then mail the appropriate list about it, or, if you'd rather not do that, mail the list saying you'll send the data to those who want it.

Thanks go to

  • The former members of UCB's Computer Systems Research Group, including (but not limited to):
    Keith Bostic
    Ralph Campbell
    Mike Karels
    Marshall Kirk McKusick
    

    for their ongoing work on BSD systems, support, and encouragement.

  • Also, our thanks go to:
    Mike Hibler
    Rick Macklem
    Jan-Simon Pendry
    Chris Torek
    

    for answering lots of questions, fixing bugs, and doing the various work they've done.

  • UC Berkeley's Experimental Computing Facility provided a home for sun-lamp in the past, people to look after it, and a sense of humor. Rob Robertson, too, has added his unique sense of humor to things, and for a long time provided the primary FTP site for NetBSD.

  • Vixie Enterprises for hosting the NetBSD FTP, SUP, and WWW servers.

  • Redback Networks, Inc. for hosting the NetBSD mail and GNATS server.

  • The Helsinki University of Technology in Finland for hosting the NetBSD CVS server.

  • The Internet Research Institute in Japan for hosting the server which runs the CVSweb interface to the NetBSD source tree.

  • The many organisations that provide NetBSD mirror sites.

  • Without CVS, this project would be impossible to manage, so our hats go off to Brian Berliner, Jeff Polk, and the various other people who've had a hand in making CVS a useful tool.

  • Dave Burgess burgess@cynjut.infonet.net has been maintaining the 386BSD/NetBSD/FreeBSD FAQ for quite some time, and deserves to be recognized for it.

  • The following individuals and organizations (each in alphabetical order) have made donations or loans of hardware and/or money, to support NetBSD development, and deserve credit for it:

    Steve Allen
    Jason Birnschein
    Mason Loring Bliss
    Jason Brazile
    Mark Brinicombe
    David Brownlee
    Simon Burge
    Dave Burgess
    Ralph Campbell
    Brian Carlstrom
    James Chacon
    Bill Coldwell
    Charles Conn
    Tom Coulter
    Charles D. Cranor
    Christopher G. Demetriou
    Scott Ellis
    Hubert Feyrer
    Castor Fu
    Greg Gingerich
    William Gnadt
    Michael Graff
    Guenther Grau
    Ross Harvey
    Charles M. Hannum
    Michael L. Hitch
    Kenneth Alan Hornstein
    Jordan K. Hubbard
    Søren Jørvang
    Scott Kaplan
    Noah M. Keiserman
    Harald Koerfgen
    John Kohl
    Chris Legrow
    Ted Lemon
    Norman R. McBride
    Neil J. McRae
    Perry E. Metzger
    Toru Nishimura
    Herb Peyerl
    Mike Price
    Dave Rand
    Michael Richardson
    Heiko W. Rupp
    Brad Salai
    Chuck Silvers
    Thor Lancelot Simon
    Bill Sommerfeld
    Paul Southworth
    Eric and Rosemary Spahr
    Ted Spradley
    Kimmo Suominen
    Jason R. Thorpe
    Steve Wadlow
    Krister Walfridsson
    Jim Wise
    Christos Zoulas
    

    AboveNet Communications, Inc.
    Advanced System Products, Inc.
    Avalon Computer Systems
    Bay Area Internet Solutions
    Brains Corporation, Japan
    Canada Connect Corporation
    Co-operative Research Centre for Enterprise Distributed Systems Technology
    Demon Internet, UK
    Digital Equipment Corporation
    Distributed Processing Technology
    Easynet, UK
    Free Hardware Foundation
    Innovation Development Enterprises of America
    Internet Software Consortium
    MS Macro System GmbH, Germany
    Numerical Aerospace Simulation Facility, NASA Ames Research Center
    Piermont Information Systems Inc.
    Salient Systems Inc.
    VMC Harald Frank, Germany
    Warped Communications, Inc.
    Whitecross Database Systems Ltd.
    
    (If you're not on that list and should be, tell us! We probably were not able to get in touch with you, to verify that you wanted to be listed.)

  • Finally, we thank all of the people who've put sweat and tears into developing NetBSD since its inception in January, 1993. (Obviously, there are a lot more people who deserve thanks here. If you're one of them, and would like to mentioned, tell us!)

We are...

(in alphabetical order)


The NetBSD core group:
Alistair Crooksagc@netbsd.org
Jun-ichiro itojun Haginoitojun@netbsd.org
Frank van der Lindenfvdl@netbsd.org
Luke Mewburnlukem@netbsd.org
Christos Zoulaschristos@netbsd.org

The portmasters (and their ports):
Mark Brinicombemark@netbsd.org arm32
Jeremy Cooperjeremy@netbsd.org sun3x
Ross Harveyross@netbsd.org alpha
Jun-ichiro itojun Haginoitojun@netbsd.org sh3
Ben Harrisbjh21@netbsd.org arm26
Eduardo Horvatheeh@netbsd.org sparc64
Darrin Jewelldbj@netbsd.org next68k
Søren Jørvangsoren@netbsd.org cobalt
Søren Jørvangsoren@netbsd.org sgimips
Wayne Knowleswdk@netbsd.org mipsco
Paul Kranenburgpk@netbsd.org sparc
Anders Magnussonragge@netbsd.org vax
Minoura Makotominoura@netbsd.org x68k
Phil Nelsonphil@netbsd.org pc532
Tohru Nishimuranisimura@netbsd.org luna68k
NONAKA Kimihirononaka@netbsd.org prep
Scott Reynoldsscottr@netbsd.org mac68k
Kazuki Sakamotosakamoto@netbsd.org bebox
Noriyuki Sodasoda@netbsd.org arc
Wolfgang Solfrankws@netbsd.org ofppc
Ignatios Souvatzisis@netbsd.org amiga
Jonathan Stonejonathan@netbsd.org pmax
Shin Takemuratakemura@netbsd.org hpcmips
Jason Thorpethorpej@netbsd.org alpha
Jason Thorpethorpej@netbsd.org hp300
Tsubai Masanaritsubai@netbsd.org macppc
Tsubai Masanaritsubai@netbsd.org newsmips
Izumi Tsutsuitsutsui@netbsd.org news68k
Frank van der Lindenfvdl@netbsd.org i386
Leo Weppelmanleo@netbsd.org atari
Nathan Williamsnathanw@netbsd.org sun3
Steve Woodfordscw@netbsd.org mvme68k

The NetBSD 1.5 Release Engineering team:
Chris G. Demetrioucgd@netbsd.org
Havard Eidneshe@netbsd.org
Ted Lemonmellon@netbsd.org
John Hawkinsonjhawk@netbsd.org
Perry Metzgerperry@netbsd.org
Curt Sampsoncjs@netbsd.org
Jason Thorpethorpej@netbsd.org
Todd Vierlingtv@netbsd.org

Developers and other contributors:
Steve Allenwormey@netbsd.org
Julian Assangeproff@netbsd.org
Lennart Augustssonaugustss@netbsd.org
Christoph Badurabad@netbsd.org
Robert V. Baronrvb@netbsd.org
Erik Berlscyber@netbsd.org
John Birrelljb@netbsd.org
Mason Loring Blissmason@netbsd.org
Manuel Bouyerbouyer@netbsd.org
John Brezakbrezak@netbsd.org
Allen Briggsbriggs@netbsd.org
Aaron Brownabrown@netbsd.org
David Brownleeabs@netbsd.org
Frederick Bruckmanfredb@netbsd.org
Jon Bullerjonb@netbsd.org
Simon Burgesimonb@netbsd.org
Dave Burgessburgess@cynjut.infonet.net
Robert Byrnesbyrnes@netbsd.org
D'Arcy J.M. Caindarcy@netbsd.org
Dave Carrelcarrel@netbsd.org
James Chaconjmc@netbsd.org
Bill Coldwellbillc@netbsd.org
Julian Colemanjdc@netbsd.org
Chuck Cranorchuck@netbsd.org
Aidan Cullyaidan@netbsd.org
Johan Danielssonjoda@netbsd.org
Matt DeBergalisdeberg@netbsd.org
Rob Dekerdeker@netbsd.org
Chris G. Demetrioucgd@netbsd.org
Jaromir Dolecekjdolecek@netbsd.org
Andy Doranad@netbsd.org
Roland Dowdeswellelric@netbsd.org
Matthias Drochnerdrochner@netbsd.org
Jun Ebiharajun@netbsd.org
Havard Eidneshe@netbsd.org
Enami Tsugutomoenami@netbsd.org
Bernd Ernestiveego@netbsd.org
Erik Fairfair@netbsd.org
Hubert Feyrerhubertf@netbsd.org
Thorsten Frueauffrueauf@netbsd.org
Castor Fucastor@netbsd.org
Ichiro Fukuharaichiro@netbsd.org
Brian R. Gaekebrg@dgate.org
Thomas Gernerthomas@netbsd.org
Simon J. Gerratysjg@netbsd.org
Justin Gibbsgibbs@netbsd.org
Adam Glassglass@netbsd.org
Michael Graffexplorer@netbsd.org
Brad Granthamgrantham@tenon.com
Brian C. Graysonbgrayson@netbsd.org
Matthew Greenmrg@netbsd.org
Juergen Hannken-Illjeshannken@netbsd.org
Charles M. Hannummycroft@netbsd.org
Eric Haszlakiewiczerh@netbsd.org
John Hawkinsonjhawk@netbsd.org
HAYAKAWA Koichihaya@netbsd.org
René Hexelrh@netbsd.org
Michael L. Hitchmhitch@netbsd.org
Christian E. Hoppschopps@netbsd.org
Ken Hornsteinkenh@netbsd.org
Marc Horowitzmarc@netbsd.org
Nick Hudsonskrll@netbsd.org
Martin Husemannmartin@netbsd.org
Dean Huxleydean@netbsd.org
Bernardo Innocentibernie@netbsd.org
ITOH Yasufumiitohy@netbsd.org
IWAMOTO Toshihirotoshii@netbsd.org
Matthew Jacobmjacob@netbsd.org
Lonhyn T. Jasinskyjlonhyn@netbsd.org
Chris Jonescjones@netbsd.org
Takahiro Kambetaca@netbsd.org
Antti Kanteepooka@netbsd.org
Lawrence Kestelootkesteloo@cs.unc.edu
Thomas Klausnerwiz@netbsd.org
Klaus Kleinkleink@netbsd.org
Wayne Knowleswdk@netbsd.org
John Kohljtk@netbsd.org
Kevin Laheykml@netbsd.org
Johnny C. Lamjlam@netbsd.org
Martin J. Laubachmjl@netbsd.org
Ted Lemonmellon@netbsd.org
Joel Lindholmjoel@netbsd.org
Mike Longmikel@netbsd.org
Warner Loshimp@netbsd.org
Federico Lupifederico@netbsd.org
Brett Lymnblymn@netbsd.org
Paul Mackerraspaulus@netbsd.org
David Maxwelldavid@netbsd.org
Dan McMahilldmcmahill@netbsd.org
Gregory McGarrygmcgarry@netbsd.org
Neil J. McRaeneil@netbsd.org
Perry Metzgerperry@netbsd.org
der Mousemouse@netbsd.org
Joseph Myersjsm@netbsd.org
Ken Nakatakenn@netbsd.org
Bob Nestorrnestor@netbsd.org
NONAKA Kimihirononaka@netbsd.org
Masaru Okioki@netbsd.org
Atsushi Onoeonoe@netbsd.org
Greg Osteroster@netbsd.org
Herb Peyerlhpeyerl@netbsd.org
Matthias Pfallermatthias@netbsd.org
Dante Profetadante@netbsd.org
Chris Provenzanoproven@netbsd.org
Waldi Ravenswaldi@moacs.indiv.nl.net
Darren Reeddarrenr@netbsd.org
Michael Richardsonmcr@netbsd.org
Tim Rightnourgarbled@netbsd.org
Gordon Rossgwr@netbsd.org
Heiko W. Rupphwr@netbsd.org
SAITOH Masanobumsaitoh@netbsd.org
Curt Sampsoncjs@netbsd.org
Wilfredo Sanchezwsanchez@netbsd.org
Ty Sarnatsarna@netbsd.org
SATO Kazumisato@netbsd.org
Matthias Schelertron@netbsd.org
Karl Schilke (rAT)rat@netbsd.org
Konrad Schroderperseant@netbsd.org
Reed Shadgettdent@netbsd.org
Tim Shepardshep@netbsd.org
Takao Shinoharashin@netbsd.org
Takuya SHIOZAKItshiozak@netbsd.org
Chuck Silverschs@netbsd.org
Thor Lancelot Simontls@netbsd.org
Jeff Smithjeffs@netbsd.org
Bill Sommerfeldsommerfeld@netbsd.org
Bill Squiergroo@netbsd.org
Bill Studenmundwrstuden@netbsd.org
Kevin Sullivansullivan@netbsd.org
SUNAGAWA Keikikei@netbsd.org
Kimmo Suominenkim@netbsd.org
Matt Thomasmatt@netbsd.org
Christoph Toshoktoshok@netbsd.org
UCHIYAMA Yasushiuch@netbsd.org
Shuichiro URATAur@netbsd.org
Todd Vierlingtv@netbsd.org
Aymeric Vincentaymeric@netbsd.org
Paul Vixievixie@netbsd.org
Krister Walfridssonkristerw@netbsd.org
Lex Wennmacherwennmach@netbsd.org
Assar Westerlundassar@netbsd.org
Todd Whiteseltoddpw@netbsd.org
Rob Windsorwindsor@netbsd.org
Dan Winshipdanw@netbsd.org
Jim Wisejwise@netbsd.org
Michael Wolfsonmbw@netbsd.org
Colin Woodender@netbsd.org

Legal Mumbo-Jumbo

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The following notices are required to satisfy the license terms of the software that we have mentioned in this document:

This product includes software developed by the University of California, Berkeley and its contributors.

This product includes software developed by The NetBSD Foundation, Inc.

This product includes software developed by the NetBSD Foundation, Inc. and its contributors.

This product includes software developed by the Computer Systems Engineering Group at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory.

This product includes software developed by Adam Glass and Charles Hannum.

This product includes software developed by Adam Glass and Charles M. Hannum.

This product includes software developed by Adam Glass.

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This product includes software developed by Charles D. Cranor.

This product includes software developed by Charles Hannum, by the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College and Garrett A. Wollman, by William F. Jolitz, and by the University of California, Berkeley, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, and its contributors.

This product includes software developed by Charles Hannum.

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This product includes software developed by Christopher G. Demetriou for the NetBSD Project.

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This product includes software developed by David Jones and Gordon Ross.

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This product includes software developed by Jason R. Thorpe for And Communications, http://www.and.com/.

This product includes software developed by Joachim Koenig-Baltes.

This product includes software developed by Jochen Pohl for The NetBSD Project.

This product includes software developed by John Polstra.

This product includes software developed by Jonathan Stone and Jason R. Thorpe for the NetBSD Project.

This product includes software developed by Jonathan Stone for the NetBSD Project.

This product includes software developed by Jonathan Stone.

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This product includes software developed by Mats O Jansson and Charles D. Cranor.

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This product includes software developed by SigmaSoft, Th. Lockert.

This product includes software developed by Tatoku Ogaito for the NetBSD Project.

This product includes software developed by Terrence R. Lambert.

This product includes software developed by Theo de Raadt and John Brezak.

This product includes software developed by Theo de Raadt.

This product includes software developed by Tohru Nishimura for the NetBSD Project.

This product includes software developed by TooLs GmbH.

This product includes software developed by Winning Strategies, Inc.

This product includes software developed by Zembu Labs, Inc.

This product includes software developed by the Center for Software Science at the University of Utah.

This product includes software developed by the Computer Systems Laboratory at the University of Utah.

This product includes software developed by the University of Calgary Department of Computer Science and its contributors.

This product includes software developed by the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College and Garrett A. Wollman.

This product includes software developed for the FreeBSD project.

This product includes software developed for the Internet Software Consortium by Ted Lemon.

This product includes software developed for the NetBSD Project by Frank van der Linden.

This product includes software developed for the NetBSD Project by Jason R. Thorpe.

This product includes software developed for the NetBSD Project by John M. Vinopal.

This product includes software developed for the NetBSD Project by Matthias Drochner.

This product includes software developed for the NetBSD Project by Matthieu Herrb.

This product includes software developed for the NetBSD Project by Perry E. Metzger.

This product includes software developed for the NetBSD Project by Piermont Information Systems Inc.

This product includes software developed for the NetBSD Project by Ted Lemon.

This product includes software developed by LAN Media Corporation and its contributors.

This product includes software developed by Michael Graff for the NetBSD Project.

This product includes software developed by Niklas Hallqvist, C Stone and Job de Haas.

This product includes software developed by Eric Young (eay@mincom.oz.au).

This product includes software developed by the OpenSSL Project for use in the OpenSSL Toolkit (http://www.openssl.org/).

This product includes software developed by the University of Oregon.

This product includes software developed by the University of Southern California and/or Information Sciences Institute.

This product includes software developed by Internet Initiative Japan Inc.

This product includes software developed at Ludd, University of Lule}, Sweden.

This product includes software developed by Adam Glass, David Jones, and Gordon Ross.