Basic question respecting install from usb flash drive.

[James B. Byrne via freebsd-questions]

I have a SuperMicro SYS-5027R-WRF on which I am trying to install
FreeBSD-10.3 via a USB key. I created the key following the
instructions in the Handbook. It seems to be ok. The problem seems
to be in getting the SM host configured correctly to boot from the usb
drive.

The SM configuration does not explictly list a USB option. What I
have to choose from are these:

Boot Option Priorities
Boot Option #1 [VerbatimSTORE N GO. . .]
Boot Option #2 [WDC WD30EFRX-68AX9N0]
Boot Option #3 [UEFI: Built-in EFI. . .]
Boot Option #4 [IBA GE Slot 0700 v. . .]

Network Devices
Hard Disk Drives
USB Device BBS Priorities


Looking at the options for USB Device BBS Priorities show either
VerbatimSTORE N GO or DISABLED. So I infer that the first boot option
is the correct one for my purposes.

However, when the system restarts I see this:

Invalid Format

FreeBSD/x86 boot
Default: 0ad(0,a)/boot/kernel/kernel
boot:
No /boot/kernel/kernel


FreeBSD/x86 boot
Default: 0ad(0,a)/boot/kernel/kernel
boot:


So, what is the problem? A bad usb flash copy?
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James B. Byrne mailto:***@Harte-Lyne.ca
Harte & Lyne Limited http://www.harte-lyne.ca
9 Brockley Drive vox: [phone]
Hamilton, Ontario fax: [phone]
Canada L8E 3C3

[Matthew Seaman]

Post by James B. Byrne via freebsd-questions
So, what is the problem? A bad usb flash copy?

Yes. It looks like your USB drive has a corrupted system image on it.
The bootloader is there, but it can't load the kernel from the USB drive.

I suggest trying again: either rewrite your current USB drive, or try
again with a fresh one. Either way, be sure to verify the checksum on
the memstick image you downloaded before doing anything else with it.

Cheers,

Matthew

[James B. Byrne]

Post by Matthew Seaman

Post by James B. Byrne via freebsd-questions
So, what is the problem? A bad usb flash copy?

Yes. It looks like your USB drive has a corrupted system image on it.
The bootloader is there, but it can't load the kernel from the USB
drive.
I suggest trying again: either rewrite your current USB drive, or try
again with a fresh one. Either way, be sure to verify the checksum on
the memstick image you downloaded before doing anything else with it.

I re-flashed the usb key using bs=4096 and that copy boots properly
during the install. Thank you for the advice.

Regards,
--
*** e-Mail is NOT a SECURE channel ***
Do NOT transmit sensitive data via e-Mail
Do NOT open attachments nor follow links sent by e-Mail

James B. Byrne mailto:***@Harte-Lyne.ca
Harte & Lyne Limited http://www.harte-lyne.ca
9 Brockley Drive vox: [phone]
Hamilton, Ontario fax: [phone]
Canada L8E 3C3

[Trond Endrestøl]

Post by Matthew Seaman

Post by James B. Byrne via freebsd-questions
So, what is the problem? A bad usb flash copy?

Yes. It looks like your USB drive has a corrupted system image on it.
The bootloader is there, but it can't load the kernel from the USB drive.
I suggest trying again: either rewrite your current USB drive, or try
again with a fresh one. Either way, be sure to verify the checksum on
the memstick image you downloaded before doing anything else with it.

Don't forget to run gpart recover da0 if the USB image has GPT
partitioning.