# Freebsd & rackable systems SATA no install



## fischb22 (Jul 13, 2012)

I've recently purchased on of the really cheap 2U rackable systems servers off ebay.

I've installed BSD, and used it since the early versions, and have never encountered this type of problem.


setup:  4 - 1 TB SATA drives (RAID turned off in bios)

*U*sing an external DVD drive*.* *I*'ve tried to install both the x32 and x64 complete discs, both hang in the exact same spot. *W*hen it goes to load the bootloader, the spinning cursor just stops. *I*f *I* turn off the SATA controller, it will boot normally.


*A*nything *I* can do to resolve this?

(BTW, Debian boots/installs fine, but *I* really want to use *Free*BSD)

Thanks!


----------



## Terry_Kennedy (Jul 15, 2012)

fischb22 said:
			
		

> i've tried to install both the x32 and x64 complete discs, both hang in the exact same spot.


You may want to edit your post to spell it "FreeBSD" and use capital letters in sentences where appropriate. If you don't, a moderator will fix it for you and chide you for not reading the forum rules.



> when it goes to load the bootloader, the spinning cursor just stops...


Do you mean _after_ the boot loader? Normally the spinning cursor happens after you've selected boot options, while the kernel is being loaded into memory.



> if i turn off the SATA controller, it will boot normally.
> 
> anything i can do to resolve this?
> 
> (btw, desbian boots/installs fine [...])


It would help if you told us what kind of SATA controller your system has, in as much detail as possible. It may be identified during your Debian boot process.

Telling us what motherboard you have might also be useful.

Normally, I wouldn't expect a hang at this paricular point in the boot procedure, but later on while the kernel is probing devices. You may be able to get more information by selecting the "verbose boot" option. I believe the system will print a bunch of information about memory layout before the first part of the normal kernel banner. 

One of the first things often suggested is to make sure your motherboard BIOS and any add-on controller BIOS are up-to-date. While that may not fix things, it does eliminate one area of uncertainty.


----------



## fischb22 (Jul 15, 2012)

Motherboard Arima NM46x v1.10

*I*t 'hangs' immediately after the FreeBSD/x86 boot strap loader v1.1 (it doesn*'*t matter if *I* use the 32bit or 64bit)*.* *I* never get to the selection menu*.*

*I*f *I* turn off the SATA controller, some Nforce thing with built in RAID(mediashield?!) which *I* also have tried turned off. *I*t will boot completely to the setup screen -IF- and only if I have the SATA controllers turned off*.*

*I* can*'*t add an attachment, or *I* would enclose a screenshot*.*


*I*'m not exactly sure what *I*'m trying to find in *dmesg*, but here is a snippet

```
[    1.944278] sata_nv 0000:00:05.0: version 3.5
[    1.944621] ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LTID] enabled at IRQ 19
[    1.944634] sata_nv 0000:00:05.0: PCI INT A -> Link[LTID] -> GSI 19 (level, low) -> IRQ 19
[    1.944638] sata_nv 0000:00:05.0: Using SWNCQ mode
[    1.944690] sata_nv 0000:00:05.0: setting latency timer to 64
[    1.944837] scsi0 : sata_nv
[    1.944956] scsi1 : sata_nv
[    1.945121] ata1: SATA max UDMA/133 cmd 0x24d0 ctl 0x24c4 bmdma 0x2490 irq 19
[    1.945124] ata2: SATA max UDMA/133 cmd 0x24c8 ctl 0x24c0 bmdma 0x2498 irq 19
[    1.945151] pata_amd 0000:00:04.0: version 0.4.1
[    1.945185] pata_amd 0000:00:04.0: setting latency timer to 64
[    1.945269] scsi2 : pata_amd
[    1.945372] scsi3 : pata_amd
[    1.945951] ata3: PATA max UDMA/133 cmd 0x1f0 ctl 0x3f6 bmdma 0x2480 irq 14
[    1.945954] ata4: PATA max UDMA/133 cmd 0x170 ctl 0x376 bmdma 0x2488 irq 15
```

*I* can post the full log if that would be easier.


----------



## fischb22 (Jul 15, 2012)

*A*lso, here is the link to the mainboard:

http://www.arimacorp.com/Server/Download/Download/NM46X_V097.pdf


----------



## fischb22 (Jul 18, 2012)

i take it their is no support for the nforce mcp 555(or whatever) chip, and that it is not likely to be supported at this time?


----------



## Terry_Kennedy (Jul 19, 2012)

fischb22 said:
			
		

> i take it their is no support for the nforce mcp 555(or whatever) chip, and that it is not likely to be supported at this time?


It isn't a chipset that I'm familiar with. In general, devices are detected (and drivers attached) or ignored.

Does the BIOS have any sort of option to disable AHCI? This might be called something like "Legacy mode" or "EIDE". If that option is available, you could try booting FreeBSD after changing it.

Also, it is possible that the issue was addressed in the 9.1 development cycle. 9.1-BETA1 was announced recently, so you might try downloading an ISO image and test booting from it.


----------



## fischb22 (Jul 19, 2012)

this board/chipset was 'new' in 2006, i would have hoped if it had issues, they would have had drivers/etc by now.

and yes, ive turned stuff on/off, everything individually (even the ECC crap)

hangs in same spot.


the only thing that will let it boot, is if i turn off the SATA controller, but i cant run with out that....i would have 4 1TB drives that would function as paper weights


----------



## kpa (Jul 19, 2012)

This is not a chipset support issue because the loader uses only BIOS calls to probe the disks. It's either a bug in the FreeBSD bootloader or a bug in the BIOS of the machine.


----------

