Re: parted and partition types

[Andrew Clausen]

Hollis Blanchard wrote:
> > > Well, here's my problem. I want to install ybin (basically a bootloader).
> > > ybin needs to be on an HFS partition (for the firmware to be able to 
> > > boot),
> > > but the Mac OS automatically mounts Apple_HFS partitions (and can do bad
> > > things sometimes). So ybin likes to be on a partition of type
> > > Apple_Bootstrap - that way nobody except ybin will mess with it.
> >
> > RTFM ;-)
> >
> > set X boot on
> 
> Nice!
> 
> But I have an important clarification for the manual. The type
> 'Apple_Bootstrap' is artificial - Ethan Benson made it up. The Mac OS looks at
> the type, doesn't recognize it, and so skips it (doesn't mount it), which is
> what Ethan wanted.

IIRC, this is incorrect...
/me waits for debate from Ethan, hehe
 
> Setting a partition to type 'Apple_Bootstrap' alone does nothing for the
> firmware or affect booting. It's the Open Firmware 'boot-device' variable that
> specifies the boot partition and binary. With a vague boot-device (like the
> default, hd:,\\:tbxi), OF will search for something to boot, attempting to 
> boot
> from the first non-driver partition on the disk (be it Apple_HFS,
> Apple_Bootstrap, or whatever).

Doesn't MacOS avoid clobbering Apple_Boot*, or something?  I can't
remember.

> Also, yaboot does not require its own boot partition - it runs quite happily
> in any directory on an HFS or HFS+ partition, including out of the Mac OS
> System Folder. If you want OF to boot yaboot automatically (without fussing
> with the boot-device variable), *then* it needs to be on its own partition.

Interesting.
 
> Oh, and quik is far from popular. :)

What do old-world ppl use?

> Ok, would you add a flag that sets a partition type (in a DOS partition map) 
> to
> 0x41 so that the firmware will boot from it?

Is this a hypothetical question?  I don't know what you're talking
about!

Andrew Clausen