* Microdrive / USB Disk Installer for ADS Debian Distribution *

* Installation from scratch.

This procedure can be used to install Debian from the ADS images, without
needing an existing linux system to write Debian to the drive. You will
need a compact flash card that is at least 512 mb in size for this
installation method, as well as a supported USB Compact flash reader,
and a PCMCIA compact flash adapter.

1) Connect the USB Compact flash reader to a networked computer that is
   capable of using the reader. The computer can be running Windows, Linux,
   or any other operating system that is capable of this.

2) Insert the compact flash card into the USB compact flash reader.

3) Download the ADS Debian distrubution from www.applieddata.net.
   Copy the following files to the compact flash card:
   ramdisk.gz, debian_install.sh, initrd.gz, debian-root.tar.gz

4) Add appropriate u-boot text files for your board to the compact flash
   card. The root_config_usb_install.txt file is used to install to a USB
   disk or to a microdrive in a USB Compat flash reader, while the
   root_config_ide_install.txt file is used to install to an IDE disk.
   These files must be renamed to root_config.txt on the compact flash
   card. 
   
   You will also need to copy in a start.txt file. Some boards may need a 
   tty_config.txt file.

5) Download a proper kernel for your ADS board. Copy the kernel to
   a file named zImage on the compact flash card.

6) Remove the compact flash card from the compact flash reader, place it
   in the PCMCIA compact flash adapter, and insert it into the PCMCIA slot
   of your ADS board.

7) Place the Microdrive in a supported USB Compact flash reader and connect
   it to your ADS board.

        - OR -

   Attach a supported USB hard disk to the board.

       - OR -
   
   If your ADS board supports IDE, connect a supported IDE hard disk to the
   board.

8) Boot your ADS board. You will be asked to confirm the installation of
   Debian to the microdrive, USB hard disk, or IDE hard disk.

9) Once installation is complete, remove the compact flash card from the
   ADS board. 

10) If you installed to a USB or IDE hard disk, see the Note on using a USB
    or IDE hard drive, below, for details about configuring the compact
    flash card to boot from the drive.
   
    If you installed to a microdrive, place the microdrive in the PCMCIA
    adapter. Copy the appropriate kernel and u-boot text file to the
    microdrive to allow it to be booted, plce it in the board's PCMCIA slot,
    and reset the board to boot into the full Debian system.

* Installation from an existing linux system.

This procedure can be used to install Debian from the ADS images, using an
existing linux system to write Debian to the drive that will later be
connected to the ADS system.

1) Place the Microdrive in either a supported USB Compact
   flash reader or a PCMCIA adapter and connect it to your
   PC running Linux.  Note the device name (/dev/hde, /dev/sda, etc.)

        - OR -

   Attach a supported USB hard disk to your Linux PC and note the device
   name from the kernel messages (use the command 'dmesg' to view them).

2) Download the ADS Debian distrubution from www.applieddata.net

3) Download a proper kernel for your ADS board

4) Run the installer with the proper arguments giving the
   location of the required files (use the '-h' option to get
   a listing of required arguments).

Example:
	debian_install debian-root.tar.bz2 initrd.gz /path/to/kernel /dev/hde

	(for a USB CF reader, the device would be /dev/sda, /dev/sdb, etc.)

   After installation, you may eject/remove your card and use
   it to boot your ADS board.


* Note on the initial ramdisk:

The file initrd.gz should be used for the initial ramdisk
(initrd) on the installer command line.  This small ramdisk
is used to bring up the PCMCIA disk that contains the real root
filesystem for Debian.

An initial ramdisk is not needed when using a USB or IDE hard drive.


* Note on using a USB or IDE hard drive

If your ADS embedded computer system has a USB host connector, you
can run the ADS Debian distribution from a USB hard drive; and if your ADS
computer has an IDE connector, you can run the ADS Debian distribution from
an IDE hard drive.

When using a USB or IDE hard drive, you must either use a PCMCIA flash card
with a zImage and cmdline.txt or program a proper zImage and cmdline.txt
into on-board flash.  The ADS Linux bootloader cannot boot from a USB or
IDE hard disk directly.



* Note on the Microdrive:

The microdrive is much like the disk drive on your workstation.  You
are probably careful to shutdown you workstation before powering it off.
You should be equally careful with Debian on the microdrive - run the
shutdown command and wait for it to complete before removing the power
from your board.

Also, the Microdrive is a very fragile piece of equipment. It is
especially sensitive to pressure on the top and bottom (large flat
areas) of the drive.  When handling a Microdrive, always hold it by
its edges!  To remove a Microdrive from a PCMCIA slot adapter, use your
tumbnails to push it out fo the adapter from the front (where the pins
connect to the drive) rather than pulling the drive out from the back.