Quick installation

In "Chapters 4" to "6" we'll go into a lot of detail about how to install the system. Maybe this is too much detail for you. If you're an experienced UNIX user, you should be able to get by with significantly less reading. This chapter presents checklists for some of the more usual kinds of installation. Each refers you to the corresponding detailed descriptions in "Chapters 4" through 6.

On the following pages we'll look at the simplest installation, where FreeBSD is the only system on the disk. Starting on page 49 we'll look at sharing the disk with Microsoft, and on page 50 we'll look at how to install XFree86. You may find it convenient to photo copy these pages and to mark them up as you go along.

Making things easy for yourself

It is probably easier to install FreeBSD than any other PC operating system, including Microsoft products. Well, most of the time, any way. Some people spend days trying to install FreeBSD, and finally give up. That happens with Microsoft's products as well, but unfortunately it happens more often with FreeBSD.

Now you're probably saying, "That doesn't make sense. First you say it's easier to install, then you say it's more likely to fail. What's the real story?"

As you might expect, the real story is quite involved. In "Chapter 2" , Before you install, I went into some of the background. Before you start, let's look at what you can do to make the installation as easy as possible:

• Use known, established hardware. New hardware products frequently have undocumented problems. You can be sure that they work under Microsoft, because the manufacturer has tested them in that environment. In all probability, he hasn’t tested them under any flavour of UNIX, let alone FreeBSD. Usually the problems aren't serious, and the FreeBSD team solves them pretty quickly, but if you get the hardware before the software is ready, you’re the guinea pig.
• At the other end of the scale, you can have more trouble with old hardware as well. It's not as easy to configure, and old hardware is not as well supported as more recent hardware.
• Perform a standard installation. The easiest way to install FreeBSD is by booting from a CD-ROM and installing on an empty hard disk from the CD-ROM. If you proceed as discussed in Chapter 5, Installing FreeBSD, you shouldn't have any difficulty.
• If you need to share your hard disk with another operating system, it's easier to install both systems from scratch. If you do already have a Microsoft system on the disk, you can use FIPS (see page 52) to make space for it, but this requires more care.
• If you run into trouble, RTFM. I've gone to a lot of trouble to anticipate the problems you might encounter, and there's a good chance that you will find something here to help.
• If you do all this, and it still doesn't work, see page 17 for ways of getting external help.

FreeBSD on a disk with free space

This procedure applies if you can install FreeBSD without first having to make space on disk. Perform the following steps:

• Boot from CD-ROM. Most systems support booting from CD-ROM, but if yours doesn't:
  • Create two boot floppies by copying the images /cdrom/fbppies/kern.ftp and /cdrom/fbppies/mfsroot.ftp to 3,5" diskettes. Refer to page 89 for more details.
  • Insert the CD-ROM in the drive before booting.
  • Boot from the kern.flp floppy. After loading, insert the mfsroot.flp floppy when the system prompts you to do so, then press Enter.
    If you have a larger floppy, such as 2.88 MB or LS-120, you can copythe image /cdrom/floppies/boot.fp to it and boot from it. In this case you don't need to change disks.
• Select the Custom installation. Refer to page 60.
• What you do in the partition editor depends on whether you want to share the drive with another operating system or not:
  • If you want to use the drive only for FreeBSD, delete any existing slices, and allocate a single FreeBSD slice that takes up the entire disk. On exiting from the partition editor, select the Standard MBR. Refer to page 66.
  • If you want to share the disk with other systems, delete any unwanted slices and use them for FreeBSD. On exiting from the partition editor, select the BootMgr MBR. Refer to page 66.
• In the disk label editor, delete any existing UNIX partitions. Create the file systems manually. If you don't have any favourite layout, create a root file system with 4 GB, a swap partition with at least 512 MB (make sure it's atleast 1 MB larger than the maximum memory you intend to install in your system). Allocate a /home file system as large as you like, as long as it can fit on a single tape when backed up. If you have any additional space, leave it empty unless you know what to use it for. See page 68 for the rationale of this approach, which is not what sysinstall recommends.
• Install the complete system, including X and the Ports Collection. This requires about 1 GB of disk space. Refer to page 75 if you want to limit it.
• Select CD-ROM as installation medium. Refer to page 76.
• Give final confirmation. The system will be installed. Refer to page 77.
• After installation, set up at least a user ID for yourself. Refer to page 144.

FreeBSD shared with Microsoft

If you have a disk with Microsoft installed on only part of the disk, and you don't want to change the partition layout, you can proceed as in the instructions above. This is pretty unusual, though: normally Microsoft takes the whole disk, and it's difficult to persuade it otherwise. To install FreeBSD on a disk that currently contains a single Microsoft partition taking up the entire disk, go through the following steps:

• Make a backup! There's every possibility of erasing your data, and there's absolutely no reason why you should take the risk.
• If you have an old machine with an IDE disk larger than 504 MB, you may run into problems. Refer to page 32 for further details.
• Boot Microsoft and repartition your disk with FIPS. Refer to page 52.
• Insert the CD-ROM in the drive before booting.
• Shut the machine down and reboot from the FreeBSD CD-ROM. If you have to boot from floppy, see page 48 for details.
• Select the Custom installation.
• In the partition editor, delete only the second primary Microsoft partition. The first primary Microsoft partition contains your Microsoft data, and if there is an extended Microsoft partition, it will also contain your Microsoft data.
• Create a FreeBSD slice in the space that has been freed. Refer to page 63.
• On exiting from the partition editor, select the BootMgr MBR. Refer to page 66.
• In the disk label editor, delete any existing UNIX partitions. Create the file systems manually. If you don't have any favourite layout, create a root file system with 4 GB, a swap partition with at least 512 MB (make sure it's at least 1 MB larger than the maximum memory you intend to install in your system). Allocate a /home file system as large as you like, as long as it can fit on a single tape when backed up. If you have any additional space, leave it empty unless you know what to use it for. See page 68 for the rationale of this approach, which is not what sysinstall recommends.
• Before leaving the disk label editor, also select mount points for your DOS partitions if you intend to mount them under FreeBSD. Refer to page 74.
• Install the complete system, including X and the Ports Collection. This requires about 1 GB of disk space. Refer to page 75 if you want to limit it.
• Select CD-ROM as installation medium. Refer to page 76.
• Give final confirmation. The system will be installed. Refer to page 77.
• After installation, set up at least a user ID for yourself. Refer to page 144.

Configuring XFree86

• You can configure XFree86 during installation or after reboot.
• Make sure your mouse is connected to the system at boot time. Depending on the hardware, if you connect it later, it may not be recognized.
• If you have already rebooted the machine, log in as root and restart sysinstall.
• Select the sys install Configuration menu, XFree86 and then xf86cfg, and follow the instructions. See page 102 for further details.
• Select the Desktop menu and install the window manager of your choice. See page 108 for further discussion.