How to boot a 64-bit kernel vs 32-it in Solaris 8 on a Sparc 10

[ainima]

Hello all,

I just installed Solaris 8 on a SPARC 10 and but my default boot is the 32-bit kernel. How do I switch to the 64-bit kernel? I installed with both 64-bit and 32-bit support so I should be able to. I just don't know how.

Thanks,
Mcc

 

[jimbopalmer]

just a question the Ultra 10 has a 64 bit CPU, did you men the Ultra? because the Sparc 10 is only a 32 bit chip I tried to remain child-like, all I acheived was childish.

 

[ainima]

Didn't know that. I have just a SPARC10 with dual 50mhz processors so I probably can't switch to 64bit without a Ross upgrade or something.

 

[jimbopalmer]

Ross hyperSPARCs are also 32 bit I tried to remain child-like, all I acheived was childish.

 

[FarahRegal]

Identify the Solaris release with the uname -a command:

/usr/bin/uname -a

Output should show 5.7 or greater.

If the hardware is 64-bit capable, a new software install will, by default, install the 64-bit packages. To check to see if the 64-bit packages have been installed, use the pkginfo command.

/usr/bin/pkginfo | grep "64-bit"
system SUNWarcx Archive Libraries (64-bit)
system SUNWauddx Audio Drivers (64-bit)
.

Q. What about UltraSPARC processors of less than 200 MHz?

On systems containing 200-MHz or lower UltraSPARC I processors, the 32-bit kernel is booted by default. Configuring these systems to boot 64-bit requires an extra step. The file /platform/sun4u/boot.conf must have the following line uncommented:

ALLOW_64BIT_KERNEL_ON_UltraSPARC_1_CPU=true

Using eeprom
Log in as root and enter:

# /usr/sbin/eeprom | grep boot-file

64-Bit
The system is configured to boot the 64-bit kernel if the output from the eeprom command is either:

boot-file: data not available

or

boot-file=kernel/sparcv9/unix

The boot-file does not have to be set to kernel/sparcv9/unix. A null value works.

32-Bit
The system is configured to boot a 32-bit kernel if the output from the eeprom command comes back as:

kernel/unix

Set the boot-file to either null or kernel/sparcv9/unix using either:

/usr/sbin/eeprom boot-file=""

or

/usr/sbin/eeprom boot-file="kernel/sparcv9/unix"

Using setenv
From the system's OBP OK> prompt, use the printenv command to check the boot-file parameter and if necessary use the setenv or set-default commands to set the 64-bit kernel:

OK> printenv boot-file
OK> setenv boot-file kernel/sparcv9/unix

or

OK> set-default boot-file

Q. How do I configure the system to boot a 32-bit kernel?

If the Ultra machine meets the hardware and software requirements for 64-bit boot, the boot-file variable must be set to kernel/unix. If not, then the machine will boot 64-bit. The boot-file variable can be set by either the Solaris eeprom command or the OBP setenv command.

Using eeprom
Log in as root and use the eeprom command to set the boot-file parameter to the 32-bit kernel:

# /usr/sbin/eeprom boot-file="kernel/unix"

The next time the system is rebooted, the 32-bit kernel will load.

Using setenv
From the system's OBP OK> prompt, use the setenv command to set the boot-file parameter to the 32-bit kernel:

OK> setenv boot-file kernel/unix



.

Farah Regal
good luck
"think twice and hit enter once"