When we upgraded our SPARCserver 490 to a 690, we didn't want to use the
cgsix framebuffer as the console. We wanted to continue using a vt220 as
the console on ttya and use the framebuffer like a workstation.
I didn't get any good answers from Usenet, so I sent mail to several Sun
employees that I've traded mail with in the past. Unfortunately, the only
reply I got from them was that it is possible to do, but they weren't sure
how. A couple Sun people are trying still trying to find a solution from
their internal tech group.
Then, yesterday afternoon, Bill Hunter of Access Graphics (bill@access.com)
sent me mail explaining exactly how to do it. There may be other ways of
accomplishing this, but this works perfectly:
> Date: Wed, 31 Mar 93 11:15:49 MST
> From: bill@access.com (Bill Hunter)
> To: lsloan@nova.gmi.edu
> Subject: Re: 690's cg6 as non-console
>
> here is what you do:
>
> 1. Make new special files corresponding to the "raw" keyboard and mouse:
> mknod /dev/zs2 c 12 2 # The keyboard
> mknod /dev/zs3 c 12 3 # The mouse
>
> These are just serial ports and will need some "special treatment"
> in order to behave as /dev/kbd and /dev/mouse.
>
> 2. Shutdown your machine and tell the monitor to
> setenv input-device ttya # Or perhaps ttyb
> setenv output-device ttya
>
> You can also use eeprom(8S).
>
> 3. Reset and reboot. /dev/fb, /dev/kbd and /dev/mouse are now useless.
> In my case, /dev/bwtwo0 works as a substitute for /dev/fb.
> Also /dev/ttya (ttyb) is useless - if you have an entry in ttytab
> for it, comment it out.
>
> 4. Modify the StartOW file in the xdm directory ($OPENWINHOME/lib/xdm) and add
> the following lines:
>
> KEYBOARD=/dev/zs2
> MOUSE=/dev/zs3
> FRAMEBUFFER=/dev/bwtwo0 #As appropriate /dev/cgthree0 /dev/cgsix0 etc.
> export MOUSE KEYBOARD FRAMEBUFFER
>
> This file is only used by xdm to control the local display (see the
> Xservers file). So setting these variables will not affect xdm running on
> any other foreign display (ie xterminal).
>
> 5. Start xdm (which is what I desired to do). To set up xdm to run -
> basically, set the OPENWINHOME env variable, and then start xdm with the
> config option for example in /etc/rc:
>
> OPENWINHOME=/usr/openwin; export OPENWINHOME
> if [ -f $OPENWINHOME/lib/xdm/xdm-config ]; then
> $OPENWINHOME/bin/xdm -config $OPENWINHOME/lib/xdm/xdm-config &
> echo "Starting XDM..."
> fi
>
> 6. I also modified one other file in the xdm directory (Xsession). I simply
> modified the file to search for on start-up to be $HOME/.xsession, rather
> than $HOME/.xinitrc. This is probably a religious issue about what files
> are to do what function, but that is the way I prefer to have xdm setup.
>
> Now the serial port is the console in every sense and you are still able to
> log in and use the framebuffer, keyboard and mouse.
This works! It's fantastic!
I find it very humorous that the people at Sun couldn't figure this out.
Thanks again, Bill Hunter!
-- Lance Sloan lsloan@nova.gmi.edu UNIX System Administrator GMI Engineering and Management Institute Assistant Programmer Flint, Michigan, USA
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