OpenStep 4.2 Driver Thread

If people who have done this don't mind, could we consolidate the tips and tricks for using OpenStep 4.2 (the final version Apple distributed as they geared up for Rhapsody) in Parallels? I for one can't even get the correct magic combination of settings for it to see my hard disk and CD-ROM drive, so I can't even get to things like patchsets, VESA drivers, and hacking my configuration file to use different network emulation. As I discover things, I'll post here.

Please ensure anything here is tested with the final released version of Parallels Desktop for the Mac.

1) What special settings should be made to the virtual environment? OS Type, etc.
2) What drivers should be chosen from the floppy disk for the hard drive and CD-ROM?
3) What special considerations need to be made for full video support? Are native resolutions (1440x900 on my MacBook Pro) supported?
4) What needs to be done to enable the network adapter?
5) What needs to be done to configure networking (/etc/hostconfig)?

Thanks,

- Joshua Ochs

 

Correct Drivers

1. I used "Other" for the OS type, but otherwise used a default machine setup. You will need to have the install floppy image and CD image inserted in the VM before booting. While it was a bit hit-and-miss, I had better luck installing with acceleration disabled.
2. When asked for the driver for the hard disk and for the CD-ROM, choose "EIDE and ATAPI Device Controller", which is option "7, 7, 6". VirtualPC used "Primary/Secondary(Dual) EIDE and ATAPI", which does not work in Parallels.
3. After installation is complete, I generally need to boot in verbose mode (-v at the boot prompt) or OpenStep fails to boot. This can be set permanently with "BootGraphics NO" from the Expert panel in Configure.app. You might want to set this a couple of times to make sure it "sticks".
4. According to blog posts, this is the correct network adapter. Make sure when it's installed that it's owned by root; otherwise it won't load at boot.
5. To configure networking:
   • Open HostManager.app, and click "Local..." on the menu. Change "NetInfo Binding" to "Local domain only", and then set all of the Internet information manually.
   • Assuming you're using a "Bridged Ethernet" configuration, use an IP address in the same subnet as Mac OS X. OpenStep does not support DHCP out of the box, but see below for information on setting up a DHCP client.
   • Set up /etc/resolv.conf with your DNS servers (add lines "nameserver x.x.x.x").
   • On reboot, two network adapters may show up - delete the second one; otherwise, your network performance will plummet.
6. Apprently, the final OpenStep 4.2 patchset 4 adds VESA compatibility. Getting the proper file into OpenStep can be very difficult, however. Once that is done, VESA only appears to function if VT-x is disabled, which is a damn shame.

 

OpenStep and DHCP

It is much simpler to use static IPs, for sure, but it IS possible to use DHCP. There is a binary for it here:

ftp://next-ftp.peak.org/pub/next-ftp/next/apps/utils/networks/

specifically
ftp://next-ftp.peak.org/pub/next-ftp/next/apps/utils/networks/dhcp-2.0pl1.I.b.tar.gz.README

and

ftp://next-ftp.peak.org/pub/next-ftp/next/apps/utils/networks/dhcp-2.0pl1.I.b.tar.gz

I used to have a guide for setting up OpenStep for a Cable Modem but my website seems to be down (www.peak.org/~luomat) at the moment.

TjL
who wishes he still had OpenStep 4.2 to play with...

 

Well, despite my earlier success, I accidentally borked things trying a few somewhat random drivers. On any subsequent attempt, I have not been able to get OpenStep to install, even with my own instructions! Here's where I am stuck (with OpenStep.iso connected to the CD drive):



Wha? Why can't it find the CD-ROM now? Also, it's really annoying how it's overprinting the first character of each line. Not sure what kind of bug could cause that, but there it is.

Update: See, now this is strange. I repeat the same process without any changes, and this time it works. Computers are supposed to be deterministic, especially in as simple an environment as this (fresh installation onto static hardware).

 

A hint for the VESA patch: you'll need to untar in OpenStep.*

 

I installed the NE2000 driver and configured but when Openstep boots I get a million error messages, like ftp unknown service, and a lot more that say unknown service, all says loginwindow could not find windowserver. Is there networking software that Openstep did not install?

Any help would be appreciated! I have everthing running great, even installed Omniweb to surf but cant surf if I can not get the NIC to work!

Thanks in advance for the help!

Bill