BOOT(8) BOOT(8)
NAME
boot - connect to the root file server
SYNOPSIS
/boot/boot [ -fkm ] [ -uusername ] [ method!fs-addr ] [ args
]
DESCRIPTION
Boot is the first program run after a kernel has been
loaded. It connects to the file server that will serve the
root, performs any authentication needed to connect to that
server, and exec(2)'s the init(8) program. It is started by
the kernel, never run directly by the user. See booting(8)
for information about the process of loading the kernel (and
boot) into memory.
Once loaded, the kernel initializes its data structures and
devices. It sets the two environment variables /env/cputype
and /env/terminal to describe the processor. It then binds
a place-holder file server, root(3), onto / and crafts an
initial process whose sole function is to exec(2)
/boot/boot, a binary which is compiled into root(3).
The command line passed depends on the information passed
from boot ROM to kernel. Machines that boot directly from
ROM (that is, most machines other than PCs) pass the boot
line given to the ROM directly to boot.
On the PC, each line in the DOS file plan9.ini of the form
name=value is passed to the boot program as an environment
variable with the same name and value. The command line is
/386/9dos method!server
(The first argument is ignored by boot.) Boot must determine
the file server to use and a method with which to connect to
it. Typically this will name a file server on the network,
or state that the root file system is on local disk and name
the partition. The complete list of methods is given below.
Boot must also set a user name to be used as the owner of
devices and all console processes and an encryption key to
be used when challenged. Boot will prompt for these.
Method and address are prompted for first. The prompt lists
all valid methods, with the default in brackets, for exam-
ple:
root is from (il, local!#S/sdC0/fs)[il]:
Page 1 Plan 9 (printed 11/18/24)
BOOT(8) BOOT(8)
A newline picks the default. Other possible responses are
method or method!address. To aid in automatic reboot, the
default is automatically taken on CPU servers if nothing is
typed within 15 seconds.
The other interactions depend on whether the system is a
terminal or a CPU server.
Terminal
The terminal must have a username to set. If none is speci-
fied with the -u option, boot will prompt for one on the
console:
user:
The user will also be prompted for a password to be used as
an encryption key on each attach(5):
password:
With most methods boot can now connect to the file server.
However, with the serial line methods 9600 and 19200, the
actual mechanics of setting up the complete connection are
too varied to put into the boot program. Instead boot lets
the user set up the connection. It prints a prompt on the
console and then simulates a dumb terminal between the user
and the serial line:
Connect to file system now, type ctrl-d when done.
(Use the view or down arrow key to send a break)
The user can now type at the modem to dial the number. What
is typed depends on the modem and is beyond this discussion.
When the user types a control-D, boot stops simulating a
terminal and starts the file system protocol over the serial
line.
Once connected, boot mounts the root file system before /
and makes the connection available as #s/boot for subsequent
processes to mount (see bind(2)). Boot completes by
exec(2)'ing /$cputype/init -t. If the -m option is given it
is also passed as an option to init. If the environment
variable init is set (via plan9.ini(8)), it is used as a
command line to exec instead.
If the kernel has been built with the cache file system,
cfs(4), the local disk partition /dev/sdXX/cache (where XX
is a unit specifier) exists, and the root file system is
from a remote server, then the kernel will insert a user
level cache process between the remote server and the local
namespace that caches all remote accesses on the local
Page 2 Plan 9 (printed 11/18/24)
BOOT(8) BOOT(8)
partition. The -f flag commands cfs to reformat the cache
partition.
CPU Servers
The user owning devices and console processes on CPU servers
and that user's domain and encryption key are read from
NVRAM on all machines except PC's. PC's keep the informa-
tion in the disk partition /dev/sdXX/nvram. If a -k option
is given or if no stored information is found boot will
prompt for all three items and store them.
password:
authid: bootes
authdom: research.bell-labs.com
The key is used for mutual authentication of the server and
its clients. The domain and id identify the owner of the
key.
Once connected, boot behaves as on the terminal except for
exec(2)'ing /$cputype/init -c.
Booting Methods
The methods available to any system depend on what was com-
piled into the kernel. The complete list of booting methods
are listed below.
il or tcp
connect via Ethernet using the IL or TCP protocols.
The args are passed to ipconfig(8) when configuring
the IP stack. The plan9.ini(8) variables fs and
auth override the file server and authentication
server IP addresses obtained (if any) from DHCP dur-
ing ipconfig(8).
local connect to the local file system. The first argu-
ment is a disk holding a file system. Boot inspects
the disk. If the disk is a fossil(4) file system,
it invokes /boot/fossil to serve it. If the venti
environment variable (really, plan9.ini(8) variable)
is set, boot first arranges for fossil to be able to
contact the named venti(8) server. The variable's
value can take the following forms:
/dev/sdC0/arenas
the file should be a venti partition with a
configuration stored on it using venti/conf
(see venti-fmt(8)). Boot will start a loopback
IP interface on 127.0.0.1 and start venti
announcing on tcp!127.1!17034 for venti service
and tcp!127.1!8000 for web service, using the
configuration stored in that partition.
Page 3 Plan 9 (printed 11/18/24)
BOOT(8) BOOT(8)
/dev/sdC0/arenas tcp!*!17034
same as the last but specify an alternate venti
service address. In this example, using * will
announce on all available IP interfaces (even
ones configured later) rather than just the
loopback device. The loopback interface is
still configured.
/dev/sdC0/arenas tcp!*!17034 tcp!*!80
same as the last but specify alternate venti
service and web addresses. The loopback inter-
face is still configured.
tcp!135.104.9.2!17034 [ args ]
the network address of a venti server running
on a separate machine. Boot will configure the
IP stack by passing args, if any, to
ipconfig(8).
Fossil is invoked as
/boot/fossil -f partition -c 'srv -A fboot' -c 'srv -p fscons'
and boot then renames `/srv/fboot' to `/srv/boot',
so fossil.conf should not use the srv command to
create `fboot', `boot', nor `fscons'.
If the disk is not a fossil(4) partition, boot
invokes /boot/kfs. A variety of programs, like
9660srv and dossrv (both dossrv(4)) masquerade as
kfs to allow booting from alternate media formats,
so as long as the disk is not a fossil disk, no
check is made that the disk is in fact a kfs disk.
The args are passed to kfs(4).
For the il and tcp methods, the address must be a
numeric IP address. If no address is specified, a
file server address will be found from another sys-
tem on the network using the BOOTP protocol and the
Plan 9 vendor-specific fields.
EXAMPLES
On PCs, the default arguments to boot are constructed using
the bootargs variable in plan9.ini(8).
Start kfs(4) with extra disk buffers:
bootargs=local!#S/sdC0/fs -B 4096
Use an IP stack on an alternate ethernet interface with a
static address and fixed file server and authentication
server addresses.
Page 4 Plan 9 (printed 11/18/24)
BOOT(8) BOOT(8)
fs=192.168.0.2
auth=192.168.0.3
bootargs=il -g 192.168.0.1 ether /net/ether1 \
192.168.0.50 255.255.255.0
(The bootargs line is split only for presentation; it is one
line in the file.)
FILES
#s/boot
#//boot/boot
SOURCE
/sys/src/9/boot
SEE ALSO
root(3), factotum(4), dhcpd(8), init(8)
BUGS
The use of bootargs in general is odd. The configuration
specification for fossil and venti servers is particularly
odd, but it does cover the common cases well.
Page 5 Plan 9 (printed 11/18/24)