1 GB support

Constantine Gavrilov (const-g@Orbotech.COM)
Mon, 04 Oct 1999 17:38:44 +0200

I was contacted by a friend who tried to install Linux on a dual Asus p2b-d box
with 1GB ram. The kernel from install disk (RedHat 6.0 kernel 2.2.5) would
always panic during boot. He also tried Redhat 5.2 (kernel 2.0.36) and Suse 6.?
(2.2.x kernel, 'x' and '?' unknown) with the same results.

Since I was not sure whether it was a kernel problem or a hardware (RAM)
problem, I told my friend to boot with mem=128M parameter. Apparently, the
install went just fine then.

I have been always under impression that 2.2.x kernels would boot just fine on
1GB RAM machines, "autodetecting" something like 950MB of RAM. Is my assumption
wrong? Will all kernels before 2.2.11 panic on 1Gb RAM machines if the "mem="
parameter is not passed?

I realize that starting 2.2.11, Linux supports 2GB of RAM on a x86 machine. Will
Linux autodedetect more than 1GB of RAM or mem=xxx has to passed to the kernel?
Will it autodetect 1GB of RAM?

What about 2.0.36-2.038 kernels?

If mem=xxx parameter has to be passed to any of the kernels, can somebody answer
why?

Thanks.

Plase CC to my address when answering.

-- 
----------------------------------------
Constantine Gavrilov
Unix System Administrator and Programmer
Orbotech
Yavne 81102, Israel
Phone: (972-8)-942-3064
Fax:   (972-8)-942-3800
----------------------------------------


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