FreeBSD 4.8 install issues

[Matthew Emmerton]

> I downloaded the 4.8 iso images from freebsd.org and began an install
> on a box I recently built for this purpose.  I could not find a
> description of the various CDs (CD1, CD2, CDmini), so I grabbed them
> all.   I'm still not sure what the purpose of each is, but I started
> with CD1 (seemed logical).
>
> I had no trouble following the manual to get the installation going,
> however I have two problems:
>
> 1)  There are only 6 network adapters listed in the kernel config
> screen, and the Realtec is not one of them.  Realtec cards are
> supposedly supported according to the hardware compatibility list.

The network adapters listed in the kernel config are ISA NICs that require
configuration.  If you have a PCI NIC that is supported, it will be
auto-detected.

> 2)  Towards the end of the installation, I get the following error:
> "unable to get packages/INDEX"
>
> I'm left with a bootable and what appears to be a fully functional
> system when sysinstall is complete, except of course, I have no network
> accessibility.
>
> Can anyone clarify these issues for me?

When your system boots, all of the device probe information is saved and can
be displayed by the "dmesg" program.  Are there any lines in your dmesg
output that say "unknown device"?  It's possible that while you have a
RealTek-based card, the FreeBSD driver doesn't recognize it as a compatible
card.

--
Matt Emmerton