12.1-STABLE r354923 snapshot install doesn't like manual ufs setup

[Polytropon]

On Wed, 27 Nov 2019 03:37:39 +0000, tech-lists wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> Got a new ssd so tried latest snapshot install to it. I wanted seperate /usr
> /var and / partitions, also to enable trim, also two 16GB swap partitions, 
> so selected manual UFS, completed the install, reboot, cannot find kernel. 

Did you do this using the bsdinstall program, or manually
via shell?

If in shell, make sure you wrote the boot code. After the
installation, reboot with the installation medium, mount
your / partition, and check if /boot contains the kernel.

In case of MBR, there are two important things:

1. The slice where you installed FreeBSD to, let's say,
   /dev/ada0s1, has to be marked "active".

2. The partition where the kernel is located, usually
   assigned to the / mountpoint, has to be the "a"
   partition, here /dev/ada0s1a.

Those things are "chained" when the OS is attempted to be
loaded: find first disk; on first disk, find first primary
partition that is "active", transfer control to it; from
there, mount "a" partition and load kernel from it.

In case you're using the "decicated" approach, you can omit
the slicing part; for example /dev/ada0a would contain the
boot code.



> Repeated the install the same way again with same result. Rebooted, ran 
> the installer for a third time, selected auto ufs and everything worked 
> as expected on reboot, but of course without the modifications I wanted.
> 
> Is this a known issue?

Even though bsdinstall isn't that bad, I personally prefer
to prepare the disk via shell commands manually before I
return to bsdinstall, add the created partitions, and have
the installer do it's work, in case I needed something that
is "non-standard" (as you've described). This is because of
my impression (I wouldn't call it an issue though) that the
bsdinstall program doesn't understand when you leave its
predefined path... ;-)



> Also, MBR is selected by default. SHould I be using GPT instead, nowadays?

Probably yes. Use GPT. Use MBR only if you have a good reason
to do so (inter-OS things might be such a case).



-- 
Polytropon
Magdeburg, Germany
Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0
Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ...