FreeBSD-13.0-RC1-amd64-disc1.iso unbootable on memstick

[Rodney W. Grimes]

> > Hi.
> > 
> > Are you shure you're using *.memstick.img?
> 
> I am shure I am NOT using memstick, as the subject says
> I am using:
> 	FreeBSD-13.0-RC1-amd64-disc1.iso
> 
> 
> > *.iso are for optical drives.
> 
> Ah, not since 12.0, these are now "hybrid" type images that
> are designed to be written to either a dvd or memstick.
> 
> > If your memstick can perfectly (or at least enough for CD loader and
> > kernel) mimic optical drive, maybe with help by firmware, it would be
> > able to boot.
> > 
> > Otherwise, you should write FreeBSD-13.0-RC1-*-memstick.img with
> > dd. If you are using enough-sized memstick and amd64 arch PC,
> > FreeBSD-13.0-RC1-amd64-mrmstick.img should be preferred.
> > 
> > Note that if you downloaded smaller xz compressed image, you shoule
> > decompress it before writing.
> > 
> > If you are using *-memstick.img, something should need fixed.
> 
> I have tested the memstick image it works fine.
> 
> I have also done further investigation and this appears to be
> a Legacy/bios vs EFI mode issue.  All legacy only machines
> fail to boot with the above error, all dual mode machines
> must be forced into either EFI only, or dual mode/EFI first
> inorder to boot these images.  EFI only machines boot fine.
> 
> Is what it looks like is we have lost the ability to boot
> the .iso images in bios mode from a memory stick.  I have
> NOT done any testing on dvd media.
> 
> Further note all of this works fine upto and including BETA4
> on all my legacy bios machines, though I do see another
> environment that fails at BETA4 and continues to, but that
> is rather special, called ventoy:
> 	https://www.ventoy.net/
> that environment is probably looking very much like a
> legacy BIOS system as to the way I have my ventoy setup.

This now works again at RC4.

> > On Sun, 7 Mar 2021 01:06:14 -0800 (PST)
> > "Rodney W. Grimes" <freebsd at gndrsh.dnsmgr.net> wrote:
> > 
> > > Glen,
> > > 	Things get worse... I could at least boot the BETA4 .iso when
> > > I wrote it to a memstick.  I can NOT boot the RC1.  I have checked
> > > the sha512 of my image, wrote it twice, same results, I get:
> 
> I have now had Michael Dexter duplicate my findings, if he
> sets his machines to either legacy first, or legacy only
> he gets the same boot failures that I do when using the
> 	FreeBSD-13.0-RC1-amd64-disc1.iso
> image.
> 
> > > 
> > > CD Loader 1.2
> > > 
> > > Bulding the boot loader arguments
> > > Looking up /BOOT/LOADER... File not found
> > > Looking up /boot/loader... File not found
> > > Boot failed
> > > 
> > > I have tried 2 different systems, all known to have booted and
> > > installed many many many FreeBSD's from prior .iso written to
> > > memstick.
> 
> Now expanded to 4 systems, 2 of which can do dual mode Legacy/EFI.

This issue is fixed in RC4, tested on:
Thankpads:	w530	legacy & uefi
		x230	legacy & uefi
		t400	legacy
		p61	legacy
Acer:		1410	legacy

> > > Regards,
> > > Rod Grimes                                                 rgrimes at freebsd.org
> > Tomoaki AOKI    <junchoon at dec.sakura.ne.jp>
> Rod Grimes                                                 rgrimes at freebsd.org
-- 
Rod Grimes                                                 rgrimes at freebsd.org