[conspire] (forw) Re: help with install debian

Rick Moen rick at linuxmafia.com
Mon Mar 21 08:03:56 PDT 2016 

----- Forwarded message from David Chan <chandtw at PacBell.NET> -----

Date: Sun, 20 Mar 2016 21:18:47 -0700
From: David Chan <chandtw at PacBell.NET>
To: installers at linuxmafia.com
Subject: help with install debian


Hi there -

I am a blind linux user and need help installing debian on my machine.

Currently I am running debian on a desktop that is more than 15 years
old, and the setup requires a real serial port to work [to plug in a
external speech box].  I have a replacement computer that does not
have a serial port, however since version 7 [or was it 6?] debian
supports blind install that no longer requires a real serial port but
to utilize the built-in sound card.

I downloaded the CD and tried installing on a spare laptop as a dry
run - but apparently starting from version 7 the CD no longer contains
firmware, and I am unable to get it to load it from an USB drive.

Hopefully if I can get debian to install on this laptop, then I can do
a 'repeat performance' on the desktop I have at work.  Any suggestions
welcome - the laptop is a Toshiba Tecra M2 and the desktop is a HP
Z600 - thanks...

--David


----- End forwarded message -----
----- Forwarded message from Rick Moen <rick at linuxmafia.com> -----

Date: Mon, 21 Mar 2016 08:02:55 -0700
From: Rick Moen <rick at linuxmafia.com>
To: David Chan <chandtw at PacBell.NET>
Cc: installers at linuxmafia.com
Subject: Re: help with install debian
Reply-To: installers at linuxmafia.com

Quoting David Chan (chandtw at PacBell.NET):

> 
> Hi there -
> 
> I am a blind linux user and need help installing debian on my machine.

We might be able to assist, but, just to set expectations, ordinarily
CABAL gives installation assistance primarily at our in-person monthly
meetings at my house in West Menlo Park.  Additionally, CABAL members
participate on our discussion mailing list, jokingly called 'Conspire'
(http://linuxmafia.com/mailman/listinfo/conspire).

I can sometimes solve people's problems via e-mail when we receive
e-mailed queries like yours, but that effort doesn't always work, and
you are hearing the advice of only one person (me), instead of the
several dozen Conspire members.

> Currently I am running debian on a desktop that is more than 15
> years old, and the setup requires a real serial port to work [to
> plug in a external speech box].  I have a replacement computer that
> does not have a serial port, however since version 7 [or was it 6?]
> debian supports blind install that no longer requires a real serial
> port but to utilize the built-in sound card.
> 
> I downloaded the CD and tried installing on a spare laptop as a dry
> run - but apparently starting from version 7 the CD no longer
> contains firmware, and I am unable to get it to load it from an USB
> drive.

Ah, fortunately this is a common problem with standard solutions.  You
will need to use a USB flash drive in addition to the Debian installer
CD.

Most of the firmware image files for Debian drivers get bundled together
in omnibus Debian package 'firmware-linux-nonfree'.  Official Debian
installer CDs don't include any packages from the non-free collection,
only from the 'main' collection, which is why 'firmware-linux-nonfree'
isn't on the CD.

Step 1:  Pull down a copy of this package:
http://http.us.debian.org/debian/pool/non-free/f/firmware-nonfree/firmware-linux-nonfree_0.43_all.deb

This is a small file, just a little under 10kilobytes.

However, important:  This is a collection of many of the smaller
firmware images, but doesn't include some ones that occupy more disc
space and are inside individual Debian packages.  Unfortunately, you
didn't say what the problematic driver / hardware is, so I cannot say
whether 'firmware-linux-nonfree' includes the driver you need.

The complete list of drivers inside 'firmware-linux-nonfree' is on
https://packages.debian.org/jessie/firmware-linux-nonfree .

Other firmware drivers such as those for the Broadcom B43 wireless chip,
the Intel PRO/Wireless 2100 series of chips, the Intel PRO/Wireless 3945
series of chips, and so on are covered on this page and linked subpages:
https://wiki.debian.org/Firmware

If you need one of those other Debian packages to furnish a firmware
file, pull down a copy of its .deb package file, instead.  (See remarks 
at end, as I am reasonably certain from a remark you said near the end
of your message that you need a firmware binary for Intel PRO/Wireless
2200BG.)


Step 2:  Once you have the needed firmware package, put it on a USB
flash drive.


Step 3:  Boot the Debian installer CD.  

At whatever point where you cannot proceed for lack of a firmware file,
my recollection is that you have the option to go back to the previous
step.  Please do so.  At this point, please press Alt-F2 to switch to a
shell console.  You should now get a shell prompt indicating that you
are the root user.

Step 4:  Insert and mount the USB flash drive, and install the firmware
package:

Insert the USB flash drive into one of your laptop's USB ports.  The
difficult part, after that, is determining which /dev/sdb, /dev/sdc, 
etc. device your USB flash drive is.

Probably upon startup the flash drive will be /dev/sdb and will have a
single partition, /dev/sdb1.  So, probably this command will work (which 
you can tell because you get a command prompt back with no errors:

mount /dev/sdb1 /mnt

If that isn't it, you can find that information in the most recent lines
of dmesg output:

dmesg | tail

Once you have mounted the USB flash drive partition on /mnt, go there
and verify that the firmware file is there:

cd /mnt
ls

Now, install the package into the running installer system:

dpkg -i /mnt/firmware-linux-nonfree_0.43_all.deb

(For a different firmeware package, substitute its filename.)

Step 4:  Resume the Debian installer:

Press Alt-F1 to return to the still-running Debian installer.  The
running installer will now have full use of the driver requiring the
provided firmware file.  Complete your installation.


Step 5:  Although you have retrofitted the firmware package into the 
running installer, you haven't actually installed it onto the system
that was installed onto your laptop.  Thus, when the installer
terminated and rebooted to the laptop's hard drive, the installed system
that now boots doesn't yet have the firmware file.  So, you must do 
some of the above steps again to furnish the firmware to your long-term
system:

Boot the system.  Press Alt-F2 to switch to a shell console.   This
time, you will need to login as the root user.  Insert the USB flash
drive to one of your laptop's USB ports.   Attempt to mount it:

mount /dev/sdb1 /mnt

If you get an error, run 'dmesg | tail' to determine what device to
mount.

Once you have mounted the USB flash drive partition on /mnt, go there
and verify that the firmware file is there:

cd /mnt
ls

Now, install the package into the running installer system:

dpkg -i /mnt/firmware-linux-nonfree_0.43_all.deb

(For a different firmeware package, substitute its filename.)

Press Alt-F1 to return to the installed Debian system.  You may wish
to reboot at this point to ensure that the system comes up with all
drivers working.


I hope this helps.

That was a very unofficial and unpolished explanation off the top of my
head.  While finishing this post, I also found the official Debian
explanation, which you might also find useful:
https://www.debian.org/releases/stable/amd64/ch06s04.html.en


> Hopefully if I can get debian to install on this laptop, then I can
> do a 'repeat performance' on the desktop I have at work.  Any
> suggestions welcome - the laptop is a Toshiba Tecra M2 and the
> desktop is a HP Z600 - thanks...


I notice that the Tecra M2 laptop has a Intel Corp. PRO/Wireless 2200BG
wireless chip.  I am guessing that is your firmware problem.

These pages claim that the Debian installer detects the specific need
for a firmware file for the Intel PRO/Wireless 2200BG, and prompts you
specifically for it:

https://wiki.debian.org/Firmware
https://wiki.debian.org/ipw2200

This is the package: 
http://http.us.debian.org/debian/pool/non-free/f/firmware-nonfree/firmware-ipw2x00_0.43_all.deb

Something I didn't know until I read https://wiki.debian.org/ipw2200
just now is that there's a 'nonfree-firmware tarball' containing all
firmware images in Debian's non-free package collection.  According to
that page, you can just grab
http://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/unofficial/non-free/firmware/stable/current/firmware.tar.gz
, unpack that tarball to your USB flash drive stick, and the Debian
installer will find needed firmware file ipw2200-bss.fw automatically.

Personally, I'm accustomed to just having the package file such as
firmware-ipw2x00_0.43_all.deb handy, and installing it using 'deb -i' 
as described above.


Hewlett Packard makes driver / chipset information about its HP Z600
workstation painfully difficult to find, which frankly is typical HP
behaviour.  I see that the network chip is Broadcom 5764.  Audio is
Realtek ALC262.  SATA is probably Intel ICH10R.

I have not further researched potential problems with Linux drivers for
the HP Z600 workstation because that's a future project and because it's 
unclear you would encounter any problems.  (If you do, the above
approach is what I would use, in general.)


----- End forwarded message -----

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