On Tue, 12 Aug 2008, Phil C wrote:
> > Well, the server's kernel is still logging TFTP packets, so there must be
> > another place in the iptables that needs to be perforated (temporarily).
> > --snip--
>
> I tried messing with some of the firewall setting and have run into a new
> problem. My internet connection exists only on a WLAN right now (thanks
> to moronic time-warner employees) and my local network is only on LAN. I
> was able to get only one to communicate properly at a time. Either the
> laptop connects and communicates only to find that it can not route to
> the internet to get the rest of the files, or there is no functioning
> local connection.
I'm not quite sure what the situation is here: if the laptop can do a
network boot from 802.11b WLAN, that's a lot more than mine can do. On the
other hand, if it boots from the server, which I assume also has a WLAN
card, it's likely to assume that whoever gave it a DHCP address (i.e. the
server) is also the default route to the global Internet. If you can do
"netstat -r" on the laptop, you could confirm that. Here's the last row
(of 4) on my machine:
default jacinth.cft.ca. 0.0.0.0 UG 0 0 0 eth1
The second column is the machine serving that route (excluding host
routes). The laptop will send nonlocal packets to this host.
Now the problem is, if the server isn't set up for routing it will drop
your packets on the floor. To cause it to forward them to the real default
route (the cable or DSL modem (via WLAN?)), you need to temporarily turn on
the feature, like this:
echo "1" > /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_forward
(There is a small security advantage to turning off forwarding if you
aren't going to actually use it.)
> I need to get iptables to recognize seperate function sets for each
> interface and allow both to run at the same time.
The installer on the laptop probably doesn't have enough flexibility to
bring up two interfaces at once -- there are limits to what the GUI can ask
the user to tell it.
That's a good point: the provided firewall may have "features" for paranoia
relating to forwarded packets. I know the one I wrote has special rules
for forwarding, and the Windows firewall is very strict about outgoing
packets too.
> To the best of my
> knowledge iptables is configured the same way regardless of distro as
> it's a kernel module. Any thoughts on how to do this?
Yes, the modules are the same, but some distros have a nice GUI to
configure the rules, with more or less flexibility. So the chain names and
their order and details will vary from one distro to the next.
> > Can you borrow a USB external DVD drive?
>
> There are severe compatiblity issues with this model of Toshiba
> Portege...
Bummer. That would have been the easiest way.
> What are the odds of a success if I simply pull the drive, hook it up to
> a host machine via a 44 pin IDE adapter, install from there and pop it
> back in? I forsee some severe hardware config issues but I'm curiouse if
> that could work.
What could go wrong?
1. A laptop drive in a desktop machine: the PATA or SATA interfaces should
be plug compatible, but what about the power connector?
2. The drive's major number would be different in the desktop (/dev/sdb1
etc.) versus the laptop (/dev/sda1 etc.) unless you actually unplugged
the desktop drive and substituted the laptop on that connector.
Assuming you weren't so radical, then working on the desktop, you would
have to edit /etc/fstab and /boot/grub/menu.lst (those are the names in
my distro) to refer to the major numbers ("drive letters") as they will
be on the laptop.
3. X-server installation will set it up for the desktop machine's graphic
card/chip and mouse. Once on the laptop you will have to do that over
so as to use properly the laptop's graphics and touchpad.
4. There may be other issues that the installer does differently for a
desktop versus laptop, like power modes and multimedia keys.
5. On my distro, network configuration is keyed to the MAC address. This
will be different on the laptop. You can do a treasure hunt to find
where your distro put the relevant files and edit them to refer to the
network interfaces on the laptop, not the desktop.
Conclusion: your plan is feasible... barely.
OK, the Toshiba BIOS won't boot from foreign devices. How about this: boot
from the net, but once the pre-installer gets control, tell it that the
installation media is not on the network but rather on the local DVD or
flash device. At that point you're using the Linux USB mass storage
driver, which should work, rather than the BIOS' broken one. The
installation docs should say something about how to override the location
of the installation media, though the more common use-case is to boot from
CD/DVD and get the distro from the network.
Good luck!
James F. Carter Voice 310 825 2897 FAX 310 206 6673
UCLA-Mathnet; 6115 MSA; 405 Hilgard Ave.; Los Angeles, CA, USA 90095-1555
Email: jimc@xxxxxxxxxxxxx http://www.math.ucla.edu/~jimc (q.v. for PGP key)
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