The SYS Volume won't mount when upgrading to NetWare 5.1.
(Last modified: 09Oct2002)
This document (10026382) is provided subject to the disclaimer at the end of this document.
fact
Novell NetWare 5.1
Novell NetWare 4.11
Novell NetWare 3.2
symptom
The SYS Volume won't mount when upgrading to NetWare 5.1.
cause
The hardware has problems, either it is not Novell certified, did not meet Novell minimum hardware requirements, or the hardware is bad.
fix
If the NetWare 5 OS installation fails, here are a few suggestions:
1 - Try replacing the NIC for a different model and/or brand. In particular, try to get a certified NIC.
2 - Here are some install switches available as parameters to install.bat. (Note that -nad will no longer disable auto-detection):
-frame <frame> force binding of frame type specified
-iipx /serv_id <addr> set internal ipx address
-lang <#> sets language of install
-n allow install to continue even if RAM visible from dos is low (not recommended)
-conlog enable console logging during install (enabled by default)
-nolog disable console logging during install
-log <path> use <path> to log errors for unattended/factory installs
3 - During a normal installation, a log file (C:\NWINST.LOG) is kept. Conlog is used to create this log file. With a normal installation, this file will be 0 bytes because the file is only written when conlog is unloaded (which doesn't happen during a normal install). If you unload conlog (from the system console) before rebooting the server, this file will be a screen capture of everything that happened during installation.
4 - A temporary directory is created, C:\NWINST.TMP. This is for configuration files and some installation NLMs. If there are problems during installation, look for error log files in this directory. One that may be created is the BOOT$LOG.ERR file.
5 - For extreme problems, a manual installation method is in the works, but will be a tricky process. You can start a manual installation by copying the STARTUP directory from the CD to C:\NWSERVER, starting the server, and copying files via NWCONFIG. However, the GUI is not completely installed, and you won't be able to install additional products that require the GUI.
6 - NetWare 5 has been found to be quite picky about hardware. To see if you are using certified hardware, see:
http://developer.novell.com/netware5/hardware.htm
http://developer.novell.com/infosys/bulletn.htm
http://developer.novell.com/devres/
Also note the distinction between certified components and a certified system.
7 - If there are problems with the CD drive, a workaround is to mount the CD in a NetWare server, load the VLM client on the new NW5 server, map a drive to the mounted CD, and install from that mapped drive. At one point you will be required to login to the remote server that has the NetWare 5 CD mounted. Make sure you do not get watchdog timed out.
8 - If the licensing hangs during install, it may be because the install process is walking the ds tree. If you are installing into an existing tree, wait a while (the bigger the tree, the longer the wait). See TID #2943750, "Understanding NetWare 5 Licensing".
9 - Certain versions of DOS are known to cause problems for NetWare installation (any version). Commonly, a machine will come with Windows 9x pre-installed and NetWare won't install with this version of DOS. Try using the NetWare 5 license disk. It is bootable with Caldera DR-DOS 7.02 and works fine. The CD is also bootable, again with Caldera DR-DOS 7.02.
10 - If you need to start with "SERVER -NS" you may also need to load the appropriate stages to get the server completely booted. The command is "loadstage <number>" where <number> is consecutively 0 through 5. Different commands are available at the different stages, but usually you will be able to simply enter the 6 commands consecutively. (Note the syntax is "LOADSTAGE <number>", not "LOAD STAGE <number>".)
11 - Make sure all shadowing is turned off in your BIOS settings and that BIOS is not configured for DOS support for drives larger than 1GB or DOS translation for large drives. These features allow DOS to see larger drives and are incompatible with NetWare.
12 - Switchboxes can cause installation problems. If a switchbox is used, unplug it and connect the monitor, keyboard, and mouse directly to the server. After installation, the switchbox can be plugged back in. This has been seen on both new installs and upgrades.
13 - In one case, a serial mouse prevented installation. Disabling the mouse port allowed the user to complete the install via keyboard control. This problem was not limited to server installation. After installation, if the mouse was enabled the problem returned.
.
document
| Document Title: | The SYS Volume won't mount when upgrading to NetWare 5.1. |
| Document ID: | 10026382 |
| Solution ID: | 1.0.54599065.2532401 |
| Creation Date: | 08Feb2000 |
| Modified Date: | 09Oct2002 |
| Novell Product Class: | NetWare Novell eDirectory |
disclaimer
The Origin of this information may be internal or external to Novell. Novell makes all reasonable efforts to verify this information. However, the information provided in this document is for your information only. Novell makes no explicit or implied claims to the validity of this information.
Any trademarks referenced in this document are the property of their respective owners. Consult your product manuals for complete trademark information.