Services Howto

[Rick Stevens]

karlp at ourldsfamily.com wrote:
> I've been using and administering (small servers/networks) Linux since
> slackware was installed on the 486 platform using a bunch of floppies.
> Most of the time I've had to experiment to get the right services to start
> as each PC had annoying little CMOS differences. Why Can't BIOS
> Programmers Write Help Info That HELPS!?!?! Okay, that was off-topic...
> 
> In any case, I'm wondering if anyone has seen or heard of a document that
> explains which services should be avoided when and etc.
> 
> Oh, and thanks to those of you who have mentioned things in passing
> through the past few years I've been on the list (Rick, Bob, Kalum, etc.).

Do you mean what BIOS functions conflict with various daemons/services
under Linux?  I don't know of any single source on that sort of info.  I
do sympathize that the docs that come with most mobos are woefully
inadequate and often mistranslated.

The vast majority of BIOS stuff has very little to do with how Linux
works.  Various memory mapping things might affect memory availability
or the mapping of devices in Linux' device management, but it's usually
pretty low impact.  The defaults that most BIOS' use are most often
reasonable, and I wouldn't muck about with them unless you really
understand what they do.

The most common problems have to do with the management of peripherals--
what's enabled and what isn't, how large disks are handled (HDA, etc.).

Legacy USB can be a problem.  Boot sequences have to be set properly (I 
recommend floppy, CD/DVD, then hard disk).  APM/APCI (power management)
is often an issue.  Under 2.4 kernels, the way APICs are initialized on
SMP mobos can be an issue.  Video cards that share main memory are often
also a problem.

Most of these are fairly easy to sort out--with the exception of
APM/ACPI ("My machine won't auto power-off!").

BTW, for a funny site regarding mistranslations, might I recommend
"http://www.engrish.com".
----------------------------------------------------------------------
- Rick Stevens, Senior Systems Engineer     rstevens at vitalstream.com -
- VitalStream, Inc.                       http://www.vitalstream.com -
-                                                                    -
-      A day for firm decisions!!!   Well, then again, maybe not!    -
----------------------------------------------------------------------