- drop trash support (trash is dead)

[projects/geninitrd.git] / geninitrd.8

.TH GENINITRD 8 "Wed Jul 27 2001"
.UC 4
.SH NAME
geninitrd \- creates initial ramdisk images for preloading modules
.SH SYNOPSIS
\fBgeninitrd\fR [-fv] [--with=\fImodule\fR] [--preload=\fImodule\fR] 
[--version] [--fstab=\fIfstab\fR] [--raidtab=\fIraidtab\fR]
[--modules-conf=\fImodules.conf\fR]
[--fs=rom|ext2|cram] \fIimage\fR \fIkernel-version\fR
.SH DESCRIPTION
\fBgeninitrd\fR creates filesystem images which are suitable for use
as Linux initial ramdisk (initrd) images. Such images are often
used for preloading the block device modules (such as IDE, SCSI or RAID)
which are needed to access the root filesystem. \fBgeninitrd\fR
automatically loads all \fIscsi_hostadapter\fR entries in
\fI/etc/modules.conf\fR when it finds that root fs is mounted on SCSI device,
which makes it simple to build and use kernels using modular SCSI devices.
It will also load IDE and RAID modules when needed.

Any module options specified in \fI/etc/modules.conf\fR are passed
to the modules as they are loaded by the initial ramdisk.

If the root filesystem is modular, initrd will automatically add the
filesystem's modules to the initrd image.

.\" If the root device is on a loop device (such as /dev/loop0), \fBgeninitrd\fR
.\" will attempt to build an initrd which sets up the loopback file properly.
.\" To do this, the fstab must contain a comment of the form:
.\" 
.\" # LOOP0: /dev/hda1 vfat /linux/rootfs
.\" 
.\" LOOP0 must be the name of the loop device which needs to be configured, in
.\" all capital lettes. The parameters after the color are the device which 
.\" contains the filesystem with the loopback image on it, the filesystem which
.\" is on the device, and the full path to the loopback image.

.SH OPTIONS
.TP
\fB-f\fR
Allows \fBgeninitrd\fR to overwrite an existing image file.

.TP
\fB-\-fstab=\fR\fIfstab\fR
Use \fIfstab\fR to automatically determine what type of filesystem the
root device is on. Normally, \fB/etc/fstab\fR is used.

.TP
\fB-\-raidtab=\fR\fIraidtab\fR
Use \fIraidtab\fR to automatically determine raid settings of the
root device. Normally, \fB/etc/raidtab\fR is used.

.TP
\fB-\-ifneeded
Only builds the image if their are modules that need to be loaded at boot
time.

.TP
\fB-\-image-version
Append kernel version to initrd name.

.TP
\fB-\-nocompress
Don't compress initrd.

.TP
\fB-\-no-bsp
Don't use Braindamaged Script Processor (/bin/bsp) and use /bin/trash instead.

.TP
\fB-\-preload=\fR\fImodule\fR
\fB-\-with=\fR\fImodule\fR
Load the module \fImodule\fR in the initial ramdisk image. The module gets
loaded before any SCSI modules which are specified in \fI/etc/modules.conf\fR.
This option may be used as many times as necessary.

.TP
\fB-v\fR
Prints out verbose information while creating the image (normally
the \fBgeninitrd\fR runs silently). 

.TP
\fB-\-version\fR
Prints the version of \fBgeninitrd\fR that's being used and then exits.

.TP
\fB-\-fs=\fBext2\fR|\fBrom\fR|\fBcram\fR
Filesystem type to be used for the image. Only selected filesystem
should always be compiled into kernel.

.SH FILES
.PD 0
.TP 20
\fI/etc/sysconfig/geninitrd\fR
Configuraton file with default options. Putting proper options there 
helps in automatic creation of initrd eg. on kernel upgrade.

.TP 20
\fI/dev/loop*\fR
A block loopback device is used to create the image, which makes this
script useless on systems without block loopback support available.

.TP 20
\fI/etc/modules.conf\fR
Specified SCSI modules to be loaded and module options to be used.
.PD
.SH "SEE ALSO"
.BR fstab (5),
.BR insmod (1),
.BR grub (8),
.BR lilo (8),
.BR genromfs (8)


.SH AUTHORS
.nf
geninitrd is based on mkinitrd by Erik Troan <ewt@redhat.com> and
contributors:
	Elliot Lee <sopwith@cuc.edu>
	Miguel de Icaza <miguel@nuclecu.unam.mx>
	Christian 'Dr. Disk' Hechelmann <drdisk@ds9.au.s.shuttle.de>
	Michael K. Johnson <johnsonm@redhat.com>
	Pierre Habraken <Pierre.Habraken@ujf-grenoble.fr>
	Jakub Jelinek <jj@ultra.linux.cz>
	Carlo Arenas Belon (carenas@chasqui.lared.net.pe>

geninitrd is writen by Jacek Konieczny <jajcus@pld.org.pl> and
contributors (in alphabetic order):
	Artur Frysiak  <wiget@pld.org.pl>
	Dariusz Karolczak  <inglod@pld.org.pl>