[SLL] Cent OS 5 Update - Fails to boot

[Glenn Stone]

On Mon, Jul 16, 2007 at 01:42:17PM -0700, Eric wrote:
>I just installed Cent OS 5 on a new server I bought from Silicon 
>Mechanics.  The updates were applied and the server was rebooted.  Much 
>to my surprise I got the following error:
[...]
>Kernel panic - Not syncing: Attempted to kill init
>
>If I select the older kernel from the grub menu the server boots just 
>fine.  This is a vanilla install of Cent OS using the "server" install 
>option.  The only thing I needed to do during the initial install was 
>include the driver disc for the 3Ware 9650SE-8LPML card.

Aha.

>Any ideas?

Yep.  Make sure the kernel-headers package is installed for the new kernel,
then compile the 9650 drivers against it, install them in the appropriate
place in /lib/modules, then run mkinitrd and make sure the new drivers get
installed.  That's it in a nutshell; the actual doing... may be somewhat
more complex.  

This is why when I worked at $FORMERCOMPANY we tended towards non-RAID (or
at least, non-funky-RAID) boot devices... we also learned to really hate
proprietary video drivers for that same reason.... one kernel upgrade and
*boom* no worky.  

/me realizes that Ubuntu's restricted-drivers package has kept him from
having to deal with the NVIDIA nonsense for a while now... OTOH,
Shuttleworth just launched a push for a completely proprietary-madness-free
laptop.  I don't know how quickly he's gonna get there.... but I'd be
interested. 

But I digress.  Eric's problem is that the new kernel doesn't have the
drivers he needs, since he originally installed them from floppy.  Grab
kernel-headers, compile, install, mkinitrd, reboot, pray.  And tell Kent
Abendroth (if he's still with AMCC) that his boys down in the Valley need to
get synced up with Linus and company and get their stuff in the mainline
sooner.  

-- Glenn