HOWTO - Nubus Power Macintoshes as LTSP Clients

Skip Gaede

   sgaede@attbi.com
 

Revision History
Revision 0.127 Mar 2002
First draft for review.
Table of Contents
1. Why?
2. How Does it Work?
3. Setting Up the Server
3.1. Software Components Needed
3.2. Install the Software
3.3. Fix the mappings for Backspace and Delete
3.4. Edit the lts.conf file
4. Setting up the Client
4.1. Partition the Disk
4.2. Install the MacOS
4.3. Install the MkLinux Boot Loader
4.4. Install Stuffit Expander on the Client
4.5. Install the Linux kernel on the client
5. Next Steps
6. Extending this to other Macs
A. Software Development for the PowerMac Client
A.1. Notes for Installation of YDL 1.2 Champion Server
A.2. Cross-Compiling the Linux kernel
A.3. Building the Ramdisk
References

1. Why?

This project started as a request from Rob Belleville, the MIS guru for the Millbury, MA school system. He had 20-30 Power Macintoshes sitting in storage, and because the storage space was needed for other uses, the Macs were destined for the dumpster. He was familiar with the LTSP software, and thought maybe he could coax a few more years of service out of the Macs as thin clients in the library.

For those not familiar with Macintosh computers, they come in many sizes and configurations. The ones I was asked to deal with were the Power Macintosh 6100/66 variety. These, along with the 7100s, 8100s and the Performa series, have something called a Nubus, which is serves the same function as the PCI bus in the Intel architecture. Through the efforts of Takashi Oe, a Linux kernel has been ported to this architecture. Other Macintoshes may be usable as thin clients, provided a Linux kernel exists. I am indebted to Michael Roeder for his writeup on how to install Linux on a Power Macintosh 6100.

The Power Mac 6100/66s used in this project date back to about 1995. They are, computationally, on a par with a i486/66 PC. At the time they were retired, they were running MacOS 7.5.3. The web browser was Netscape 4.0. Because that version did not support Java, surfing the web was a real painful experience. These Macs have 40MB of memory, and running the web browser natively is sluggish, at best. In stark contrast to that, running as a thin client is a dream. The pages load almost instantaneously, and you think you are using a much faster machine. Furthermore, we are able to run Netscape 6.2, and to take advantage of all the latest software. The only weakness of the Macs is their display adapter, which is limited to a maximum resolution of 832x624 and 256 colors.

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