Compaq t1500 remote booting

This page contains patches and binary files for booting the Compaq t1500 thin client over the network.

Express HOWTO

1. Follow this HOWTO.
2. Make sure that you have version 3 of the dhcp server, open dhcpd.conf and replace the line: filename "/exports/T1500/tftpboot/vmlinux"; with the following: if substring (option vendor-class-identifier, 0, 9) = "Etherboot" { filename "linux-2.4.32-t1500"; } else { filename "etherboot-5.4.1-t1500"; }
3. Download these two files and put them in your /tftpboot directory:
   • etherboot-5.4.1-t1500
   • linux-2.4.32-t1500
4. If you would like to follow what is going on while the t1500 is booting, you need to connect to its serial port and configure your terminal client at 115200 baudrade, 8 data bits, parity none, 1 stop bits, flow control none.
5. Now you are ready to start the thin client.

Sources

Here are all the patches, needed to build the binaries:

• etherboot-5.4.1-t1500.patch
• mknbi-1.4.4-t1500.patch
• linux-2.4.32-t1500.patch
• linux-2.4.31-geodefb.patch(copied from winterm.gaast.net)

Note that to build a working kernel image you need the checksum app. Open etherboot-5.4.1/src/Config, search for T1500_CHECKSUM and set the appropriate path to the executable.

The 2.6 version of the kernel is booting as well, but there is no framebuffer driver for it. Thus I've compiled an image with serial console support. The VGA framebuffer driver is kind of working, so I've included it in the build.

• Binary: linux-2.6.14-t1500
• Patch: linux-2.6.14-t1500.patch

Links

• The most usefull resource for the Compaq t1500
• WYSE Winterm hacking. These quys already successfully run Linux on almost the same hardware as the Compaq t1500.
• National Semiconductor drivers for Geode processors
• AMD Geode™ Processor Linux Drivers
• Wyse Winterm 3315se Teardown and Repurpose
• Linux on a winterm

Lats update: 06 December 2005