Novell NetWare does not provide RIPL support with its basic networking software. To obtain the latest versions of RIPL software, you can contact your Novell dealer or download the self-extracting file RPLKT1.EXE from the NOVLIB forum on CompuServe®. Configuring a remote-boot workstation is governed by the terms of your Novell license agreement.
As with all NetWare software used with Windows 95, you should make sure that you have the latest MS-DOS and Windows supporting files, including ODI drivers, network shell, LSL, and other required DLLs.
To prepare for RIPL support on the server, you must load and bind the Novell-supplied RPL.NLM file in AUTOEXEC.NCF and copy all .RPL files to the SYS:LOGIN directory.
To use RIPL to support a diskless workstation, the workstation must have an RPL ROM Module (PROM) installed on the network adapter that can send the correct RPL frame sequence. You must also create a disk image file in the server's SYS:LOGIN directory, as described later in this section.
For more information, see your Novell documentation; see also the Novell-supplied document, RPLNLM.DOC, and IBM Remote Program Load User's Guide from the NOVLIB forum on CompuServe.
Notice that some older PROMs (such as NE2000 boot PROMs) use only 802.3 Ethernet frame types; RIPL.NLM cannot run with this frame type and usually binds to the 802.2 frame type. Such older PROMs also cannot use BOOTCONF.SYS. For information about determining whether your site is using such older PROMs, and to find the software solutions, see the Novell-supplied document RIPLODI.DOC, available from the NOVLIB forum on CompuServe.
To allow a remote-boot workstation to start from a Novell NetWare server, the following actions must be completed:
Windows 95 Setup installs a new disk image file, as described later in this section.
Note Do not run RPLFIX.EXE or DOSGEN.EXE under Windows 95. These utilities are included with the Novell RIPL software. DOSGEN is used to create IMAGE.SYS (the disk image for startup) and NET$DOS.SYS to support RIPL on MS-DOS – based computers.
If you want to customize the disk images further using the Microsoft RPLIMAGE utility, first you must set SaveSUBoot=1 in the [Setup] section of MSBATCH.INF. The files to be included in the boot image will be saved in the SUBOOT subdirectory under the machine directory. Then, use the RPLIMAGE utility that is included in the ADMIN\NETTOOLS\NETSETUP directory on the Windows 95 compact disc.
Important The RPLIMAGE utility creates a file name NET$DOS.SYS that consists of all the files in the current directory. You must then move NET$DOS.SYS from the machine directory to the server's SYS:\LOGIN directory.
You can use the following command-line parameters with RPLIMAGE.EXE to make a disk image of files and directories, including lower level directories:
rplimage [pathname1] [pathname2] [/t:n] [/n:n] [/sc:n] [/nf:n] [/fs:n] [/h:n] [/f:n] [/ss:n] [/e:n] [label:string] [/date:yyyy.mm.dd] [/time:hh.mm.ss] [/sort]
Parameters for Microsoft RPLIMAGE.EXE
Parameter | Description |
/t | Specifies the number of tracks |
/n | Specifies the number of sectors per track |
/sc | Specifies the number of sectors per cluster |
/nf | Specifies the number of FATs in the image |
/fs | Specifies the size of FAT in sectors |
/h | Specifies the number of heads |
/f | Specifies one of the standard formats |
/ss | Specifies the sector size in bytes |
/e | Specifies the FAT type (12-bit or 16-bit) |
/label | Specifies a volume label for the image |
/date | Specifies the date to touch all files and directories |
/time | Specifies the time to touch all files and directories |
/sort | Sorts the image by filename.ext in ascending order |
The following information describes how Windows 95 Setup installs a new disk image file. It also provides information to help you create a BOOTCONF.SYS file to support remote-boot workstations running a shared copy of Windows 95 from a NetWare server. For more information, see the Novell publication Installing Enhanced Remote Boot PROMs on Novell Ethernet Network Interface Cards. To obtain this document, contact your NetWare vendor.
When Windows 95 Setup is finished, it automatically creates a disk image on the server. This file contains a disk image of the RAM drive for the remote-boot workstation.
You can include the boot image filename plus the workstation's network address and node address in the BOOTCONF.SYS file on the NetWare server that is the repository for boot image files. BOOTCONF.SYS is stored in the SYS:LOGIN directory of the server, and is a text file that contains one record for each remote-boot workstation or group of workstations. Multiple workstations can be specified by using wildcards or question marks within the network address.
The following shows the format for each record in BOOTCONF.SYS. The parameters are defined later in this section.
0x[network_address,]node_address = image_filename.sys [ack] [frame=ff] [gns] [noack] [nogns] [noprotect] [notro] [protect] [ps=server] [tro] [wait time=sss]
Each record ends in a carriage return or linefeed character.
The NetWare server that contains the boot image files should have Novell RIPL.NLM loaded and bound to the appropriate network adapter. The following procedures summarize this process.
bind rpl to board [ack] [frame=ff] [gns], [nodefault], [protect], [ps=server], [tro], [wait time=sss]
The parameters for BOOTCONF.SYS records and for binding RPL are not case-sensitive. The parameters can be entered in any order, and can be separated by either commas or blank spaces. The following table briefly defines these parameters. For more information, see your Novell-supplied documentation on BOOTCONF.SYS.
Novell NetWare Parameters for BOOTCONF.SYS and BIND Commands
Parameter | Description |
ack | Requires a per-frame acknowledgment so slower workstations can pace RPL when it sends frames in burst mode. |
bind board | Binds RPL to a board configured for 802.2 frames. The board can be specified by the name of the network adapter board number. |
frame=ff | Configures RBOOT to use the following frame types: 802.2 (default), EII (Ethernet_II), or snap. |
gns | Causes the workstation to use a Get Nearest Server request after RBOOT is downloaded. Use this parameter when the workstation should find a server other than the one containing RPL. |
nodefault | Causes RPL to ignore remote-boot requests when the node address is not in BOOTCONF.SYS. |
nogns | Overrides gns. |
noprotect | Overrides protect specified with BIND. |
notro | Overrides tro with BIND. |
protect | Adjusts memory size in BIOS data area to reflect the amount of memory used by RBOOT, reducing available memory by 12K. Do not use unless absolutely necessary. |
ps=server | Specifies that RBOOT attach to a preferred server other than the server where RPL is located. |
tro | Causes the bootstrap program to perform This Ring Only Count Of 3 on all broadcast frames. Used in source routing environments. |
wait time=sss | Specifies how many seconds (0000 to 665535) the workstation waits before selecting a Disk Image Name automatically, when multiple names are specified in BOOTCONF.SYS. |