Re: http protocol and a unknown image type causes a reboot

On Sat, 27 Aug 2005, Santiago Garcia Mantinan wrote:
> I think that if you try to compile etherboot with http support and
> without pxe support and tell it to boot pxelinux.0, for example (I know
> this is not going to work), you'll get the reboot, if you cannot get it,
> just tell me and I'll do the capture.

I don't know exactly what the problem is here, but one point worth noting 
is that the behaviour for 'unknown' images (i.e. images without any 
recognisable magic) will be affected by the presence or otherwise of PXE 
support.  Since PXE images are just raw binary executables, with no 
headers, checksums or other magic that can be used to recognise them, the 
PXE loader will claim to recognise any files.

This means that the behaviour when downloading an unknown image should be

(a) fail with an error message, if PXE support is not present, or

(b) copy it to 07c0:0000 and jump to that location, if PXE support is 
    present.

Therefore, if PXE support is present, then downloading an unknown image is
likely to result in a reboot, since you will start executing random code
while in ring 0.  It sounds as though you are somehow managing to obtain
the exact opposite behaviour, which is puzzling.

Michael


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