MDLUG - Webmaster's Special project:
SuSE Linux 9.1 Professional install disk remastering

Note:
As I was preparing this package for distribution SuSE came out with their own fix, which looks much simpler and is a much smaller download. I never got around to testing their fix, I had my own fix and was moving on.
Since then SuSE 9.2 has come out, further depricating this project. I guess I'll leave this up a while, just for the effort I put into preparing it.
 -RSM

In early May 2004, SuSE Linux released version 9.1 of their Distribution. Despite many glowing reviews this package had one major flaw. It was shipped with a custom kernel (2.6.4-52) which was not able to mount XFS formated harddrive partitions. Consequently users could not install to such a partition, and users of SuSE 8.x or 9.0 could not update their systems if it was installed on an XFS partition.

I found that, once you have installed 9.1, (to a file system other than XFS)  you can then run YAST Online Update to upgrade the kernel to 2.6.4-54.5, which does support XFS. By doing this I was able to obtain a kernel, both the monolith (vmlinuz) and the modules, needed to make an install CD which does support XFS.

I'll flesh out the details later, but basically I have figured out how to remaster disk 1 so that it can install to, and update, XFS based system. In the process I have developed a kit that enables anyone who has a copy of SuSE 9.1 Professional, a working linux system, a Gig and a half of disk space, and cd writing tools (mkisofs and cdrecord) to make their own XFS enabled install disk.

I have made three versions of the patch kit: full, nosmp, and minimal. It is recommended that anyone who can possibly do so should get the full verion. It duplicates completely (as far as I can tell) the functionality SuSE intended for it's original CD. At 136MB it's not a small download. For the benefit of the bandwidth challanged I include the nosmp version(97MB), and the minimal version (28MB).

Each of these lesser versions has drawbacks that the user must be aware of. Please see the relevant text files for details. The patchkits and their text files are available here.

NOTICE:
This patch kit is not provided by, supported by, endorsed by, or necessarily known to, Novel, SuSE AG, nor any of their subsidiaries, affiliates, susidiaries, or employees. These patch kits were authored by Raymond McLaughlin, driveray@ameritech.net, for his own use. They are provided, as is and without warranty, as a service to any other users of SuSE Linux 9.1 Professional who may perceive a need or use for it.
Also:
This server space is provided, by MDLUG, as a personal perquisite of the webmaster of MDLUG. Neither MDLUG, nor any of its officers, nor its hosting facsility: Lawrence Technological University, endorse or are liable for, any of the software provided here.