Yes, munge = edit.  

The file is called pcitable and lives in the modules directory of initrd.img.  It provides a match list between device ids and driver names.  There's another file called pci.ids which associates text with the numbers.  You can find recipes for untangling initrd.img files and adding drivers etc using google.

If the device ids (as reported by lspci -n) don't match what's in pcitable, it won't recognise a card as being useable by a driver.  (Some drivers are extra picky and do their own checks, partciularly graphics card drivers - but that's another story). 

I think the only problem is deciding which image (.img file) is the one you need to 'edit'.  Connie or Troy can say for definite - it usually takes me several goes to get it right, which is why I don't do it unless can't think of another way to install.  You may have to create more than one - both the boot (installer) image and the kernel image(s) you're installing.

Martin Bly
RAL Tier1 Systems Team

--
  T: +44|0 1235 446981 F: +44|0 1235 446626 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Dushan Mitrovich [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
> Sent: Wednesday, March 01, 2006 8:01 PM
> To: Bly, MJ (Martin)
> Cc: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: can't install SL 4.2 - no CD-ROM driver 
> 
> "Bly, MJ \(Martin\)" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> > Surely the key is this: from your lspci:
> > 
> > 00:0d.0 SCSI storage controller: Initio Corporation 360P (rev 02)
> > 	Subsystem: Unknown device 9292:0202
> >                             ^^^^^^^^^
> > 	Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 32, IRQ 11
> > 	I/O ports at c800 [size=256]
> > 	Memory at d9001000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=4K]
> > 	Expansion ROM at <unassigned> [disabled] [size=32K]
> > 
> > 
> > And Connie's list of 'known devices':
> > 
> > 1101 Initio Corporation
> >        1060  INI-A100U2W
> >        9100  INI-9100/9100W
> >        9400  INI-940
> >        9401  INI-950
> >        9500  360P
> >        9502  Initio INI-9100UW Ultra Wide SCSI Controller INIC-950P 
> > chip
> >
> > 
> > Basically, the driver doesn't recognise your card even 
> though it *may* 
> > support it because the device id number is not known.  You 
> would have 
> > to munge the pcitable file in the install image to allow it to 
> > associate the driver with the device automagically.  Even 
> then there 
> > is no guarantee the driver will actually work...
> > 
> > The other problem can be this: the driver module must match exactly 
> > the kernel in use for the boot install - if it doesn't it 
> won't load.  
> > I've been down that track with device drivers before and it's a big 
> > source of bruises to the forehead.
> > 
> > 'Lspci -n' should tell you exactly what device id number the 
> > controller card is - the[n] you can check if the driver supports it 
> > and try munging the pcitable file.
> 
> Martin, thank you for this explanation.  As you can tell, 
> I've a good deal to learn about linux.  I'll try to follow 
> your suggestions.  Two questions:
> 
> - where do I find the pcitable - or, which file is the 
> 'install image'?
>   I've looked at several of the files on CD#1, including 'vmlinuz' and
>   'initrd.img', and couldn't find anything I recognized as a 
> pci informa-
>   tion table (tho a few files contained 'pcitable' as a string).
> 
> - by 'munge' I assume you mean modify, i.e. edit.  Can I use 
> a simple text
>   editor, or do I need a particular tool?
> 
> Thanks much for your help.  It feels finally as tho there's 
> beginning to be a bit of wind to rescue me from being becalmed.
> 
> - Dushan
> 
>