Qemu 8.1-8.2 Sparc Now Timeout Boot Failing with Sun Bios

Host environment

  • Operating system: Devuan Beowulf
  • OS/kernel version: Linux 4.19.0-25-amd64
  • Architecture: amd64
  • QEMU flavor: qemu-system-sparc
  • QEMU version: 8.1, 8.2, and current
  • QEMU command line:
qemu-system-sparc.exe -M SS-20 -cpu "TI SuperSparc 60" -m 128M -device scsi-hd,scsi-id=0,drive=hd0 -drive file=sol-24.img,format=raw,media=disk,if=none,id=hd0 -device scsi-cd,scsi-id=6,drive=cd0 -drive file=sol-24.iso,format=raw,media=disk,if=none,id=cd0 -display gtk -g 1024x768x24  -bios "ss20_v2.25.rom"

Emulated/Virtualized environment

  • Operating system: Solaris 2.4+
  • Architecture: sparc model SS-5 and SS-20

Description of problem

Boot with original Sun bios never reaches the ok prompt. You get a series of ongoing network boot attempts with the message "Timeout waiting for ARP/RARP package."

On earlier versions of Qemu up to and including 8.0, you could use the original firmware in the combinations below on Sparc model SS-5 and SS-20 machines.

Note: Model SS-5 needs the cpu set to "TI MicroSparc II" or "TI MicroSparc IIep." Model SS-20 needs the cpu set to "TI SuperSparc 50" or "TI SuperSparc 60."

Steps to reproduce

  1. Use Qemu 8.1, 8.2, or current
  2. Run above command line using original sun bios
  3. See result below

sun-obp-boot-error-timeout

Additional information

Glad to test further and give checksums in bios files if needed. Have real hardware for the Sparcstation 5. Default lance card on qemu is active with usermode networking.

Sun bios helps for booting some older versions of Solaris and is generally nice to have for testing.

Edited by Alex Bennée