README for mondo/mindi usage on ia64

Linux distributions on ia64 uses a different file table format than on i386, called GPT instead of MBR. The fdisk command used by mindi/mondo to determine all aspects related to the disc hasn't been adapted yet to handle GPT. Only the parted command is able to do it.

So a perl script called parted2fdisk.pl was written that will take as input all the order that mindi/mondo pass to fdisk, translate them to be given to parted and print the result in fdisk format. So this is a filter allowing fdisk replacement. It's only used on ia64. On other archs, parted2fdisk is a link to fdisk.

Thus mindi/mondorestore commands launched by root will pass all their call to parted2fdisk on ia64 instead of the real fdisk, and be able to support the GPT format. It will call fdisk and parted for its work.  (Note again that on ia32 parte2fdisk is in fact a link to fdisk to avoid any compatibility issue)

The install.sh script will setup everything correctly for you.

Note that parted2fdisk.pl supports currently only the -l and -s options as well as the commands p,n,d,w,t,a,q

On Itanium systems you won't generally find an installed isolinux.bin file which is required by mindi to create the bootable images. You'll generally have to take an i386 package for your distribution and install it on your itanium system so that you provide the required missing file.

On SLES 10, fdisk is not provided anymore. You'll have to rebuild the util-linux package by desactivating fdisk removal in the spec file. 

Please report any problem around that tool to bruno@mondorescue.org
Bruno.

2013-06-08 no binary made anymore, only perl scripts
2005-12-12 parted2fdisk used everywhere
2005-03-23 Explain compilation and backup/restore split
2004-09-16 Initial file
