Re: [RFC] general-usage real-mode loader

[phcoder]

BTW. This helper would allow easy addition of many different kernels
(freedos, haiku, ntldr, ...)
Vladimir 'phcoder' Serbinenko
phcoder wrote:
> Hello. A long time ago I written a C+asm code which loads any given code
> at any real-mode location, then puts machine in correct state and then
> launches the kernel. I can modify this code to suit GRUB2. Then loading
> realmode kernel would work like this:
> 1) copy helper asm to last kb of lower memory
> 2) jump to the helper
> 3) helper copies from upper memory the kernel
> 4) turn A10 bug back on if necessary
> 5) go to RM
> 6) prepare registers
> 7) jump to the kernel
> 
> This protocol is very flexible and as such could be used by all loaders
> which load kernel in realmode or even in PM (skip step 5, do steps 6-7
> in 32-bit mode) except for changing page tables. Such a helper can be
> easily implemented as module and so help us removing asm-parts of
> loaders from the kernel. If I recieve greenlight for it, I implement it.
> Vladimir 'phcoder' Serbinenko