[Soekris] FBSD 5.4 network install troubles

[Neal Rauhauser]

 Some months ago I got the itch to try a FreeBSD network install on one 
of my 4511s with the target being compact flash. If I recall correctly I 
did DHCP, tftp, built pxeboot, loader, kernel, got NFS going, and all of 
this took maybe an hour of effort scattered over an afternoon. I got as 
far as drive partitioning, figured out it wasn't going to behave with CF 
as a target, and I laid it aside.

 I've recently taken delivery of four 4801s and the network install of 
5.4 is giving me fits. I've read all of the links on the Soekris site,  
tried the procedures on several of them, and I'm getting nowhere at a 
good rate of speed.

 The dependencies, as I understand them, are:

dhcpd for a MAC address, with next server and root path option
tftp running
nfs export of 5.4 install media on root-path in dhcpd.conf
tweak /etc/make.conf for loader via tftp support
create pxeboot and loader that don't do the cons25 thing
create a kernel
place pxeboot, loader, kernel in /tftpboot/boot
install

  I've done this with my own pxeboot, loader, and kernel. I've done it 
with the ones from ultradesic.com.

http://www.ultradesic.com/pub/FreeBSD-5.4_Files/

  This process runs all the way through getting pxeboot, loader, the 
kernel, fishing around in /boot for other stuff, it presents me with the 
FreeBSD 5.4 install screen, then I get a bunch of junk at the bottom of 
the screen. I suspect this might have to do with the contents of the 
loader.conf (fails for me with and without the console="comconsole" 
option) or perhaps I need to fix something inside the mfsroot.gz as 
well, but the instructions on how to do this are not clear to me.

  Anyone got any hints?