sorry this post is a bit long but I wanted to give as much info as possible:
trying to install the OS CD for my raq4 the initial process goes ok where it loads stuff from the CD and then partitions and formats the drive etc, but then after the first auto-reboot the LCD just cycles through 'Cobalt Server'....''Loading Kernel' and this just repeats. I monitored the boot process on a terminal on another PC and this is the repeating cycle:

-------------------------
....SYSTEM REBOOTING
stopping all md devices.
disabling network interfaces.
Restarting system.

Cobalt Networks, Inc. - Connecting the Dots
Firmware version 2.3.35

Current date: Oct 19 14:04:54 UTC 2012
ROM build info: Mon Oct 9 20:05:49 PDT 2000 war.cobalt.com
System serial number: 4602BM1121304
Memory found: 192 MB
Initializing I2C bus: done
Scanning PCI bus: done
Initializing IDE: done
IDE 0 master: found
Initializing SCSI: no SCSI controller installed - failed
Initializing ethernet: 1 ethernet controllers installed - done
Initializing flash: done
Flash bank 0: AMD AM29F080B 1MB (1:d5)
Flash bank 1: not installed.
Initializing USB: done
Mounting rom_fs: done
Initializing i18n - language "en": done

Press spacebar to enter ROM mode
Booting default method - From disk

First stage kernel: Decompressing - done

Cobalt Networks, Inc. - Connecting the Dots
Firmware version 2.3.35

Current date: Oct 19 14:05:21 UTC 2012
ROM build info: Mon Oct 9 20:05:49 PDT 2000 war.cobalt.com
System serial number: 4602BM1121304
Memory found: 192 MB
Initializing I2C bus: done
Scanning PCI bus: done
Initializing IDE: done
IDE 0 master: found
Initializing SCSI: no SCSI controller installed - failed
Initializing ethernet: 1 ethernet controllers installed - done
Initializing flash: done
Flash bank 0: AMD AM29F080B 1MB (1:d5)
Flash bank 1: not installed.
Initializing USB: done
Mounting rom_fs: done
Initializing i18n - language "en": done

Press spacebar to enter ROM mode
.....
------------------------

it seems like the raq4 won't boot from the hard drive. I've tried two diffrent hard drives and I've also tried the install from two different PC's but no joy. I've made CD's from RaQ4i.iso and RaQ4r.iso but it made no difference.
where do I go from here? thanks for any help.

update: I bought one of zeffies cd's and it loaded fine. It's a mystery why cobalts own cd's wouldn't install but at least I'm up an running now.

I have had this same problem - will definately try your tip

Thanks

I had the same "Kernal Loading..." message on the LCD, I wasted 3 CDs burning the RAQ4OSRCD from the sun site, wrote them at different speeds, but all done the same loop so I bought Zeffie's RAQ4iSO, it worked first time.

I discovered what I was doing wrong in the end. I had downloaded the raq4r and raq4i cd's and not the plain raq4 one, that's why they wouldn't install. Another visit to the cobalt ftp site and I saw the correct download (RAQ4S101AU.iso) and tried it and it installed (red faced). The zeffie cd is way better than the plain cobalt cd anyway.

I had this problem with my raq 550 : just a compatibility problem with the ethernet card put into your pc which load the sun restore CD => I had introduce an old intel pci ethernet card and it worked fine (if you read the screen error on the pc which load the cd they explain that it compatible with only few ethernet cards).