diff --git a/test/boot-stage-1-init.sh b/test/boot-stage-1-init.sh
index 091dc4310de3..b9e2d1f44341 100644
--- a/test/boot-stage-1-init.sh
+++ b/test/boot-stage-1-init.sh
@@ -36,9 +36,15 @@ mkdir /mnt
 mkdir /mnt/cdrom
 mount -o ro /dev/hdc /mnt/cdrom
 
-# Start stage 2.  !!! We use chroot for now, but I guess that should
-# be pivot_root or so.
-chroot /mnt/cdrom /init
+# Start stage 2.
+# !!! Note: we can't use pivot_root here (the kernel gods have
+# decreed), but we could use run-init from klibc, which deletes all
+# files in the initramfs, remounts the target root on /, and chroots.
+cd /mnt/cdrom
+mount --move . /
+umount /proc # cleanup
+umount /sys
+exec chroot . /init
 
 # If starting stage 2 failed, start an interactive shell.
 echo "Stage 2 failed, starting emergency shell..."
diff --git a/test/boot-stage-2-init.sh b/test/boot-stage-2-init.sh
index 02b440f5a369..28ed1d19de3c 100644
--- a/test/boot-stage-2-init.sh
+++ b/test/boot-stage-2-init.sh
@@ -23,6 +23,12 @@ mount -t proc none /proc
 mount -t sysfs none /sys
 mount -t tmpfs none /dev
 mount -t tmpfs none /tmp
+mount -t tmpfs none /var
+mount -t tmpfs none /nix/var
+
+mkdir -p /nix/var/nix/db
+mkdir -p /nix/var/nix/gcroots
+mkdir -p /nix/var/nix/temproots
 
 # Create device nodes in /dev.
 source @makeDevices@
@@ -38,5 +44,43 @@ for i in @extraPath@; do
     fi
 done
 
+# Start syslogd.
+mkdir -p /var/run
+#mkdir -p /var/log
+#touch /var/log/messages
+echo "*.* /dev/tty10" > /etc/syslog.conf
+echo "syslog 514/udp" > /etc/services # required, even if we don't use it
+@sysklogd@/sbin/syslogd &
+
+# login/su absolutely need this.
+touch /etc/login.defs 
+
+# Enable a password-less root login.
+echo "root::0:0:root:/:@shell@" > /etc/passwd
+echo "root:*:0" > /etc/group
+
+cat > /etc/profile <<EOF
+export PATH=$PATH
+export MODULE_DIR=$MODULE_DIR
+EOF
+
+# Set up inittab.
+for i in $(seq 1 6); do 
+    echo "$i:2345:respawn:@mingetty@/sbin/mingetty --noclear tty$i" >> /etc/inittab
+done
+
+# Show a nice greeting on each terminal.
+cat > /etc/issue <<EOF
+
+<<< Welcome to NixOS (\m) - Kernel \r (\l) >>>
+
+You can log in as \`root'.
+
+
+EOF
+
 # Start an interactive shell.
-exec @shell@
+#exec @shell@
+
+# Start init.
+exec init 2
diff --git a/test/boot-stage-2.nix b/test/boot-stage-2.nix
index 8f68858f5368..f1aff2d59a9d 100644
--- a/test/boot-stage-2.nix
+++ b/test/boot-stage-2.nix
@@ -1,11 +1,12 @@
 { genericSubstituter, shell, coreutils
-, utillinux, kernel, path ? []
+, utillinux, kernel, sysklogd, mingetty
+, path ? []
 }:
 
 genericSubstituter {
   src = ./boot-stage-2-init.sh;
   isExecutable = true;
-  inherit shell kernel;
+  inherit shell kernel sysklogd mingetty;
   path = [
     coreutils
     utillinux
diff --git a/test/make-devices.sh b/test/make-devices.sh
index dead9814f7a8..1e9f9719ea45 100644
--- a/test/make-devices.sh
+++ b/test/make-devices.sh
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-#mknod -m 0600 /dev/console c 5 1
 mknod -m 0600 /dev/ttyS0 c 4 64
 mknod -m 0600 /dev/ttyS1 c 4 65
 mknod -m 0600 /dev/ttyS2 c 4 66
@@ -11,16 +10,12 @@ mknod -m 0666 /dev/zero c 1 5
 
 # tty
 mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty c 5 0
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty0 c 4 0
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty1 c 4 1
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty2 c 4 2
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty3 c 4 3
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty4 c 4 4
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty5 c 4 5
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty6 c 4 6
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty7 c 4 7
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty8 c 4 8
-mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty9 c 4 9
+if ! test -e /dev/console; then
+    mknod -m 0600 /dev/console c 5 1
+fi
+for i in $(seq 0 10); do
+    mknod -m 0600 /dev/tty$i c 4 $i
+done
 
 mkdir -m 0755 /dev/pts
 mknod -m 0666 /dev/ptmx c 5 2
diff --git a/test/rescue-system.nix b/test/rescue-system.nix
index 216cf2009f98..044bf1a70654 100644
--- a/test/rescue-system.nix
+++ b/test/rescue-system.nix
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ rec {
   extraUtils = pkgs.stdenv.mkDerivation {
     name = "extra-utils";
     builder = builtins.toFile "builder.sh"
-      "source $stdenv/setup; ensureDir $out/bin; cp $utillinux/bin/mount $out/bin; nuke-refs $out/bin/mount";
+      "source $stdenv/setup; ensureDir $out/bin; cp $utillinux/bin/mount $utillinux/bin/umount $utillinux/sbin/pivot_root $out/bin; nuke-refs $out/bin/*";
     buildInputs = [pkgs.nukeReferences];
     inherit (pkgsStatic) utillinux;
   };
@@ -63,7 +63,8 @@ rec {
   # The init script of boot stage 2, which is supposed to do
   # everything else to bring up the system.
   bootStage2 = import ./boot-stage-2.nix {
-    inherit (pkgs) genericSubstituter coreutils utillinux kernel;
+    inherit (pkgs) genericSubstituter coreutils utillinux kernel
+      sysklogd;
     shell = pkgs.bash + "/bin/sh";
 
     # Additional stuff; add whatever you want here.
@@ -86,7 +87,15 @@ rec {
       pkgs.netcat
       pkgs.nettools
       pkgs.vim
+      pkgs.nix
+      pkgs.strace
+      pkgs.sysvinit
+      pkgs.procps
+      pkgs.shadowutils
+      pkgs.sysklogd
     ];
+
+    mingetty = pkgs.mingettyWrapper;
   };
 
 
@@ -94,12 +103,13 @@ rec {
   cdMountPoints = pkgs.stdenv.mkDerivation {
     name = "mount-points";
     builder = builtins.toFile "builder.sh"
-      "source $stdenv/setup; mkdir $out; cd $out; mkdir proc sys tmp etc dev";
+      "source $stdenv/setup; mkdir $out; cd $out; mkdir proc sys tmp etc dev var mnt nix nix/var";
   };
 
 
   # Create an ISO image containing the isolinux boot loader, the
-  # kernel, and initrd produced above.
+  # kernel, the initrd produced above, and the closure of the stage 2
+  # init.
   rescueCD = import ./make-iso9660-image.nix {
     inherit (pkgs) stdenv cdrtools;
     isoName = "nixos.iso";
@@ -128,5 +138,5 @@ rec {
     bootImage = "isolinux/isolinux.bin";
   };
 
-    
+
 }