Sun Fire X4600 and X4600 M2 Servers Linux, ESX, and Solaris OS Installation Guide

This chapter applies to the Sun Fire X4600 servers and to Sun Fire X4600 M2 servers and describes installing Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). This chapter contains the following sections:

• Preparing to Install RHEL
• Installing RHEL From Distribution Media
• Installing the RHEL Using the Remote Console Application
• Installing RHEL Using PXE
• Updating the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Operating System

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About the RHEL Installation

If you have installed Red Hat Enterprise Linux software on other Intel or AMD Opteron servers, you are already familiar with how to install it on a Sun Fire X4600 server. The two most common methods to install Red Hat Enterprise Linux on your server are:

• Installation from your Red Hat Enterprise Linux distribution media
• Automatic kickstart installation from Red Hat Enterprise Linux software (installation tree) stored on a Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) network server

Important RHEL Limitations

Note that some versions of Red Hat have limitations:

• Installing RHEL3 on a Sun Fire X4600 server with more than eight logical CPUs is not supported. Red Hat defines a logical CPU as any schedulable entity. This means that every core/thread in a multi-core/thread processor is a logical CPU.
• If you install RHEL 4 U3 on a server with eight or less logical CPUs, then later upgrade the server to more than eight logical CPUs, you must use the largesmp kernel package for 64-bit platforms. The largesmp kernel is included with RHEL 4 U3 and later versions.
• Some installations of RHEL 4 hang. To resolve the issue, configure the BIOS so that the USB ports use only USB 1.1.

Red Hat Installation and Administration Documentation

Before you install the Red Hat Enterprise Linux software on a Sun Fire X4600 server, consult the following Red Hat Enterprise Linux documentation.

Task Map for Red Hat Enterprise Linux Installation

Consult the following table to determine which sections in this document are relevant to the installation tasks that you want to perform.

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Preparing to Install RHEL

Although you can install the Red Hat Enterprise Linux software from a local CD/DVD, a remote CD/DVD, or the network, you will need to collect some information about your system and your network before you proceed with any of these installation methods.

Additional Software Updates or Patches

After installing the Red Hat Enterprise Linux software on the server, you might also need to update your system software with patches and packages. See Updating the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Operating System for details.

Obtaining Updated Media Kits

To install Red Hat Enterprise Linux on the Sun Fire X4600 server, you will need to obtain the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update Media Kit.

To obtain this kit, log into http://rhn.redhat.com.

You will need your enterprise account information to download the updated ISO images. An enterprise account is an account that the customer creates to access Red Hat's support network after purchasing the Red Hat Enterprise Linux media kit.

After you obtain the updated .iso images, write them to CDs and use them in place of the media you obtained with your Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 box. This updated media contains important drivers that are required by the Sun Fire X4600 server.

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Installing RHEL From Distribution Media

Red Hat Enterprise Linux provides both a text mode and an easy-to-use graphical interface for installing and configuring the operating system. At the boot prompt, you can select the interface that you want to use. Both options are shown later in this section.

Before You Begin

Installing Red Hat Enterprise Linux software from CDs consists of the following procedures:

1. Download the updated media kit from http://rhn.redhat.com.

See Obtaining Updated Media Kits.

2. Install the Red Hat Enterprise Linux software.

3. Update the Red Hat Enterprise Linux software.

See Updating the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Operating System.

Required Items

Installation from distribution media requires the following items:

• Sun Fire X4600 server equipped with:
• DVD-ROM drive
• USB keyboard and mouse
• Monitor

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux media CD set.

1. Turn on the system.

2. Insert the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Distribution CD 1 into the local DVD/CD drive on the Sun Fire X4600 server.

The server will boot from the CD and display a boot: prompt.

3. Do one of the following at the boot prompt, depending on which type of interface you want to use:

• For text mode, type the following command:
  
  boot: linux text
  
• For graphical mode, press Enter at the boot prompt.

4. Refer to the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Installation Guide to guide you through the remainder of the installation process.

5. Proceed to Updating the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Operating System.

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Installing the RHEL Using the Remote Console Application

This section explains how to install the Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system on your server using the Integrated Lights Out Manager (ILOM) Remote Console application.

Use the following procedure to install the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 3 or later OS using the ILOM Remote Console application.

1. Locate your Red Hat Enterprise Linux installation CD/DVD or the equivalent iso images.

2. Connect to the ILOM Service Processor web interface.

3. Click the Remote Control tab, then the Mouse Mode Settings tab.

4. If necessary, change the mouse mode to Relative Mouse Mode.

See the “Remote Console Application” information in the Integrated Lights Out Manager (ILOM) documentation for further instructions.

5. Click the Redirection tab.

6. Click the Launch Redirection button to start the JavaRConsole application.

7. Log in to the JavaRConsole.

8. Start keyboard and mouse redirection.

Select Keyboard and Mouse in the Devices menu.

9. Start CD/DVD redirection.

From the JavaRConsole Devices menu, you can redirect the CD in two ways:

• If you are installing a physical CD into the remote console CD ROM drive, insert the CD into the drive and select CD-ROM.
• If you are using an iso image installed on the remote console, select CD-ROM image and provide the location of the iso file.

10. Turn on the server using the ILOM web interface.

11. Set up the BIOS as follows:

a. Press CTRL-E to enter BIOS Setup Utility.

b. Select the Boot menu.

c. Select CD/DVD Drives.

d. Set AMI Virtual CD as the first boot device.

e. Press F10 to save changes and exit.

f. Reboot.

g. Press CTRL-P to select CD/DVD as the boot device.

12. When the boot prompt appears, type linux text.

13. When prompted to test the CD media before installation, select Skip if you do not want the media test to run.

14. Refer to the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Installation Guide to guide you through the remainder of the installation process.

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Installing RHEL Using PXE

About Red Hat Enterprise Linux and PXE

The onboard network interface card (NIC) in your Sun Fire X4600 server supports the Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) network booting protocol. The system BIOS and network interface BIOS on your server automatically query the network for a DHCP server. If that DHCP server on the network has been configured to support the PXE protocol and PXE image servers on the same network, then the BIOS on your system can be used to install a bootable Red Hat Enterprise Linux image on your server.

Task Map

To take advantage of Red Hat Enterprise Linux and PXE on your network, you need to perform the following tasks.

Preconfiguring Your Network to Support PXE Installation of RHEL

This section describes how to preconfigure your network running Red Hat Enterprise Linux to support PXE installation of Red Hat Enterprise Linux software on your server. These procedures assume that you already have a bootable server that is running a version of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system to use as a PXE server.

Preconfiguring your network for PXE installation involves the following procedures:

• To Copy Files From the Tools and Drivers CD
• To Configure a DHCP Server
• To Install Portmap on Your DHCP Server
• To Configure the TFTP Service on Your DHCP Server
• To Install and Configure the neopxe Boot Server Daemon
• To Configure the NFS Service on Your DHCP Server
• To Disable the Firewall

Required Items

Preconfiguring your network for PXE installation requires the following items:

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux server equipped with:
• DVD drive
• USB keyboard
• Monitor

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux media set
• Tools and Drivers CD

Downloading the Tools and Drivers CD Image

If you do not have access to the Tools and Drivers CD, you can download the iso image from the following URL:

http://www.sun.com/servers/x64/x4600 and select Downloads.

If you create your own CD from the download site, use this CD in place of the Tools and Drivers CD referenced in this procedure.

This section describes how to copy the PXE support files, which are required for PXE configurations, from the Tools and Drivers CD.

1. Insert the Tools and Drivers CD into the DHCP/PXE server.

2. Create a temporary directory to copy the PXE support files if /tmp does not exist. Type:

# mkdir /tmp

3. Type the following commands to copy the files to the /tmp/ directory:

# mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# cp /mnt/cdrom/linux/pxe/rhel4-pxefiles.tar.gz /tmp/

4. Uncompress and extract the contents of the tar file into the /tmp/ directory. Type:

# cd /tmp

# tar -zxvf rhel4-pxefiles.tar.gz

When you extract the file, a directory with all required files will be created, for example: /tmp/rhel4u3-pxefiles/

Complete the following steps on the server that will be your DHCP server.

1. Turn on the server and log in as superuser.

2. Determine whether the DHCP server package is already installed on the server. Type:

# rpm -qa | grep dhcp-

3. If the DHCP server package is not listed, insert the Red Hat Enterprise Linux CD 5 and install the DHCP server. Type:

# mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# rpm -Uvh /mnt/cdrom/RedHat/RPMS/dhcp-*.rpm

4. Remove the CD from the server after you type the following command:

# umount /mnt/cdrom

5. Set up your DHCP configuration file (for example, /etc/dhcpd.conf) so that only PXEClient requests receive PXEClient responses.

Add the following entry to the DHCP configuration file (refer to the dhcpd.conf man page for more information):

class "PXE" {match if substring(option vendor-class-identifier, 0, 9) ="PXEClient"; option vendor-class-identifier "PXEClient"; vendor-option-space PXE; next-server n.n.n.n}

Where n.n.n.n is the PXE server’s IP address.

6. In the DHCP configuration file, edit the server-identifier entry:

server-identifier n.n.n.n

Where n.n.n.n is the PXE/dhcp server’s IP address.

7. Also in the DHCP configuration file, find the subnet entry fields:

subnet 1.2.3.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 {

range dynamic-bootp 1.2.3.100 1.2.3.200;

option routers 1.2.3.1;

option broadcast-address 1.2.3.225;

}

Edit the subnet, range, router and broadcast-address entries according to the PXE/dhcp server’s network configuration.

8. Start the DHCP service. Type:

# service dhcpd start

9. Configure the server to always start DHCP. Type:

# chkconfig dhcpd on

1. Determine whether the portmap server package is already installed on the server. Type:

# rpm -qa | grep portmap

2. If portmap is not listed, insert the RHEL CD 2 and install the portmap service by typing the following commands:

# mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# rpm -Uvh /mnt/cdrom/RedHat/RPMS/portmap-*

3. Unmount the CD/DVD by entering the following command.

# umount /mnt/cdrom

4. Remove the CD/DVD from the server.

1. Determine whether the TFTP server package is already installed on the server. Type:

# rpm -qa | grep tftp-server

2. If the TFTP server package is not listed, insert the RHEL CD 4 and install the TFTP service by typing the following commands:

# mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# rpm -Uvh /mnt/cdrom/RedHat/RPMS/tftp-server*

3. Remove the CD from the server after you type the following command:

# umount /mnt/cdrom

4. Edit and save the /etc/xinetd.d/tftp file.

Make the following changes:

• Change the -s /tftpboot entry to -v -s /home/pxeboot.
• Change the disable attribute to no.

5. Restart the inetd server. Type:

# service xinetd restart

Complete the following steps on your DHCP server. The neopxe server is designed for use with a DHCP server that is running on the same system.

1. Install the neopxe boot server daemon onto the system that is your DHCP server. Type:

# cd /tmp/rhel4u3-pxefiles/neopxe-0.2.0

# ./configure

# make

# make install

2. Append the path /usr/local/sbin/neopxe to the rc.local file by typing the following command, making sure to use two greater-than signs:

# echo "/usr/local/sbin/neopxe" >> /etc/rc.d/rc.local

3. Copy the PXE Linux image from the /tmp/ directory. Type:

# mkdir /home/pxeboot

# cp /tmp/rhel4u3-pxefiles/pxelinux.0 /home/pxeboot

4. Configure the PXE Linux image. Type:

# mkdir /home/pxeboot/pxelinux.cfg/

# touch /home/pxeboot/pxelinux.cfg/default

5. Edit the /usr/local/etc/neopxe.conf configuration file, which is read by neopxe at startup.

If the neopxe.conf file is not in the /usr/local/etc directory, you can copy it from the /tmp/rhel4u3-pxefiles/neopxe-0.2.0/ directory.

A valid configuration file must have entries for each of the following lines, including at least one service line.

ip_addr=n.n.n.n

prompt=boot-prompt-string

prompt_timeout=timeout

service=service-number,boot-server,boot-file,label

Where:

• n.n.n.n is the IP address of your PXE server.
• boot-prompt-string is the character string displayed during a network boot that prompts the user to press the F8 key for a boot menu.
• timeout is the number of seconds the prompt is displayed before the server defaults to the first service for booting.
• service-number is an integer in the range of 1 to 254 that identifies the boot service.
• boot-server is the IP address of the boot server for that boot service.
• boot-file is the name of the boot file that is read from your /home/pxeboot directory.
• label is the text string that is displayed when the boot menu is invoked by pressing the F8 key.

For example:

ip_addr=192.168.0.1

prompt=Press [F8] for menu.. .

prompt_timeout=10

service=1,192.168.0.1,pxelinux.0,Linux

service=2,192.169.0.1,nbp.unknown,Solaris

6. Start the neopxe daemon. Type:

# /usr/local/sbin/neopxe

1. Determine whether the NFS service package is already installed on the server. Type:

# rpm -qa | grep nfs-utils

2. If the NFS service package is not listed, insert the Red Hat Enterprise Linux CD 2 and install the NFS service with the following commands:

# mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# rpm -Uvh /mnt/cdrom/RedHat/RPMS/nfs-utils-*

3. Remove the CD from the server after you type the following command:

# umount /mnt/cdrom

4. Edit and save the /etc/exports file to add the following line to it:

/home/pxeboot *(no_root_squash,no_subtree_check,insecure)

5. Start the NFS service. Type:

# service nfs start

6. Configure the server to always start the NFS service. Type:

# chkconfig nfs on

# chkconfig nfslock on

If you enabled firewall security when you installed Red Hat Enterprise Linux software on the system that will be your PXE server, complete the following steps to disable the firewall so that PXE clients can download from the server.

Caution - Network security vulnerability. When you disable the firewall protection on the system that is your PXE server, the security of the data on that server cannot be ensured. If this server is networked outside of your local intranet, be sure to re-enable the firewall after downloading software to PXE clients.

1. Stop the ipchains service. Type:

# service ipchains stop

2. Stop the iptables service. Type:

# service iptables stop

3. Stop the ipchains service from starting when you restart the server. Type:

# chkconfig ipchains off

4. Stop the iptables service from starting when you restart the server. Type:

# chkconfig iptables off

5. Reboot the PXE/DHCP server.

6. Refer to the Creating a PXE Install Image on the PXE Server.

Creating a PXE Install Image on the PXE Server

This procedure describes how to create a Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) install image on the same server that is your DHCP server so that it will also act as your PXE server. The PXE server provides the operating system files to your PXE client.

Before You Begin

Before you install a Red Hat Enterprise Linux image on your PXE server, you must configure your Linux network to support PXE images. See Preconfiguring Your Network to Support PXE Installation of RHEL.

Required Items

The PXE installation procedure requires the following items:

• A CD/DVD drive on the DHCP Server
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 3 (or later) media CD set (see Obtaining Updated Media Kits)
• Tools and Drivers CD

1. Insert the Tools and Drivers CD into the CD/DVD drive of the DHCP/PXE server.

2. Type the following commands to copy the Sun support files from the CD to the /tmp directory on your DHCP/PXE server:

# mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# cp -a /mnt/cdrom/support/pxeboot/rhel4-pxefiles.tar.gz /tmp

# cd /tmp

# tar -zxvf rhel4-pxefiles.tar.gz

# umount /mnt/cdrom

3. Set up the directory structure that will hold the Red Hat Enterprise Linux software. Type:

# mkdir -p /home/pxeboot/rhel4/

4. For each Red Hat Enterprise Linux Distribution CD, type the following commands to copy the contents of the Distribution CD to the appropriate PXE target subdirectory:

# mount dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# cp -r /mnt/cdrom/* /home/pxeboot/rhel4/

# umount /mnt/cdrom

5. Copy the vmlinuz and initrd.img files to the appropriate PXE target subdirectory (/home/pxeboot/rhel4/).

6. Copy the kickstart file ks.cfg to your PXE server. Type:

# cp /tmp/rhel4u3-pxefile/ks.cfg /home/pxeboot/rhel4/

The kickstart configuration file contains a configuration that might not be optimal for your operating environment. Modify the file as necessary to suit your environment.

For example, to make the RHEL5 installation process fully automatic, add the following line to the end of the kickstart configuration file:

key --skip

7. On your PXE server, edit and save the kickstart file: /home/pxeboot/rhel4/ks.cfg.

Edit the nfs line is as follows:

nfs --server n.n.n.n --dir /home/pxeboot/rhel4/

Where n.n.n.n is the IP address of your PXE server. Ensure that the location indicated after --dir is pointing to the top level of your image.

8. Add the following entry to the file /home/pxeboot/pxelinux.cfg/default:

default rhel4

label rhel4

kernel rhel4/vmlinuz

append ksdevice=eth0 console=tty0 load_ramdisk=1

initrd=rhel4/initrd.img network

ks=nfs:n.n.n.n:/home/pxeboot/rhel4/ks.cfg

Where n.n.n.n is the IP address of your PXE server.

9. Save the modified version of the /home/pxeboot/pxelinux.cfg/default file.

Installing RHEL From a PXE Server

This procedure describes how to configure your Sun Fire X4600 server to initiate the request to download the boot image file from the PXE/DHCP server and how to install the Red Hat Enterprise Linux boot image onto your Sun Fire X4600 server.

Before You Begin

Before you configure your server to install Red Hat Enterprise Linux from a PXE server, you need to have done the following:

• Configured your Linux network to support a PXE server. See Preconfiguring Your Network to Support PXE Installation of RHEL.
• Installed a Red Hat Enterprise Linux image on that Linux PXE server. See Creating a PXE Install Image on the PXE Server.

1. Connect the PXE client to the same network as the PXE server, and power on the PXE client.

The PXE client is the target Sun Fire X4600 server to which you are installing Red Hat Enterprise Linux software.

2. When the PXE client prompts you for a network boot, press the F12 key.

The PXE client connects to the PXE server and attempts to obtain an IP address from the DHCP server.

3. When prompted, press the F8 key to begin downloading the PXE boot image.

4. At the boot: prompt, type in the label you gave the image when you installed a Red Hat Enterprise Linux image on the PXE server.

The Red Hat Enterprise Linux install image downloads onto the target Sun Fire X4600 server.

5. To configure the Linux operating system for your server, refer to the manual that is shipped with your Red Hat Enterprise Linux media kit.

6. Update the operating system files.

See Updating the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Operating System.

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Updating the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Operating System

This procedure describes how to update the Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system.

Before You Begin

Since software is constantly being updated, your distribution media might not contain the most up-to-date versions of the operating system.

The following two procedures assume that you have already installed the Red Hat Enterprise Linux software on the Sun Fire X4600 server. These procedures explain how to update that Red Hat Enterprise Linux installation with the latest OS.

If your system is on a publicly accessible network, updating your system can help to improve security.

These procedures assume that your system has access to the internet.

1. Set up the up2date program on the server.

Refer to the documentation included with your Red Hat Enterprise Linux media kit for details.

2. Run the up2date program.

Select the kernel packages in the available package updates section.

Your system must have access to the internet and be registered with the Red Hat Network.

1. To run the yum update program, enter:

# yum

The program checks that the machine is registered with Red Hat Network. If so, yum downloads necessary updates from the Red Hat Network repository.

2. Answer the questions and make your choices before the packages are downloaded and installed.

You should periodically update your system using yum.

For more information, refer to the man page. Enter:

# man yum

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Updating the RHEL SCSI Drivers

If you install your RHEL OS with SIA, these drivers are automatically updated. If you install the OS manually, you must update the drivers yourself.

1. Insert the Tools and Drivers CD for your Sun Fire X4600 or X4600 M2 server and mount it onto the directory /mnt.

2. Enter the following commands:

# cd /mnt/Linux/drivers

# rpm -ivh driver-filename

For example, for RHEL 5.1 and 5.2, 64 bit for the Sun Fire X4600 M2 server:

# cd /mnt/Linux/drivers

# rpm -ivh mptlinux-4.00.43.00-1-rhel5.x86_64.rpm

Installation of the new drivers is now complete.

3. Reboot the server for the changes to take effect.

Sun Fire X4600 and X4600 M2 Servers Linux, ESX, and Solaris OS Installation Guide

819-4345-23

Copyright © 2009 Sun Microsystems, Inc. All rights reserved.