Choosing an Installation Method

---

Caution - The Sun Server X2-8 supports only 64–bit Solaris installations. 32–bit installations are not supported.

---

The Sun Server X2-8 supports the following Solaris OS installation methods:

• Boot from the preinstalled Solaris image on the hard drive as described in Setting Up the Preinstalled Solaris Operating System in Sun Server X2-8 (formerly Sun Fire X4800 M2) Installation Guide.

• Install on one server from DVD or CD-ROM media interactively with the Solaris installation program. Solaris 11 can also be installed from a USB device.

  For Solaris 10, the Solaris installation program on the Solaris 10 OS DVD or CD can be run with a graphical user interface (GUI) or as an interactive text installer. The Solaris Device Configuration Assistant is included in the Solaris installation program.

  For Solaris 11, use the Solaris installation program on the LiveCD or a LiveUSB media. These can be run with a GUI or with an interactive user interface.

• Install on one server or several servers over the network with Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) technology and the following installation methods:

  For Solaris 10:

  • Solaris installation program over the network from remote DVD or CD images

  • JumpStart installation

  • Installation using a serial console

  For Solaris 11:

  • Automated install

  • Automated install using a custom manifest

  • Serial console

The following table describes installation methods available for installing the Solaris OS.

Method Description Instructions Boot Solaris from the preinstalled image. Depending on your configuration, a Solaris OS image might be preinstalled on a hard drive. Setting Up the Preinstalled Solaris Operating System in Sun Server X2-8 (formerly Sun Fire X4800 M2) Installation Guide Install from DVD or CD-ROM media. Solaris 11 can also be installed from USB media using a special .usb image file. Use the Solaris installation program on the CD or DVD media to install one server interactively. Follow the instructions for x86 installation. For Solaris 10, refer to the corresponding installation guide in the the Solaris 10 Operating System collection. For Solaris 11, refer to Installing Using Installation Media in Installing Oracle Solaris 11 Systems. Install from the network by using PXE. Caution - When you install the Solaris 10 OS from a PXE server, the netboot environment must be configured to use the 64–bit kernel. You can do this by changing the PXE boot menu to include amd64 on the kernel and module lines. For details, refer to the installation and jumpstart documentation in the Oracle Solaris 10 8/11 Information Library. You need to use PXE to install the Solaris OS over the network when there is a need for automated installation. To boot over the network by using PXE, you need to set up an installation server and a DHCP server, and configure the BIOS on each server to boot from the network. Follow the instructions for an x86 PXE installation. For Solaris 10, refer to the PXE installation instructions in the Oracle Solaris 10 8/11 Information Library. For Solaris 11, refer to Installing Using an Install Server in Installing Oracle Solaris 11 Systems. Use a serial console to install the Solaris OS in a PXE-based network installation. Follow the instructions for an x86 PXE installation. For Solaris 10, refer to the Oracle Solaris 10 8/11 Installation Guide: Custom JumpStart and Advanced Installations in the Oracle Solaris 10 8/11 Information Library. For Solaris 11, refer to Installing Using an Install Server in Installing Oracle Solaris 11 Systems. Boot the Solaris OS on your server without a hard drive. Use this method with a PXE-based network installation. Follow the instructions for an x86 PXE installation. For Solaris 10, refer to the Oracle Solaris 10 8/11 Information Library. For Solaris 11, refer to Installing Oracle Solaris 11 Systems.

See also:

• Obtaining Solaris 10 Documentation

• Obtaining Solaris 11 Documentation

• Identifying Logical and Physical Network Interface Names for Solaris OS Installation