Installing SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10

C H A P T E R 3

This chapter provides information about installing SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 10 operating system (OS) on a Sun Blade X6440 server module.

This chapter contains the following sections:

About SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Installation

Installing the SLES 10 Operating System

Preconfiguring the Network to Support PXE Installation of SLES 10

Installing the SLES 10 Operating System Using PXE

Updating the SLES 10 Operating System

About SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Installation

The most common methods for installing the SLES OS on your server module are:

Installation from your SLES Distribution CD (local or remote).

Installation from the network, either from a Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) image stored on a PXE server on your local network or from an image stored elsewhere on your network.

Tip - Using the Sun Installation Assistant (SIA) to install the RHEL operating system is the recommended installation method. SIA is a convenient, front-end application designed to assist you in installing SLES on your server. SIA supplements the standard installation utilities and procedures that ship with SLES; it does not replace them. For more information, refer to the Sun Installation Assistant Windows and Linux User’s Guide (820-3357).

Installing the SLES 10 Operating System

This section describes how to install the SLES 10 OS.

SLES 10 Installation and Configuration Documentation

Before you install the SLES 10 OS on your server module, consult the following SLES 10 documentation.

TABLE 3-1 Sources for SLES 10 Documentation
Document	Description	Where to Find
README file	This file contains late-breaking information about system requirements and system configuration for your version of SLES 10.	On the SLES 10 CD #1
Release Notes	Product release notes.	On the SLES 10 CD #1 under the `docu` directory
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Start-Up Guide	This short manual provides a quick introduction to the installation.	On the SLES 10 CD #1 under the `docu` directory, as the file `startup.pdf` under the appropriate language directory.
SLES 10 support sites	SUSE provides considerable technical information about the SLES OS at its product and support web sites.	See the SLES 10 home page at `http://www.novell.com/products/server/` for additional support information.

Task Map for the SLES 10 Installation

Consult the following table to determine the procedures that are relevant to the installation task(s) that you need to perform.

TABLE 3-2 Task for the SLES 10 Installation
Installation Task	Relevant Topic
Install the SLES 10 OS from local or remote CD/DVD drive.	Preparing to Install the SLES 10 Operating System.
Install SLES 10 from local or remote CD/DVD drive or PXE server.	SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Installation Manual
Install the SLES 10 OS from an image stored on a networked system.	Preconfiguring the Network to Support PXE Installation of SLES 10.
Install the SLES 10 OS from a PXE server.	Installing the SLES 10 Operating System Using PXE
Update the SLES 10 OS SO.	Updating the SLES 10 Operating System

Preparing to Install the SLES 10 Operating System

You can install the SLES 10 OS from a local CD/DVD drive, remote CD/DVD drive, or the network; however, you need to collect some information about your system before you proceed with any one of these installation methods.

Before installing SLES 10 on your server, verify or collect the following information:

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server name

MAC address on system label

SLES 10 SP2 media CD set

Installing the SLES 10 Operating System From Distribution Media

The SLES 10 OS provides an easy-to-use graphical interface for installing and configuring the OS. Regardless of whether you are using distribution CDs to install the SLES 10 OS from a locally attached CD/DVD drive or from a remote CD/DVD drive attached via KVMS, the installation procedure is fundamentally the same.

Required Items

Sun Blade X6440 server module set up with:

USB keyboard and mouse.

USB CD/DVD drive.

Monitor.

Multi-port dongle cable to connect to the front of the Sun Blade X6440 server module. Refer to the Sun Blade X6440 Server Module Installation Guide (820-3961).

SLES 10 SP2 CD or DVD media kit.

To Install the SLES 10 Operating System From Distribution Media

1. Connect the multi-port dongle cable to the connector on the front of the Sun Blade X6440 server.

2. Connect the USB CD/DVD to the USB port on the dongle.

1. Power on the system.

2. Press F8 and select CDROM when prompted.

3. Insert SLES 10 CD #1 (or DVD) into your local CD/DVD drive.

4. Follow the installation instructions provided with the SLES 10 Installation Guide to complete the installation.

Installing SLES 10 Using the Remote Console Application

This topic explains how to install the SLES 10 OS on your Sun Blade X6440 server module using the ILOM Remote Console application.

To Install SLES 10 Using the Remote Console Application

1. Locate your SLES 10 OS installation CD/DVD or the equivalent ISO images.

2. Connect to the ILOM service processor web interface.

See the topic that describes how to log in to the Sun ILOM web interface in the Sun Integrated Lights Out Manager 2.0 User’s Guide (820-1188).

Note - There are multiple versions of ILOM. Be sure to refer to the guide that matches your server’s installed version of ILOM.

3. Select the Remote Control tab, then select the Mouse Mode Settings tab.

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

See the “Remote Console Application” chapter of the Sun Integrated Lights Out Manager 2.0 User’s Guide (820-1188) for further instructions.

5. Select 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/DVD drive in two ways:

If you are installing a physical CD into the remote console CD/DVD 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. Power on the server using the ILOM web interface.

11. Configure the BIOS to use CD/DVD a the boot device.

a. Press Ctrl-E to enter the 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 and press Ctrl-P to select CD/DVD as the boot device.

12. When the SLES 10 OS installation menu appears, use the arrow keys to select Installation and press Enter.

13. Proceed with the SLES 10 OS installation as usual.

Preconfiguring the Network to Support PXE Installation of SLES 10

These procedures describe how to preconfigure your network to support Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) installation of SLES OS on your Sun Blade X6440 server module. These procedures assume that you already have a bootable server that is running a version of the SLES 10 OS.

Preconfiguring your network for PXE installation involves the following procedures:

Configuring the DHCP Server

Installing Portmap

Configuring the TFTP Service

Installing and Configuring the neopxe Boot Server Daemon

Configuring the NFS Service

Disabling the Firewall

Required Items

Preconfiguring your network for PXE installation requires the following items:

SLES 10 server equipped with:

CD/DVD drive

USB keyboard

Monitor (optional)

SLES 10 media kit

Tools and Drivers DVD (708-0347)

Configuring the DHCP Server

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

To Configure the DHCP Server

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

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

# rpm -qa | grep dhcp-server

3. If the DHCP server package is not listed, install the package using YaST. Type the following command:

# yast -i dhcp-server

4. Set up the 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 IP address of the server.

Note - You can start with a sample DHCP configuration file in the /tmp/sles10-pxefiles directory.

5. 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.

6. 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;

}

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

8. Edit the /etc/sysconfig/dhcpd file and verify that the DHCPD_INTERFACE is set run on the network on which you are planning to run the PXE server.

For example, if you are using Ethernet interface 0, the DHCPD_INTERFACE variable should be set as follows:

DHCPD_INTERFACE="eth0"

9. Start the DHCP service. Type the following command:

# /etc/init.d/dhcpd start

10. Configure the server to always start DHCP. Type the following command:

# chkconfig dhcpd on

Installing Portmap

Complete the following steps on the DHCP server to install the portmap server package.

To Install Portmap

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

# rpm -qa | grep portmap

2. If portmap is not listed, install the package using YaST. Type the following command:

# yast -i portmap

Configuring the TFTP Service

Complete the following steps on the DHCP server to configure the TFTP service.

To Configure the TFTP Service

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

# rpm -qa | grep tftp

2. If the TFTP server package is not listed, install the package using YaST. Type the following command:

# yast -i tftp

3. 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

4. Restart the inetd server. Type the following command:

# /etc/init.d/xinetd restart

Installing and Configuring the neopxe Boot Server Daemon

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

To Install and Configure the neopxe Boot Server Daemon

1. If a compiler is not installed on the server, use YaST to install gcc with the following commands:

# yast -i gcc

# yast -i make

2. Install the neopxe boot server daemon onto your system that is your DHCP server. Depending on your OS version, type the following command:

# cd /tmp/sles10-pxefiles/neopxe-0.2.0

3. Type the following commands:

# ./configure

# make

# make install

4. 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/boot.local

5. Copy the PXE Linux image from the /tmp/ directory. Type the following commands:

# mkdir /home/pxeboot

6. Depending on your OS version, type the following command:

# cp /tmp/sles10-pxefiles/pxelinux.0 /home/pxeboot

7. Configure the PXE Linux image. Type the following commands:

# mkdir /home/pxeboot/pxelinux.cfg/

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

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

If the /usr/local/etc/ directory does not exist, create it with the following command:

# mkdir /usr/local/etc

If you need to create the neopxe.conf file, you can copy it from the /tmp/sles10-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

Note - Refer to the neopxe.conf man page for more information.

9. Start the neopxe daemon. Type the following command:

# /usr/local/sbin/neopxe

Configuring the NFS Service

Complete the following steps on the DHCP server to configure the NFS service.

To Configure the NFS Service

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

# rpm -qa | grep nfs-utils

2. If the NFS service package is not listed, install the package using YaST. Type the following command:

# yast -i nfs-utils

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

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

4. Start the NFS service. Type the following command:

# /etc/init.d/nfsserver start

5. Configure the server to always start the NFS service. Type the following commands:

# chkconfig nfslock on

# chkconfig nfsserver on

Note - If you are using a DNS server, verify that DNS entries exist for the range of addresses defined in the PXE subnet dynamic-bootp entry in the dhcpd.conf file. If you are not using a DNS server, edit the /etc/hosts file to add the range of host addresses found in the PXE subnet dynamic-bootp entry in the dhcpd.conf file.

Disabling the Firewall

If a firewall is enabled on your PXE/DHCP server, you must disable it before attempting to install a PXE image onto the client system.

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 OS to PXE clients.

To Disable the Firewall

1. Execute the YaST command. Type the following command:

yast

2. Select Security & Users.

3. Select Firewall.

Select none to disable the firewall for all network interfaces.

Select specific interfaces to enable the firewall on only those interfaces.

Installing the SLES 10 Operating System Using PXE

PXE is a powerful and convenient solution for setting up a number of Sun Blade X6440 server modules so that their configurations are identical.

Before You Begin

The network interface card (NIC) in your Sun Blade X6440 server module supports the PXE network booting protocol. The system BIOS and network interface BIOS on your server module automatically query the network for a DHCP server.

Task Map for SLES 10 Installation

Before you can perform PXE installations on your network, you need to complete the following tasks.

TABLE 3-3 Task Map for Installing SLES 10 Using PXE
Task	Related Topic
Set up your Linux network and PXE server.	Preconfiguring the Network to Support PXE Installation of SLES 10
Install SLES 10 images on that PXE server.	Configuring a SLES 10 PXE Installation Image on the PXE Server
Configure your server to boot from or to install from a SLES 10 image on a PXE server.	Installing SLES 10 From a PXE Server

Required Items

The PXE installation procedure requires the following items:

The DHCP server that you set up when you preconfigured your network to support PXE installation equipped with a CD/DVD drive

SLES 10 media CD set

Tools and Drivers DVD (708-0347)

Configuring a SLES 10 PXE Installation Image on the PXE Server

This procedure describes how to configure a PXE install image on the DHCP server so that it can act as your PXE server. The PXE server provides the OS files to your PXE client.

Perform the following procedures to create an SLES 10 image on the PXE server:

Setting Up and Copying SLES 10 Operating System to a Directory

Creating Links to SLES 10 PXE Files

Setting Up and Copying SLES 10 Operating System to a Directory

The following procedure describes how to create and set up the directory that will contain the SLES 10 files for PXE installation and how to copy the SLES 10 OS to the directory.

To Set Up and Copy SLES 10 Operating System to a Directory

Note - You can use a different target directory than the /home/pxeboot/sles10/ directory shown. The examples in this procedure use this directory.

1. Set up the directory structure that will hold the SLES 10. Type the following commands:

# mkdir -p /home/pxeboot/sles10/CD1

# mkdir -p /home/pxeboot/sles10/CD2

# mkdir -p /home/pxeboot/sles10/CD3

# mkdir -p /home/pxeboot/sles10/CD4

2. Insert SLES 10 CD #1 into your server and copy its content to your PXE server. Type the following command:

# mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# cp -r /mnt/cdrom/* /home/pxeboot/sles10/CD1/

# umount /mnt/cdrom

3. Remove SLES 10 CD #1 from the server.

4. Repeat the above procedure for copying CD #2, #3 and #4 to their corresponding directories in /home/pxeboot/sles10/ as given below:

# cp -r /mnt/cdrom/* /home/pxeboot/sles10/CD2/

# cp -r /mnt/cdrom/* /home/pxeboot/sles10/CD3/

# cp -r /mnt/cdrom/* /home/pxeboot/sles10/CD4/

Creating Links to SLES 10 PXE Files

Perform the following procedure to create links to the PXE files.

To Create Links to the SLES 10 PXE Files

1. Copy the autoinst.xml file from the /tmp/sles10/ directory to the root of the PXE image. Type the following command:

# cp /tmp/sles10/autoinst.xml /home/pxeboot/sles10/

2. On your PXE server, modify the file home/pxeboot/pxelinux.cfg/default adding the following entry to it:

Note - Type the text block from append through autoinst.xml below as one continuous line with no returns.

default sles10

label sles10

kernel sles10/CD1/boot/x86_64/loader/linux

append textmode=1 initrd=sles10/CD1/boot/x86_64/loader/initrd install=nfs://n.n.n.n/home/pxeboot/sles10/CD1 autoyast=nfs://n.n.n.n/home/pxeboot/sles10/autoinst.xml

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

3. Save and exit the file.

Installing SLES 10 From a PXE Server

This procedure describes how to configure your Sun Blade X6440 server module to initiate the request to download the boot image file from the PXE/DHCP server and how to install the SLES 10 boot image onto your Sun Blade X6440 server module.

Before You Begin

Before continuing with this procedure you must have done the following:

Configured your Linux network to support a PXE server. See Installing the SLES 10 Operating System Using PXE.

Installed a SLES 10 image on that Linux PXE server. See Configuring a SLES 10 PXE Installation Image on the PXE Server.

To Install SLES 10 From a PXE Server

1. Connect the PXE client to the same network as the PXE server.

The PXE client is the target Sun Blade X6440 server module to which you are installing the SLES 10 OS.

2. Power on the PXE client and press F12 to select network boot.

3. When you are prompted at the boot: prompt, type in the label you gave the SLES 10 image when you installed it the SLES 10 image on the PXE server (sles10 in the example above).

4. To configure your SLES 10 Linux server, refer to the Installation and Administration Guide on SLES 10 CD #1.

5. Perform an Online Software Update to update the OS files (see Updating the SLES 10 Operating System).

Updating the SLES 10 Operating System

The SLES OS installation media might not contain the most up-to-date versions of the SUSE software. This procedure describes how to update the SLES OS on your server after you have installed it from a PXE server or distribution CDs.

To Update the SLES Operating System

1. Log in as superuser.

2. Enter the following command to run the YaST Online Update:

# you

Note that YaST can operate in both text and graphical modes. These directions apply to both.

3. If you are behind a network firewall and need to use a proxy server in order to access the internet, you must first configure YaST with the correct proxy information.

a. Select the Network Services tab on the left, then the proxy screen on the right. Enter the correct proxy URLs in both the HTTP and HTTPS fields.

Note - In order for the online update service to function correctly through a network HTTP proxy, the following additional configuration step must be performed.

b. Exit the YaST utility and run the following command:

rug set-prefs proxy-url <Proxy URL>

Where <Proxy URL> is the fully qualified URL of your proxy server (for example, http://proxy.yourdomain:3128/).

c. After successfully running the command, launch YaST again.

4. Register with the Novell Customer Center.

Note - You will need your Novell Customer Center user name and password, as well as a SLES product activation code.

a. Select the Software tab on the left.

b. Select Novell Customer Center Configuration and follow the directions.

5. Once registered, select the Online Update tab to perform the software update.