Installation Enhancements

This section describes all installation enhancements in the Solaris 10 3/05 release that are new or have been enhanced since the Solaris 9 OS was originally distributed in May 2002. The installation unification enhancements are of particular importance.

Solaris Installation Changes Including Installation Unification

Introduced in the Solaris Express 6/04 release, several changes in the installation of the Solaris OS provide a more simplified and unified installation experience.

The changes include the following:

• This release has one installation DVD and several installation CDs. The Solaris 10 Operating System DVD includes the content of all the installation CDs.

  • Solaris Software 1 – This CD is the only bootable CD. From this CD, you can access both the Solaris installation graphical user interface (GUI) and the console-based installation. This CD also enables you to install selected software products from both the GUI and the console-based installation.

  • Other Solaris Operating System CDs – These CDs contain the following:

    • Solaris packages that the software prompts you to install if necessary

    • ExtraValue software that includes supported and unsupported software

    • Installers

    • Localized interface software and documentation

• The Solaris Installation CD no longer exists.

• For both CD and DVD media, the GUI installation is the default (if your system has enough memory). However, you can specify a console-based installation with the text boot option.

• The installation process has been simplified, enabling you to select the language support at boot time, but select locales later.

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Note –

The (noninteractive) Solaris custom JumpStart installation method has not changed.

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To install the OS, simply insert the Solaris Software - 1 CD or the Solaris Operating System DVD and type one of the following commands.

• For the default GUI installation (if system memory permits), type boot cdrom.

• For the console-based installation, type boot cdrom - text.

For instructions about how to install the Solaris OS by using CD or DVD media with the new text boot option, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Basic Installations. For changes to setting up an installation server with CD media, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Network-Based Installations.

Accessing the GUI or Console-based Installations

You can choose to install the software with a GUI or with or without a windowing environment. Given sufficient memory, the GUI is displayed by default. If the memory is insufficient for the GUI, other environments are displayed by default. You can override defaults with the nowin or text boot options. But, you are limited by the amount of memory in your system or by installing remotely. Also, if the Solaris installation program does not detect a video adapter, the program is automatically displayed in a console-based environment. The following table describes these environments and lists minimal memory requirements for displaying them.

Table 9–1 Memory Requirements

Minimal Memory	Type of Installation
128–383 MB	Console-based
384 MB or greater	GUI-based

Detailed descriptions for each installation option are as follows:

Installation with 128–383 MB minimal memory

This option contains no graphics, but provides a window and the ability to open other windows. This option requires a local or remote DVD-ROM or CD-ROM drive or network connection, video adapter, keyboard, and monitor. If you install by using the text boot option and have enough memory, you are installing in a windowing environment. If you are installing remotely through a tip line or by using the nowin boot option, you are limited to the console-based installation.

Installation with 384 MB memory or greater

This option provides windows, pull-down menus, buttons, scrollbars, and iconic images. A GUI requires a local or remote DVD-ROM or CD-ROM drive or network connection, video adapter, keyboard, and monitor.

Custom JumpStart Installation Package and Patch Enhancements

This feature is new in the Solaris Express 3/04 release.

When installing and upgrading the Solaris OS by using the custom JumpStart installation method, new customizations enable the following:

• A Solaris Flash installation with additional packages

  The custom JumpStart profile package keyword has been enhanced to enable installing a Solaris Flash archive with additional packages. For example, you can install the same base archive on two machines, but add a different set of packages to each machine. These packages do not have to be a part of the Solaris OS distribution.

• An installation with additional packages that might not be part of the Solaris distribution

  The package keyword has also been enhanced to enable an installation with a package that is not part of the Solaris distribution. You no longer need to write a postinstallation script to add extra packages.

• An installation with the ability to install Solaris OS patches

  The new custom JumpStart profile patch keyword enables the installation of Solaris OS patches. This feature allows the installation of a list of patches that are specified in a patch file.

For further information, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Custom JumpStart and Advanced Installations.

x86: Specifying Boot Properties With add_install_client Command

This feature is new in the Solaris Express 12/03 release and in the Solaris 9 4/04 release.

The add_install_client command now enables you to set boot properties for Solaris OS clients during a PXE network boot on x86 systems. The -b option enables you to perform the following tasks with the add_install_client command.

• You can specify an alternate console to use during your network installation.

• You can specify the device to use as the network boot device during the installation.

• You can instruct the client to perform a fully automated custom JumpStart installation.

For more information, see the install_scripts(1M) man page, the eeprom(1M) man page, and Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Network-Based Installations.

Configuring Multiple Network Interfaces During Installation

This feature is new in the Solaris Express 12/03 release.

The Solaris installation programs enable you to configure multiple interfaces during your installation. You can preconfigure these interfaces in the sysidcfg file for your system. Or, you can configure multiple interfaces during the installation.

For more information, see the sysidtool(1M) man page and the sysidcfg(4) man page. See also the Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Network-Based Installations.

Replacement of Solaris Installation Command-Line Interface

This feature is new in the Solaris Express 9/03 release.

The command-line interface of the Solaris installation program has been replaced to improve the usability of console-based installations. All console-based installations use the forms-based program to install the Solaris Operating System.

See the install-solaris(1M) man page for further information.

SPARC: 64-bit Package Changes

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

In previous Solaris releases, the Solaris software was delivered in separate packages for 32-bit components and 64-bit components. Now, packaging has been simplified with most 32-bit components and 64-bit components being delivered in a single package. The combined packages retain the names of the original 32-bit packages, and the 64-bit packages are no longer delivered.

The removal of the 64-bit packages simplifies installation and increases performance:

• Reduces the number of packages, which simplifies Custom JumpStart scripts that contain lists of packages

• Simplifies the packaging system with only one package that groups software functions

• Reduces installation time because fewer packages are installed

The 64-bit packages are renamed with the following conventions:

• If a 64-bit package has a 32-bit counterpart, the 64-bit package is named with the 32-bit package name. For example, a 64-bit library such as /usr/lib/sparcv9/libc.so.1 previously would have been delivered in SUNWcslx, but now is delivered in SUNWcsl. The 64-bit SUNWcslx package is no longer delivered.

• If a package does not have a 32-bit counterpart, the “x” suffix is removed from the name. For example, SUNW1394x becomes SUNW1394.

This change means that you might need to modify your custom JumpStart script or other package installation scripts to remove references to the 64-bit packages.

WAN Boot Installation Method

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program and in the Solaris 9 12/03 release. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

The Solaris software now enables you to boot and install software over a wide area network (WAN) by using HTTP. The WAN boot installation method enables you to install the Solaris release on systems over a large public network where the network infrastructure might be untrustworthy. You can use WAN boot with new security features to protect data confidentiality and installation image integrity.

The WAN boot installation method enables you to transmit an encrypted Solaris Flash archive over a public network to a remote client. The WAN boot programs then install the client system by performing a custom JumpStart installation. To protect the integrity of the installation, you can use private keys to authenticate and encrypt data. You can also transmit your installation data and files over a secure HTTP connection by configuring your systems to use digital certificates.

For more information about this feature, see the Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Network-Based Installations.

Creating RAID-1 Volumes (Mirrors) With Custom JumpStart

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program and in the Solaris 9 4/04 release. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

The custom JumpStart installation method now enables you to create RAID-1 volumes (mirrors) during the installation of the Solaris Operating System. By mirroring file systems, you can protect your system by duplicating data over two physical disks. If one of the mirrored disks fails, the system data is still accessible from the second mirrored disk.

In JumpStart, the following new custom profile keywords and values enable you to create mirrored file systems.

• The new filesys keyword value mirror creates a mirror. Then you can designate specific slices as single-slice concatenations to attach to the mirror.

• The new metadb profile keyword enables you to create the required state database replicas.

For more information, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Custom JumpStart and Advanced Installations.

Solaris Live Upgrade 2.1

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program and in the Solaris 9 8/03 release. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

Solaris Live Upgrade provides a method of upgrading a system while the system continues to operate. While your current boot environment is running, you can duplicate the boot environment, then upgrade the duplicate. Or, rather than upgrading, you can install a Solaris Flash archive on a boot environment. The original system configuration remains fully functional and unaffected by the upgrade or installation of an archive. When you are ready, you can activate the new boot environment by rebooting the system. If a failure occurs, you have a safety net. You can quickly revert to the original boot environment with a simple reboot. Thus, you eliminate the normal downtime of the test and evaluation process.

New features in Solaris Live Upgrade 2.1 provide the following new functionality.

• Solaris Live Upgrade uses Solaris Volume Manager technology to create a duplicate boot environment that contains file systems with RAID-1 volumes (mirrors). The mirror provides data redundancy for any file systems, including the root (/) file system. With the lucreate command, you can create mirrored file systems that contain up to three submirrors.

• With the lucreate command, you can now exclude some files and directories that would normally be copied from the original boot environment. If you have excluded a directory, you can also include specified files and subdirectories under that directory.

For further information, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Solaris Live Upgrade and Upgrade Planning.

Custom JumpStart Installation Method Creates New Boot Environment

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

You can now use the JumpStart installation method to create an empty boot environment when you install the Solaris Operating System. The empty boot environment can then be populated with a Solaris Flash archive for later use.

For further information, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Custom JumpStart and Advanced Installations.

Solaris Flash Archives

The Solaris Flash features that are described in this section are new in the Software Express pilot program. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

The Solaris Flash installation feature enables you to use a single reference installation of the Solaris software on a system. This system is called the master system. Then, you can replicate that installation on multiple systems, which are called clone systems. The installation is an initial installation that overwrites all files on the clone system.

Solaris Flash Differential Archives and Configuration Scripts

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program and in the Solaris 9 4/03 release. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

The Solaris Flash installation feature provides new enhancements for the Solaris software.

• A Solaris Flash installation can now update a clone system with minor changes. If you have a clone system and want to update it, you can create a differential archive that contains only the differences between two images, the original master image and an updated master image. When you update a clone system with a differential archive, only the files that are specified in the differential archive are changed. The installation is restricted to clone systems that contain software which is consistent with the original master image. You use the custom JumpStart installation method to install a differential archive on a clone system. Or, you can use Solaris Live Upgrade to install a differential archive on a duplicate boot environment.

• Special scripts can now be run for configuration of the master or clone or can be run to validate the archive. These scripts enable you to do the following tasks.

  • Configure applications on clone systems. You can use a custom JumpStart script for some uncomplicated configurations. For more complicated configurations, special configuration file processing might be necessary on the master system or before or after installation on the clone system. Also, local preinstallation and postinstallation scripts can reside on the clone. These scripts can protect local customizations from being overwritten by the Solaris Flash software.

  • Identify nonclonable, host-dependent data that enables you to make the flash archive host independent. Host independence is enabled by modifying such data or excluding the data from the archive. An example of host-dependent data is a log file.

  • Validate software integrity in the archive during creation.

  • Validate the installation on the clone system.

For further information, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Solaris Flash Archives (Creation and Installation). This guide also includes information on how to use Solaris Live Upgrade to install a differential archive.

Customizing Content in a Solaris Flash Archive

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program and in the Solaris 9 12/02 release. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

The flarcreate command is used to create a Solaris Flash archive. This command has been updated with new options that increase your flexibility to define archive contents when creating an archive. You now can exclude more than one file or directory. From an excluded directory, you can add back a subdirectory or file. This feature is useful when you want to exclude large data files that you do not want cloned.

For information about how to use these options, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Solaris Flash Archives (Creation and Installation).

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Note –

Solaris Flash was formerly Web Start Flash.

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Command-Line Interface Enhancements to the Solaris Product Registry

These enhancements are new in the Software Express pilot program and in the Solaris 9 4/03 release. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

The prodreg command has been updated to include functionality that is similar to the Solaris Product Registry graphical user interface. You can now use the following prodreg subcommands on the command line or in administration scripts to perform a variety of tasks.

• browse – The browse subcommand enables you to view registered software in a terminal window. By repeating the browse subcommand, you can navigate through the directory hierarchy of registered software.

• info – The info subcommand enables you to view information about registered software.

  You can use the info subcommand to identify the following specifics.

  • Installation location of the software

  • Other software that the specified software requires

  • Other software that depends on the specified software

  • Software that has been damaged by the removal of packages that the software requires

• unregister – The unregister subcommand removes software installation information from the Solaris Product Registry. If you remove software from your system without properly uninstalling the software from the Registry, you can use the prodreg unregister command to clean up the obsolete entries in the Solaris Product Registry.

• uninstall – The uninstall subcommand enables you to remove registered software from your system by launching that software's uninstallation program.

For more information, see the prodreg(1M) man page and the System Administration Guide: Basic Administration.

Reduced Networking Software Group

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

You can now create a more secure system with fewer enabled network services by selecting or specifying the Reduced Networking software group (SUNWCrnet) during your installation. The Reduced Networking software group provides system administration utilities and a multiuser text-based console. SUNWCrnet enables the system to recognize network interfaces. During the installation, you can customize your system's configuration by adding software packages and by activating network services as needed.

For further information, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Custom JumpStart and Advanced Installations.

Modifying Disk Partition Tables by Using a Virtual Table of Contents (VTOC)

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

The Solaris installation program now enables you to load existing slices from the virtual table of contents (VTOC.) You can now preserve and use the system's existing disk slice tables during your installation, rather than using the installer's default disk layout.

x86: Change in Default Boot-Disk Partition Layout

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

A new feature in the Solaris installation program is a boot-disk partition layout. This layout, by default, accommodates the Service partition on Sun x86 based systems. This installation program enables you to preserve an existing Service partition.

The new default includes the following partitions.

• First partition – Service partition (existing size on system)

• Second partition – x86 boot partition (approximately 11 Mbytes)

• Third partition – Solaris Operating System partition (remaining space on the boot disk)

If you want to use this default layout, select Default when the Solaris installation program asks you to choose a boot-disk layout.

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Note –

If you install the Solaris OS for x86 based systems on a system that does not currently include a Service partition, the Solaris installation program no longer automatically creates a new Service partition. If you want to create a Service partition on your system, first use your system's diagnostic CD to create the Service partition. After the Service partition is created, then install the Solaris Operating System.

For information about how to create the Service partition, see your hardware documentation.

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For more information, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Custom JumpStart and Advanced Installations.

Support for Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) Version 2 Profiles

This feature is new in the Software Express pilot program and in the Solaris 9 12/02 release. This feature is included in the Solaris 10 3/05 release.

The Solaris installation programs now support LDAP Version 2 profiles. These profiles enable you to configure your system to use a proxy credential level. During the Solaris installation programs, you can specify the LDAP proxy-bind distinguished name and proxy-bind password. With any installation method, you can preconfigure LDAP before installation by using the proxy_dn and proxy_password keywords in the sysidcfg file.

For information, see Solaris 10 Installation Guide: Network-Based Installations.