This chapter provides you with information about decisions you need to make before you install or upgrade the Solaris Operating System (Solaris OS). This chapter contains the following sections:
This book uses the term slice, but some Solaris documentation and programs might refer to a slice as a partition.
x86: To avoid confusion, this book distinguishes between x86 fdisk partitions and the divisions within the Solaris fdisk partition. The x86 fdisk divisions are called partitions. The divisions within the Solaris fdisk partition are called slices.
The following task map is an overview of the steps necessary to install or upgrade the Solaris OS when using any installation program. Use this task map to identify all of the decisions that you need to make to complete the most efficient installation for your environment.
Table 2–1 Task Map: Installing or Upgrading the Solaris Software
Task |
Description |
For Instructions |
---|---|---|
Choose initial installation or upgrade. |
Decide if you want to perform an initial installation or an upgrade. | |
Choose an installation program. |
The Solaris OS provides several programs for installation or upgrade. Choose the installation method that is most appropriate for your environment. | |
(Solaris interactive installation program) Choose a default or custom installation. |
Decide which type installation is suitable for your environment:
|
For information on the Solaris installation program's choices, see Chapter 5, Gathering Information Before Installation or Upgrade (Planning) |
Review system requirements. Also, plan and allocate disk space and swap space. |
Determine if your system meets the minimum requirements to install or upgrade. Allocate disk space on your system for the components of the Solaris OS that you want to install. Determine the appropriate swap-space layout for your system. | |
Choose to install a system from local media or from the network. |
Decide on the most appropriate installation media for your environment. | |
Gather information about your system. |
|
|
(Optional) Set system parameters. |
You can preconfigure system information to avoid being prompted for the information during the installation or upgrade. |
Chapter 6, Preconfiguring System Configuration Information (Tasks). |
(Optional) Prepare to install the Solaris software from the network. |
If you chose to install the Solaris software from the network, complete the following tasks.
|
To install over a local area network, see Chapter 9, Preparing to Install From the Network With CD Media (Tasks). To install over a wide area network, see Chapter 13, Preparing to Install With WAN Boot (Tasks). |
(Upgrade only) Perform tasks prior to upgrade. |
Back up your system and determine if you can upgrade with disk space reallocation. | |
Perform an installation or upgrade. |
Use the Solaris installation method that you chose to install or upgrade the Solaris software. |
The chapter or chapters that provide detailed instructions for the installation programs. |
Troubleshoot installation problems |
Review the troubleshooting information when you encounter problems with your installation. |
The Solaris software is distributed on DVD or CD media so that you can install or upgrade systems that have access to a DVD-ROM or CD-ROM drive.
You can set up the systems to install from the network with remote DVD or CD images. You might want to set up systems this way for the following reasons:
If you have systems that do not have local DVD-ROM or CD-ROM drives
If you are installing several systems and do not want to insert the discs into every local drive to install the Solaris software
You can use all of the Solaris installation methods to install a system from the network. However, by installing systems from the network with the Solaris Flash installation feature or with a custom JumpStart installation, you can centralize and automate the installation process in a large enterprise. For more details about the different installation methods, refer to Choosing a Solaris Installation Method.
Installing the Solaris software from the network requires initial setup. For information about preparing to install from the network, choose one of the following options.
For detailed instructions about preparing to install from a local area network |
Chapter 9, Preparing to Install From the Network With CD Media (Tasks) |
For instructions about preparing to install over a wide area network | |
For instructions about how to install x86 based clients over the network by using PXE |
x86: Overview of Booting and Installing Over the Network With PXE |
You can choose to perform an initial installation or, if your system is already running the Solaris OS, you can upgrade your system.
An initial installation overwrites the system's disk with the new version of the Solaris OS. If your system is not running the Solaris OS, you must perform an initial installation.
If the system is already running the Solaris OS, you can choose to perform an initial installation. If you want to preserve any local modifications, before you install, you must back up the local modifications. After you complete the installation, you can restore the local modifications.
You can use any of the Solaris installation methods to perform an initial installation. For detailed information about the different Solaris installation methods, refer to Choosing a Solaris Installation Method.
You can upgrade the Solaris OS by using two upgrade methods: standard and Solaris Live Upgrade. A standard upgrade maintains as many existing configuration parameters as possible of the current Solaris OS. Solaris Live Upgrade creates a copy of the current system. This copy can be upgraded with a standard upgrade. The upgraded Solaris OS can then be switched to become the current system by a simple reboot. If a failure occurs, you can switch back to the original Solaris OS with a reboot. Solaris Live Upgrade enables you to keep your system running while you upgrade and enables you to switch back and forth between Solaris OS releases.
For more information about upgrading and the list of upgrade methods, see Upgrade Planning.
The Solaris OS provides several programs for installation or upgrade. Each installation technology offers different features that are designed for specific installation requirements and environments. Use the following table to help you decide which installation method to use.
Table 2–2 Choosing Your Installation Method
The Sun Java System Application Server Platform Edition 8 provides for broad deployment of application services and web services. This software is automatically installed with the Solaris OS. You can find documentation for the server in the following areas:
For documentation about starting the server |
See Sun Java System Application Server Platform Edition 8 QuickStart Guide in the installation directory at /docs/QuickStart.html |
For the full Application Server documentation set | |
For a tutorial |