How to Install Linux With SIA Using Local or Remote Media

Before You Begin

• If your server ships with an LSI-based integrated RAID controller and you want to include your boot drive as part of a RAID configuration, you will need to configure a RAID volume on it before installing the operating system. See Configuring RAID.

• If you have a Sun StorageTek RAID disk controller (Adaptec-based), you must configure an array volume through the Adaptec RAID Configuration Utility (accessible by pressing Ctrl-A when prompted during server boot) before it can be accessed by SIA. This must be done whether you intend to use RAID or not. Consult your platform installation guide for instructions on how to do this.

• The instructions below assume local CD/DVD drive access. Be sure to modify the instructions accordingly if you are using a local USB flash drive prepared with SIA software, or if you are running SIA from a remote console (or KVMS) with CD-ROM redirection.

1. You should have already started SIA and prepared it for tasks as described in Starting SIA and Preparing for Deployment or Recovery Tasks.

   The Select a Task page should be displayed.

   
   

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   Note - This page will only appear if your server supports more tasks than OS installation. The dialog lists only task options supported for your server. For example, your list may include operating system installation, server BIOS/SP firmware upgrade, or other tasks.

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2. At the Task Selection dialog, select Operating System Installation, and then click Next.

   The Install Media Information page appears.

   
   
3. In the Install Media Information page, specify the location of your OS installation media. Choose one of the following options:

   • CD/DVD—This option allows you to install the OS source from:

     - a local CD/DVD, or

     - a redirected CD/DVD or an ISO CD-ROM image

   • Network (Linux)—This option allows you to install the OS source from a network share.

4. If you are installing from a local CD/DVD, do the following in the Install Media Information page:
   1. Click CD/DVD, then select the server’s CD/DVD drive from the CD Location drop-down list.
   2. Eject the SIA CD/DVD from this drive then insert the first CD of the operating system distribution into the drive.

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      Note - SIA might not recognize the Linux installation media if you chose to use a CD/DVD ROM device other than the one you previously used to boot the SIA program. Therefore, insert the Linux OS media into the same device that you used to boot the SIA program.

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   3. Click Next in the Install Media Information page and proceed to Step 7.
5. If you are installing from a redirected CD/DVD or ISO CD-ROM image using the server’s ILOM (Integrated Lights Out Manager) remote console feature, do the following in the Install Media Information page:
   1. Click CD/DVD.
   2. Select the virtual CD-ROM from the CD Location drop-down list.
   3. In the server’s ILOM Remote Console, redirect the operating system installation media (CD-ROM or CD-ROM Image) using one of the following methods.

      • If you booted SIA from a CD/DVD drive, eject the SIA CD from this drive and insert the first disk of the operating system into the drive. In the ILOM Remote Console, select the CD-ROM option from the Devices menu (see graphic below for example).

      • If you booted SIA from an ISO CD-ROM image, unmount the SIA ISO CD-ROM image from the service processor ILOM Remote Console by deselecting CD-ROM Image from the Devices menu (see graphic below for example), then select CD-ROM Image and specify the location of the ISO OS CD-ROM image.

        

        Figure Legend 1 From an ILOM Remote Console, use the Devices menu to mount and unmount devices such as a CD or ISO CD image.

   4. When done, click Next in the Install Media Information page and proceed to Step 7.
6. If you are installing from a Network share, do the following in the Install Media Information page:
   1. Click Network (Linux).
   2. In the address bar, specify the http or ftp accessible network address to the Linux extracted ISO media (.iso files cannot be used for this method). See table below for examples.

      For OSes requiring multiple images (CD1, CD2, etc.), multiple address fields are available.

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      Note - The URL address can not contain spaces.

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      Transfer Method OS Source Location What to Type HTTP Content extracted from an ISO image to a directory Path to directory containing the extracted OS install ISO content files. Example: http://hostname_or_IPaddress/extractedISOdirectory FTP Content extracted from an ISO image to a directory Path to directory containing the extracted OS install ISO content files. Example: ftp://hostname_or_IPaddress/extractedISOdirectory

      Where hostname_or_IPaddress is either the hostname or the IP address of the server containing the ISO image, extractedISOdirectory is the directory containing the extracted Linux OS installation ISO image files. For Linux, only the path to the directory containing the ISO image source files should be used; individual files cannot be part of the URL path.

   3. Click Next.
7. SIA checks the supplied media to ensure it is a supported version and displays the results in the Identifying Distribution page. At this point, you can select option cards from the displayed list and SIA will install the option card driver(s) for you. Click Next when done to start the OS installer.
   
8. As the OS installer starts, do one of the following depending on your installation:
   • If you are installing Linux on a Sun Fire X4500, you must perform OS-specific steps to identify the boot drive and ensure proper installation. Proceed to Identifying a Linux Boot Device on a Sun Fire X4500 Server.
   • Otherwise, if you are installing Linux from redirected CD or ISO image, proceed to Step 9.
9. If you are installing a Linux OS that uses a pre-installation environment, you will see the Pre–installation Environment setup page (shown below). Select a boot disk on which SIA will create the Pre–installation Environment partition and click Next.
   
10. Depending on the version of Linux you are installing, the Installing Additional Software page might appear (see below). SIA will install any additional software or drivers. Review the information presented to ensure there are no errors.
    

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    Note - If you see an error listed during installation, check the SunInstallationAssistant.log file for more details.

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11. Remove the SIA media and click the Reboot button.

    Boot from the hard disk on which the operating system will be installed. Follow the on-screen instructions as prompted to complete any additional operating system setup tasks.

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    Note - If you are installing the OS on a disk other than disk 0, you need to change the system boot order to identify the proper boot disk. This can be done either through the system BIOS setup program (if your disk is connected to an integrated disk controller), or an option card BIOS setup program (if your disk is connected to an optional HBA). Follow the instructions in your system and/or option card documentation to set boot order.

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Next Steps

Complete the following post installation tasks, as necessary:

• Download and install the latest Linux operating system updates and fixes from the Linux operating system vendor’s web site.

• Install and configure additional drivers for your server not installed by SIA. This provides you the supported feature set for installed server components and option cards (for example, additional drivers may include ACPI, video, network and mass storage). Additional drivers can be found on the latest Tools and Drivers CD/DVD for your server.

• Install Sun server-specific optional software and utilities available on the latest Tools and Drivers CD/DVD for your server.

• Install Sun Service Tags. The installation files are automatically copied to your server during OS installation, but must be run by the system administrator for the server in order to be properly installed. See Installing Service Tags.