Chapter 6 Web Start Flash Overview and Planning

This chapter provides an introduction to the Web Start Flash installation feature. Also included in the chapter is information necessary for planning a Web Start Flash installation in your environment.

• Web Start Flash Introduction

• Planning Your Web Start Flash Installation

Web Start Flash Introduction

The Web Start Flash installation feature enables you to create a single reference installation of the Solaris operating environment on a machine which is called the master machine. Then you can replicate that installation on a number of machines which are called clone machines. Installing clone machines with the Web Start Flash installation method is a three–part process.

1. Install the master machine. – You select a machine and use any of the Solaris installation methods to install the Solaris operating environment and any other software.

2. Create the Web Start Flash archive. – The Web Start Flash archive contains a copy of all of the files on the master machine.

3. Install the Web Start Flash archive on clone machines. – When you install the Web Start Flash archive onto a machine, all of the files in the archive are copied to that machine. The newly installed machine now has the exact same installation configuration as the original master machine, thus it is called a clone machine.

You cannot upgrade a system that is running the Solaris operating environment by using the Web Start Flash installation feature. You can only perform an initial installation.

Planning Your Web Start Flash Installation

Before you create and install a Web Start Flash archive, you must make some decisions about how you want to install the Solaris operating environment on your systems.

Designing the Installation of the Master Machine

The first task in the Web Start Flash installation process is to install a machine, the master machine, with the configuration that you want each of the clone machines to have. You can use any of the Solaris installation methods to install a subset or a complete installation of the Solaris operating environment onto the master machine. After you complete the installation, you can add or remove software or modify any configuration files.

The master machine and the clone machines must have the same kernel architectures. For example, you can use a Web Start Flash archive that was created from a master machine that has a sun4u architecture only to install other machines with a sun4u architecture.

You must install the master machine with the exact configuration that you want on each of the machines that you are installing with the Web Start Flash archive created from this master machine. The decisions you make when you design the installation of the master machine depend on:

• The software you want to install on the clone machines

• Peripheral devices that are connected to the master and the clone machines

• The architecture of the master and the clone machines

Customizing the Solaris Installation on the Master Machine

After you install the Solaris operating environment onto the master machine by using any of the Solaris installation methods, you can add or delete software and modify system configuration information as necessary.

• Delete software – You can remove software that you determine is not necessary to install on the clone machines. To see a list of software that is installed on the master machine, use the Product Registry. For detailed instructions, refer to “Adding and Removing Software With the Product Registry” in Solaris 8 (Intel Platform Edition) Installation Guide or Solaris 8 (SPARC Platform Edition) Installation Guide.

• Add software – You can install software that is included in the Solaris release and software that is not delivered as part of the Solaris operating environment. All of the software that you install on the master machine is included in the Web Start Flash archive and is installed on the clone machines.

• Modify configuration files – You can alter configuration files on the master machine. For example, you can modify the /etc/inet/inetd.conf file to restrict the daemons that the system runs. All of the modifications that you make are saved as part of the Web Start Flash archive and are installed on the clone machines.

Creating Archives for SPARC and IA Machines

If you want to use the Web Start Flash installation method to install the Solaris software on both SPARC and IA machines, you must create a separate Web Start Flash archive for each platform. Use the Web Start Flash archive that was created from the SPARC master machine to install SPARC machines. Use the Web Start Flash archive that was created from the IA machine to install IA machines.

Supporting Peripheral Devices Not Found on the Master Machine

You might be installing a master machine that has different peripherals than the clone machines. If you install the master system with the Core, End User, Developer, or Entire Software Group, the master system supports only the peripheral devices that are attached to the master machine at the time of installation.

For example, if you install the Entire Software Group on a master machine that has a cg6 frame buffer, the installation contains support for only the cg6 frame buffer. Consequently, you can only install the archive that you create from this system on clone systems that have either the cg6 frame buffer or no frame buffers. If you use the archive to install a clone system with an Elite 3D frame buffer, the Elite 3D will be unusable because the required drivers will not be installed.

You might have clone machines that have peripheral devices that the master machine does not have. You can install support for these peripheral devices on the master machine even though the master machine does not have the devices. The Web Start Flash archive you create from this master machine contains support for the peripheral devices on the clone machines.

If you plan to install clone machines that have different peripherals from the master machine, you can install support for those peripherals on the master machine in one of the following ways.

• Install the Entire Plus OEM Software Group: The Entire Plus OEM Software Group is the largest Software Group available and contains every package found in the Solaris operating environment. If you install the Entire Plus OEM Software group on the master machine, the master machine includes all of the drivers included with the Solaris release. A Web Start Flash archive created from a master machine that you install with the Entire plus OEM Software Group works on any clone system that has peripheral devices supported by the installed release of the Solaris operating environment.

  Installing master machines with the Entire Plus OEM Software Group guarantees compatibility with other peripheral configurations. However, the Entire Plus OEM Software Group requires over 1 gigabyte of disk space. The clone machines might not have the space required to install the Entire Plus OEM Software Group.

• Install Selected Packages: When you install the master machine, you can install only the packages that you need for the master machine and the clone machines. By selecting specific packages, you can install only support for the peripherals that you know exist on the master or clone machines.

Planning the Creation of a Web Start Flash Archive

After you install the master machine, the next task in the Web Start Flash installation process is to create a Web Start Flash archive. All of the files on the master machine are copied to a Web Start Flash archive along with various pieces of identification information. You can create a Web Start Flash archive while the master machine is running in multiuser mode or single-user mode. You can also create a Web Start Flash archive after you boot from the Solaris 8 Software 1 of 2 CD or from an image of the Solaris software CDs. Create the archive when the system is in as static a state as possible.

Archive Identification Information

A Web Start Flash archive contains archive identification information in addition to the actual files from the master machine that will be installed on the clone machines. You are required to specify a name for the Web Start Flash archive. Other information that you can specify about the archive includes:

• The author of the archive

• The date the archive was created

• The name of the master machine that you used to create the archive

For a complete list of the archive identification information that you can specify, refer to Identification Section Keywords.

Use the flar command to retrieve information about the archive. For detailed instructions, refer to flar.

Where to Store the Web Start Flash Archive

After you create the Web Start Flash archive, you can save the archive on the hard disk of the master machine or on a tape. After you save the archive, you can copy it to any file system or media that you choose.

• Network File System (NFS)

• HTTP server

• Tape

• CD

• Diskette

• Local drive of clone machine that you want to install

Compressing the Archive

When you create the Web Start Flash archive, you can specify that the archive be saved as a compressed file by using the compress(1)utility. An archive that is compressed requires smaller disk storage space and creates less congestion when you install the archive over a network.

Planning the Installation of Web Start Flash Archives

The final task in the Web Start Flash installation process is to install Web Start Flash archives on clone machines.

Deciding How to Install Web Start Flash Archives

You can use any of the Solaris installation methods to install Web Start Flash archives on clone machines.

The Solaris Web Start 3.0 installation method on the Solaris 8 Installation CD enables you to install Web Start Flash archives that are stored on the following:

• CD

• Network File System (NFS) server

• HTTP server

• Local tape

The suninstall installation program on the Solaris 8 1 of 2 CD enables you to install Web Start Flash archives that are stored on the following:

• HTTP server

• Network File System (NFS) server

• Local file

• Local tape

• Local device, including CD

The custom JumpStart installation program enables you to install Web Start Flash archives that are stored on the following:

• NFS server

• HTTP server

• Local tape

• Local device, including CD

• Local file

Installing Layered Web Start Flash Archives

The Web Start Flash installation feature provides the ability to layer Web Start Flash archives. You can create partial Web Start Flash archives to install in a variety of ways.

For example, you can create one archive that contains the Solaris operating environment files, a second archive that contains the files necessary to run a Web server, and a third archive that contains the files for an NFS server. You can install the first and second archives to one machine to create a Web server and the first and third archives to create an NFS server.

By using layered archives, you can increase the flexibility of the Web Start Flash installation while you reduce the disk space that is required to store Web Start Flash archives. When you install layered archives to a clone machine, one of the archives must contain the Solaris operating environment.

If you use layered Web Start Flash archives to install additional software onto clone machines separately from the Solaris operating environment, the Solaris package database has no record of the additional software.