cobbler: 2.4.0 from epel-testing server : SL 6.3 64 bit
Today I attempted to PXE boot the desktop of Fedora 17. According to the Fedora 17 kickstart documentation, the graphical mode should be the default, but the first time, the installer ran in text mode. After the installation was done, I was greeted by just a text console with the login prompt :-(
So, I modified the kickstart template such that for desktop installation, it used the 'graphical' option. This worked. Fedora 17 installer ran in graphical mode. The firstboot program launched, and the desktop UI came up.
Next, I tried Scientific Linux 6.3 desktop. This time, the same symptom, but using the 'graphical' kickstart option didn't help.
Feeling curious, I did the following:
[root@cobbler ~]# cobbler system dumpvars --name=nb1|grep text kernel_options : ksdevice=bootif lang= graphical keyboard-configuration/layoutcode=us interface=eth0 text locale=en_US kssendmac priority=critical
BTW, the 'graphical' shown in the above line was added by me just for testing.
I knew that I didn't set the 'text' kernel option (doubled checked the profile and system objects just to make sure), so I checked the source, indeed:
In cobbler/settings.py, there is the following:
78 "kernel_options" : [{"lang":" ", "text":None, "ksdevice":"eth0"},"dict"],
Also, in /etc/cobbler/settings, there is the following:
[...] # kernel options that should be present in every cobbler installation. # kernel options can also be applied at the distro/profile/system # level. kernel_options: ksdevice: bootif lang: ' ' text: ~ [...]
Now, I understand that very few people would use RHEL as desktops. Fedora? Sure. But setting the installation always to text mode seems to contradict with the official RHEL 6 Installation Guide.
Is there a way to get the documented behavior, i.e. graphical by default, use text mode when desired?
Regards,
-- Zack
On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 1:17 AM, Zack Perry zack.perry@sbcglobal.net wrote:
Now, I understand that very few people would use RHEL as desktops. Fedora? Sure. But setting the installation always to text mode seems to contradict with the official RHEL 6 Installation Guide.
Is there a way to get the documented behavior, i.e. graphical by default, use text mode when desired?
Remove the "text" option from the /etc/cobbler/settings file, the line you pointed out in settings.py is the default if no setting is found in the config file.
As for the install, it may work in text mode but if you install a desktop environment you should get a system booting into init 5 instead of init 3.
Hi James,
Thanks for responding. My results are below.
Now, I understand that very few people would use RHEL as desktops. Fedora? Sure. But setting the installation always to text mode seems to contradict with the official RHEL 6 Installation Guide.
Is there a way to get the documented behavior, i.e. graphical by default, use text mode when desired?
Remove the "text" option from the /etc/cobbler/settings file, the line you pointed out in settings.py is the default if no setting is found in the config file.
Indeed this is the case. Now what I have is the following:
[root@cobbler ~]# less /etc/cobbler/settings [...] # kernel options that should be present in every cobbler installation. # kernel options can also be applied at the distro/profile/system # level. kernel_options: ksdevice: bootif lang: ' ' # text: ~ [...]
and
[root@cobbler ~]# cobbler system dumpvars --name=nb1 |grep kernel_options kernel_options : ksdevice=bootif lang= keyboard-configuration/layoutcode=us interface=eth0 locale=en_US kssendmac priority=critical kernel_options_post : reboot=efi kernel_options_s390x : {'vnc': '~', 'ip': False, 'RUNKS': 1, 'ramdisk_size': 40000, 'ro': '~', 'root': '/dev/ram0'}
As for the install, it may work in text mode but if you install a desktop environment you should get a system booting into init 5 instead of init 3.
My tests with CentOS 6.3, Fedora 17, and Scientific Linux 6.3 desktops have led me to conclude that even for desktop installation, if it's done in text mode, the runlevel is set to 3 in /etc/inittab instead of 5.
But, if anaconda runs in the graphical mode (the default according to RHEL and Fedora's Installation Guides), then the following happens after the first post-install reboot (assuming 'root' is the only user initially):
0. The firstboot utility is launched 1. The runlevel is set to 5 in /etc/inittab
This is the "officially" documented behavior and is what I tried to attain with my PXE network install tests. I used the following short Cheetah snippet in my kickstart template to switch anaconda to text mode for non-desktop installation for all three aforementioned Red Hat alike distros:
#if not $profile_name.find('-desktop-') > 0 text #end if
BTW, all my profile is named with this convention:
distro_name-{ph,vm}-{desktop,server}-arch, where ph: physical host; vm: virtual machine
e.g.
fedora17-ph-desktop-x86_64 fedora17-ph-server-x86_64 centos6-vm-server-x86_64
The naming convention makes it feasible to use the above Cheetah conditional check.
Regards,
-- Zack
On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 10:38 AM, Zack Perry zack.perry@sbcglobal.netwrote:
Hi James,
Thanks for responding. My results are below.
Now, I understand that very few people would use RHEL as desktops. Fedora? Sure. But setting the installation always to text mode seems to contradict with the official RHEL 6 Installation Guide.
Is there a way to get the documented behavior, i.e. graphical by default, use text mode when desired?
Remove the "text" option from the /etc/cobbler/settings file, the line you pointed out in settings.py is the default if no setting is found in the config file.
Indeed this is the case. Now what I have is the following:
[root@cobbler ~]# less /etc/cobbler/settings [...] # kernel options that should be present in every cobbler installation. # kernel options can also be applied at the distro/profile/system # level. kernel_options: ksdevice: bootif lang: ' ' # text: ~ [...]
and
[root@cobbler ~]# cobbler system dumpvars --name=nb1 |grep kernel_options kernel_options : ksdevice=bootif lang= keyboard-configuration/layoutcode=us interface=eth0 locale=en_US kssendmac priority=critical kernel_options_post : reboot=efi kernel_options_s390x : {'vnc': '~', 'ip': False, 'RUNKS': 1, 'ramdisk_size': 40000, 'ro': '~', 'root': '/dev/ram0'}
As for the install, it may work in text mode but if you install a desktop environment you should get a system booting into init 5 instead of init 3.
My tests with CentOS 6.3, Fedora 17, and Scientific Linux 6.3 desktops have led me to conclude that even for desktop installation, if it's done in text mode, the runlevel is set to 3 in /etc/inittab instead of 5.
But, if anaconda runs in the graphical mode (the default according to RHEL and Fedora's Installation Guides), then the following happens after the first post-install reboot (assuming 'root' is the only user initially):
- The firstboot utility is launched
- The runlevel is set to 5 in /etc/inittab
This is the "officially" documented behavior and is what I tried to attain with my PXE network install tests. I used the following short Cheetah snippet in my kickstart template to switch anaconda to text mode for non-desktop installation for all three aforementioned Red Hat alike distros:
#if not $profile_name.find('-desktop-') > 0 text #end if
BTW, all my profile is named with this convention:
distro_name-{ph,vm}-{desktop,server}-arch, where ph: physical host; vm: virtual machine
e.g.
fedora17-ph-desktop-x86_64 fedora17-ph-server-x86_64 centos6-vm-server-x86_64
The naming convention makes it feasible to use the above Cheetah conditional check.
Why didn't you just add the text option to the kernel options line for the profiles if you have the different ones? I'm just curious.
Regards,
Andrew
Regards,
-- Zack
cobbler mailing list cobbler@lists.fedorahosted.org https://lists.fedorahosted.org/mailman/listinfo/cobbler
Hi Andrew, Good question ;-) I will use Larry Wall's phrase to answer you: "there is more than one way to do it" :-) Furthermore, IMHO by selecting the desired anaconda mode in the kickstart template, I save effort/time in maintaining our many profiles. With kickstart templating, even for three distros and various profiles, we only need one short master rh.cfg. Sometimes, I do avoid to use cobbler's built-in features. For example, I prefer to use a central logging server for all distros that we use (CentOS, Fedora, SL, Ubuntu) for remote installation logging and monitoring, but AFAIK the anamon cobbler facility only works for Red Hat alike system so far. [...] The naming convention makes it feasible to use the above Cheetah
conditional check. Why didn't you just add the text option to the kernel options line for the profiles if you have the different ones? I'm just curious. Regards,
Andrew Regards, -- Zack
On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 11:15 AM, Zack Perry zack.perry@sbcglobal.netwrote:
Hi Andrew,
Good question ;-) I will use Larry Wall's phrase to answer you: "there is more than one way to do it" :-)
Furthermore, IMHO by selecting the desired anaconda mode in the kickstart template, I save effort/time in maintaining our many profiles. With kickstart templating, even for three distros and various profiles, we only need one short master rh.cfg.
Sometimes, I do avoid to use cobbler's built-in features. For example, I prefer to use a central logging server for all distros that we use (CentOS, Fedora, SL, Ubuntu) for remote installation logging and monitoring, but AFAIK the anamon cobbler facility only works for Red Hat alike system so far.
Thanks. Just curious.
Andrew
[...]
The naming convention makes it feasible to use the above Cheetah conditional check.
Why didn't you just add the text option to the kernel options line for the profiles if you have the different ones? I'm just curious.
Regards,
Andrew
Regards,
-- Zack
cobbler mailing list cobbler@lists.fedorahosted.org https://lists.fedorahosted.org/mailman/listinfo/cobbler
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