How To Create IFL Boot Media From A Linux Distribution
This tutorial covers how to create IFL boot media when working from a Linux distribution. Before creating
any boot media, you need to first set up IFL on your Linux distribution as described in the tutorial
Setting Up Image for Linux On A Linux
Distribution. If you intend to create any boot media other than the default CD/DVD, you will need to
accept the setup script option to extract config.zip, as explained in that tutorial. Doing so makes the
necessary files and directories available.
When working with IFL from Linux, you can create boot media as a CD/DVD, a USB flash drive (partitioned or
non-partitioned), a hard drive partition, or a set of files for PXE network boot. Each type can be either the
default IFL Boot Disk, or a customized version of it. The default CD/DVD can be created by simply burning
the included file iflnet.iso to CD/DVD using appropriate burner software such as K3b. To create
the default version on other types of boot media, or to create any custom version, you will need to
use one of the included make scripts as follows:
makeISO -create custom version as an ISO file that can be burned to a CD/DVD
makeHDD - create default or custom version on a USB flash drive or hard drive partition
makePXE - create default or custom version as a set of files for PXE network boot
Section 1: How to create the default version of IFL boot media
Creating the default version of IFL boot media does not require editing or creating any files, and there
are no menus or options available to change settings. The end result will be the exact same
version of the IFL Boot Disk that is created from MakeDisk in Windows, or by burning the file iflnet.iso
to CD/DVD from Linux. The default version can be created on any of the following boot media types:
CD/DVD: Burn the included file iflnet.iso to CD/DVD using appropriate burner software (such as K3b).
USB flash drive or hard drive partition: Use the makeHDD script covered in Section 4 below.
PXE network boot files: Use the makePXE script covered in Section 5 below.
Please note again that in order to create the default boot media as anything other than a CD/DVD (or to create
any custom boot media), the file config.zip must be extracted while running the
setup script
so that the IFL directory contains the files and directories shown in the screenshot below:
If necessary, you can run the setup script again to extract config.zip.
Section 2: How to create a custom version of IFL boot media
As with the default version,
a custom version can be created on a CD/DVD, a USB flash
drive (partitioned or non-partitioned), a hard drive
partition, or as a set of files for PXE network boot. To be able to create a custom version, the file config.zip must be
extracted while running the setup script so that the IFL directory contains the files and directories shown in the
screenshot below:If necessary, you can run the setup script again to extract config.zip.
The overall procedure for creating a custom version of IFL boot media can be divided into two general steps:
Step 1: Customize some/all/none of items 1 through 6 listed below as needed (optional)
There are several items listed below that can be customized by
editing/creating files, or by changing the contents of certain
directories. All of them are
completely optional,
and each one of them can be skipped if that particular aspect of the boot disk is
not going to
be customized. These customizable items can be summarized as follows:- The config.txt file: This file can be edited to customize certain aspects of the boot disk, such as timezone, sshd configuration, and network configuration. The config.txt file is commented to explain each option. If you do not change anything in config.txt, the file will still be included on the disk, but will have no effect.
- The ifl-custom.ini file: This file is empty by default, but can be edited to specify any desired ifl.ini settings for customized boot media. This file will be included on all custom boot media, and will appear as ifl.ini in the /tbu directory on the boot disk. If you have no need for any IFL settings, the file can be left empty - it won't have any effect. Note that this file is named ifl-custom.ini to separate it from the ifl.ini file in the IFL directory. The settings in ifl.ini (if any) are for IFL when executed from the Linux distribution. Please refer to the file custom_ifl_ini.txt in the help directory for more information.
- The wireless directory: The contents of this directory are used to configure wireless networking on custom boot media. Please refer to the file wireless.txt in the help directory for information on how to set up and configure a wireless network adapter. Note that some wireless adapters may not be supported. Also note that some options in config.txt will also need to be configured for wireless.
- The scripts directory: This directory is empty by default, but can be used to include executable shell scripts on custom boot media. If desired, populate the scripts directory with one or more shell scripts that you want to include on the boot media. To have one or more of those scripts executed automatically on boot, you also need to configure the RUNSCRIPTS option in config.txt. The default is that NO scripts will be executed. It is not necessary to set permissions on the scripts. That will be taken care of automatically. Please refer to the file scripts.txt in the help directory for more information.
- The iscsi directory: This directory can be used to customize the iscsi configuration on custom boot media. If desired, set up the iscsi directory as needed to work with your network and iscsi target setup.When creating custom boot media, the ENTIRE iscsi directory will be copied to the root file system at /etc/iscsi, and will replace the default iscsi directory already there. The iscsi directory initially contains a copy of the default /etc/iscsi directory, so if no changes are made, creating custom boot media will have no effect on iscsi operation. Please refer to the file iscsi.txt in the help directory for more information.
- The tbosdtfiles directory: This directory is empty by default, but can be used to include files for the TBOSDT program (such as TBOSDT scripts, driver files,etc.) on custom boot media. The TBOSDT program is included on the IFL Boot Disc by default. The tbosdtfiles directory, as well as any files you place there, will be included on the custom boot disk in the /tbu directory.
Step 2: Run the appropriate make script, depending on which type of boot media is to be created.
The remaining customizable options are made available when running one of the make scripts as follows:
CD/DVD: Use the makeISO
script covered in Section 3 below.
USB flash drive or hard drive partition: Use
the makeHDD script.covered in Section 4 below.
PXE network boot files:
Use the makePXE script covered in Section 5 below.
Section 3: How to use the makeISO script
The makeISO script creates a custom
ISO file based on the changes (if any) made in the items listed in Step
1 of Section 2 above, as well as the options selected while running
makeISO itself. The custom ISO file will
be named iflnet-custom.iso, and will appear in the IFL directory when the script
completes, ready to be burned to CD/DVD. The makeISO script has no
command line options, and always creates a custom version.
To run the makeISO script, open a terminal window such as Konsole in
KDE, or Gnome Terminal in Gnome. These will typically open with your home directory as the
current directory. Then use the 'cd' command to change to the IFL directory. For example,
if IFL was set up in /home/demo/Desktop/ifl_en, then the command would be
'cd Desktop/ifl_en' Then run the 'su' command to
become root, and enter the root password when prompted. Then, as root, start the makeISO script
with the command './makeISO'.
The screenshot below shows the above commands entered, with the makeISO script about to be started.
If your distribution has the root account disabled (such as in
Ubuntu), the 'su' command will fail. In that case, skip the 'su'
command, and instead run the command 'sudo ./makeISO'.
You will be
prompted for the user password before the script will run.
The makeISO script will present the IFL
Boot Media Settings menu, and then some additional option
prompts. The screens and option prompts you will see are
covered
in Section 6 below (these are common to all the make
scripts). After the menu screens and option prompts, the
makeISO script will complete and return you to the command prompt. The
screenshot below shows the makeISO script completing after creating a
custom ISO file:
The file iflnet-custom.iso should now exist in the IFL directory, and this file
can be burned to CD/DVD to create the custom boot disk.
Section 4: How to use the makeHDD script
The makeHDD script is used to create the default or a custom version of IFL
boot media on a USB flash drive (partitioned or non-partitioned), or on a
hard drive partition. The target drive or partition must be specified
on the makeHDD command line, which has the following syntax:
./makeHDD <target drive or partition> [/c] [/a] [/mbr]
The target drive or partition must be specified in the Linux device file
format (/dev/xyz), and it must be the first parameter on the command line. The makeHDD script
will only install to an entire (non-partitioned) drive if that drive is detected by Linux as being a
removable drive (such as a USB flash drive). It will also install to a partition on either a
removable drive, or on a fixed hard drive. If installing to a partition, the partition must
already exist, and must be a FAT, FAT32, or Linux native partition (type 83h). There is no
requirement for the partition to be formatted, although it won't matter if it is (makeHDD will
format it regardless). The makeHDD script will check for these conditions (and others), and
will exit with an error message if it detects a problem.
The /c option is used to
create a custom version. When using this option, makeHDD creates a custom
version based on the changes (if any) made in the items listed in Step 1 of Section 2
above, as well as the options selected while running makeHDD itself. If the /c option is not used,
makeHDD will create the default version.
The /a option is used to set the target partition active, and therefore is only applicable when
installing to a partition.
The /mbr option is used to install the standard MBR code to the drive when installing to a partition
on a removable drive. This option, along with the /a option, can be used to ensure that
a partitioned USB flash drive will boot from the target partition when the system BIOS is
set to boot from that drive.
To see a summary of command line parameters/options, and
some typical command line examples, run the command './makeHDD' without any parameters.
To run the makeHDD script, open a terminal window such as Konsole in KDE, or Gnome
Terminal in Gnome. These will typically open with your home directory as the current directory.
Then use the 'cd' command to change to the IFL directory. For example, if IFL was set up in
/home/demo/Desktop/ifl_en, then the command would be 'cd Desktop/ifl_en'. Then run the 'su'
command to become root, and enter the root password when prompted. Then, as root, start the makeHDD script
by typing in the appropriate command line.
The screenshot below shows the above commands entered and makeHDD
about to be started with a command line that will create the default
version on a USB flash drive at /dev/sdc (please note that /dev/sdc is just
an example - the actual drive or partition must used):
If your distribution has the root account disabled (such as in
Ubuntu), the 'su' command will fail. In
that case, skip the 'su' command, and instead run the command 'sudo ./makeHDD /dev/sdc'.
You will be prompted for the user password before the script will run.
Note that since an entire drive was specified (rather than a partition), the end result
will be a non-partitioned drive. If any partitions currently exist on the drive, they will
all be deleted when makeHDD completes.
When makeHDD starts, it will do some checks (such as drive exists, drive not currently mounted,
etc.), and then display a confirmation prompt. It will also display a summary of relevant information,
such as the command line entered, the target drive, and the size of the drive. This information should
be carefully reviewed to ensure that you are installing to the intended (correct) target. If so, type 'yes'
at the confirmation prompt to continue. If not, type anything else to abort the process.
The screenshot below shows the confirmation screen for installing to a USB flash drive at /dev/sdc:
Since the command line entered was to create the default
version (the /c option was not used), typing 'yes' will result in
makeHDD completing without any further user input required. The
screenshot below shows the makeHDD script completing the install of the
default version to drive /dev/sdc:
To create a custom
version on the same USB flash drive, you would simply add the /c option
to the makeHDD command line. The actual command line would then be './makeHDD /dev/sdc /c'.
Please note again that the target drive or partition must always be the first command line parameter,
followed by any applicable option(s). The options (if more than one) can be in any order.
When creating a custom version, the same confirmation screen will be displayed as for the default
version, requiring that you type 'yes' to continue. After confirming, makeHDD
will present the IFL Boot Media Settings menu and then some additional option prompts. The screens and
option prompts you will see are covered in Section 6 below (these are common to all the make scripts).
After the menu screens and option prompts, the makeHDD script will complete and return you to the command prompt.
The screenshot below shows makeHDD completing after creating a custom version:
For some additional information on using makeHDD, please refer to Section 2
of the file readme.txt in the IFL directory.
Section 5: How to use the makePXE script
The makePXE script is used to create the default or a custom version as a
set of boot files for PXE network boot. When the script completes, the
set of files it creates will be found in the pxe directory (which will
be created if it doesn't already exist). Please refer to the file
pxe.txt in the help directory for information on how to use the boot
files to set up a PXE network boot.
To create the default
version of IFL boot media, run makePXE without any command line options.
To create a custom version, run makePXE with the /c option. When using
this option, makePXE creates a custom version based on the changes (if any) made in the
items listed in Step 1 of Section 2 above, as well as the options selected while running
makePXE itself.
To run the makePXE script, open a terminal window such as Konsole in KDE, or Gnome
Terminal in Gnome. These will typically open with your home directory as the current directory.
Then use the 'cd' command to change to the IFL directory. For example, if IFL was set up in
/home/demo/Desktop/ifl_en, then the command would be 'cd Desktop/ifl_en'. Then
run the 'su' command to become root, and enter the root password when prompted.
Then, as root, start the makePXE script with the command './makePXE' to create
the default version, or 'makePXE /c' to create a custom version.
The screenshot below shows the above commands entered, with the makePXE script about to be
started to create the default version:
If your distribution has the root account disabled (such as in Ubuntu), the 'su' command will fail.
In that case, skip the 'su' command, and instead run the command 'sudo ./makePXE' (default) or
'sudo ./makePXE /c' (custom). You will be prompted for the user password before the
script will run.
When creating the default version, makePXE will complete without further user input, and return you to the command
prompt. The screenshot below shows the output of the makePXE script when creating the default version of the IFL
Boot Disk:
When creating a custom version (the /c option is used), makePXE will present the IFL Boot Media Settings menu
and then some additional option prompts. The screens and option prompts you will see are covered in
Section 6 below (these are common to all the make scripts). After the menu screens and option prompts,
the makePXE script will complete and return you to the command prompt.
The screenshot below
shows the makePXE script completing after creating a custom version:
Section 6: The IFL Boot Media Settings menu and option prompts
This section covers the IFL Boot Media Settings menu and the additional
option prompts. These are common to all of the make scripts when creating a custom version.
The IFL Boot Media Settings menu appears first, and is shown in the screenshot below:
At this menu, you can simply press <Enter> to keep all settings at their defaults
(or previously set values), or you can select items from the menu to change. Each menu item
contains help text to guide you through the selection. If you want to return to all default settings,
the "All Defaults" menu item can be used for that purpose. That menu item will restore all boot
media settings and all restore disc settings to defaults. It will ask for confirmation first.
As an example of one of the menu items, the screenshot below shows the screen displayed when choosing
"IFL Language Version" from the menu:
On this screen, only English will be available by default. As the help text explains, additional language
versions can be made available on this screen by downloading one or more IFL language version zip files
from the TeraByte Unlimited web site, and copying the zip file(s) to the IFL directory before running
the make script. The zip files should not be extracted, just copied to the directory
as zip files.
Please note that the IFL language version zip files are named differently for the registered and trial
versions of IFL, and they are downloaded from different locations. For example, the French language zip
file for the registered version of IFL is named ifl_fr.zip,
and is downloaded from the Product Download Page for registered users.
On the other hand, the French language zip file for the trial version of IFL is named
ifl_fr_trial.zip, and is downloaded from the
Image for Linux product page.
To view/change restore disc settings for restore discs created from the boot media, select
the "Restore Disc Settings" item on the IFL Boot Media Settings menu. The first time each session that you
choose this item, an information screen will come up that explains the Restore Disc Settings menu that will
appear next:
Pressing <Enter> at this screen will then bring up the Restore Disc Settings menu:
Any settings changed in this menu will become the default restore disc settings for the boot media being
created, and will apply to all restore discs created from the boot media. If desired, these settings
(other than IFL Language Version) can be overridden at boot time by choosing the "View/Change Restore Disc
Settings" item from the main menu on the boot disk. Note that the restore disc settings such as keyboard
map, video mode, and IFL Language Version can be set to different values on the restore disc, as
opposed to on the boot media itself.
When finished with the Restore Disc Settings menu, highlight
the first item on the menu and press <Enter>. This will take you back to the IFL Boot Media
Settings menu.You can go back and forth between these two menus as many times as necessary during a session.
When finished, highlight the first item on the IFL Boot Media Settings menu and press <Enter>
After exiting the IFL Boot Media Settings menu, you will be prompted for two additional options. The first
option prompt determines whether or not to require a console login, and the second option prompt is to
change the root password. The screenshot below shows the prompts for these two options:
Choosing yes for the console login option means that you will be required to log in with a user name of 'root'
and a password of 'ifl' when you boot from the IFL boot media. By default, no login is
required except when logging in via an SSH session from another computer. Choosing yes for the root
password option allows you to change the default root password of 'ifl' to some other value.
After responding to these two options, the make script will complete and return you to the command prompt.