Hello,
We currently use Image For Linux to backup and restore images to linux workstations of identical hardware in our organizations. We currently boot from USB then have to navigate the IFL menu to restore the backup. We'd like to get the manual steps down to zero. I'd like to pxe boot a machine on a certain subnet and have it download and restore a specific image without needing to have a keyboard, monitor or mouse installed on the machine that is being imaged. Has anyone done this with IFL? Is it possible?
Second question, is IFL compatible with the dd utility? For instance, can I decompress an IFL image and specify it as the infile for dd?
Thanks!!
Completely unattended PXE Install possible?
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TeraByte Support(TP)
- Posts: 305
- Joined: Wed Aug 31, 2011 4:22 pm
Re: Completely unattended PXE Install possible?
jsp wrote:
> Hello,
>
> We currently use Image For Linux to backup and restore images to linux
> workstations of identical hardware in our organizations. We currently boot
> from USB then have to navigate the IFL menu to restore the backup. We'd
> like to get the manual steps down to zero. I'd like to pxe boot a machine
> on a certain subnet and have it download and restore a specific image
> without needing to have a keyboard, monitor or mouse installed on the
> machine that is being imaged. Has anyone done this with IFL? Is it
> possible?
The IFL restore could be automated with a script from the USB boot, as well as from a PXE boot. The script you need to do the restore can be created by IFL itself by using the Show Command / Save Command options (see page 70 of the IFL User Manual). Adding the script to the IFL boot disk is covered in this KB article: https://www.terabyteunlimited.com/kb/article.php?id=464
Note that for USB boot, the script can be added to the IFL boot disk while creating the boot media from either Windows or Linux, while for PXE you will need to do it from Linux by using the 'makePXE' script (included with IFL zip file, available after extracting).
The KB article below covers details of setting up a network boot for IFL, using the PXELINUX boot loader:
https://www.terabyteunlimited.com/kb/article.php?id=597
PXELINUX works on traditional BIOS systems.
PXE booting with IFL is currently not supported on UEFI systems.
>
> Second question, is IFL compatible with the dd utility? For instance, can I
> decompress an IFL image and specify it as the infile for dd?
No, TBI images require IFL/IFD/IFW to restore them. 'dd' would go ahead and write the file's contents to disk, but it wouldn't result in a working system.
> Hello,
>
> We currently use Image For Linux to backup and restore images to linux
> workstations of identical hardware in our organizations. We currently boot
> from USB then have to navigate the IFL menu to restore the backup. We'd
> like to get the manual steps down to zero. I'd like to pxe boot a machine
> on a certain subnet and have it download and restore a specific image
> without needing to have a keyboard, monitor or mouse installed on the
> machine that is being imaged. Has anyone done this with IFL? Is it
> possible?
The IFL restore could be automated with a script from the USB boot, as well as from a PXE boot. The script you need to do the restore can be created by IFL itself by using the Show Command / Save Command options (see page 70 of the IFL User Manual). Adding the script to the IFL boot disk is covered in this KB article: https://www.terabyteunlimited.com/kb/article.php?id=464
Note that for USB boot, the script can be added to the IFL boot disk while creating the boot media from either Windows or Linux, while for PXE you will need to do it from Linux by using the 'makePXE' script (included with IFL zip file, available after extracting).
The KB article below covers details of setting up a network boot for IFL, using the PXELINUX boot loader:
https://www.terabyteunlimited.com/kb/article.php?id=597
PXELINUX works on traditional BIOS systems.
PXE booting with IFL is currently not supported on UEFI systems.
>
> Second question, is IFL compatible with the dd utility? For instance, can I
> decompress an IFL image and specify it as the infile for dd?
No, TBI images require IFL/IFD/IFW to restore them. 'dd' would go ahead and write the file's contents to disk, but it wouldn't result in a working system.