[Bug 1884933] Re: Backport casper changes from groovy to support interactive network boot on focal, and improved interractive boot UX on server

[Brian Murray]

Hello Dimitri, or anyone else affected,

Accepted casper into focal-proposed. The package will build now and be
available at https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/casper/1.445.1 in a
few hours, and then in the -proposed repository.

Please help us by testing this new package.  To properly test it you
will need to obtain and boot a daily build of a Live CD for focal.  Your
feedback will aid us getting this update out to other Ubuntu users.

If this package fixes the bug for you, please add a comment to this bug,
mentioning the version of the package you tested, what testing has been
performed on the package and change the tag from verification-needed-
focal to verification-done-focal. If it does not fix the bug for you,
please add a comment stating that, and change the tag to verification-
failed-focal. In either case, without details of your testing we will
not be able to proceed.

Further information regarding the verification process can be found at
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/QATeam/PerformingSRUVerification .  Thank you in
advance for helping!

N.B. The updated package will be released to -updates after the bug(s)
fixed by this package have been verified and the package has been in
-proposed for a minimum of 7 days.

** Changed in: casper (Ubuntu Focal)
       Status: In Progress => Fix Committed

** Tags added: verification-needed verification-needed-focal

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1884933

Title:
  Backport casper changes from groovy to support interactive network
  boot on focal, and improved interractive boot UX on server

Status in casper package in Ubuntu:
  Fix Released
Status in casper source package in Focal:
  Fix Committed

Bug description:
  [Impact]

   * With legacy-server iso in focal it is possible to network boot and interactively setup networking configuration.
   * This feature lacks in the initrd used by subiquity, and thus is not available on the live-server.
   * This feature is now implemented in groovy and has been tested to work on multiple architectures, including s390x specific hardware (zdev code path)
   * Backport this feature to focal for 20.04.1

  [Test Case - interractive boot]

   * Build live-server iso with proposed pocket enabled

   * Download just the kernel & initrd artefacts

   * Boot kerenl & initrd and specify ignore_uuid kernel cmdline
  parameter, but nothing about ip= or url= and _without_ any subiquity
  iso attached.

   * Wait for boot to offer to perform network boot, configure
  networking, and accept default url, await to be booted to subiquity
  welcome screen

  [Test case - improved UX]

   * During live server boot, there is no plymouth running, and thus
  some messages displayed during boot are ugly warnings, which are
  harmless and actually should not be there or improved:

    - Newline added between progress '.....' and the check result message
    - Warning "Connection to playmouth" is dropped, as server normally boots without plymouth, thus this warning should not be printed.
    - Failure to mount /cow -> the code to expose /cow in the root never worked, and always printed error, stop doing that.

   * Ideally, booting kernel+initrd with "quiet" should result in crisp
  experience without a single warning message printed, until one is
  informed that local installation media was not found and remote
  network boot is offered.

   * Test case is to check that fsck progress dots look nice, there is
  no inline mixed '....' with text, and that there is no "Connection to
  plymouth" error message, or an error message about /cow.

  
  [Regression Potential]

   * Previously when booting kernel/initrd without iso attached to the
  machine, the boot would fail and drop to emergency shell. Now
  interactive network setup is offered, and if that fails, then drop to
  emergency shell. So whilst there is added interactivity, eventually
  dropping to emergency shell is still there.

  [Other Info]

   * There are many other bug reports requesting this feature, all of
  which will be closed once this update lands on the daily isos.

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