Automatic installation

[Javier Domingo]

Hi,

I have just made a little report on the ubuntu-qa meeting on my efforts to
make an automatic installation of the testing features. In this email I
want to explain what I intended to do, what I have achieved, how did I
achieve and which problems I see there might be.

*What I intend to do*
I want to create a system to automate installations. Not that...
complicated as the orchestra project, which to my eyes seems quite
complicated. I wanted to create in some way a tutorial on how to speed up
ubuntu installations, either by using a proxy for the apt stuff, or by
using kickstart files to get those systems installed automatically. This is
also helpful either if you are going to use VMs or real machines.

I wanted to keep it simple, having as a reference cobbler, but not like
that, as I can't fully understand were are things taken from.

*What I have achieved*

I have achieved to boot from network different installations depending on
the computer, and automate some part of the process

*How did I do that*

I started thinking about this in an office as a form to deploy systems
without using CDs. I followed the ubuntu's wiki on how to netboot in a
local network, jumping between the several pages about the same stuff, as
not all of them seemed simple to me, the ones I followed are [1] and [2].
It would be nice having that documentation a little more together, without
mixing all the time the different servers there are.

I used the bootp implementation as it seemed to me the most easy one to do.
I didn't notice any problem on having more than one DHCP server, but didn't
test that in too many environments.

To create the preseeding files, I used the ubuntu wiki, with info
containing preseeding [3]

*Problems I had*

The bootp and the tftpd packages, do not have problems, I mean, they were
easy to configure.

The biggest trouble I had was by automating installation. Tried with the
kickstart app, but it was imposible to specify packages through the GUI.
system-config-kickstart app is not fully functional, but I stopped trying
as I read that for debian systems, there was a better support on preseed
that on kickstart. I searched about an hybrid solution, but didn't found
one.

I am trying to figure out how do things with netboot images work to create
a custom image in which to select which release I want to install (from my
point of view, this would be the very best better improvement), and just
vary which preseeding file does the installer to select the OS. In this
way, all I had to modify, would be the preseed, which is easy to do with
bootp.

*Summing up*
I haven't yet starting coding a configuration GUI for making this easier,
as I wanted to consult the rest of people about any other solutions. I have
selected this programs (bootp and tftpd) because they just what I need to.

I see cobbler as a part of orchestra (It has its logo even if you just
install cobbler packet), and it is very complex from my point of view, and
have tried to get some support, but no one replied in #cobbler nor
#ubuntu-server, the docs are very focused on fedora, and in importing dvds
and cds. Although it would be perfect if it worked with bootp and tftpd,
under it, with a plain configuration file.

FAI, is not an option, as it would require more hardware/software.

Using dhcpd would be the alternative to bootpd, but it seems more
complicated to me than bootpd. Tftpd has no alternatives (didn't search
either).

I also had the intention to install jenkins, and create a testing-something
to do automated tests, and lots more ideas.

I hope my intervention, a little off-topic in the meeting, didn't annoy
anyone and add that I am very happy to be in this team.

Animo!, (<-- cheer up in Spanish, but I don't see it with the same eyes in
English ;-) )

Javier Domingo

[1]: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Installation/LocalNet
[2]:
https://help.ubuntu.com/11.10/installation-guide/i386/install-tftp.html#tftp-images
[3]:
https://help.ubuntu.com/11.10/installation-guide/i386/appendix-preseed.html
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