Topic: How do I install SME 7.0 Final over a network?

[TrevorB]

Hi TrevorB I think your contrib is one of the greatest available for SME!! Congratulations for your great job. But we desperately need some SME7 "TASTERS"  

Thanks I have generated a thinstation one, but can't get into my contribs directory to store it. Will publish when I can upload.

I dont know what am I doing wrong but I havent been able to get a fresh thinstation pxe build running.

Have you set the 'param basepath' in your build.conf to the directory name you have used for your 'thinstation' distribution? (ie. if you have set your 'Directory (/tftpboot/):' item to 'ts' in the Add Distribution screen of server-manager, you need to have 'param basepath ts' in your thinstation build.conf).

Why? Thinstation uses that param to determine where to lolok for the config files (apparently so that you can store the config files seperately to the pxelinux.0 etc.).

Do you have any quick howto on using TS-o-Matic generated files with your contrib? I think this would be a wonderful complement for your outstanding contrib!

I have started a Thinclient usage page in the wiki that will include some of these tips... When I get around to it   (http://wiki.contribs.org/Thinclient_usage)

[TrevorB]

Do you have any quick howto on using TS-o-Matic generated files with your contrib?

Do you think a TS-O-Matic contrib is needed?

TS-O-Matic works nicely on smeserver and is very easy to install (seeing I develop & test on this platform  

Trevor B

[yorchis]

Im Sorry TrevorB, english is not my main language and I maybe explained my self wrong.

What I meant is that I would be great to have something like "How to build, install and serve thinstation distros with TrevorB's contrib, using TS-o-MATIC".

My case is:  
- I installed your contrib (wich I insist is great!)
- went to Ts-o-matic webpage, built using the wizard a taylored thinstation contrib
- downloaded the .pxe oriented results
- And now I wasnt sure where to place them, so I followed my instincts and readme's and after several testing (rebooting installing testing re-downloading on some cases) about 2 hours later, I have figured out where everything goes... But I'm still not sure if I did what is best or right, it more or less works. But I am not satisfied

I am using sme server 7.1, and I dont know where to put a second thinstation distro, I am not sure about the folders I created. And without your advice on the base path, I was abolutely lost! I have forgot to thank you! Thank you!

Now things work, but I won't dare to change anything, I still feel I just got lucky.

What and where do we need to get/put ts-o-matic generated files? Folders, and conf files?

[TrevorB]

Im Sorry TrevorB, english is not my main language and I maybe explained my self wrong.

One of the joys of Open Source is that we can all be involved.

Your English is fine. Even 2 native English speakers have difficulty in understanding what someone really wants/needs through forums/e-mail

What and where do we need to get/put ts-o-matic generated files? Folders, and conf files?

Have you read my Thin-client Howto (mentioned above - I have updated it a little).

Especially the section on Manual distributions where I give an example of Thinstation configuration?

To add a second one:

create another manual distribution with a different name and directory (<new dir>, eg. ts2)
ensure that you set the param basepath in build.conf to <new dir>
copy the files from the PXE download page to /tftpboot/<new dir>

You may not even need to do that.  Drop an e-mail to the thinstation-general mailing list stating what you are trying to achieve and we'll see if we can help you over there...

Trevor B

[yorchis]

Thank you very much for your comments TrevorB, thats what makes Open Source great!!!

I did have read your HowTo, but you really have grown it since my last visit! I Now I see all my questions (and prayers)  answered! =)
   
I see there is now a directory structure description and an Example! I havent tested yet but for what I see, I bet I wont have any more trouble!

I am really not trying to do anything special, I am just trying to distribuite thinstation to be  a Citrix Client, from sme via pxe boot, to a group of computers with different hardware.

I would be very happy to contact the thinstation mailing list, but I think i will save their time, until I start to experiment with the double head displays  =) (hope It works great)

[TrevorB]

Thank you very much for your comments TrevorB, thats what makes Open Source great!!!

It is isn't it

I am really not trying to do anything special, I am just trying to distribuite thinstation to be  a Citrix Client, from sme via pxe boot, to a group of computers with different hardware.

I would be very happy to contact the thinstation mailing list, but I think i will save their time, until I start to experiment with the double head displays  =) (hope It works great)

It's still not a bad idea to start talking to them..

Not as structured as smeserver, but still a good group.

There are a number of ways to deal with different hardware setups (eg. different images controlled via the Thinclient contrib on your smeserver or via the specific thinstation hosts file), so you may find some help there.

Dual-head is still experimental in TS, so help will probably be needed

Good Luck
Trevor B

[misnerspace]

I'm still pretty new to SME but am now really getting to understand the potential of it. I was wondering if the following is possible with PXE and Trevor's contribs.

I have about a 15 PCs all with exactly the same configuration. Presently I use  Ghost to image all of these PCs using a ghost backup CD and the PCs CD drive.

What I would like to is enable PXE on each PC to boot of SME server every so often so I can copy a fresh image from the network onto each PC.

The individual PCs should boot up using MS-DOS so I can run the DOS version of Ghost from the network. The network will contain the ghost image.

Every so often I will need to make a new image and copy it back onto the network.

I'm not sure if this is the correct way of doing things so any alternatives would be nice.

I have used Barts Network Boot Disk before but I would prefer not to use it as the motherboards 'have' PXE.  Any info would be really appreciated!

[TrevorB]

I have about a 15 PCs all with exactly the same configuration. Presently I use  Ghost to image all of these PCs using a ghost backup CD and the PCs CD drive.

Do you really need to have the OS on the local harddrive? Couldn't you load down the image each boot?

What I would like to is enable PXE on each PC to boot of SME server every so often so I can copy a fresh image from the network onto each PC.

One of the pxelinux options is 'LOCALBOOT 0'. This boot from the local harddrive, so you can put options in your pxelinux.cfg/default file to

boot from local harddisk
boot a specific image from server
boot a different image from server

Of course you may not want the users have that control, and in this case you would decide which 'distribution' to run from the Thinclient panel. That would be your default and when you wanted to do a clone you would point them at the 'clone' distribution.
Hint: one of those distributions could point at a directory that includes a pxelinux.o file and a pxelinux.cfg/default file that only has one label with 'LOCALBOOT 0'.

I haven't played with booting dos images via PXE, but I believe it is possible via Memdisk (part of the pxelinux family).

The individual PCs should boot up using MS-DOS so I can run the DOS version of Ghost from the network. The network will contain the ghost image.

Every so often I will need to make a new image and copy it back onto the network.

In all honesty you are trying to do something that looks like it would suit something like openqrm. Look in the manual under Deployment/Local Images.

Good Luck
Trevor B

[misnerspace]

Hi TrevorB, thanks for all the very useful  info, I've got a good excuse to have some fun trying some of these things out this weekend!

[yorchis]

Hi TrevorB, Now I really see the power of a TS-o-Matic Contrib, this really gives you the power to deploy per PC Thinstation taylored down pxe bootable images on SITE!
and Without the need of internet access.
I hope every one sees how great this is ( for those who hasn't tested it TS-o-Matic is an online minidistro builder, where you chose on a wizard what kind of modules and packages your "thinstation" image will have. )

Thats the greatness of the Thinstation project.

Now some years ago I (thank god) downloaded your TS-o-Matic Contrib for sme 6.X :  smeserver-TSoM-1.6.1-4.noarch.rpm, but I cant find it anymore listed on the contrib.org site.

My question is have you released a newer version for your contrib? or does it works with sme 7.X ?

[TrevorB]

My question is have you released a newer version for your contrib? or does it works with sme 7.X ?

Didn't know if anyone used it...

smeserver-TSoM-1.6.1-4.noarch.rpm should work with with 7.x, but I haven't even tried. If you do install it, ask me for a copy of the latest TSoM and you'll be able to put that in the /opt/TSoM directory.

I'll package up a new one with the latest stable TSoM (1.9.1) and put it up in my old contribs area

Trevor B

[yorchis]

Thank you very much Trevor I have just tested and It does work just like you said, any way I think the upgrade contrib would be much better! thank you.

[tias_]

I followed your description but got stuck with the moment:
Copy the contents of http://mirror.contribs.org/smeserver/contribs/trevorb/7.x/Thinclient/SME_Install/ to your /tftpboot/sme7.0 directory

The stuff on the server doesn't exist. The PXEboot doesn't start without that info and I can't find another way to solve this. Which file do I miss?

[TrevorB]

I followed your description but got stuck with the moment:
Copy the contents of http://mirror.contribs.org/smeserver/contribs/trevorb/7.x/Thinclient/SME_Install/ to your /tftpboot/sme7.0 directory

The stuff on the server doesn't exist. The PXEboot doesn't start without that info and I can't find another way to solve this. Which file do I miss?

Hmmm.... You're right!

Jon Bennet's howto explains what the files are, but in summary (without my downloads):

Code: [Select]

1.  cd /tftpboot/sme7.0 and copy the following files from the SME Server 7 CD-ROM /images/pxeboot directory to the this directory:

initrd.img
init586.img
vmlinuz
vmlz586

2.  Copy pxelinux.0 from /usr/lib/syslinux/pxelinux.0 (Which is located in /usr/lib/syslinux/pxelinux.0 on a fresh SME Server 7 install) to this directory

3.  Create a directory called /tftpboot/sme7.0/pxelinux.cfg

4.  Create a file called /tftpboot/sme7.0/pxelinux.cfg/default with the following contents:

prompt 0
implicit 0
timeout 0
default install

label install
  kernel vmlinuz
  append initrd=initrd.img ramdisk_size=8192

5.  chmod -R 644 /tftpboot
Good Luck
Trevor B

[mgb]

255753500 udpsvd: info: start 7970 total.lib:192.168.183.2 :pc-00233.lib:192.168.183.233:2071
2008-08-28 12:39:56.260197500 udpsvd: info: end 7970
  help