Graphical installation of Scientific Linux 6 on ServerLoft servers

I have been using leased servers in some projects for a long time and one of the data centers I use is ServerLoft .

Recently (to be precise, after the release of RHEL6) it became necessary to install CentOS6 or SL6 on a server, but the problem is that ServerLoft does not offer the option of installing version 6 of the OS data (for now at least). Manually installing the OS specialists of this DC do not produce.

Almost all servers in ServerLoft are provided with IPMI / iLO / iRMC / etc. Due to this fact, a text console can be obtained on the server, and even a graphical one for HP servers, and this makes it possible to install the required OS without any particular difficulties.
')
Details below.

The installation of Scientific Linux 6 will be discussed below (the CentOS6 installation shouldn’t be any different, but I didn’t put the 6th CentOS because of its slow but sure departure to the dustbin of history, unfortunately for the community).

If the server is just provided, then to start the installation of the SL6 you need to go to the interface of the ServerLoft personal account and install any version of CentOS5 (I usually install CentOS5 x86_64 minimal RAID1) through Restore.

After a successful Restore procedure, you must have SSH root access to the target server.

IPMI

Typically, the Restore procedure involves automatically configuring the IPMI interface on the server.
The IP address of the management interface (also known as IPMI) can be viewed in your account in the server description. Immediately I recommend trying to access HTTPS at this IP address and make sure that you see something sane in the browser, otherwise you need to issue a ticket and inform the experts that you have problems with IPMI (such problems are usually solved by restarting power).

Now you can go to the server and change the password to IPMI.

Determine which IPMI channel is responsible for interacting with the network:

# for i in {0..15}; do ipmitool channel info $i 2>/dev/null | grep -i LAN > /dev/null && echo $i; done

Usually, channel 2 is responsible for LAN. It will be used in the future. If your script above returned something else, then this number should be used further.

Now look at the list of users on the second channel:

# ipmitool user list 2

Usually the list looks like this or similar:

 ID Name Enabled Callin Link Auth IPMI Msg Channel Priv Limit
 1 true true true true Unknown (0x00)
 2 root true true true OEM OEM

Now we change the password for the user "" and root:

# ipmitool user set password 1 somesecret
# ipmitool user set password 2 somesecret

Note: a password of more than 16 characters is not recommended, as it is not recommended to use special characters in the password.

Now it's time to check out what the serial console allows us from a remote computer:

$ ipmiconsole -W sun20,solpayloadsize -h 10.20.30.40 -u root -p somesecret --serial-keepalive

where 10.20.30.40 is the IP address of your IPMI.

If the session is opened, we see “[SOL established]” on the screen and the program did not end immediately (with an error), then success is achieved - we have a serial console (serial over LAN).

Usually, the servers in ServerLoft after installation are immediately configured in such a way that agetty is running on the serial console and if you press Enter, you will see an invitation to login.

To open the console, you can use ipmitool instead of ipmiconsole, but the last one in my experience works in more cases.

It is worth noting that each manufacturer makes IPMI on the principle of "who is in that much," so sometimes something can work in one case and not work in another.

Kernel and initrd image of SL6, boot into installer

Now you need to download the installation kernel and the initrd image of SL6, and then boot into this new kernel.

# cd /boot/
# wget ftp1.scientificlinux.org/linux/scientific/6.1/x86_64/os/isolinux/vmlinuz
# wget ftp1.scientificlinux.org/linux/scientific/6.1/x86_64/os/isolinux/initrd.img


Open for editing /etc/grub.conf and bring it to a similar form:

 # grub.conf generated by anaconda
 #
 # Note that you make changes to this file
 # NOTICE: You have a / boot partition.  This means that
 # all kernel and initrd paths are relative to / boot /, eg.  console = ttyS0,57600 console = tty0
 # root (hd0,0)
 # kernel / vmlinuz-version ro root = / dev / sda2 console = ttyS0,57600 console = tty0
 # initrd /initrd-version.img
 # boot = / dev / sda
 serial --unit = 0 --speed = 57600

 terminal --timeout = 2 serial console

 default = 1
 timeout = 5

 hiddenmenu
 title EL6
         kernel / vmlinuz console = ttyS0,57600 console = tty0 serial text
         initrd /initrd.img
 title CentOS (2.6.18-274.7.1.el5)
         root (hd0,0)
         kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.18-274.7.1.el5 ro root = LABEL = / nodmraid console = ttyS0,57600 console = tty0
         initrd /initrd-2.6.18-274.7.1.el5.img
 title CentOS (2.6.18-274.el5)
         root (hd0,0)
         kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.18-274.el5 ro root = LABEL = / nodmraid console = ttyS0.57600 console = tty0
         initrd /initrd-2.6.18-274.el5.img

Pay attention to the comments. If the / boot directory on your system is placed on a separate partition, the paths will be as in the example above, otherwise you will need to write "/ boot" at the beginning of all paths.

Key strings in grub.conf:
- “console = ttyS0,57600 console = tty0” in the parameters of each kernel - these are the settings for redirecting kernel messages to tty0, this is a terminal connected to the COM-port of the IPMI controller;
- “serial --unit = 0 --speed = 57600” and “terminal --timeout = 2 serial console” - redirecting the output of Grub to the serial console (besides the real consoles, of course);
- “default 1” - at boot time, select EL6 in Grub to install (the CentOS5 kernel and the old system will be loaded by default);
- “title EL6” - the item of the new core and further - its description.

Almost everything is ready to reboot into a new kernel. It remains only to remember the network settings to make them in the installer, because the installation will be made from network sources.

 # ip a
 1: lo: <LOOPBACK, UP, LOWER_UP> mtu 16436 qdisc noqueue 
     link / loopback 00: 00: 00: 00: 00: 00 brd 00: 00: 00: 00: 00: 00
     inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo
     inet6 :: 1/128 scope host 
        valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
 2: eth0: <BROADCAST, MULTICAST, UP, LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc pfifo_fast qlen 1000
     link / ether 00: 26: 70: 70: 70: 70 brd ff: ff: ff: ff: ff: ff
     inet 123.123.123.170/26 brd 188.138.40.191 scope global eth0
 3: eth1: <BROADCAST, MULTICAST> mtu 1500 qdisc noop qlen 1000
     link / ether 00: 26: 80: 80: 80: 80 brd ff: ff: ff: ff: ff: ff
 4: sit0: <NOARP> mtu 1480 qdisc noop 
     link / sit 0.0.0.0 brd 0.0.0.0
 #
 # ip r |  grep default
 default via 123.123.123.129 dev eth0 

Now you can reboot into the SL6 core and install.

Installation and VNC

Select the menu item created earlier in the serial console:

  GNU GRUB version 0.97 (627K lower / 2094848K upper memory)

  + ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------ +
  |  EL6 |  
  |  CentOS (2.6.18-274.7.1.el5) |
  |  CentOS (2.6.18-274.el5) |
  |  |
  |  |
  |  |
  |  |
  |  |
  |  |
  |  |
  |  |
  |  |  
  + ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------ +
       Use the ^ keys to select which entry is highlighted.
       Press enter to boot the selected OS, 'e' to edit the
       commands before booting, 'a' to modify the kernel arguments
       before booting, or 'c' for a command-line.

and watch the boot process until the installer asks the first question:

 Welcome to Scientific Linux for x86_64

                     ────────┤ Choose a Language ├────────┐
                     │ │
                     What language would you like to use │
                     │ during the installation process?  │
                     │ │
                     │ Catalan ↑ │
                     │ Chinese (Simplified) ▒ │
                     │ Chinese (Traditional) ▮ │
                     │ Croatian ▒ │
                     │ Czech ▒ │
                     │ Danish ▒ │
                     │ Dutch ▒ │
                     │ English ↓ │
                     │ │
                     ┌────┐ │
                     │ │ OK │ │
                     └────┘ │
                     │ │
                     │ │
                     ─────────────────────────────────────┘

   <Tab> / <Alt-Tab> between elements |  <Space> selects |  <F12> next screen

We go on the dialogue.

Now the installer asks about the installation method.

 Welcome to Scientific Linux for x86_64

                                                                                
                                                                                
                         ───┤ Installation Method ├───┐                         
                         │ │                         
                         │ What type of media contains                         
                         │ the installation image?  │                         
                         │ │                         
                         │ Local CD / DVD │                         
                         │ Hard drive                         
                         │ NFS directory │                         
                         │ URL                         
                         │ │                         
                         ┌────┐ ┌──────┐ ┐                         
                         │ │ OK │ │ Back │ │                         
                         └────┘ └──────┘ ┘                         
                         │ │                         
                         │ │                         
                         ─────────────────────────────┘                         
                                                                                
                                                                                

   <Tab> / <Alt-Tab> between elements |  <Space> selects |  <F12> next screen

Choose a URL and of course, you need to configure the network:

 Welcome to Scientific Linux for x86_64

                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
              ───────────────┤ Networking Device ───────────────┐              
              │ │              
              │ You have multiple network devices on this system.  │              
              │ Which would you like to install through?  │              
              │ │              
              │ eth0 - Ethernet device eth0 - 00: 26: 70: 70: 70: 70              
              │ eth1 - Ethernet device eth1 - 00: 26: 80: 80: 80: 80              
              │ │              
              ┌────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┐──────┐ ┐              
              │ │ OK │ │ Identify │ │ Back │ │              
              └────┘ └──────────┘ ┘──────┘ ┘              
              │ │              
              │ │              
              ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ──┘              
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                

   <Tab> / <Alt-Tab> between elements |  <Space> selects |  <F12> next screen

Here we need to remember which interface we have been configured in the source system and configure it.

Disable IPv6, configure IPv4 manually:

 Welcome to Scientific Linux for x86_64

                                                                                
                 ┤─────────────┤ Configure TCP / IP ├─────────────┐                
                 │ │                
                 │ [*] Enable IPv4 support │                
                 │ () Dynamic IP configuration (DHCP)                
                 │ (*) Manual configuration                
                 │ │                
                 │ [] Enable IPv6 support │                
                 │ (*) Automatic neighbor discovery │                
                 │ () Dynamic IP configuration (DHCPv6)                
                 │ () Manual configuration                
                 │ │                
                 ┌────┐ ┌──────┐ ┐                
                 │ │ OK │ │ Back │ │                
                 └────┘ └──────┘ ┘                
                 │ │                
                 │ │                
                 ──────────────────────────────────────────────┘                
                                                                                
                                                                                

   <Tab> / <Alt-Tab> between elements |  <Space> selects |  <F12> next screen

Enter the IPv4 settings (google DNS after reinstallation needs to be changed to something more sane):
Welcome to Scientific Linux for x86_64

                                                                                
        TCP────────────────┤ Manual TCP / IP Configuration TCP─────────────────┐       
        │ │       
        │ Enter the IPv4 and / or the IPv6 address and prefix (address /       
        │ prefix).  For IPv4, the dotted-quad netmask or the CIDR-style       
        │ prefix are acceptable.  The gateway and name server fields must │       
        Valid be valid IPv4 or IPv6 addresses.  │       
        │ │       
        │ IPv4 address: 123.123.123.170_ / 26______________       
        │ Gateway: 123.123.123.129 __________________________ │       
        │ Name Server: 8.8.4.4 __________________________________       
        │ │       
        ┌────┐ ┌──────┐ ┐       
        │ │ OK │ │ Back │ │       
        └────┘ └──────┘ ┘       
        │ │       
        │ │       
        ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ───────────────┘       
                                                                                
                                                                                

   <Tab> / <Alt-Tab> between elements |  <Space> selects |  <F12> next screen

With the network finished and the IP address of the server should start to ping.

To set up the path to the repository (ftp://ftp1.scientificlinux.org/linux/scientific/6.1/x86_64/os/):

 Welcome to Scientific Linux for x86_64

         ┌────────────────────────┤ URL Setup ├───────────────────── ────┐        
         │ │        
         │ Please enter the URL containing the Scientific │        
         │ Linux installation image on your server.  │        
         │ │        
         │: //ftp1.scientificlinux.org/linux/scientific/6.1/x86_64/os/_        
         │ │        
         │ [] Enable HTTP proxy │        
         │ │        
         │ Proxy URL ___________________________________ │        
         │ Username _______________ │        
         │ │        
         │ Password _______________ │        
         │ │        
         ┌────┐ ┌──────┐ ┐        
         │ │ OK │ │ Back │ │        
         └────┘ └──────┘ ┘        
         │ │        
         │ │        
         ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─────────────┘        

   <Tab> / <Alt-Tab> between elements |  <Space> selects |  <F12> next screen

Click OK and observe how the server loads the installer files needed for the subsequent installation.

Now it remains to answer the last important question - whether we want to install through VNC in graphical mode or continue in text mode:

               ──────────┤ Would you like to use VNC?  ──────────┐
               │ │
               │ Text mode provides a limited set of installation │
               │ options.  It doesn’t allow you to specify your
               │ own partitioning layout or package selections.  │
               │ Would you like to use VNC mode instead?  │
               │ │
               ┌───────────┐ ┌───────────────┐ ┐ │
               │ │ Start VNC │ │ Use text mode │ │
               └───────────┘ └───────────────┘ ┘ │
               │ │
               │ │
               ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─┘





   <Tab> / <Alt-Tab> between elements |  <Space> selects |  <F12> next screen

Click Start VNC and enter the password:

                ─────────────┤ VNC Configuration ├──────────────┐
                │ │
                │ A password will prevent unauthorized listeners │
                │ connecting and monitoring your installation
                │ progress.  Please enter a password to be used │
                │ for the installation
                │ │
                │ Password: ********* _______
                │ Password (confirm): ********* _______
                │ │
                │ │
                ┌────┐ ┌─────────────┐ ┌──────┐ ┐ │
                │ │ OK │ │ No password │ │ Back │ │
                └────┘ └─────────────┘ └──────┘ ┘ │
                │ │
                │ │
                ────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

   <Tab> / <Alt-Tab> between elements |  <Space> selects |  <F12> next screen

We see the message

 21:52:40 Starting VNC ...                                                       
 21:52:41 The VNC server is now running.
 21:52:41 

 You chose to execute vnc with a password. 


 21:52:41 Please manually connect your client to loftXXXX.serverloft.com:1 (123.123.123.170) to begin the install.
 Press <enter> for a shell
 21:52:41 Starting graphical installation.

We are happy. On a local system that runs in graphical mode, start the VNC client:

$ vncviewer loftXXXX.serverloft.com:1
(or any other favorite VNC client)

and make the installation in full graphical mode.

PS Parameters for the kernel, which are transferred to Anaconda during installation. Here you can transfer the path to the kikcstart file and all network settings so that the system is installed automatically. The kickstart file must first be written, but this article is not about how to write it, but only to show how to install a fresh OS in a convenient installer mode.
PPS A text installation is quite suitable for someone, but unfortunately, you cannot fully configure mdraid and LVM.