Dell poweredge 1950 + Lenny install = catch22

SirSefu · 09-15-2009, 08:28 AM

Dear All,

I'm having quite a time installing Lenny into our pe1950 servers. Missing from the install (both the netinstall and the full-dvd versions) is the bnx2 firmware needed for the server's Broadcom II ethernet cards - I did find someone who found a way around the problem using PXE boot install, but this is not an option for me. I also tried installing without ethernet card support, but installing the firmware after the install-time config makes setting everything up a headache. Is there any way to make a customised install disk?

I also tried installing from a usb-key, which seems to work fine for retrieving the needed packages, but when it comes time to format the disks, even after I remove the key right after the needed firmware is loaded, I see that the main hard drive becomes 'sdb' and the system won't boot at reboot.

I think the latter problem is simpler to solve — can anyone help me with this?

Thanks very much in advance.

elfoozo · 09-15-2009, 09:22 AM

Have you tried to edit /etc/fstab of the installed system before rebooting? If possible, change entries for sdb to sda.

boethius · 09-15-2009, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SirSefu

Is there any way to make a customised install disk?

I also tried installing from a usb-key, which seems to work fine for retrieving the needed packages, but when it comes time to format the disks, even after I remove the key right after the needed firmware is loaded, I see that the main hard drive becomes 'sdb' and the system won't boot at reboot.

I think the latter problem is simpler to solve — can anyone help me with this?

I would look at using preseeding.

This describes how to create a preseed file on a USB key and refer to it via syslinux then have it load automatically to perform whatever steps you want without prompting.

Learning the syntax is cumbersome but like anything else becomes easier with time. You will probably want to use the "d-i preseed/late_command string" Debian Installer preseed command to change your fstab file before the system reboots.

SirSefu · 09-16-2009, 10:06 AM

Thank you very much for your helpful replies.

I managed to set things straight by installing things normally in loading the needed bnx2 firmware from the USB key, then restarted with a Lenny liveCD. I then mounted the main hard disk into a temporary directory, then edited the /etc/fstab and /boot/grub/menu.lst files (changing sdb's in both to sda, and changing the boot device to 0,0 (from 1,0) in the latter file.

I definitely will look into preseeding.

Thank you!