[SOLVED] Cannot load GUI desktop in Solaris 11.1

Hello,

I downloaded Solaris 11.1 (Text install for x86) from here and installed it on VMware. Now after finishing installation, I rebooted the system, and it goes into single user mode and cannot load GUI desktop. I am stuck and don't know how to load desktop?

I have chose 'no network' for this installation.

Does Solaris 11.1 (Text install for x86), that having size 585 MB, has no GUI packages associated with it? or I need to download it seperately?

Also please help me to choose correct fully loaded version of Solaris 11.1 for VMware (version 7.1.6).

TIA.

Originally Posted by shivaa Does Solaris 11.1 (Text install for x86), that having size 585 MB, has no GUI packages associated with it?

Correct. You'd rather select the Live Media for a GUI.

or I need to download it seperately?

You can add the GUI packages although a "no network" installation is not the best start. Alternatively, you migh download the full Solaris 11.1 repository (6.8 GB) and install from there.

Well, after searching for related documentation, I got a solution and sharing here:-

Text based installation image of Solaris 11.1 doesn't contains GUI (graphical desktop) packages. So in order to get a graphical desktop after installing Solaris 11.1 with text based installation, you will seperately need to install "solaris-desktop" package.

The solaris-desktop package can be found here.

Following are steps to be followed:

1. Install Solaris 11.1 using text based installation.
2. Reboot the system after finishing installation.
3. Login using user <username> that you created during installation.

<hostname> console login: <Enter username>
Password: <Enter username's password>
<username>@<hostname:~$ su - root
Password: <Enter root's password>
user@ostname:~$ pkg install solaris-desktop

4. It will start downloading solaris-desktop package (size ~547.3 mb) and take some time.
5. Reboot the system.

Article can be found here.

Originally Posted by jlliagre Correct. You'd rather select the Live Media for a GUI.

Downloading it, hope it will have GUI.

Originally Posted by shivaa user@ostname:~$ pkg install solaris-desktop[/CODE]4. It will start downloading solaris-desktop package (size ~547.3 mb) and take some time.

That is precisely the solution I mentioned in my reply (You can add the GUI packages) but as you stated it was a "no network" installation, I ruled it out so didn't provide the details and instead provided a way to install the GUI packages to a disconnected Solaris instance.

Downloading it, hope it will have GUI.

The live media definitively has a Gnome GUI and can install it to the hard disk.

Originally Posted by jlliagre The live media definitively has a Gnome GUI and can install it to the hard disk.

Thanks @jlliagre.

Actually I changed the option to 'networked' after reading the documentation. Before that I was not aware that I would need to download any additional package from Oracle's site.

Well, I downloaded the live media and trying to install it, but it's installation is really a pain using Oracle solaris installer

Sometimes it don't recognize the disk and throws error 'no suitable disk found'. Or sometimes it stuck at '0% installation progress'. Or sometimes throws 'unable to launch application for installation'...

Right now it's again stuck at 0% installation... No progress for around half an hour.

That's odd. I didn't experienced such an issue. It might be VMWare related.

Originally Posted by jlliagre That's odd. I didn't experienced such an issue. It might be VMWare related.

It's probably a pb with VMware, not with Solaris 11.1.

I am using VMware version 7.1.6 and it do not have option to create a VM for "Solaris 11.1", so I had created a VM in "Other 64-bit" OS catagoy.

Anyway, I am reading VMware's documentations to get this option, to install Solaris 11.1, enabled.