clearlinux/clear-linux-documentation
2
0
Fork 0
mirror of https://github.com/clearlinux/clear-linux-documentation.git synced 2026-08-25 09:27:37 +00:00
Code Issues Packages Projects Releases Wiki Activity

First pass at cleanup

Browse Source
This commit is contained in:
George T Kramer
2017-03-15 03:29:14 -07:00
parent 883dd75e91
commit 14c59c8a11
1 changed files with 55 additions and 59 deletions
Download Patch File Download Diff File Expand all files Collapse all files
source/bulk_provisioning.rst
+55 -59
View File
@@ -3,77 +3,39 @@
Bulk Provisioning
#################
Data centers have a need to install and configure new instances of operating
systems in bulk. When managing new computers or hardware upgrades in bulk, data
center administrators need tooling for making changes with minimal effort.
Clear Linux* Project for Intel® Architecture can be automatically provisioned in
bulk using a combination of `Ister`_ and the `Ister Cloud Init Service`_ (ICIS).
The bulk provisioning scenario is a continuation of the :ref:`network_boot`
scenario. After a network boot occurs, ``ister`` provides automation for this
task using `cloud-init`_ files by performing the following steps:
Configurations for a bulk provision are made by defining `cloud-init`_ files and
Ister configuration files and hosting them with ``ICIS`` so that ``Ister`` can
use them during the install process. Ister configuration files provide a way to
customize the install and cloud-init files provide a way to customize the
instance of the install.
#. Finding cloud-init files
#. Creating a `micro-config-drive`_ (ucf) to store the cloud-init files
#. Creating a systemd service which runs at first reboot to apply the
configurations defined by the cloud-init files
#. Reboots the machine to run the systemd service
The following diagram depics the flow of information between a PXE server and a
PXE client that needs to be set up to perform a bulk provision.
At this point, the machine has been rebooted twice, once to perform a network
boot and once again to apply cloud-init configurations. Afte the second reboot,
the machine can enter into a mode ready to be managed with Ansible.
.. figure:: _static/images/bulk-provision-flow.png
:alt: Bulk provision information flow
The ister cloud init service (`icis`_) is used by ister to host the cloud-init
configurations. Ister can be directed to look for cloud-init configurations
hosted by icis.
Figure 1: Bulk provision information flow
One nice attribute of this system is that once the iPXE bits are created, many
installer behaviors can be configured without having to regenerate the iPXE
bits.
This guide covers how to perform a bulk provision with ``Ister`` and ``ICIS``.
Prerequisites
=============
Stand up an iPXE server as described in the :ref:`network_boot`
docs. Note that you will be generating your own artifacts to be served by
PXE in a later step.
Before performing a bulk provision, verify that you have a PXE server capable of
performing network boots of the latest release. Reference :ref:`network_boot`
for a guide on how to perform an iPXE boot using network address translation
(NAT).
Configuration
=============
The following diagram illustrates the flow of information between the pxe
server and a host booting into the installer via pxe. This diagram is intended
to show the logical flow of information, and is not a literal depiction of the
protocol-level exchanges.
.. figure:: _static/images/bulk-provision-flow.png
:alt: Bulk provisioning information flow
Figure 1: Bulk provisioning information flow
Application server, web server, dhcp server, tftp server are hosted on a
single machine, but can be hosted anywhere visible to PXE clients.
#. Land `Ister Cloud Init Service <https://github.com/clearlinux/ister-cloud-
init- svc>`_ on the pxe server. The README in the ICIS github repo has
directions on how to install and configure.
#. Generate the installer that will load and boot over PXE. Copy the relevant
files into the appropriate location on the iPXE server.
A pxe installer is generated for every release of Clear Linux OS. It can be
found alongside the published images in
https://download.clearlinux.org/releases/XXXXX/clear/clear-XXXXX-pxe.tar.xz
Alternatively, use the `create_pxe.sh
<https://github.com/bryteise/ister/blob/master/create_pxe.sh>`_ script to
roll your own. Note this creates the pxe-installer from the "provisioning"
installer in Clear Linux. This is a touchless installer that takes all
installation information from a config file. You can get this image from a
given Clear Linux release by looking in
https://download.clearlinux.org/releases/XXXX/clear/ where XXXX is a Clear
Linux release number. Just download the image alongside the
``create_pxe.sh`` script and name it ``provision.img``.
#. Install ``ICIS`` by following the getting started guide on GitHub.
#. Stage config files for ``ister`` that will govern Ister's behavior. This
#. Stage config files for ``Ister`` that will govern Ister's behavior. This
includes modifying the script for ipxe boot, getting it to pass an
additional parameter to the kernel.
@@ -151,6 +113,40 @@ single machine, but can be hosted anywhere visible to PXE clients.
#. Boot an iPXE client and watch Clear Linux install.
.. _icis: https://github.com/clearlinux/ister-cloud-init-svc
.. _cloud-init: https://cloudinit.readthedocs.io
Data centers have a need to install and configure new instances of operating
systems in bulk. When managing new computers or hardware upgrades in bulk, data
center administrators need tooling for making changes with minimal effort.
The bulk provisioning scenario is a continuation of the :ref:`network_boot`
scenario. After a network boot occurs, ``ister`` provides automation for this
task using `cloud-init`_ files by performing the following steps:
#. Finding cloud-init files
#. Creating a `micro-config-drive`_ (ucf) to store the cloud-init files
#. Creating a systemd service which runs at first reboot to apply the
configurations defined by the cloud-init files
#. Reboots the machine to run the systemd service
At this point, the machine has been rebooted twice, once to perform a network
boot and once again to apply cloud-init configurations. Afte the second reboot,
the machine can enter into a mode ready to be managed with Ansible.
The ister cloud init service (`icis`_) is used by ister to host the cloud-init
configurations. Ister can be directed to look for cloud-init configurations
hosted by icis.
One nice attribute of this system is that once the iPXE bits are created, many
installer behaviors can be configured without having to regenerate the iPXE
bits.
.. _Ister:
https://github.com/bryteise/ister
.. _Ister Cloud Init Service:
https://github.com/clearlinux/ister-cloud-init-svc
.. _cloud-init:
https://cloud-init.io/
.. _micro-config-drive: https://github.com/clearlinux/micro-config-drive