Managing Linux OS Resources and Deployment Media

You can import Linux OS Resources needed to create network boot media and to capture and deploy Linux images

Importing Linux OS Resources for RHEL, SLES and CentOS deployments

Linux OS Resources are required to capture Linux reference machines, to create network boot media for Linux deployments and to install Linux OS.

To create it from the Bundle and Media Manager dashboard, click the corresponding button in the Deployment Resources tab. Browse to the fully qualified path of the Linux ISO file from which the OS Resource will be imported, and click OK. When the action completes, the Linux OS Resource is displayed in the list. To delete a Linux OS Resource entry, select it and click Delete.

A Linux OS Resource for the same OS level is also created when its setup image is imported from the Image Library dashboard.

For a Linux resource, the specific grub2 bootloader for UEFI targets is also included in it. You can check if the grub2 bootloader for UEFI targets is included in the OS Resource by checking the Resource Info column, where grub.efi or grubx64.efi is reported if it is included. If it is not included, the Linux deployment on UEFI target uses the external grub2 bootloader if present, as described in Creating Bare Metal Profiles for Linux Images; otherwise, the embedded elilo.efi bootloader is used.

To use the grub2 bootloader for Linux deployment on UEFI target, the DHCP server must provide the option "next-server" with the value of the bare metal server IP address. On some DHCP servers, this options is provided together with the option 66.

Creating and importing OS Resources for Ubuntu deployments

Linux Ubuntu, deployments require that you create and import a corresponding OS resource. To create and import OS Resources for Ubuntu deployments, see Create and Import OS Resources for Linux Ubuntu Deployments.

Creating network boot media for Linux RHEL, SLES, and CentOS targets

To create Linux network boot media, complete the following steps:
  1. From the Bundle and Media Manager dashboard, import a Linux OS Resource by clicking the corresponding button. Select the fully qualified path to the ISO file. The supported ISO files are RedHat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Release 6, 7, 8, 9, CentOS Linux Release 7, 8 or SUSE Linux Version 12 or 15. If you have already imported Linux OS Resources for these platforms skip this step.
  2. From the Linux Media tab, click Create Deployment Media. The Media creation wizard is displayed. Select the OS Deployment Server where the media will be created, and click Next.
  3. Select or specify the following:
    1. The Linux OS Resource to be included in the media. You must have previously imported the resource.
    2. Specify the fully qualified path on the OS Deployment Server where the ISO file for the media will be created
    3. In the Server Settings section, specify the IP address and the administrative user password of the OS Deployment Server to which the target connects at boot time. This server can be the same or a different OS Deployment server from the one you are creating the media on. Alternatively, you can specify the connection parameters at boot time, by checking the corresponding option.
    4. Select the type of network configuration settings that are assigned to the client at boot time. By default, a dynamic IP address is assigned (DHCP). Alternatively, you can specify a static IP address, network mask, and gateway address. If you specify static network settings, you can overwrite them at boot time by checking the corresponding option.
    5. You can optionally specify to have the user start the boot sequence on the target. In this case, a prompt is displayed on the target and the boot sequence begins only when the user responds to the prompt.
    6. If the network boot media must connect to a bare metal server of version 7.1.1.20.311.12 or lower, you must select the specific option.
  4. When you have completed your selections, click OK. The information that you provided is validated before the media creation task begins.
Important:
  • If you want to deploy a Linux setup image in multicast from network boot media, the Linux OS resource that you include in the media must be of the same major version of the image that you are deploying. For example, you can use a RedHat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Versions 7 Update 8 resource to deploy all Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Version 7 setup images using multicast communication.
Network boot media limitations: The following restrictions apply to network boot media:
  • Only CD/DVD media are supported.
  • Deployment of the media on UEFI targets is not supported.
  • Media creation and deployment on Ubuntu Linux is not supported.