PXE Install Server for Xenserver

Why do I need this?

If you choose to use Xenserver as the hypervisor for your Openstack deployment, you probably want the install to be automatic. At Citrix, we find it useful to have a PXE server around, even in a simple development environment. It makes it much easier to start automating tests later on.

Ingredients

I am using the following:

Xenserver 6.0.2<
>Get the XenServer CD from here and click "Try It", then select "Start a free XenServer trial". Or

wget http://downloadns.citrix.com.edgesuite.net/6738/XenServer-6.0.2-install-cd.iso

Ubuntu 11.10 virtual machine as the PXE server. You may just as well use a physical machine.

On your Ubuntu 11.10 machine

Install the following packages

sudo apt-get install apache2 isc-dhcp-server tftpd-hpa

Edit /etc/network/interfaces

The interface eth1 on my machine is on a network called "Network 1". Please change the instructions below to match your network setup.

#!wiki caution
Ensure that your "Network 1" is isolated from any corporate network, to avoid any interference from our DHCP server.

auto eth1
iface eth1 inet static
        address 192.168.0.1
        netmask 255.255.0.0
        network 192.168.0.0
        broadcast 192.168.0.255

Edit /etc/dhcp/dhcpd.conf and add the following

allow bootp;

use-host-decl-names true;
option domain-name "Network 1";
option domain-name-servers 192.168.0.1;
subnet 192.168.0.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 {
        range 192.168.0.100 192.168.0.200;
        filename "pxelinux.0";
}

tftpboot

Mount the iso you downloaded and copy over the following to your /var/lib/tftpboot folder:

cd <path to XenServer CD>
cp ./boot/pxelinux/mboot.c32 /var/lib/tftpboot
cp ./boot/pxelinux/pxelinux.0 /var/lib/tftpboot
mkdir -p /var/lib/tftpboot/xenserver
cp ./boot/vmlinuz /var/lib/tftpboot/xenserver
cp ./boot/xen.gz /var/lib/tftpboot/xenserver
cp ./install.img /var/lib/tftpboot/xenserver

pxelinux.cfg/default

mkdir /var/lib/tftpboot/pxelinux.cfg

Paste the following in /var/lib/tftpboot/pxelinux.cfg/default

default local
prompt 1
timeout 60

label local
        localboot 0

label install-xenserver
        kernel mboot.c32
        append xenserver/xen.gz dom0_max_vcpus=2 dom0_mem=752M com1=115200,8n1 console=com1,vga --- xenserver/vmlinuz xencons=hvc console=hvc0 console=tty0 answerfile=http://192.168.0.1/answerfile install --- xenserver/install.img

The Answer File

You may use the sample answerfile below. This must be placed in /var/www/answerfile.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<installation srtype="ext">
<primary-disk>sda</primary-disk>
<keymap>us</keymap>
<root-password>mypass</root-password>
<source type="url">http://192.168.0.1/xenserver/</source>
<ntp-server>IP address of my ntp server</ntp-server>
<admin-interface name="eth0" proto="dhcp" />
<timezone>America/Los_Angeles</timezone>
</installation>

Copy packages* and XS-REPOSITORY-LIST to your webserver

cd <path to XenServer CD>
mkdir /var/www/xenserver      # path you gave in the answerfile
cp -r packages* /var/www/xenserver
cp XS-REPOSITORY-LIST /var/www/xenserver

Start services

sudo /etc/init.d/networking restart  #if you changed /network/interfaces
sudo /etc/init.d/isc-dhcp-server start
sudo /etc/init.d/tftpd-hpa start

Ready to run

On your target machine, ensure that boot sequence is set to boot from network. Reboot your machine. Ensure it acquires a DHCP address from your PXE server. At the boot prompt, enter install-xenserver and take a deep breath.

XenServer/Install/PXE