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Solaris Express Installation Guide: Network-Based Installations
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Creating the Configuration Files

WAN boot uses the following files to specify the location of the data and files that are required for a WAN boot installation.

  • System configuration file (system.conf)

  • wanboot.conf file

This section describes how to create and store these two files.

To Create the System Configuration File

In the system configuration file, you can direct the WAN boot installation programs to the following files.

  • sysidcfg file

  • rules.ok file

  • Custom JumpStart profile

WAN boot follows the pointers in the system configuration file to install and configure the client.

The system configuration file is a plain text file, and must be formatted in the following pattern.

setting=value

To use a system configuration file to direct the WAN installation programs to the sysidcfg, rules.ok, and profile files, follow these steps.

Before You Begin

Before you create the system configuration file, you must create the installation files for you WAN boot installation. See Creating the Custom JumpStart Installation Files for detailed instructions.

  1. Assume the same user role as the web server user on the WAN boot server.
  2. Create a text file. Name the file descriptively, for example, sys-conf.s10–sparc.
  3. Add the following entries to the system configuration file.
    SsysidCF=sysidcfg-file-URL

    This setting points to the flash directory on the install server that contains the sysidcfg file. Make sure that this URL matches the path to the sysidcfg file that you created in To Create the sysidcfg File.

    For WAN installations that use HTTPS, set the value to a valid HTTPS URL.

    SjumpsCF=jumpstart-files-URL

    This setting points to the Solaris Flash directory on the install server that contains the rules.ok file, profile file, and begin and finish scripts. Make sure that this URL matches the path to the custom JumpStart files that you created in To Create the Profile and To Create the rules File.

    For WAN installations that use HTTPS, set the value to a valid HTTPS URL.

  4. Save the file to a directory that is accessible to the WAN boot server.

    For administration purposes, you might want to save the file to the appropriate client directory in the /etc/netboot directory on the WAN boot server.

  5. Change the permissions on the system configuration file to 600.
    # chmod 600 /path/system-conf-file
    path

    Specifies the path to the directory that contains the system configuration file.

    system-conf-file

    Specifies the name of the system configuration file.

Example 11-12 System Configuration File for WAN Boot Installation Over HTTPS

In the following example, the WAN boot programs check for the sysidcfg and custom JumpStart files on the web server https://www.example.com on port 1234. The web server uses secure HTTP to encrypt data and files during the installation.

The sysidcfg and custom JumpStart files are located in the flash subdirectory of the document root directory /opt/apache/htdocs.

SsysidCF=https://www.example.com:1234/flash
SjumpsCF=https://www.example.com:1234/flash
Example 11-13 System Configuration File for Insecure WAN Boot Installation

In the following example, the WAN boot programs check for the sysidcfg and custom JumpStart files on the web server https://www.example.com. The web server uses HTTP, so the data and files are not protected during the installation.

The sysidcfg and custom JumpStart files are located in the flash subdirectory of the document root directory /opt/apache/htdocs.

SsysidCF=https://www.example.com/flash
SjumpsCF=https://www.example.com/flash
More Information
Continuing the WAN Boot Installation

After you create the system configuration file, create the wanboot.conf file. For instructions, see To Create the wanboot.conf File.

To Create the wanboot.conf File

The wanboot.conf file is a plain text configuration file that the WAN boot programs use to perform a WAN installation. The wanboot-cgi program, the boot file system, and the WAN boot miniroot all use the information included in the wanboot.conf file to install the client machine.

Save the wanboot.conf file in the appropriate client subdirectory in the /etc/netboot hierarchy on the WAN boot server. For information about how to define the scope of your WAN boot installation with the /etc/netboot hierarchy, see Creating the /etc/netboot Hierarchy on the WAN Boot Server.

If the WAN boot server is running the current Solaris release, a sample wanboot.conf file is located in /etc/netboot/wanboot.conf.sample. You can use this sample as a template for your WAN boot installation.

You must include the following information in the wanboot.conf file.

Type of Information

Description

WAN boot server information

  • Path to wanboot program on the WAN boot server

  • URL of wanboot-cgi program on WAN boot server

Install server information

  • Path to WAN boot miniroot on the install server

  • Path to system configuration file on the WAN boot server that specifies location of sysidcfg and custom JumpStart files

Security information

  • Signature type for the WAN boot file system or WAN boot miniroot

  • Encryption type for the WAN boot file system

  • Whether the server should be authenticated during the WAN boot installation

  • Whether the client should be authenticated during the WAN boot installation

Optional information

  • Additional hosts that might need to be resolved for the client during a WAN boot installation

  • URL to the bootlog-cgi script on the logging server

You specify this information by listing parameters with associated values in the following format.

parameter=value

For detailed information about wanboot.conf file parameters and syntax, see wanboot.conf File Parameters and Syntax.

To create the wanboot.conf file, follow these steps.

  1. Assume the same user role as the web server user on the WAN boot server.
  2. Create the wanboot.conf text file.

    You can create a new text file that is named wanboot.conf, or use the sample file that is located in /etc/netboot/wanboot.conf.sample. If you use the sample file, rename the file wanboot.conf after you add parameters.

  3. Type the wanboot.conf parameters and values for your installation.

    For detailed descriptions of wanboot.conf parameters and values, see wanboot.conf File Parameters and Syntax.

  4. Save the wanboot.conf file to the appropriate subdirectory of the /etc/netboot hierarchy.

    For information about how to create the /etc/netboot hierarchy, see Creating the /etc/netboot Hierarchy on the WAN Boot Server.

  5. Validate the wanboot.conf file.
    # bootconfchk /etc/netboot/path-to-wanboot.conf/wanboot.conf
    path-to-wanboot.conf

    Specifies the path to the client's wanboot.conf file on the WAN boot server

    • If the wanboot.conf file is structurally valid, the bootconfchk command returns an exit code of 0.

    • If the wanboot.conf file is invalid, the bootconfchk command returns a nonzero exit code.

  6. Change the permissions on the wanboot.conf file to 600.
    # chmod 600 /etc/netboot/path-to-wanboot.conf/wanboot.conf
Example 11-14 wanboot.conf File for WAN Boot Installation Over HTTPS

The following wanboot.conf file example includes configuration information for a WAN installation that uses secure HTTP. The wanboot.conf file also indicates that a 3DES encryption key is used in this installation.

boot_file=/wanboot/wanboot.s10_sparc
root_server=https://www.example.com:1234/cgi-bin/wanboot-cgi
root_file=/miniroot/miniroot.s10_sparc
signature_type=sha1
encryption_type=3des
server_authentication=yes
client_authentication=no
resolve_hosts=
boot_logger=https://www.example.com:1234/cgi-bin/bootlog-cgi
system_conf=sys-conf.s10–sparc

This wanboot.conf file specifies the following configuration.

boot_file=/wanboot/wanboot.s10_sparc

The second level boot program is named wanboot.s10_sparc. This program is located in the /wanboot directory in the WAN boot server's document root directory.

root_server=https://www.example.com:1234/cgi-bin/wanboot-cgi

The location of the wanboot-cgi program on the WAN boot server is https://www.example.com:1234/cgi-bin/wanboot-cgi. The https portion of the URL indicates that this WAN boot installation uses secure HTTP.

root_file=/miniroot/miniroot.s10_sparc

The WAN boot miniroot is named miniroot.s10_sparc. This miniroot is located in the /miniroot directory in the WAN boot server's document root directory.

signature_type=sha1

The wanboot.s10_sparc program and the WAN boot file system are signed with a HMAC SHA1 hashing key.

encryption_type=3des

The wanboot.s10_sparc program and the boot file system are encrypted with a 3DES key.

server_authentication=yes

The server is authenticated during the installation.

client_authentication=no

The client is not authenticated during the installation.

resolve_hosts=

No additional host names are needed to perform the WAN installation. All required files and information are located in the document root directory on the WAN boot server.

boot_logger=https://www.example.com:1234/cgi-bin/bootlog-cgi

(Optional) Booting and installation log messages are recorded on the WAN boot server by using secure HTTP.

For instructions on how to set up a logging server for your WAN boot installation, see (Optional) To Configure the WAN Boot Logging Server.

system_conf=sys-conf.s10–sparc

The system configuration file that contains the locations of the sysidcfg and JumpStart files is located in a subdirectory of the /etc/netboot hierarchy. The system configuration file is named sys-conf.s10–sparc.

Example 11-15 wanboot.conf File for Insecure WAN Boot Installation

The following wanboot.conf file example includes configuration information for a less secure WAN boot installation that uses HTTP. This wanboot.conf file also indicates that the installation does not use an encryption key or a hashing key.

boot_file=/wanboot/wanboot.s10_sparc
root_server=https://www.example.com/cgi-bin/wanboot-cgi
root_file=/miniroot/miniroot.s10_sparc
signature_type=
encryption_type=
server_authentication=no
client_authentication=no
resolve_hosts=
boot_logger=https://www.example.com/cgi-bin/bootlog-cgi
system_conf=sys-conf.s10–sparc

This wanboot.conf file specifies the following configuration.

boot_file=/wanboot/wanboot.s10_sparc

The second level boot program is named wanboot.s10_sparc. This program is located in the /wanboot directory in the WAN boot server's document root directory.

root_server=https://www.example.com/cgi-bin/wanboot-cgi

The location of the wanboot-cgi program on the WAN boot server is https://www.example.com/cgi-bin/wanboot-cgi. This installation does not use secure HTTP.

root_file=/miniroot/miniroot.s10_sparc

The WAN boot miniroot is named miniroot.s10_sparc. This miniroot is located in the /miniroot subdirectory in the WAN boot server's document root directory.

signature_type=

The wanboot.s10_sparc program and the WAN boot file system are not signed with a hashing key.

encryption_type=

The wanboot.s10_sparc program and the boot file system are not encrypted.

server_authentication=no

The server is not authenticated with keys or certificates during the installation.

client_authentication=no

The client is not authenticated with keys or certificates during the installation.

resolve_hosts=

No additional host names are needed to perform the installation. All required files and information are located in the document root directory on the WAN boot server.

boot_logger=https://www.example.com/cgi-bin/bootlog-cgi

(Optional) Booting and installation log messages are recorded on the WAN boot server.

For instructions on how to set up a logging server for your WAN boot installation, see (Optional) To Configure the WAN Boot Logging Server.

system_conf=sys-conf.s10–sparc

The system configuration file that contains the locations of the sysidcfg and JumpStart files is named sys-conf.s10–sparc. This file is located in the appropriate client subdirectory of the /etc/netboot hierarchy.

More Information
Continuing the WAN Boot Installation

After you create the wanboot.conf file, you can optionally configure a DHCP server to support WAN boot. For instructions, see (Optional) Providing Configuration Information With a DHCP Server.

If you do not want to use a DHCP server in your WAN boot installation, see To Check the net Device Alias in the Client OBP to continue the WAN boot installation.

See Also

For detailed descriptions of wanboot.conf parameters and values, see wanboot.conf File Parameters and Syntax and the man page wanboot.conf(4).
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