Database Reference
In-Depth Information
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If your system does not start the x11 session necessary to display anaconda, you could use its built-in VnC
capabilities. start a VnC server session on a different machine in the build network and specify the boot parameters
vnc vncconnect=vncserverhost:vncport vncpassword=remoteVnCserverpassword at the command line.
Tip
The next steps are almost self-explanatory. After acknowledging the welcome screen by clicking next you have
the option to select the language to be used during the installation. Alternative languages can always be installed for
use with the system later. Once you are happy with the settings click on the “Next” button to select your keyboard
layout to be used during the installation. The keyboard setting-just like the language setting made earlier-can be
changed after the system has been installed. From a support point of view it is sensible to limit the installation to
English. Mixing multiple languages in different regions makes a global support policy difficult. Translating error
messages and troubleshooting can become a problem for non-native speakers.
Choice of storage devices
So far the installation process was very similar to the one used in Oracle Linux 5. The next screen though, titled
“Storage devices” is new to Oracle Linux 6. It offers two choices:
1.
To use “basic storage devices”
2.
Alternatively use “specialized storage devices”
Specialized storage in this context allows you to install the operating system to a SAN disk or over Fibre Channel
over Ethernet or iSCSI. It also (finally!) offers support for installation on hardware RAID and dm-multipathed devices.
For all other needs, simply go with the first option.
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The use of specialized storage devices is out of scope of this topic. san booting however is a very interesting
concept that you could implement to quickly replace failed hardware, mainly in blade enclosures.
Note
In the following sections it is assumed that you are installing the operating system to internally attached disks.
Most servers will use an internal RAID adapter to present a single view on internal disks. Consult your vendor's
manual for more information on how to configure these. In many cases, the array driver is already part of the Linux
distribution and you don't need to worry about it once the BIOS setup is completed. If not, then fear not-you have
an option to add vendor drivers during the installation process. Whichever way you decide to install the operating
system, it is important to have a level of resilience built in. Resilience can come in the form of multiple disks in a RAID
1 configuration, or in the form of multiple paths to the storage to prevent a single point of failure.
Following along the path set out by the example, select the “basic storage devices” click on the “Next” button.
You may be prompted with a “storage device warning” before the next screen appears. Oracle Linux tries to read an
existing partition table for all detected storage devices made available to the host. The warning is raised whenever no
partition table can be found, or alternatively if the detected partition table cannot be read and understood.
If you are certain that the disk for which the warning appears is blank, unpartitioned, and not in use you should
click on “Yes, discard my data.” Be careful not to check “Apply my choice to all devices with undetected partitions or
filesystems!” You can exclude a disk from the further partitioning process by clicking on “No, keep my data” for that disk.
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The graphical installer allows you to drop into a shell session at any time. press CTrL-aLT-F2 for a root shell
and CTrL-aLT-F3 to view the anaconda logs. You could try to read the disk header using dd if=/dev/xxx bs=1M
count=1 | od -a to ensure that the disk is not in use. CTrL-aLT-F6 brings you back to anaconda.
Tip
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