7 grml-live - build framework based on FAI for generating a grml and Debian based
8 Linux Live system (CD/ISO)
13 grml-live [-a <architecture>] [-c <classe[s]>] [-C <configfile>] [-g
14 <grml_name>] [-i <iso_name> ] [-o <output_directory>] [-r <release_name>] [-s
15 <suite>] [-t <template_directory>] [-v <version_number>] [-bBFhquVz]
17 CAUTION: Please check out <<current_state,the 'Current state of grml-live with
18 squashfs-tools and kernel' section>> for details about current state of involved
19 tools before starting with grml-live or if you encounter any problems.
24 grml-live provides the build system for creating a grml and Debian based Linux
25 Live-CD. The build system is based on
26 link:http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/[FAI] (Fully Automatic
27 Installation). grml-live uses the "fai dirinstall" feature to generate a chroot
28 system based on the class concept of FAI (see later sections for further
29 details) and provides the framework to be able to generate a full-featured ISO.
30 It does not use all the FAI features by default though and you don't have to
31 know FAI to be able to use it.
33 The use of FAI gives you the flexibility to choose the packages you would like
34 to include on your very own Linux Live-CD without having to deal with all the
35 details of a build process.
37 CAUTION: grml-live does **not** use /etc/fai for configuration but instead
38 provides and uses /etc/grml/fai. This ensures that it does not clash with
39 default FAI configuration and packages, so you can use grml-live and FAI
40 completely independent at the same time!
44 Please notice that you should have a fast network connection as all the Debian
45 packages will be downloaded and installed via network. If you want to use a
46 local mirror (strongly recommended if you plan to use grml-live more than once)
47 checkout mkdebmirror (see /usr/share/doc/grml-live/examples/mkdebmirror),
48 debmirror(1), reprepro(1) (see /usr/share/doc/grml-live/examples/reprepro/ for a
49 sample configuration), apt-cacher(1) and approx(8). To avoid downloading the
50 base system again and again check out FAI's NFSROOT (see FAQ of this document
58 Use the specified architecture instead of the currently running one. This
59 allows building a 32bit system on a 64bit host (though you can't build a 64bit
60 system on a 32bit system/kernel of course). Please notice that real
61 crosscompiling (like building a ppc system on x86) isn't possible due to the
62 nature and the need of working in a chroot. Currently supported values: i386
67 Build the ISO without updating the chroot via FAI. This option is useful for
68 example when working on stable releases: if you have a working base
69 system/chroot and do not want to execute any further updates (via "-u" option)
70 but intend to only build the ISO.
74 Build the ISO without touching the chroot at all. This option is useful if
75 you modified anything that FAI or grml-live might adjust via grml's FAI
76 scripts. It's like the '-b' option but even more advanced. Use only if you
77 really know that you do not want to update the chroot.
81 Specify the CLASSES to be used for building the ISO via FAI. By default only
82 the classes GRMLBASE, GRML_MEDIUM and I386 are assumed, resulting in a small base
83 system (being about ~180MB total ISO size). If using a non-I386 system (like
84 amd64) you should specify the appropriate architecture as well. Additionally you
85 can specify a class providing a grml-kernel (see
86 <<classes,the 'CLASSES' section in this document>> for details about available classes).
87 So instead of GRML_MEDIUM you can also use GRML_SMALL and GRML_FULL.
89 -C **CONFIGURATION_FILE**::
91 The specified file is used as configuration file for grml-live. By default
92 /etc/grml/grml-live.conf is used as default configuration. If a file named
93 /etc/grml/grml-live.local exists it is used as well (sourced after reading
94 /etc/grml/grml-live.conf meant as main file for local configuration). As a last
95 option the specified configuration file is sourced so it is possible to override
96 settings of /etc/grml/grml-live.conf as well as of /etc/grml/grml-live.local.
97 Please notice that all configuration files have to be adjusted during execution
98 of grml-live, so please make sure you use /etc/grml/grml-live.conf as a base for
99 your own configuration file (usually /etc/grml/grml-live.local). Please also
100 notice that the configuration file specified via this option is **not** (yet)
101 supported inside the scripts/hooks/classes at /etc/grml/fai/config. Instead use
102 /etc/grml/grml-live.local for configuration stuff used inside
103 /etc/grml/fai/config.
107 Use specified date as build date information on the ISO instead of the default.
108 The default is the date when grml-live is being executed (retrieved via
109 executing 'date +%Y-%m-%d'). The information is stored inside the file
110 /GRML/grml-version on the ISO, /etc/grml_version in the squashfs file and in all
111 the bootsplash related files. This option is useful if you want to provide an
112 ISO with release information for a specific date but have to build it in
113 advance. Usage example: '-d 2009-10-30'
117 Force execution and do not prompt for acknowledgment of configuration.
121 Set the grml flavour name. Common usage examples: grml, grml-small, grml64.
122 Please do NOT use blanks and any special characters like '/', ';' inside
123 GRML_NAME, otherwise you might notice problems while booting.
127 Display short usage information and exit.
131 Specify name of ISO which will be available inside $OUTPUT_DIRECTORY/grml_isos
134 -I **CHROOT_INSTALL**::
136 Specify name of source directory which provides files that should become part of
137 the chroot/ISO. Not enabled by default. Note: the files are installed under '/'
138 in the chroot so you have to create the rootfs structure on your own.
142 Skip creation of the ISO file. This option is useful if you want to build/update
143 the chroot and/or recreate the squashfs file without building an ISO file.
145 -o **OUTPUT_DIRECTORY**::
147 Main output directory of the build process of FAI. Some directories are created
148 inside this target directory, being: grml_cd (where the files for creating the
149 ISO are located, including the compressed squashfs file), grml_chroot (the
150 chroot system) and grml_isos (where the resulting ISO is stored).
154 Build the ISO without (re-)creating the squashfs compressed file using mksquashfs.
155 This option is useful if you just want to update parts outside the chroot in the ISO.
156 Consider combining this option with the build-only option '-b'.
160 Specify name of the release.
164 Specify the Debian suite you want to use for your live-system. Defaults to
165 "lenny" (being current Debian/stable). Supported values are: etch, lenny, sid.
166 Debian "squeeze" (current Debian/testing) requires base.tgz
167 (/etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/....tar.gz) or a recent version of debootstrap.
169 -t **TEMPLATE_DIRECTORY**::
171 Specify place of the templates used for building the ISO. By default
172 (and if not manually specified) this is /usr/share/grml-live/templates/.
176 Update existing chroot instead of rebuilding it from scratch. This option is
177 based on the softupdate feature of FAI.
179 -v **VERSION_NUMBER**::
181 Specify version number of the release.
185 Increase verbosity in the build process.
189 Use ZLIB instead of LZMA compression in mksquashfs part of the build process.
195 To get a small, Debian-stable and grml-based Live-CD using /grml/grml-live
196 as build and output directory just run:
200 To get a small Debian-unstable and grml-small based Live-CD using
201 /home/mika/grml-live as build and output directory just use:
203 # grml-live -s sid -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 -o /home/mika/grml-live
205 To get a medium sized, Debian-unstable and grml-based Live-CD for i386
206 architecture using /grml/grml-live as build and output directory just run:
208 # grml-live -s sid -a i386 -c GRMLBASE,GRML_MEDIUM,I386
210 To get a small, Debian-unstable and grml-based Live-CD using /tmp as build and
211 output directory and use grml_0.0-3.iso as ISO name (placed inside
212 /tmp/grml_isos) just invoke:
214 # grml-live -o /tmp -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 -s sid -i grml_0.0-3.iso
218 If you have about 700MB of free space inside /dev/shm (being a tmpfs, usually
219 you should have >=1GB of RAM) just run "mount -o remount,suid,dev,rw /dev/shm"
220 and use /dev/shm as build and output directory - resulting in very fast build
221 process. But please be aware of the fact that rebooting your system will result
222 in an empty /dev/shm, so please use another directory for $CHROOT_OUTPUT,
223 $BUILD_OUTPUT and $ISO_OUTPUT if you plan to create more persistent output. :)
226 Main features of grml-live
227 --------------------------
229 * create a grml-/Debian-based Linux Live-CD with one single command
231 * class based concept, providing a maximum of flexibility
233 * supports integration of own hooks, scripts and configuration
235 * supports use and integration of own Software and/or Kernels via simple use of
238 * native support of FAI features
240 * multi-arch support (work in progress)
246 grml-live uses FAI and its class based concept for adjusting configuration and
247 setup according to your needs. This gives you flexibility and strength without
248 losing the simplicity in the build process.
250 The main and base class provided by grml-live is named GRMLBASE. It's strongly
251 recommended to **always** use the class GRMLBASE when building an ISO using
252 grml-live, as well as the architecture dependent class which provides the kernel
253 (being 'I386' for x86_32 and 'AMD64' for x86_64) and a GRML_* class (like
254 GRML_SMALL, GRML_MEDIUM or GRML_FULL). The following files and directories are
255 relevant for class GRMLBASE by default:
257 /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/GRMLBASE/
258 /etc/grml/fai/config/debconf/GRMLBASE
259 /etc/grml/fai/config/class/GRMLBASE.var
260 /etc/grml/fai/config/hooks/instsoft.GRMLBASE
261 /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config/GRMLBASE
263 Take a look at the next section for information about the concept of those
266 If you want to use your own configuration, extend an existing configuration
267 and/or add additional packages to your ISO just invent a new class (or extend an
268 existing one). For example if you want to use your own class named "FOOBAR" just
269 set CLASSES="GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386" inside /etc/grml/grml-live.local or
270 invoke grml-live using the classes option: "grml-live -c
271 GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,FOOBAR ...".
273 More details regarding the class concept can be found in the documentation of
274 FAI itself (being available at /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/).
281 The package selection part of the classes can be found in
282 /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config whereas some further classes are defined for
283 example in /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/ so specific feature sets can be
284 selected. The following classes are predefined:
286 * DEBORPHAN: get rid of all packages listed in output of Deborphan
288 * GRMLBASE: the main class responsible for getting a minimal subset of what's
289 defining a grml system. Important parts of the buildprocess are specified in
290 this class as well, so unless you have a really good reason you should always
293 * GRML_FULL: full featured grml, also known as the "normal", full grml.
295 * GRML_MEDIUM: medium sized grml version, known as grml-medium
297 * GRML_POWERPC: grml for PowerPC architecture, not supported yet (still work in
300 * GRML_SMALL: minimum sized grml version, known as grml-small
302 * LATEX: LaTeX(-related) packages like auctex, texlive,...
303 (which used to be shipped by grml before the LaTeX removal)
305 * LATEX_CLEANUP: get rid of several very large LaTeX directories
306 (like some /usr/share/doc/texlive-*, /usr/share/doc/texmf,...)
308 * LOCALES: use full featured locales setup (see /etc/locale.gen.grml). This
309 avoids to get rid of /usr/share/locale - which happens by default otherwise - as
312 * NO_ONLINE: do not run scripts during the chroot build process which require a
315 * RELEASE: run some specific scripts and commands to provide the workflow for an
316 official grml release
318 * REMOVE_DOCS: get rid of documentation directories (like /usr/share/doc,
319 /usr/share/man/, /usr/share/info,...)
321 * XORG: providing important packages for use with a base grml-featured X.org
328 Notice that grml-live ships FAI configuration files that do not use the same
329 namespace as the FAI packages itself. This ensures that grml-live does not clash
330 with your usual FAI configuration, so instead of /etc/fai/fai.conf (package
331 fai-client) grml uses /etc/grml/fai/fai.conf instead. For more details see
332 below. To get an idea how another configuration or example files could look like
333 check out /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/examples/simple/ (provided by Debian package
334 fai-doc). Furthermore /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/fai-guide.html/ch-config.html
335 provides documentation regarding configuration possibilities.
339 Script for the main build process. Requires root permissions for execution.
341 /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
343 Main configuration file for grml-live which should be considered as a reference
344 configuration file only. Please use /etc/grml/grml-live.local for local
345 configuration instead.
347 /etc/grml/grml-live.local
349 All the local configuration should go to this file. This file overrides any
350 defaults of grml-live. Configurations via /etc/grml/grml-live.local are prefered
351 over the ones from /etc/grml/grml-live.conf. If you want to override settings
352 from /etc/grml/grml-live.local as well you have to specify them on the grml-live
355 /etc/grml/fai/fai.conf
357 Main configuration file for FAI which specifies where all the configuration
358 files and scripts for FAI/grml-live can be found. By default the configuration
359 variables are FAI_CONFIG_SRC=file:///etc/grml/fai/config and
360 FAI_CONFIGDIR=/etc/grml/fai/config - both pointing to a directory shipped by
361 grml-live out-of-the-box so you shouldn't have to configure anything in this
364 /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf
366 This file is used by make-fai-nfsroot(8) only. Usually you don't have to change
367 anything inside this file. If you want to modify NFSROOT though you can adjust
370 /etc/grml/fai/NFSROOT
372 This file specifies the package list for creating the NFSROOT.
374 /etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list
376 This file specifies which mirrors should be considered for retrieving the Debian
377 packages when creating the main chroot (including all the software you would
378 like to see included). Important: this file should *not* be adjusted manually!
379 Instead use the GRML_LIVE_SOURCES variable inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf or
380 /etc/grml/grml-live.local which modifies /etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list
381 on-the-fly via grml-live then. If you want to generally adjust apt configuration
382 use FAI's fcopy command with /etc/grml/fai/config/files instead.
384 /etc/grml/fai/config/
386 The main directory for configuration of FAI/grml-live. More details below.
388 /etc/grml/fai/config/class/
390 This directory contains files which specify main configuration variables for the
393 /etc/grml/fai/config/debconf/
395 This directory provides the files for preseeding/configuration of debconf
398 /etc/grml/fai/config/hooks/
400 This directory provides files for customising the build process through hooks.
401 Hooks are user defined programs or scripts, which are called during the
402 installation process.
404 /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config/
406 Directory with lists of software packages to be installed or removed. The
407 different classes describe what should find its way to your ISO. When running
408 "grml-live -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 ..." only the configuration of GRMLBASE,
409 GRML_SMALL and and I386 will be taken. If you use 'grml-live -c
410 GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,FOOBAR ...' then the files of GRMLBASE, GRML_SMALL,
411 I386 **plus** the files from FOOBAR will be taken. So just create a new class to
412 adjust the package selection according to your needs. Please notice that the
413 directory GRMLBASE contains a package list defining a minimum but still
414 reasonable package configuration.
416 /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/
418 Scripts for customising the ISO within the build process.
420 /etc/grml/fai/live-initramfs/
422 This directory provides the files used for building the initramfs/initrd via
429 grml-live itself logs to /var/log/grml-live.log. Unless you set PRESERVE_LOGFILE
430 in your grml-live configuration the file is cleared on each new invocation of
433 The FAI part of grml-live logs to /var/log/fai/$HOSTNAME/ - so the
434 default being /var/log/fai/grml/.
436 If you are using the grml-live buildd you will find the logs of the grml-live
437 run at /var/log/grml-buildd.stdout and /var/log/grml-buildd.stderr.
439 If you want to store build information in a database just install the
440 grml-live-db Debian package. Further details available in the grml-live-db
444 Requirements for the build system
445 ---------------------------------
447 * any Debian based system should be sufficient (if it doesn't work it's a bug,
448 please send us a bug report then) [a usual
449 link:http://grml.org/grml2hd/[grml2hd] harddisk installation (using grml or
450 grml-medium) ships all you need]. Check out <<deploy-on-debian,How do I deploy
451 grml-live on a plain Debian installation>> for details how to set up grml-live
452 on a plain, original Debian system.
454 * enough free disk space; at least 800MB are required for a minimal grml-live
455 run (\~400MB for the chroot [$CHROOT_OUTPUT], \~150MB for the build target
456 [$BUILD_OUTPUT] and \~150MB for the resulting ISO [$ISO_OUTPUT] plus some
457 temporary files), if you plan to use GRML_FULL you should have at least 4GB of
458 total free disk space
460 * fast network access for retrieving the Debian packages used for creating the
461 chroot (check out "local mirror" and "NFSROOT" to workaround this problem as far
464 For further information see next section.
468 Current state of grml-live with squashfs-tools and kernel
469 ---------------------------------------------------------
471 To make it easier to track problems this section documents current state of
472 grml-live playing together with squashfs-tools / squashfs-lzma-tools (for
473 building the compressed file) and the kernel version. Documentation of this
474 section is up2date by 7rd of september 2009, please report any bugs you
477 Difference between squashfs-lzma-tools and squashfs-tools
478 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
480 Whereas the ZLIB compression is much faster in the build process, the LZMA
481 compression provides a smaller resulting ISO. If you're wondering: the official
482 Grml builds use the LZMA compression.
484 Squashfs-tools was introduced in Debian and once provided support for LZMA
485 compression. Sadly LZMA compression within squashfs-tools became unsupported and
486 therefore squashfs-lzma-tools had to be introduced by the Grml team. Different
487 kernel versions provide different squashfs file formats (version 3.x for kernel
488 versions until 2.6.28-grml[64], since kernel 2.6.31-grml[64] it's the 4.x
491 If you're wondering which package supports what, here's a short overview:
493 * squashfs-tools 1:4.0-1: ZLIB as default, no LZMA support/options, file format
496 * squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7: ZLIB as default, no LZMA support/options, file format
499 * squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1: LZMA as default, ZLIB support via -nolzma
500 option, file format version 3
502 * squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2: ZLIB as default, LZMA support via -lzma option,
503 file format version 4
505 * squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1: LZMA as default, ZLIB support via -nolzma option,
506 file format version 3
508 Depending on the kernel version you want to use you need different versions
509 squashfs-tools/squashfs-lzma-tools. Yes, that's pretty a mess (don't ask how
510 much this sucks for us developers) - though this is supposed to calm down with
511 the recent integration of squashfs file format 4 in the mainline kernel. Support
512 for LZMA is pending and should dramatically simplify the situation for
513 developers as well as users as soon as it's available mainline.
515 Using squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 on the build system
516 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
518 squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 is available via the grml repositories. It provides
519 the mksquashfs-lzma and unsquashfs-lzma binaries. The package does NOT conflict
520 with Debian's squashfs-tools package (you can install both of them at the same
523 The packages can be downloaded from
524 link:http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma-tools/[http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma-tools/]
526 It provides support for the new squashfs file format version 4 and therefore
527 requires kernel versions newer than 2.6.28-grml[64]. It supports LZMA as well as
528 ZLIB compression. Just use the defaults for enabling LZMA or use grml-live's
529 '-z' option if you want to use ZLIB instead.
531 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml[64]: does not work
532 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml[64]: does not work
533 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml[64]: does not work
534 * Kernel 2.6.31-grml[64]: works
535 * Kernel 2.6.33-grml[64]: works
539 Please use squashfs-lzma-tools >=4.0-2 from Grml if you want to remaster any
540 grml release being MORE RECENT than 2009.05.
542 Using squashfs-tools 1:4.0-X on the build system
543 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
545 squashfs-tools >=1:4.0-1 is available in Debian/unstable and Debian/testing. It
546 provides the mksquashfs and unsquashfs binaries. The package does NOT
547 conflict with the squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 package (you can install both of
548 them at the same time).
550 The packages can be downloaded from
551 link:ftp://ftp.de.debian.org/debian/pool/main/s/squashfs-tools/[ftp://ftp.de.debian.org/debian/pool/main/s/squashfs-tools/]
553 It provides support for the new squashfs file format version 4 and therefore
554 requires kernel versions newer than 2.6.28-grml[64].
556 It does NOT support LZMA compression. If you need LZMA support please use
557 Grml's squashfs-lzma-tools (see section above) instead.
559 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml[64]: does not work
560 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml[64]: does not work
561 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml[64]: does not work
562 * Kernel 2.6.31-grml[64]: works
563 * Kernel 2.6.33-grml[64]: works
566 Please use squashfs-tools >=1:4.0-1 only if you want to remaster grml releases
567 MORE RECENT than 2009.05 using the ZLIB compression.
569 Using squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 on the build system
570 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
572 squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 from the grml repository supports kernel
573 2.6.26-grml[64] and 2.6.28-grml[64] using both LZMA and ZLIB (-nolzma)
574 compression. It's the recommended package for building ISOs with grml-live
577 The packages can be downloaded from
578 link:http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma/[http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma/].
581 Please use squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 if you want to remaster grml release
584 Using squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 on the build system
585 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
587 squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 is available through
588 http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.3-7_i386.deb (for x86) or
589 http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.3-7_amd64.deb (for amd64) [both build
590 on and for Debian/etch but working with testing and unstable as well].
592 Please notice that squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 does NOT support LZMA compression at
593 all (so you won't be able to remaster release 2008.11 and 2009.05 using LZMA for
594 example). The -nolzma option of mksquashfs is not available therefore (even
595 though grml-live will deactivate it for you automatically anyway). Please use
596 squashfs-lzma-tools instead.
598 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml: does NOT work, please use squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1
599 instead if you still want to use kernel 2.6.23 (not
601 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml: works (without LZMA compression only of course!)
602 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml: works (without LZMA compression only of course!)
604 Using squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1 on the build system
605 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
607 squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1 is available via the grml-testing repository,
610 # aptitude install squashfs-tools=1:3.2r2-9exp1
612 or directly via downloading the files
613 http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.2r2-9exp1_i386.deb (for x86) or
614 http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.2r2-9exp1_amd64.deb (for amd64).
616 Using with ZLIB compression (SQUASHFS_OPTIONS='-nolzma' or -z
617 option in grml-live cmdline):
619 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml: works
620 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml: works
621 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml: supposed to work (not verified though)
623 Using with LZMA compression:
625 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml: works
626 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml: does NOT work, please use ZLIB mode instead or switch
627 to Debian package squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 (see section above).
628 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml: does NOT work, please use ZLIB mode instead or switch
629 to Debian package squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 (see section above).
636 How do I deploy grml-live on a plain Debian installation?
637 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
639 The easiest way to get a running grml-live setup is to install grml or
640 grml-medium using grml2hd (for example inside KVM, Virtualbox, VMware,... if you
641 don't want to run it on a physical system). Of course using grml-live on a
642 plain, original Debian installation is supported as well. So there we go.
644 What we have: plain, original Debian Lenny (5.0).
646 What we want: build a grml-medium ISO based on Debian/squeeze for the i386
647 architecture using grml-live.
651 If you encounter any problems while booting the resulting ISO please be aware of
652 <<current_state,the 'current state of grml-live with squashfs-tools and kernel'
658 # adjust sources.list:
659 cat >> /etc/apt/sources.list << EOF
661 # grml stable repository:
662 deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-stable main
663 # deb-src http://deb.grml.org/ grml-stable main
665 # grml testing/development repository:
666 deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-testing main
667 # deb-src http://deb.grml.org/ grml-testing main
670 # adjust apt-pinning (only prefer squashfs stuff from grml):
671 cat >> /etc/apt/preferences << EOF
673 Pin: origin deb.grml.org
676 Package: squashfs-tools
677 Pin: origin deb.grml.org
680 Package: squashfs-lzma-tools
681 Pin: origin deb.grml.org
685 # get keyring for apt:
687 apt-get --allow-unauthenticated install grml-debian-keyring
689 # install basefile so we don't have to build basic chroot from scratch:
690 mkdir -p /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/
691 mv base.tgz /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/I386.tar.gz
693 # install relevant tools
694 # please check out http://grml.org/grml-live/#current_state when encountering problems!
695 apt-get -o APT::Install-Recommends=false install grml-live squashfs-lzma-tools
697 # adjust grml-live configuration for our needs:
698 cat > /etc/grml/grml-live.local << EOF
699 # consider using LZMA only for space reasons (resulting in longer
700 # build time but smaller ISO):
701 SQUASHFS_OPTIONS="-nolzma"
702 # install local files into the chroot
703 CHROOT_INSTALL="/etc/grml/fai/chroot_install"
704 ## adjust if necessary (defaults to /grml/grml-live):
705 ## OUTPUT="/srv/grml-live"
706 FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="squeeze http://cdn.debian.net/debian/"
708 CLASSES="GRMLBASE,GRML_MEDIUM,I386"
709 # PRESERVE_LOGFILE='1'
710 # ZERO_FAI_LOGFILE='1'
712 deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-stable main
713 deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-testing main
714 deb http://cdn.debian.net/debian squeeze main contrib non-free
718 # just optional(!) - upgrade FAI to latest available version:
719 cat >> /etc/apt/sources.list << EOF
721 deb http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download lenny koeln
724 # get gpg key of FAI repos and install current FAI version:
725 gpg -a --recv-keys AB9B66FD; gpg -a --export AB9B66FD | apt-key add -
727 apt-get install fai-client fai-server fai-doc
729 That's it. Now invoking 'grml-live -V' should build the ISO. If everything
730 worked as expected the last line of the shell output should look like:
732 [*] Successfully finished execution of grml-live [running 687 seconds]
734 and the ISO can be found inside /grml-live/grml-live/grml_isos/ then.
737 Help, I'm using Debian etch and I don't have FAI version >3.2
738 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
740 wget http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-client_3.2.8_all.deb \
741 http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-server_3.2.8_all.deb \
742 http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-doc_3.2.8_all.deb
743 dpkg -i fai-client_3.2.8_all.deb fai-server_3.2.8_all.deb fai-doc_3.2.8_all.deb
745 or check out the link:http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/[FAI-homepage] for
749 I've problems with the build process. How to start debugging?
750 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
752 Check out the logs inside /var/log/fai/... If you think it's a bug in grml-live
753 send a copy of your config, logs and the commandline with a short problem
754 description to <mika@grml.org>:
756 # history | grep grml-live > /etc/grml/grml_live.cmdline
757 # tar zcf grml_live_problem.tar.gz /etc/grml/grml-live.conf \
758 /etc/grml/grml_live.cmdline /etc/grml/grml-buildd.conf \
759 /var/log/fai /etc/grml/fai
760 -> finally mail grml_live_problem.tar.gz to <mika@grml.org>
762 If you need help with grml-live or would like to see new features as part of
763 grml-live you can get commercial support via
764 link:http://grml-solutions.com/[Grml Solutions].
767 How much is the difference between LZMA and ZLIB compression?
768 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
770 ISO size (bs = blocksize):
772 [width="45%",cols="3,^2,^2"]
773 |============================================================
774 |ISO |LZMA (256kB bs) |ZLIB
775 |grml_sid |666M | 771M
776 |grml_squeeze |659M | 761M
777 |grml_lenny |624M | 723M
778 |grml64_sid |677M | 791M
779 |grml64_squeeze |671M | 785M
780 |grml64_lenny |639M | 745M
781 |grml-medium_sid |208M | 236M
782 |grml-medium_squeeze |206M | 234M
783 |grml-medium_lenny |193M | 220M
784 |grml64-medium_sid |213M | 245M
785 |grml64-medium_squeeze |213M | 244M
786 |grml64-medium_lenny |201M | 231M
787 |grml-small_sid |102M | 118M
788 |grml-small_squeeze |101M | 117M
789 |grml-small_lenny |97M | 112M
790 |grml64-small_sid |103M | 120M
791 |grml64-small_squeeze |103M | 120M
792 |grml64-small_lenny |99M | 116M
793 |============================================================
795 Build time of grml-medium's squashfs file (depends on your system, though just
796 to get the ratio between the different options):
798 * 10 minutes and 4 seconds with LZMA default blocksize (128k)
799 * 7 minutes 27 seconds with LZMA and blocksize 256k
800 * 6 minutes and 8 seconds with LZMA blocksize 512k
801 * 1 minute and 40 seconds with ZLIB
803 [[install-local-files]]
804 How to I install further files into the chroot/ISO?
805 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
807 Just point the configuration variable CHROOT_INSTALL to the directory which
808 provides the files you would like to install. Note that the files are installed
809 under '/' in the chroot - so you have to create the rootfs structure on your
812 echo "CHROOT_INSTALL=\$GRML_FAI_CONFIG/chroot_install" >> /etc/grml/grml-live.local
813 mkdir -p /etc/grml/fai/chroot_install/usr/src/
814 wget example.org/foo.tar.gz
815 mv foo.tar.gz /etc/grml/fai/chroot_install/usr/src/
818 [[local-debian-mirror]]
819 Can I use my own (local) Debian mirror?
820 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
822 Sure. Just adjust the variables GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP (if not
823 already using NFSROOT's base.tgz) inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf according to
824 your needs. Please don't forget that you should use the grml servers as well
825 (see default configuration) so all the grml packages can be downloaded as well.
827 If you want to use a local (for example NFS mount) mirror additionally, just
828 adjust MIRROR_DIRECTORY and MIRROR_SOURCES inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf as
831 Unless you specify GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and/or FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP the default from
832 /etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list and /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf will be
833 taken. If you customise the variables in /etc/grml/grml-live.conf then the two
834 files will be adjusted during runtime automatically.
836 If MIRROR_DIRECTORY and MIRROR_SOURCES are specified the local mirror will be
837 taken as first entry in the generated sources.list so it's prefered over
838 non-local mirrors. Using a fallback mirror (via providing several mirrors in
839 GRML_LIVE_SOURCES as used by default) is a recommended setting.
841 [[add-additional-debian-packages]]
842 How do I add additional Debian package(s) to my CD/ISO?
843 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
845 Just create a new class (using the package_config directory):
847 # cat > /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config/MIKA << EOF
851 another_name_of_a_debian_package
855 and specify it when invoking grml-live then:
857 # grml-live -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,MIKA
859 [[reset-grml-live-configuration]]
860 I fscked up my grml-live configuration. How do I reset it to the defaults?
861 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
863 Notice: this deletes all your grml-live configuration files. If that's really
864 what you are searching for just run:
866 rm -rf /etc/grml/fai /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
867 dpkg -i --force-confnew --force-confmiss /path/to/grml-live_..._all.deb
871 If you don't control your /etc using a version control system (VCS) yet it's a
872 good chance to start using it now. Check out
873 link:http://michael-prokop.at/blog/2007/03/14/maintain-etc-with-mercurial-on-debian/[http://michael-prokop.at/blog/2007/03/14/maintain-etc-with-mercurial-on-debian/]
874 for more details how to maintain /etc using the mercurial VCS.
876 [[create-a-base-tgz]]
877 How do I create a base.tgz for use as NFSROOT?
878 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
880 First of all build the chroot system:
882 mkdir /tmp/nfsroot && cd /tmp/nfsroot
883 debootstrap lenny /tmp/nfsroot/ http://cdn.debian.net/debian
886 Then check out where your NFSROOT is located:
888 # grep '^NFSROOT' /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf
889 NFSROOT=/grml/fai/nfsroot
891 So as /grml/fai/nfsroot is your NFSROOT place the file under
892 /grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/:
894 mv base.tgz /grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/base.tgz
896 or even better use /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz instead.
897 Use I386 as $CLASSNAME for i386 builds and AMD64 for amd64 builds.
899 Now running "grml-live ..." will use this file as main system instead of
900 executing debootstrap. Check out the output for the following lines if using
904 Calling task_extrbase
905 Unpacking Debian base archive
906 Extracting /grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/base.tgz
910 or if using /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz for:
913 ftar: extracting /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles///AMD64.tar.gz to
914 /grml-live/grml-live_20071029.22138/grml_chroot//
918 Set up apt-cacher / apt-cacher-ng for use with grml-live
919 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
921 Make sure /etc/grml/grml-live.conf provides according GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and
924 # cat /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
927 deb http://localhost:3142/deb.grml.org grml-stable main
928 deb http://localhost:3142/deb.grml.org grml-testing main
929 deb http://localhost:3142/cdn.debian.net/debian lenny main contrib non-free
932 FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="lenny http://localhost:3142/cdn.debian.net/debian lenny main contrib non-free"
934 Make sure apt-cacher / apt-cacher-ng is running ('/etc/init.d/apt-cacher
935 restart' or '/etc/init.d/apt-cacher-ng restart'). That's it. All downloaded
936 files will be cached in /var/cache/apt-cacher/ or /var/cache/apt-cacher-ng then.
939 Set up approx for use with grml-live
940 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
942 Make sure /etc/grml/grml-live.conf provides according GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and
945 # cat /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
948 deb http://localhost:9999/grml grml-stable main
949 deb http://localhost:9999/grml grml-testing main
950 deb http://localhost:9999/debian lenny main contrib non-free
952 FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="lenny http://localhost:9999/debian"
956 # cat /etc/approx/approx.conf
958 debian http://ftp.at.debian.org/debian
959 grml http://deb.grml.org/
961 Don't forget to restart approx (/etc/init.d/approx restart). That's it.
962 All downloaded files will be cached in /var/cache/approx now.
965 I've a question which isn't answered by this document
966 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
968 Don't hesitate to contact the author: <mika@grml.org>
971 Download / install grml-live as a Debian package
972 ------------------------------------------------
974 Debian packages are available through the grml-repository at
975 link:http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/g/grml-live/[deb.grml.org]. If you want to
976 build a Debian package on your own (using for example a specific version or the
977 current development tree), just execute:
979 git clone git://git.grml.org/grml-live
987 The source of grml-live is available at
988 link:http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git[http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git]
994 Check out the link:http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git;a=blob;f=TODO;hb=HEAD[TODO file].
1000 Please report feedback, link:http://grml.org/bugs/[bugreports] and wishes
1001 link:http://grml.org/contact/[to the grml-team]!
1006 Michael Prokop <mika@grml.org>
1008 /////////////////////////////////////
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1010 /////////////////////////////////////