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.
90 All class names should be written in uppercase letters. Do not use a dash, use
91 an underscore. So do not use "amd64" but "AMD64", do not use "FOO BAR" but
95 -C **CONFIGURATION_FILE**::
97 The specified file is used as configuration file for grml-live. By default
98 /etc/grml/grml-live.conf is used as default configuration. If a file named
99 /etc/grml/grml-live.local exists it is used as well (sourced after reading
100 /etc/grml/grml-live.conf meant as main file for local configuration). As a last
101 option the specified configuration file is sourced so it is possible to override
102 settings of /etc/grml/grml-live.conf as well as of /etc/grml/grml-live.local.
103 Please notice that all configuration files have to be adjusted during execution
104 of grml-live, so please make sure you use /etc/grml/grml-live.conf as a base for
105 your own configuration file (usually /etc/grml/grml-live.local). Please also
106 notice that the configuration file specified via this option is **not** (yet)
107 supported inside the scripts/hooks/classes at /etc/grml/fai/config. Instead use
108 /etc/grml/grml-live.local for configuration stuff used inside
109 /etc/grml/fai/config.
113 Use specified date as build date information on the ISO instead of the default.
114 The default is the date when grml-live is being executed (retrieved via
115 executing 'date +%Y-%m-%d'). The information is stored inside the file
116 /GRML/grml-version on the ISO, /etc/grml_version in the squashfs file and in all
117 the bootsplash related files. This option is useful if you want to provide an
118 ISO with release information for a specific date but have to build it in
119 advance. Usage example: '-d 2009-10-30'
123 Force execution and do not prompt for acknowledgment of configuration.
127 Set the grml flavour name. Common usage examples: grml, grml-small, grml64.
128 Please do NOT use blanks and any special characters like '/', ';' inside
129 GRML_NAME, otherwise you might notice problems while booting.
133 Display short usage information and exit.
137 Specify name of ISO which will be available inside $OUTPUT_DIRECTORY/grml_isos
140 -I **CHROOT_INSTALL**::
142 Specify name of source directory which provides files that should become part of
143 the chroot/ISO. Not enabled by default. Note: the files are installed under '/'
144 in the chroot so you have to create the rootfs structure on your own.
148 Skip creation of the ISO file. This option is useful if you want to build/update
149 the chroot and/or recreate the squashfs file without building an ISO file.
151 -o **OUTPUT_DIRECTORY**::
153 Main output directory of the build process of FAI. Some directories are created
154 inside this target directory, being: grml_cd (where the files for creating the
155 ISO are located, including the compressed squashfs file), grml_chroot (the
156 chroot system) and grml_isos (where the resulting ISO is stored).
160 Build the ISO without (re-)creating the squashfs compressed file using mksquashfs.
161 This option is useful if you just want to update parts outside the chroot in the ISO.
162 Consider combining this option with the build-only option '-b'.
166 Specify name of the release.
170 Specify the Debian suite you want to use for your live-system. Defaults to
171 "lenny" (being current Debian/stable). Supported values are: etch, lenny, sid.
172 Debian "squeeze" (current Debian/testing) requires base.tgz
173 (/etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz) or a recent version of
176 -t **TEMPLATE_DIRECTORY**::
178 Specify place of the templates used for building the ISO. By default
179 (and if not manually specified) this is /usr/share/grml-live/templates/.
183 Update existing chroot instead of rebuilding it from scratch. This option is
184 based on the softupdate feature of FAI.
186 -v **VERSION_NUMBER**::
188 Specify version number of the release.
192 Increase verbosity in the build process.
196 Use ZLIB instead of LZMA compression in mksquashfs part of the build process.
202 To get a small, Debian-stable and grml-based Live-CD using /grml/grml-live
203 as build and output directory just run:
207 To get a small Debian-unstable and grml-small based Live-CD using
208 /home/mika/grml-live as build and output directory just use:
210 # grml-live -s sid -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 -o /home/mika/grml-live
212 To get a medium sized, Debian-unstable and grml-based Live-CD for i386
213 architecture using /grml/grml-live as build and output directory just run:
215 # grml-live -s sid -a i386 -c GRMLBASE,GRML_MEDIUM,I386
217 To get a small, Debian-unstable and grml-based Live-CD using /tmp as build and
218 output directory and use grml_0.0-3.iso as ISO name (placed inside
219 /tmp/grml_isos) just invoke:
221 # grml-live -o /tmp -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 -s sid -i grml_0.0-3.iso
225 If you have about 700MB of free space inside /dev/shm (being a tmpfs, usually
226 you should have >=1GB of RAM) just run "mount -o remount,suid,dev,rw /dev/shm"
227 and use /dev/shm as build and output directory - resulting in very fast build
228 process. But please be aware of the fact that rebooting your system will result
229 in an empty /dev/shm, so please use another directory for $CHROOT_OUTPUT,
230 $BUILD_OUTPUT and $ISO_OUTPUT if you plan to create more persistent output. :)
233 Main features of grml-live
234 --------------------------
236 * create a grml-/Debian-based Linux Live-CD with one single command
238 * class based concept, providing a maximum of flexibility
240 * supports integration of own hooks, scripts and configuration
242 * supports use and integration of own Software and/or Kernels via simple use of
245 * native support of FAI features
247 * multi-arch support (work in progress)
253 grml-live uses FAI and its class based concept for adjusting configuration and
254 setup according to your needs. This gives you flexibility and strength without
255 losing the simplicity in the build process.
257 The main and base class provided by grml-live is named GRMLBASE. It's strongly
258 recommended to **always** use the class GRMLBASE when building an ISO using
259 grml-live, as well as the architecture dependent class which provides the kernel
260 (being 'I386' for x86_32 and 'AMD64' for x86_64) and a GRML_* class (like
261 GRML_SMALL, GRML_MEDIUM or GRML_FULL). The following files and directories are
262 relevant for class GRMLBASE by default:
264 /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/GRMLBASE/
265 /etc/grml/fai/config/debconf/GRMLBASE
266 /etc/grml/fai/config/class/GRMLBASE.var
267 /etc/grml/fai/config/hooks/instsoft.GRMLBASE
268 /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config/GRMLBASE
270 Take a look at the next section for information about the concept of those
273 If you want to use your own configuration, extend an existing configuration
274 and/or add additional packages to your ISO just invent a new class (or extend an
275 existing one). For example if you want to use your own class named "FOOBAR" just
276 set CLASSES="GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,FOOBAR" inside /etc/grml/grml-live.local
277 or invoke grml-live using the classes option: "grml-live -c
278 GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,FOOBAR ...".
280 More details regarding the class concept can be found in the documentation of
281 FAI itself (being available at /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/).
288 The package selection part of the classes can be found in
289 /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config whereas some further classes are defined for
290 example in /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/ so specific feature sets can be
291 selected. The following classes are predefined:
293 * DEBORPHAN: get rid of all packages listed in output of Deborphan
295 * GRMLBASE: the main class responsible for getting a minimal subset of what's
296 defining a grml system. Important parts of the buildprocess are specified in
297 this class as well, so unless you have a really good reason you should always
300 * GRML_FULL: full featured grml, also known as the "normal", full grml.
302 * GRML_MEDIUM: medium sized grml version, known as grml-medium
304 * GRML_POWERPC: grml for PowerPC architecture, not supported yet (still work in
307 * GRML_SMALL: minimum sized grml version, known as grml-small
309 * LATEX: LaTeX(-related) packages like auctex, texlive,...
310 (which used to be shipped by grml before the LaTeX removal)
312 * LATEX_CLEANUP: get rid of several very large LaTeX directories
313 (like some /usr/share/doc/texlive-*, /usr/share/doc/texmf,...)
315 * LOCALES: use full featured locales setup (see /etc/locale.gen.grml). This
316 avoids to get rid of /usr/share/locale - which happens by default otherwise - as
319 * NO_ONLINE: do not run scripts during the chroot build process which require a
322 * RELEASE: run some specific scripts and commands to provide the workflow for an
323 official grml release
325 * REMOVE_DOCS: get rid of documentation directories (like /usr/share/doc,
326 /usr/share/man/, /usr/share/info,...)
328 * XORG: providing important packages for use with a base grml-featured X.org
335 Notice that grml-live ships FAI configuration files that do not use the same
336 namespace as the FAI packages itself. This ensures that grml-live does not clash
337 with your usual FAI configuration, so instead of /etc/fai/fai.conf (package
338 fai-client) grml uses /etc/grml/fai/fai.conf instead. For more details see
339 below. To get an idea how another configuration or example files could look like
340 check out /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/examples/simple/ (provided by Debian package
341 fai-doc). Furthermore /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/fai-guide.html/ch-config.html
342 provides documentation regarding configuration possibilities.
346 Script for the main build process. Requires root permissions for execution.
348 /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
350 Main configuration file for grml-live which should be considered as a reference
351 configuration file only. Please use /etc/grml/grml-live.local for local
352 configuration instead.
354 /etc/grml/grml-live.local
356 All the local configuration should go to this file. This file overrides any
357 defaults of grml-live. Configurations via /etc/grml/grml-live.local are preferred
358 over the ones from /etc/grml/grml-live.conf. If you want to override settings
359 from /etc/grml/grml-live.local as well you have to specify them on the grml-live
362 /etc/grml/fai/fai.conf
364 Main configuration file for FAI which specifies where all the configuration
365 files and scripts for FAI/grml-live can be found. By default the configuration
366 variables are FAI_CONFIG_SRC=file:///etc/grml/fai/config and
367 FAI_CONFIGDIR=/etc/grml/fai/config - both pointing to a directory shipped by
368 grml-live out-of-the-box so you shouldn't have to configure anything in this
371 /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf
373 This file is used by make-fai-nfsroot(8) only. Usually you don't have to change
374 anything inside this file. If you want to modify NFSROOT though you can adjust
377 /etc/grml/fai/NFSROOT
379 This file specifies the package list for creating the NFSROOT.
381 /etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list
383 This file specifies which mirrors should be considered for retrieving the Debian
384 packages when creating the main chroot (including all the software you would
385 like to see included). Important: this file should *not* be adjusted manually!
386 Instead use the GRML_LIVE_SOURCES variable inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf or
387 /etc/grml/grml-live.local which modifies /etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list
388 on-the-fly via grml-live then. If you want to generally adjust apt configuration
389 use FAI's fcopy command with /etc/grml/fai/config/files instead.
391 /etc/grml/fai/config/
393 The main directory for configuration of FAI/grml-live. More details below.
395 /etc/grml/fai/config/class/
397 This directory contains files which specify main configuration variables for the
400 /etc/grml/fai/config/debconf/
402 This directory provides the files for preseeding/configuration of debconf
405 /etc/grml/fai/config/hooks/
407 This directory provides files for customising the build process through hooks.
408 Hooks are user defined programs or scripts, which are called during the
409 installation process.
411 /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config/
413 Directory with lists of software packages to be installed or removed. The
414 different classes describe what should find its way to your ISO. When running
415 "grml-live -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 ..." only the configuration of GRMLBASE,
416 GRML_SMALL and and I386 will be taken. If you use 'grml-live -c
417 GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,FOOBAR ...' then the files of GRMLBASE, GRML_SMALL,
418 I386 **plus** the files from FOOBAR will be taken. So just create a new class to
419 adjust the package selection according to your needs. Please notice that the
420 directory GRMLBASE contains a package list defining a minimum but still
421 reasonable package configuration.
423 /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/
425 Scripts for customising the ISO within the build process.
427 /etc/grml/fai/live-initramfs/
429 This directory provides the files used for building the initramfs/initrd via
436 grml-live itself logs to /var/log/grml-live.log. Unless you set PRESERVE_LOGFILE
437 in your grml-live configuration the file is cleared on each new invocation of
440 The FAI part of grml-live logs to /var/log/fai/$HOSTNAME/ - so the
441 default being /var/log/fai/grml/.
443 If you are using the grml-live buildd you will find the logs of the grml-live
444 run at /var/log/grml-buildd.stdout and /var/log/grml-buildd.stderr.
446 If you want to store build information in a database just install the
447 grml-live-db Debian package. Further details available in the grml-live-db
451 Requirements for the build system
452 ---------------------------------
454 * any Debian based system should be sufficient (if it doesn't work it's a bug,
455 please send us a bug report then) [a usual
456 link:http://grml.org/grml2hd/[grml2hd] harddisk installation (using grml or
457 grml-medium) ships all you need]. Check out <<deploy-on-debian,How do I deploy
458 grml-live on a plain Debian installation>> for details how to set up grml-live
459 on a plain, original Debian system.
461 * enough free disk space; at least 800MB are required for a minimal grml-live
462 run (\~400MB for the chroot [$CHROOT_OUTPUT], \~150MB for the build target
463 [$BUILD_OUTPUT] and \~150MB for the resulting ISO [$ISO_OUTPUT] plus some
464 temporary files), if you plan to use GRML_FULL you should have at least 4GB of
465 total free disk space
467 * fast network access for retrieving the Debian packages used for creating the
468 chroot (check out "local mirror" and "NFSROOT" to workaround this problem as far
471 For further information see next section.
475 Current state of grml-live with squashfs-tools and kernel
476 ---------------------------------------------------------
478 To make it easier to track problems this section documents current state of
479 grml-live playing together with squashfs-tools / squashfs-lzma-tools (for
480 building the compressed file) and the kernel version. Documentation of this
481 section is up2date by 7rd of september 2009, please report any bugs you
484 Difference between squashfs-lzma-tools and squashfs-tools
485 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
487 Whereas the ZLIB compression is much faster in the build process, the LZMA
488 compression provides a smaller resulting ISO. If you're wondering: the official
489 Grml builds use the LZMA compression.
491 Squashfs-tools was introduced in Debian and once provided support for LZMA
492 compression. Sadly LZMA compression within squashfs-tools became unsupported and
493 therefore squashfs-lzma-tools had to be introduced by the Grml team. Different
494 kernel versions provide different squashfs file formats (version 3.x for kernel
495 versions until 2.6.28-grml[64], since kernel 2.6.31-grml[64] it's the 4.x
498 If you're wondering which package supports what, here's a short overview:
500 * squashfs-tools 1:4.0-1: ZLIB as default, no LZMA support/options, file format
503 * squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7: ZLIB as default, no LZMA support/options, file format
506 * squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1: LZMA as default, ZLIB support via -nolzma
507 option, file format version 3
509 * squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2: ZLIB as default, LZMA support via -lzma option,
510 file format version 4
512 * squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1: LZMA as default, ZLIB support via -nolzma option,
513 file format version 3
515 Depending on the kernel version you want to use you need different versions
516 squashfs-tools/squashfs-lzma-tools. Yes, that's pretty a mess (don't ask how
517 much this sucks for us developers) - though this is supposed to calm down with
518 the recent integration of squashfs file format 4 in the mainline kernel. Support
519 for LZMA is pending and should dramatically simplify the situation for
520 developers as well as users as soon as it's available mainline.
522 Using squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 on the build system
523 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
525 squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 is available via the grml repositories. It provides
526 the mksquashfs-lzma and unsquashfs-lzma binaries. The package does NOT conflict
527 with Debian's squashfs-tools package (you can install both of them at the same
530 The packages can be downloaded from
531 link:http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma-tools/[http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma-tools/]
533 It provides support for the new squashfs file format version 4 and therefore
534 requires kernel versions newer than 2.6.28-grml[64]. It supports LZMA as well as
535 ZLIB compression. Just use the defaults for enabling LZMA or use grml-live's
536 '-z' option if you want to use ZLIB instead.
538 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml[64]: does not work
539 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml[64]: does not work
540 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml[64]: does not work
541 * Kernel 2.6.31-grml[64]: works
542 * Kernel 2.6.33-grml[64]: works
546 Please use squashfs-lzma-tools >=4.0-2 from Grml if you want to remaster any
547 grml release being MORE RECENT than 2009.05.
549 Using squashfs-tools 1:4.0-X on the build system
550 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
552 squashfs-tools >=1:4.0-1 is available in Debian/unstable and Debian/testing. It
553 provides the mksquashfs and unsquashfs binaries. The package does NOT
554 conflict with the squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 package (you can install both of
555 them at the same time).
557 The packages can be downloaded from
558 link:ftp://ftp.de.debian.org/debian/pool/main/s/squashfs-tools/[ftp://ftp.de.debian.org/debian/pool/main/s/squashfs-tools/]
560 It provides support for the new squashfs file format version 4 and therefore
561 requires kernel versions newer than 2.6.28-grml[64].
563 It does NOT support LZMA compression. If you need LZMA support please use
564 Grml's squashfs-lzma-tools (see section above) instead.
566 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml[64]: does not work
567 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml[64]: does not work
568 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml[64]: does not work
569 * Kernel 2.6.31-grml[64]: works
570 * Kernel 2.6.33-grml[64]: works
573 Please use squashfs-tools >=1:4.0-1 only if you want to remaster grml releases
574 MORE RECENT than 2009.05 using the ZLIB compression.
576 Using squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 on the build system
577 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
579 squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 from the grml repository supports kernel
580 2.6.26-grml[64] and 2.6.28-grml[64] using both LZMA and ZLIB (-nolzma)
581 compression. It's the recommended package for building ISOs with grml-live
584 The packages can be downloaded from
585 link:http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma/[http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma/].
588 Please use squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 if you want to remaster grml release
591 Using squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 on the build system
592 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
594 squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 is available through
595 http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.3-7_i386.deb (for x86) or
596 http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.3-7_amd64.deb (for amd64) [both build
597 on and for Debian/etch but working with testing and unstable as well].
599 Please notice that squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 does NOT support LZMA compression at
600 all (so you won't be able to remaster release 2008.11 and 2009.05 using LZMA for
601 example). The -nolzma option of mksquashfs is not available therefore (even
602 though grml-live will deactivate it for you automatically anyway). Please use
603 squashfs-lzma-tools instead.
605 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml: does NOT work, please use squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1
606 instead if you still want to use kernel 2.6.23 (not
608 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml: works (without LZMA compression only of course!)
609 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml: works (without LZMA compression only of course!)
611 Using squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1 on the build system
612 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
614 squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1 is available via the grml-testing repository,
617 # aptitude install squashfs-tools=1:3.2r2-9exp1
619 or directly via downloading the files
620 http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.2r2-9exp1_i386.deb (for x86) or
621 http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.2r2-9exp1_amd64.deb (for amd64).
623 Using with ZLIB compression (SQUASHFS_OPTIONS='-nolzma' or -z
624 option in grml-live cmdline):
626 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml: works
627 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml: works
628 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml: supposed to work (not verified though)
630 Using with LZMA compression:
632 * Kernel 2.6.23-grml: works
633 * Kernel 2.6.26-grml: does NOT work, please use ZLIB mode instead or switch
634 to Debian package squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 (see section above).
635 * Kernel 2.6.28-grml: does NOT work, please use ZLIB mode instead or switch
636 to Debian package squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 (see section above).
643 How do I deploy grml-live on a plain Debian installation?
644 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
646 The easiest way to get a running grml-live setup is to install grml or
647 grml-medium using grml2hd (for example inside KVM, Virtualbox, VMware,... if you
648 don't want to run it on a physical system). Of course using grml-live on a
649 plain, original Debian installation is supported as well. So there we go.
651 What we have: plain, original Debian Lenny (5.0).
653 What we want: build a grml-medium ISO based on Debian/squeeze for the i386
654 architecture using grml-live.
658 If you encounter any problems while booting the resulting ISO please be aware of
659 <<current_state,the 'current state of grml-live with squashfs-tools and kernel'
665 # adjust sources.list:
666 cat >> /etc/apt/sources.list << EOF
668 # grml stable repository:
669 deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-stable main
670 # deb-src http://deb.grml.org/ grml-stable main
672 # grml testing/development repository:
673 deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-testing main
674 # deb-src http://deb.grml.org/ grml-testing main
677 # adjust apt-pinning (only prefer squashfs stuff from grml):
678 cat >> /etc/apt/preferences << EOF
680 Pin: origin deb.grml.org
683 Package: squashfs-tools
684 Pin: origin deb.grml.org
687 Package: squashfs-lzma-tools
688 Pin: origin deb.grml.org
692 # get keyring for apt:
694 apt-get --allow-unauthenticated install grml-debian-keyring
696 # optionally(!) install basefile so we don't have to build basic
697 # chroot from scratch, grab from http://daily.grml.org/
698 # mkdir -p /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/
699 # mv base.tgz /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/I386.tar.gz
700 # mv base64.tgz /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/AMD64.tar.gz
702 # install relevant tools
703 # please check out http://grml.org/grml-live/#current_state when encountering problems!
704 apt-get -o APT::Install-Recommends=false install grml-live squashfs-tools squashfs-lzma-tools
706 # adjust grml-live configuration for our needs:
707 cat > /etc/grml/grml-live.local << EOF
708 # consider using LZMA only for space reasons (resulting in longer
709 # build time but smaller ISO):
710 SQUASHFS_OPTIONS="-nolzma"
711 # install local files into the chroot
712 CHROOT_INSTALL="/etc/grml/fai/chroot_install"
713 ## adjust if necessary (defaults to /grml/grml-live):
714 ## OUTPUT="/srv/grml-live"
715 FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="squeeze http://cdn.debian.net/debian/"
717 CLASSES="GRMLBASE,GRML_MEDIUM,I386"
718 # PRESERVE_LOGFILE='1'
719 # ZERO_FAI_LOGFILE='1'
721 deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-stable main
722 deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-testing main
723 deb http://cdn.debian.net/debian squeeze main contrib non-free
727 # just optional(!) - upgrade FAI to latest available version:
728 cat >> /etc/apt/sources.list << EOF
730 deb http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download lenny koeln
733 # get gpg key of FAI repos and install current FAI version:
734 gpg -a --recv-keys AB9B66FD; gpg -a --export AB9B66FD | apt-key add -
736 apt-get install fai-client fai-server fai-doc
738 That's it. Now invoking 'grml-live -V' should build the ISO. If everything
739 worked as expected the last line of the shell output should look like:
741 [*] Successfully finished execution of grml-live [running 687 seconds]
743 and the ISO can be found inside /grml-live/grml-live/grml_isos/ then.
746 Help, I'm using Debian etch and I don't have FAI version >3.2
747 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
749 wget http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-client_3.2.8_all.deb \
750 http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-server_3.2.8_all.deb \
751 http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-doc_3.2.8_all.deb
752 dpkg -i fai-client_3.2.8_all.deb fai-server_3.2.8_all.deb fai-doc_3.2.8_all.deb
754 or check out the link:http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/[FAI-homepage] for
758 I've problems with the build process. How to start debugging?
759 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
761 Check out the logs inside /var/log/fai/... If you think it's a bug in grml-live
762 send a copy of your config, logs and the commandline with a short problem
763 description to <mika@grml.org>:
765 # history | grep grml-live > /etc/grml/grml_live.cmdline
766 # tar zcf grml_live_problem.tar.gz /etc/grml/grml-live.conf \
767 /etc/grml/grml_live.cmdline /etc/grml/grml-buildd.conf \
768 /var/log/fai /etc/grml/fai
769 -> finally mail grml_live_problem.tar.gz to <mika@grml.org>
771 If you need help with grml-live or would like to see new features as part of
772 grml-live you can get commercial support via
773 link:http://grml-solutions.com/[Grml Solutions].
776 How much is the difference between LZMA and ZLIB compression?
777 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
779 ISO size (bs = blocksize):
781 [width="45%",cols="3,^2,^2"]
782 |============================================================
783 |ISO |LZMA (256kB bs) |ZLIB
784 |grml_sid |666M | 771M
785 |grml_squeeze |659M | 761M
786 |grml_lenny |624M | 723M
787 |grml64_sid |677M | 791M
788 |grml64_squeeze |671M | 785M
789 |grml64_lenny |639M | 745M
790 |grml-medium_sid |208M | 236M
791 |grml-medium_squeeze |206M | 234M
792 |grml-medium_lenny |193M | 220M
793 |grml64-medium_sid |213M | 245M
794 |grml64-medium_squeeze |213M | 244M
795 |grml64-medium_lenny |201M | 231M
796 |grml-small_sid |102M | 118M
797 |grml-small_squeeze |101M | 117M
798 |grml-small_lenny |97M | 112M
799 |grml64-small_sid |103M | 120M
800 |grml64-small_squeeze |103M | 120M
801 |grml64-small_lenny |99M | 116M
802 |============================================================
804 Build time of grml-medium's squashfs file (depends on your system, though just
805 to get the ratio between the different options):
807 * 10 minutes and 4 seconds with LZMA default blocksize (128k)
808 * 7 minutes 27 seconds with LZMA and blocksize 256k
809 * 6 minutes and 8 seconds with LZMA blocksize 512k
810 * 1 minute and 40 seconds with ZLIB
812 [[install-local-files]]
813 How to I install further files into the chroot/ISO?
814 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
816 Just point the configuration variable CHROOT_INSTALL to the directory which
817 provides the files you would like to install. Note that the files are installed
818 under '/' in the chroot - so you have to create the rootfs structure on your
821 echo "CHROOT_INSTALL=\$GRML_FAI_CONFIG/chroot_install" >> /etc/grml/grml-live.local
822 mkdir -p /etc/grml/fai/chroot_install/usr/src/
823 wget example.org/foo.tar.gz
824 mv foo.tar.gz /etc/grml/fai/chroot_install/usr/src/
827 [[local-debian-mirror]]
828 Can I use my own (local) Debian mirror?
829 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
831 Sure. Just adjust the variables GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP (if not
832 already using NFSROOT's base.tgz) inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf according to
833 your needs. Please don't forget that you should use the grml servers as well
834 (see default configuration) so all the grml packages can be downloaded as well.
836 If you want to use a local (for example NFS mount) mirror additionally, just
837 adjust MIRROR_DIRECTORY and MIRROR_SOURCES inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf as
840 Unless you specify GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and/or FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP the default from
841 /etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list and /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf will be
842 taken. If you customise the variables in /etc/grml/grml-live.conf then the two
843 files will be adjusted during runtime automatically.
845 If MIRROR_DIRECTORY and MIRROR_SOURCES are specified the local mirror will be
846 taken as first entry in the generated sources.list so it's preferred over
847 non-local mirrors. Using a fallback mirror (via providing several mirrors in
848 GRML_LIVE_SOURCES as used by default) is a recommended setting.
850 [[add-additional-debian-packages]]
851 How do I add additional Debian package(s) to my CD/ISO?
852 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
854 Just create a new class (using the package_config directory):
856 # cat > /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config/MIKA << EOF
860 another_name_of_a_debian_package
864 and specify it when invoking grml-live then:
866 # grml-live -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,MIKA
868 [[reset-grml-live-configuration]]
869 I fscked up my grml-live configuration. How do I reset it to the defaults?
870 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
872 Notice: this deletes all your grml-live configuration files. If that's really
873 what you are searching for just run:
875 rm -rf /etc/grml/fai /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
876 dpkg -i --force-confnew --force-confmiss /path/to/grml-live_..._all.deb
880 If you don't control your /etc using a version control system (VCS) yet it's a
881 good chance to start using it now. Check out
882 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/]
883 for more details how to maintain /etc using the mercurial VCS.
885 [[create-a-base-tgz]]
886 How do I create a base.tgz for use as NFSROOT?
887 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
889 First of all build the chroot system:
891 mkdir /tmp/nfsroot && cd /tmp/nfsroot
892 debootstrap lenny /tmp/nfsroot/ http://cdn.debian.net/debian
895 Then check out where your NFSROOT is located:
897 # grep '^NFSROOT' /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf
898 NFSROOT=/grml/fai/nfsroot
900 So as /grml/fai/nfsroot is your NFSROOT place the file under
901 /grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/:
903 mv base.tgz /grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/base.tgz
905 or even better use /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz instead.
906 Use I386 as $CLASSNAME for i386 builds and AMD64 for amd64 builds.
908 Now running "grml-live ..." will use this file as main system instead of
909 executing debootstrap. Check out the output for the following lines if using
913 Calling task_extrbase
914 Unpacking Debian base archive
915 Extracting /grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/base.tgz
919 or if using /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz for:
922 ftar: extracting /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles///AMD64.tar.gz to
923 /grml-live/grml-live_20071029.22138/grml_chroot//
927 Existing base.tgz can be found at http://daily.grml.org/
930 Set up apt-cacher / apt-cacher-ng for use with grml-live
931 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
933 Make sure /etc/grml/grml-live.conf provides according GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and
936 # cat /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
939 deb http://localhost:3142/deb.grml.org grml-stable main
940 deb http://localhost:3142/deb.grml.org grml-testing main
941 deb http://localhost:3142/cdn.debian.net/debian lenny main contrib non-free
944 FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="lenny http://localhost:3142/cdn.debian.net/debian lenny main contrib non-free"
946 Make sure apt-cacher / apt-cacher-ng is running ('/etc/init.d/apt-cacher
947 restart' or '/etc/init.d/apt-cacher-ng restart'). That's it. All downloaded
948 files will be cached in /var/cache/apt-cacher/ or /var/cache/apt-cacher-ng then.
951 Set up approx for use with grml-live
952 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
954 Make sure /etc/grml/grml-live.conf provides according GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and
957 # cat /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
960 deb http://localhost:9999/grml grml-stable main
961 deb http://localhost:9999/grml grml-testing main
962 deb http://localhost:9999/debian lenny main contrib non-free
964 FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="lenny http://localhost:9999/debian"
968 # cat /etc/approx/approx.conf
970 debian http://ftp.at.debian.org/debian
971 grml http://deb.grml.org/
973 Don't forget to restart approx (/etc/init.d/approx restart). That's it.
974 All downloaded files will be cached in /var/cache/approx now.
977 I've a question which isn't answered by this document
978 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
980 Don't hesitate to contact the author: <mika@grml.org>
983 Download / install grml-live as a Debian package
984 ------------------------------------------------
986 Debian packages are available through the grml-repository at
987 link:http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/g/grml-live/[deb.grml.org]. If you want to
988 build a Debian package on your own (using for example a specific version or the
989 current development tree), just execute:
991 git clone git://git.grml.org/grml-live
999 The source of grml-live is available at
1000 link:http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git[http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git]
1006 Check out the link:http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git;a=blob;f=TODO;hb=HEAD[TODO file].
1012 Please report feedback, link:http://grml.org/bugs/[bugreports] and wishes
1013 link:http://grml.org/contact/[to the grml-team]!
1018 Michael Prokop <mika@grml.org>
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