6 grml-debootstrap - wrapper around debootstrap for installing plain Debian
10 grml-debootstrap [ _options_ ]
12 image:images/screenshot.png[Screenshot]
17 grml-debootstrap is a wrapper suite around debootstrap (and cdebootstrap if you
18 want) for installing a plain Debian system very fast and easy.
20 All you have to do is adjust a few variables in the configuration file
21 /etc/debootstrap/config or specify some command line options and invoke
22 grml-debootstrap. If invoked without any configuration modifications or command
23 line options a dialog based front end will be available to control some basic
24 configuration options.
26 A plain and base Debian system will be installed on the given device, directory
27 or virtual image file then. Customization of this process is possible as well.
29 CAUTION: The Grml team does not take responsibility for loss of any data!
31 Options and environment variables
32 ---------------------------------
34 *--arch* _architecture_::
36 Set target architecture you want to install. Defaults to the architecture
37 you are currently running. If you're running an amd64 kernel and want to
38 deploy an i386 system use this option. Note: deploying amd64 from an i386
39 kernel does *not* work. Example: "_--arch i386_"
43 Enable Debian's Backports repository via the
44 /etc/apt/sources.list.d/backports.list configuration file. This provides the
45 option to install Debian packages from Debian's backports repository.
47 *--bootappend* _appendline-for-the-kernel_::
49 Specify appendline for the kernel.
52 *-c*, *--config* _file_::
54 Use specified configuration file, defaults to /etc/debootstrap/config.
56 *--chroot-scripts* _directory_::
58 Execute chroot scripts from specified directory. This allows customisation
59 of the chroot setup, the executable script(s) present in the given directory
60 are executed at the end of the chroot procedure.
61 Default directory: /etc/debootstrap/chroot-scripts/
65 Enable the 'contrib' repository in COMPONENTS. By default only
66 the 'main' repository is enabled.
68 *-d*, *--confdir* _path_::
70 Place of configuration files for debootstrap, defaults to /etc/debootstrap.
74 Use specified file for preseeding Debian packages instead of using
75 the default <confdir>/debconf-selections.
79 Extra parameters passed to the debootstrap command.
83 Execute in very verbose way. Useful for debugging possible problems
84 with grml-debootstrap or identify what's actually executed.
86 *--defaultinterfaces*::
88 Install a default /etc/network/interfaces file (enabling DHCP for eth0)
89 instead of taking over config from host system.
93 Partition where EFI boot manager should be installed to. If the
94 specified device doesn't use a FAT filesystem yet grml-debootstrap
95 automatically creates the filesystem. If a FAT filesystem is already
96 present the filesystem creation is skipped. Please ensure that it's
97 a valid FAT32 filesystem and the partition has the 'boot' and 'esp'
98 flags enabled. This option requires EFI support on the running system
99 and the option is NOT supported for Virtual Machine deployments.
101 *--filesystem* _filesystem_::
103 Filesystem that should be created when installing to a partition.
104 If unset defaults to ext4. Valid values are all filesystems that
105 can be created through mkfs._filesystem_.
109 Skip user acknowledgement and do not prompt for user input.
113 Enable Grml.org's Debian repository (http://deb.grml.org/) via the
114 /etc/apt/sources.list.d/grml.list configuration file. This provides the
115 option to install Debian packages from Grml's repository.
119 Device where grub should be installed to. Note that only the MBR (master
120 boot record) can be used (/dev/sda, /dev/sdb,...). Partitions (like
121 /dev/sda1, /dev/sdb2,...) are NOT supported because grub2 doesn't support
122 installation into the PBR (partition boot record) anymore. Usage example:
123 '--grub /dev/sda'. Note: just do not set this option to avoid installation
128 Show summary of options and exit.
130 *--hostname* _hostname_::
132 Use specified hostname instead of the default (being $HOSTNAME or if unset 'grml').
134 *-i*, *--iso* _/mntpoint_::
136 Specify mount point where you have a Debian ISO mounted loopback.
137 Using this option instead of the mirror option gives you the possibility
138 to install the base-system without network access. Make sure you
139 mounted the according Debian-ISO to the given _/mntpoint_. See section
140 'Usage examples' for a demonstration.
144 Do not overwrite user provided /etc/apt/sources.list.
146 *-m*, *--mirror* _URL_::
148 Specify mirror which should be used for apt-get/aptitude.
149 Corresponding with configuration variable MIRROR.
153 Skip debootstrap, only do configuration to the target.
157 Do not copy /etc/network/interfaces from host system to the target.
158 This option is automatically enabled when using --vm or --vmfile.
162 Skip installation of default kernel images. This option might be
163 interesting for you if you want a Debian system which doesn't
164 need to provide regular boot, e.g. a system which provides
165 ISOs for booting via GRUB using grml-rescueboot.
169 Enable the 'non-free' repository in COMPONENTS. By default only
170 the 'main' repository is enabled.
174 Skip installation of packages defined in /etc/debootstrap/packages.
178 Do not prompt for the root password. Note: Use the '--password' option if
179 you want to set the root password during an automatic installation but don't
180 want to use the interactive dialog.
182 *-p*, *--mntpoint* _/mntpoint_::
184 Specify mount point that should be used for mounting the target system.
185 Corresponding with configuration variable MNTPOINT.
186 Note: this option has no effect if option -t is given and represents a
189 *--packages* _file_::
191 Use specified file as list for packages that should be installed instead of
192 the default package list file <confdir>/packages.
194 *--password* _password_::
196 Use specified password as password for user root. Use with caution, as your
197 command line might be visible in the process list and the shell history.
198 It's meant for automatic installation only.
200 *--post-scripts* _directory_::
202 Execute scripts from specified directory after executing the chroot script.
203 This allows customisation of the system after the chroot has been set up.
204 The environment variable $MNTPOINT is available inside the scripts for
205 direct access of the chroot.
206 Default directory: /etc/debootstrap/post-scripts/
208 *--pre-scripts* _directory_::
210 Execute scripts from specified directory before executing the chroot
211 script. This allows customisation of the system before the chroot has
212 been set up. The environment variable $MNTPOINT is available inside the
213 scripts for direct access of the chroot.
214 Default directory: /etc/debootstrap/pre-scripts/
216 *-r*, *--release* _releasename_::
218 Specify release of new Debian system. Supported releases names: lenny,
219 squeeze, wheezy, jessie, stretch, buster, bullseye and sid. Corresponding with configuration
220 variable RELEASE. Default release: buster
224 Delete grml-debootstrap configuration files (/etc/debootstrap/*) from installed
225 system. Useful for reproducible builds or if you don't want to leak information.
227 *-t*, *--target* _target_::
229 Target partition (/dev/...) or directory (anything else without /dev at the
238 Set up a Virtual Machine on an existing block device, which will be
240 This allows deployment of a Virtual Machine. The options needs to be
241 combined with the --target option.
242 Usage example: --vm --target /dev/mapper/your-vm-disk
246 Set up a Virtual Machine using a regular file instead of installing to a
247 partition/block device or directory. This allows deployment of a Virtual
248 Machine. The options needs to be combined with the --target option
249 ('qemu-img create -f raw ...' is executed on the specified target).
250 Usage example: --vmfile --target /mnt/sda1/qemu.img
254 Use specified size for size of Virtual Machine disk file. If not specified it
255 defaults to 2G (being 2GB). Syntax as supported by qemu-img (see manpage
256 qemu-img(1) for details.
257 Usage example: --vmsize 3G
261 Show version of program and exit.
263 WARNING: the command line parsing of grml-debootstrap usually does not validate
264 the provided arguments for the command line options. Please be careful and check
265 docs and /etc/debootstrap/config for further information.
270 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda1 --grub /dev/sda
272 Install default Debian release (buster) on /dev/sda1 and install bootmanager
273 GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda and use /dev/sda1 as system partition.
275 grml-debootstrap --release stretch --target /dev/sda1 --grub /dev/sda --hostname foobar --password changeme
277 Install Debian release stretch on /dev/sda1 and install bootmanager
278 GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda and use /dev/sda1 as system partition.
279 Set hostname to 'foobar' and password for user root to 'changeme'.
281 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda6 --grub /dev/sda --release sid
283 Install Debian unstable/sid on /dev/sda6, install bootmanager GRUB in MBR
284 (master boot record) of /dev/sda and use /dev/sda6 as system partition.
286 mount /dev/sda1 /data/chroot
287 grml-debootstrap --target /data/chroot
289 Install default Debian release (buster) in directory /data/chroot (without
292 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda3 --grub /dev/sda --mirror ftp://ftp.tugraz.at/mirror/debian
294 Install default Debian release (buster) on /dev/sda3 and install bootmanager
295 GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda and use /dev/sda3 as system partition.
296 Use specified mirror instead of the default (http://deb.debian.org/debian) one.
298 mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/sda1
299 grml-debootstrap --vmfile --vmsize 3G --target /mnt/sda1/qemu.img
301 Install default debian release (buster) in a Virtual Machine file with
302 3GB disk size (including GRUB as bootmanager in MBR of the virtual disk file):
304 mount -o loop /mnt/sda6/debian-CD-1.iso /mnt/iso
305 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda1 --grub /dev/sda --iso file:/mnt/iso/debian/
307 Install Debian on /dev/sda1 using the loopback mounted Debian-ISO
308 for the base-system and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of
309 /dev/sda and use /dev/sda1 as system partition. Please notice, that the chroot
310 system requires network access for all packages which are not part of the
316 /etc/debootstrap/config
318 Main configuration file. Adjust it according to your needs if you want to
319 execute grml-debootstrap in the non-interactive mode without any special command
322 /etc/debootstrap/chroot-script
324 The script executed within the new Debian system as soon as the main system
325 has been installed via [c]debootstrap.
327 /etc/debootstrap/locale.gen
329 Defines the default locales used for generating locales via locale-gen.
331 /etc/debootstrap/packages
333 Defines the software packages which should be installed in the new
334 Debian system by default.
336 /etc/debootstrap/extrapackages/
338 Debian Packages dropped in this directory will be installed into the new Debian
339 system by default (Control variable: EXTRAPACKAGES)
344 You can control execution of grml-debootstrap via adjusting
345 /etc/debootstrap/config for some main stuff or via setting some selected
346 variables via command line. The packages which should be installed in the new
347 Debian system can be defined via the file /etc/debootstrap/packages. If you
348 want to put existing files to the new Debian system you can place them into the
349 (by default non-existing) directories boot, etc, share, usr and var in
350 /etc/debootstrap/. Every existing directory will be copied to the new Debian
351 system then. If you want to install additional packages that are not available
352 via the Grml or Debian mirror drop them into /etc/debootstrap/extrapackages and
353 make sure that EXTRAPACKAGES is set to "yes".
355 Automatic installation
356 ----------------------
358 If environment variable AUTOINSTALL is set grml-debootstrap can be executed in a
359 full automatic mode. While this mode isn't really useful for interactive
360 execution (just configure /etc/debootstrap/configure or specify the relevant
361 variables on the command line instead) it is meant for use via boot option
362 debian2hd on the Grml live system. The boot option debian2hd (more precise: the
363 kernelname at the bootprompt) supports the following boot options (they
364 correspond with the command line options mentioned above):
368 The target partition/directory of the new Debian system. Usage example:
373 Where do you want to install grub to? Usage example: grub=/dev/sda
377 Specify release of new Debian system. Defaults to Debian buster. Supported
378 releases: lenny, squeeze, wheezy, jessie, stretch, buster, bullseye and sid. Usage example: release=stretch
382 Specify mirror which should be used for apt-get/aptitude instead
383 of the default one (http://deb.debian.org/debian).
384 Usage example: mirror=ftp://ftp.tugraz.at/mirror/debian
388 Set password of user root without prompting for it but set it to the given
389 argument. Usage example: password=AiTh5ahn
391 Usage example for automatic installation
392 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
394 debian2hd target=/dev/sda1 grub=/dev/sda mirror=ftp://ftp.tugraz.at/mirror/debian password=foobar
396 You have to enter this command line at the bootprompt of the Grml live system.
397 Please make sure that /dev/sda1 is the partition where you really want to
398 install your new Debian system.
401 Automatic installation within booting process is done in grml-autoconfig via
402 setting environment variable AUTOINSTALL and creation of
403 /usr/bin/grml-debootstrap_noninteractive with the available and relevant
404 boot options for grml-debootstrap.
409 include::releasetable.txt[]
412 .lenny/squeeze/wheezy release
413 ================================================================================
414 [1] Please notice that releases like lenny, squeeze and wheezy are unsupported releases within Debian nowadays.
415 grml-debootstrap can handle the releases but you really should not use them
416 anymore unless you really know what you are doing.
417 Choose the current Debian stable version instead.
418 See https://wiki.debian.org/DebianReleases for the list of supported releases.
420 Notice that you need to specify a mirror providing the lenny and squeeze releases, the
421 default (http://deb.debian.org/debian) doesn't provide it any longer nowadays.
422 Set the mirror to e.g. http://archive.debian.org/debian/ if you don't have
423 your own lenny/squeeze mirror.
425 Older releases might also fail to install when running on top of recent kernel versions,
426 throwing segfaults during debootstrap. This can be identified by the following messages inside kernel log (check with 'dmesg'):
428 dpkg[...] vsyscall attempted with vsyscall=none ip:[...]
429 dpkg[...]: segfault at [...]
431 To work around this issue boot your system with the kernel boot option 'vsyscall=emulate'.
433 You also need to specify a filesystem that's supported by lenny, e.g.
434 '--filesystem ext3' since grml-debootstrap's current default (ext4) isn't
437 Also when debootstrapping lenny on a live system with a kernel version
438 like "3.16-1-grml-amd64" lenny's libc will fail to install with:
441 /var/lib/dpkg/tmp.ci/preinst: line 265: [: 3.16-1-grml-amd64: integery expression expected
442 /var/lib/dpkg/tmp.ci/preinst: line 231: 3.16-1-grml-amd64: syntax error: invalid arithemtic operator (error token is ".16-1-grml-amd64")
443 dpkg: error processing /var/cache/apt/archives/libc6_2.7-18lenny7_amd64.deb (--install):
446 To workaround this either debootstrap from a system with an according
447 kernel version or use the "fake uname" workaround (just google for it).
449 When installing lenny to a new mdraid, grml-debootstrap will use md metadata
450 format version 0.90. This limits the device to a maximum size of 2TB, but has
451 the advantage of grub-legacy actually being able to boot from it.
452 ================================================================================
455 .unstable and testing releases
456 ================================================================================
457 [2] Please notice that Debian/testing and Debian/unstable (sid) might
458 not be always installable due to their nature. What _might_ work instead is
459 deploying a stable release and upgrade it after installation finished.
460 ================================================================================
465 Probably. Please send bugreports to Michael Prokop <mika@grml.org>.
470 debootstrap (8), cdebootstrap (1).
474 Michael Prokop <mika@grml.org>