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 and mmdebstrap 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 all local
89 Ethernet, WLAN and WWAN interfaces using predictable network interface names
90 and using eth0 as tradtition interface name for backward compatibility)
91 instead of taking over config from host system.
92 This option is automatically enabled when using --vm or --vmfile.
96 Partition where EFI boot manager should be installed to. If the
97 specified device doesn't use a FAT filesystem yet grml-debootstrap
98 automatically creates the filesystem. If a FAT filesystem is already
99 present the filesystem creation is skipped. Please ensure that it's
100 a valid FAT32 filesystem and the partition has the 'boot' and 'esp'
101 flags enabled. This option requires EFI support on the running system
102 and the option is NOT supported for Virtual Machine deployments.
104 *--filesystem* _filesystem_::
106 Filesystem that should be created when installing to a partition.
107 If unset defaults to ext4. Valid values are all filesystems that
108 can be created through mkfs._filesystem_.
112 Skip user acknowledgement and do not prompt for user input.
116 Enable Grml.org's Debian repository (http://deb.grml.org/) via the
117 /etc/apt/sources.list.d/grml.list configuration file. This provides the
118 option to install Debian packages from Grml's repository.
122 Device where grub should be installed to. Note that only the MBR (master
123 boot record) can be used (/dev/sda, /dev/sdb,...). Partitions (like
124 /dev/sda1, /dev/sdb2,...) are NOT supported because grub2 doesn't support
125 installation into the PBR (partition boot record) anymore. Usage example:
126 '--grub /dev/sda'. Note: just do not set this option to avoid installation
131 Show summary of options and exit.
133 *--hostname* _hostname_::
135 Use specified hostname instead of the default (being $HOSTNAME or if unset 'grml').
137 *-i*, *--iso* _/mntpoint_::
139 Specify mount point where you have a Debian ISO mounted loopback.
140 Using this option instead of the mirror option gives you the possibility
141 to install the base-system without network access. Make sure you
142 mounted the according Debian-ISO to the given _/mntpoint_. See section
143 'Usage examples' for a demonstration.
147 Do not overwrite user provided /etc/apt/sources.list.
149 *-m*, *--mirror* _URL_::
151 Specify mirror which should be used for apt-get/aptitude.
152 Corresponding with configuration variable MIRROR.
156 Skip debootstrap, only do configuration to the target.
160 Do not copy /etc/network/interfaces from host system to the target.
164 Skip installation of default kernel images. This option might be
165 interesting for you if you want a Debian system which doesn't
166 need to provide regular boot, e.g. a system which provides
167 ISOs for booting via GRUB using grml-rescueboot.
171 Enable the 'non-free' repository in COMPONENTS. By default only
172 the 'main' repository is enabled.
176 Skip installation of packages defined in /etc/debootstrap/packages.
180 Do not prompt for the root password. Note: Use the '--password' option if
181 you want to set the root password during an automatic installation but don't
182 want to use the interactive dialog.
184 *-p*, *--mntpoint* _/mntpoint_::
186 Specify mount point that should be used for mounting the target system.
187 Corresponding with configuration variable MNTPOINT.
188 Note: this option has no effect if option -t is given and represents a
191 *--packages* _file_::
193 Use specified file as list for packages that should be installed instead of
194 the default package list file <confdir>/packages.
196 *--password* _password_::
198 Use specified password as password for user root. Use with caution, as your
199 command line might be visible in the process list and the shell history.
200 It's meant for automatic installation only.
202 *--post-scripts* _directory_::
204 Execute scripts from specified directory after executing the chroot script.
205 This allows customisation of the system after the chroot has been set up.
206 The environment variable $MNTPOINT is available inside the scripts for
207 direct access of the chroot.
208 Default directory: /etc/debootstrap/post-scripts/
210 *--pre-scripts* _directory_::
212 Execute scripts from specified directory before executing the chroot
213 script. This allows customisation of the system before the chroot has
214 been set up. The environment variable $MNTPOINT is available inside the
215 scripts for direct access of the chroot.
216 Default directory: /etc/debootstrap/pre-scripts/
218 *-r*, *--release* _releasename_::
220 Specify release of new Debian system. Supported releases names: lenny,
221 squeeze, wheezy, jessie, stretch, buster, bullseye and sid. Corresponding with configuration
222 variable RELEASE. Default release: buster
226 Delete grml-debootstrap configuration files (/etc/debootstrap/*) from installed
227 system. Useful for reproducible builds or if you don't want to leak information.
229 *-t*, *--target* _target_::
231 Target partition (/dev/...) or directory (anything else without /dev at the
240 Set up a Virtual Machine on an existing block device, which will be
242 This allows deployment of a Virtual Machine. The options needs to be
243 combined with the --target option.
244 This option automatically enables the --defaultinterfaces option.
245 Usage example: --vm --target /dev/mapper/your-vm-disk
249 Set up a Virtual Machine using a regular file instead of installing to a
250 partition/block device or directory. This allows deployment of a Virtual
251 Machine. The options needs to be combined with the --target option
252 ('qemu-img create -f raw ...' is executed on the specified target).
253 This option automatically enables the --defaultinterfaces option.
254 Usage example: --vmfile --target /mnt/sda1/qemu.img
258 Use specified size for size of Virtual Machine disk file. If not specified it
259 defaults to 2G (being 2GB). Syntax as supported by qemu-img (see manpage
260 qemu-img(1) for details.
261 Usage example: --vmsize 3G
265 Show version of program and exit.
267 WARNING: the command line parsing of grml-debootstrap usually does not validate
268 the provided arguments for the command line options. Please be careful and check
269 docs and /etc/debootstrap/config for further information.
274 By default (that is, if none of the options *--nointerfaces*,
275 *--defaultinterfaces*, *--vmfile* or *--vm* are given) /etc/network/interfaces
276 will be copied from the host to the target system.
281 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda1 --grub /dev/sda
283 Install default Debian release (buster) on /dev/sda1 and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda.
285 grml-debootstrap --release stretch --target /dev/sda1 --grub /dev/sda --hostname debian01 --password changeme
287 Install Debian release stretch on /dev/sda1 and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda.
288 Set hostname to 'debian01' and password for user root to 'changeme'.
290 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda6 --grub /dev/sda --release sid
292 Install Debian unstable/sid on /dev/sda6 and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda.
294 DEBOOTSTRAP=mmdebstrap grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda1 --grub /dev/sda
296 Install default Debian release (buster) on /dev/sda1 and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda.
297 Use mmdebstrap instead of default debootstrap tool for bootstrapping.
299 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/mapper/vg0-rootfs --grub /dev/sda
301 Install default Debian release (buster) on LVM device /dev/mapper/vg0-rootfs and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda.
303 grml-debootstrap --efi /dev/sda1 --target /dev/sda2 --grub /dev/sda --efi
305 Install default Debian release (buster) on /dev/sda2 and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda.
306 Use /dev/sda1 as EFI partition (requires EFI support in booted system).
308 mount /dev/sda1 /data/chroot
309 grml-debootstrap --target /data/chroot
311 Install default Debian release (buster) in directory /data/chroot (without any bootloader).
313 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda3 --grub /dev/sda --mirror ftp://ftp.tugraz.at/mirror/debian
315 Install default Debian release (buster) on /dev/sda3 and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda.
316 Use specified mirror instead of the default (http://deb.debian.org/debian) one.
318 mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/sda1
319 grml-debootstrap --vmfile --vmsize 3G --target /mnt/sda1/qemu.img
321 Install default debian release (buster) in a Virtual Machine file with 3GB disk size (including GRUB as bootmanager in MBR of the virtual disk file):
323 mount -o loop ./debian-CD-1.iso /media/cdrom
324 grml-debootstrap --target /dev/sda1 --grub /dev/sda --iso /media/cdrom
326 Install Debian on /dev/sda1 using the loopback mounted Debian-ISO for the base-system and install bootmanager GRUB in MBR (master boot record) of /dev/sda.
327 Please notice, that the chroot system requires network access for all packages which are not part of the ISO.
332 /etc/debootstrap/config
334 Main configuration file. Adjust it according to your needs if you want to
335 execute grml-debootstrap in the non-interactive mode without any special command
338 /etc/debootstrap/chroot-script
340 The script executed within the new Debian system as soon as the main system
341 has been installed via [c]debootstrap.
343 /etc/debootstrap/locale.gen
345 Defines the default locales used for generating locales via locale-gen.
347 /etc/debootstrap/packages
349 Defines the software packages which should be installed in the new
350 Debian system by default.
352 /etc/debootstrap/extrapackages/
354 Debian Packages dropped in this directory will be installed into the new Debian
355 system by default (Control variable: EXTRAPACKAGES)
360 You can control execution of grml-debootstrap via adjusting
361 /etc/debootstrap/config for some main stuff or via setting some selected
362 variables via command line. The packages which should be installed in the new
363 Debian system can be defined via the file /etc/debootstrap/packages. If you
364 want to put existing files to the new Debian system you can place them into the
365 (by default non-existing) directories boot, etc, share, usr and var in
366 /etc/debootstrap/. Every existing directory will be copied to the new Debian
367 system then. If you want to install additional packages that are not available
368 via the Grml or Debian mirror drop them into /etc/debootstrap/extrapackages and
369 make sure that EXTRAPACKAGES is set to "yes".
371 Automatic installation
372 ----------------------
374 If environment variable AUTOINSTALL is set grml-debootstrap can be executed in a
375 full automatic mode. While this mode isn't really useful for interactive
376 execution (just configure /etc/debootstrap/configure or specify the relevant
377 variables on the command line instead) it is meant for use via boot option
378 debian2hd on the Grml live system. The boot option debian2hd (more precise: the
379 kernelname at the bootprompt) supports the following boot options (they
380 correspond with the command line options mentioned above):
384 The target partition/directory of the new Debian system. Usage example:
389 Where do you want to install grub to? Usage example: grub=/dev/sda
393 Specify release of new Debian system. Defaults to Debian buster. Supported
394 releases: lenny, squeeze, wheezy, jessie, stretch, buster, bullseye and sid. Usage example: release=stretch
398 Specify mirror which should be used for apt-get/aptitude instead
399 of the default one (http://deb.debian.org/debian).
400 Usage example: mirror=ftp://ftp.tugraz.at/mirror/debian
404 Set password of user root without prompting for it but set it to the given
405 argument. Usage example: password=AiTh5ahn
407 Usage example for automatic installation
408 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
410 debian2hd target=/dev/sda1 grub=/dev/sda mirror=ftp://ftp.tugraz.at/mirror/debian password=foobar
412 You have to enter this command line at the bootprompt of the Grml live system.
413 Please make sure that /dev/sda1 is the partition where you really want to
414 install your new Debian system.
417 Automatic installation within booting process is done in grml-autoconfig via
418 setting environment variable AUTOINSTALL and creation of
419 /usr/bin/grml-debootstrap_noninteractive with the available and relevant
420 boot options for grml-debootstrap.
425 include::releasetable.txt[]
428 .lenny/squeeze/wheezy release
429 ================================================================================
430 [1] Please notice that releases like lenny, squeeze and wheezy are unsupported releases within Debian nowadays.
431 grml-debootstrap can handle the releases but you really should not use them
432 anymore unless you really know what you are doing.
433 Choose the current Debian stable version instead.
434 See https://wiki.debian.org/DebianReleases for the list of supported releases.
436 Notice that you need to specify a mirror providing the lenny and squeeze releases, the
437 default (http://deb.debian.org/debian) doesn't provide it any longer nowadays.
438 Set the mirror to e.g. http://archive.debian.org/debian/ if you don't have
439 your own lenny/squeeze mirror.
441 Older releases might also fail to install when running on top of recent kernel versions,
442 throwing segfaults during debootstrap. This can be identified by the following messages inside kernel log (check with 'dmesg'):
444 dpkg[...] vsyscall attempted with vsyscall=none ip:[...]
445 dpkg[...]: segfault at [...]
447 To work around this issue boot your system with the kernel boot option 'vsyscall=emulate'.
449 You also need to specify a filesystem that's supported by lenny, e.g.
450 '--filesystem ext3' since grml-debootstrap's current default (ext4) isn't
453 Also when debootstrapping lenny on a live system with a kernel version
454 like "3.16-1-grml-amd64" lenny's libc will fail to install with:
457 /var/lib/dpkg/tmp.ci/preinst: line 265: [: 3.16-1-grml-amd64: integery expression expected
458 /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")
459 dpkg: error processing /var/cache/apt/archives/libc6_2.7-18lenny7_amd64.deb (--install):
462 To workaround this either debootstrap from a system with an according
463 kernel version or use the "fake uname" workaround (just google for it).
465 When installing lenny to a new mdraid, grml-debootstrap will use md metadata
466 format version 0.90. This limits the device to a maximum size of 2TB, but has
467 the advantage of grub-legacy actually being able to boot from it.
468 ================================================================================
471 .unstable and testing releases
472 ================================================================================
473 [2] Please notice that Debian/testing and Debian/unstable (sid) might
474 not be always installable due to their nature. What _might_ work instead is
475 deploying a stable release and upgrade it after installation finished.
476 ================================================================================
481 Please report bugs towards https://github.com/grml/grml-debootstrap/issues
486 debootstrap (8), cdebootstrap (1), mmdebstrap(1).
490 Michael Prokop <mika@grml.org>