Name
----
-grml-live - build framework based on FAI for generating a grml and Debian based
+grml-live - build framework based on FAI for generating a Grml and Debian based
Linux Live system (CD/ISO)
Synopsis
--------
-grml-live [-a <architecture>] [-c <classe[s]>] [-C <configfile>] [-g
-<grml_name>] [-i <iso_name> ] [-o <output_directory>] [-r <release_name>] [-s
-<suite>] [-t <template_directory>] [-v <version_number>] [-bBFhquVz]
-
-CAUTION: Please check out <<current_state,the 'Current state of grml-live with
-squashfs-tools and kernel' section>> for details about current state of involved
-tools before starting with grml-live or if you encounter any problems.
+grml-live [-a <architecture>] [-c <classe[s]>] [-C <configfile>] [
+-e <extract_iso_name>] [-g <grml_name>] [-i <iso_name>] [
+-o <output_directory>] [-r <release_name>] [-s <suite>] [
+-t <template_directory>] [-v <version_number>] [-U <username>] [
+-AbBFnNqQuVz]
Description
-----------
-grml-live provides the build system for creating a grml and Debian based Linux
+grml-live provides the build system for creating a Grml and Debian based Linux
Live-CD. The build system is based on
-link:http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/[FAI] (Fully Automatic
+link:http://fai-project.org/[FAI] (Fully Automatic
Installation). grml-live uses the "fai dirinstall" feature to generate a chroot
system based on the class concept of FAI (see later sections for further
details) and provides the framework to be able to generate a full-featured ISO.
details of a build process.
CAUTION: grml-live does **not** use /etc/fai for configuration but instead
-provides and uses /etc/grml/fai. This ensures that it does not clash with
-default FAI configuration and packages, so you can use grml-live and FAI
+provides and uses ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG} which is pointing to /etc/grml/fai by default
+(unless overridden using the ''-D'' option). This ensures that it does not clash
+with default FAI configuration and packages, so you can use grml-live and FAI
completely independent at the same time!
[NOTE]
checkout mkdebmirror (see /usr/share/doc/grml-live/examples/mkdebmirror),
debmirror(1), reprepro(1) (see /usr/share/doc/grml-live/examples/reprepro/ for a
sample configuration), apt-cacher(1) and approx(8). To avoid downloading the
-base system again and again check out FAI's NFSROOT (see FAQ of this document
-for details).
+base system again and again check out <<create-a-base-tgz,the base tar.gz
+feature>>.
Options
-------
+ -A::
+
+Clean up all output directories before running the build process. After finishing,
+clean up the Chroot target and Build target directories.
+
-a **ARCHITECTURE**::
Use the specified architecture instead of the currently running one. This
-B::
Build the ISO without touching the chroot at all. This option is useful if
-you modified anything that FAI or grml-live might adjust via grml's FAI
+you modified anything that FAI or grml-live might adjust via Grml's FAI
scripts. It's like the '-b' option but even more advanced. Use only if you
really know that you do not want to update the chroot.
-c **CLASSES**::
Specify the CLASSES to be used for building the ISO via FAI. By default only
-the classes GRMLBASE, GRML_MEDIUM and I386 are assumed, resulting in a small base
-system (being about ~180MB total ISO size). If using a non-I386 system (like
-amd64) you should specify the appropriate architecture as well. Additionally you
-can specify a class providing a grml-kernel (see
-<<classes,the 'CLASSES' section in this document>> for details about available classes).
-So instead of GRML_MEDIUM you can also use GRML_SMALL and GRML_FULL.
+the classes GRMLBASE, GRML_FULL and I386/AMD64 (depending on system
+architecture) are assumed, resulting in a base system of about 350MB
+total ISO size. If using a non-I386 system (like AMD64) you should specify the
+appropriate architecture as well. Additionally you can specify a class providing
+a grml-kernel (see <<classes,the 'CLASSES' section in this document>> for
+details about available classes). So instead of GRML_FULL you can also use
+GRML_SMALL and GRML_FULL.
+
+[IMPORTANT]
+All class names should be written in uppercase letters. Do not use a dash, use
+an underscore. So do not use "amd64" but "AMD64", do not use "FOO BAR" but
+"FOO_BAR".
+
-C **CONFIGURATION_FILE**::
of grml-live, so please make sure you use /etc/grml/grml-live.conf as a base for
your own configuration file (usually /etc/grml/grml-live.local). Please also
notice that the configuration file specified via this option is **not** (yet)
-supported inside the scripts/hooks/classes at /etc/grml/fai/config. Instead use
+supported inside the scripts/hooks/classes at ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config. Instead use
/etc/grml/grml-live.local for configuration stuff used inside
-/etc/grml/fai/config.
+${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config.
-d **DATE**::
ISO with release information for a specific date but have to build it in
advance. Usage example: '-d 2009-10-30'
+ -D **CONFIGURATION_DIRECTORY**::
+
+The specified directory is used as configuration directory for grml-live and its
+FAI. By default /etc/grml/fai is used as default configuration directory. If
+you want to have different configuration scripts, package definitions, etc. with
+without messing with the global configuration under /etc/grml/fai provided by
+grml-live this option provides you the option to use your own configuration
+directory. This directory is what's being referred to as ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}
+throughout this documentation.
+
+ -e **EXTRACT_ISO_NAME**::
+
+The squashfs inside the specified ISO will be extracted and used as the chroot.
+This option is useful for remastering, in combination with -A and -b or -u.
+
-F::
Force execution and do not prompt for acknowledgment of configuration.
Skip creation of the ISO file. This option is useful if you want to build/update
the chroot and/or recreate the squashfs file without building an ISO file.
+ -N::
+
+Bootstrap the chroot without building bootloader, squashfs, or finalizing the
+ISO. Use this option if installation of some packages fails, you want to run
+custom commands or similar.
+The main use of this option is to save time by skipping stages which aren't
+necessary for bootstrapping the chroot and which would get executed more than
+once when iterating through the initial bootstrapping.
+Alternatively, use this option as a test run of grml-live. Once you are
+satisfied with the state of your grml_chroot, use grml-live **-u** to build the
+remaining stages and finalize the ISO.
+
-o **OUTPUT_DIRECTORY**::
Main output directory of the build process of FAI. Some directories are created
This option is useful if you just want to update parts outside the chroot in the ISO.
Consider combining this option with the build-only option '-b'.
+ -Q::
+
+Build the ISO without generating a netboot package.
+
-r **RELEASENAME**::
Specify name of the release.
-s **SUITE**::
-Specify the Debian suite you want to use for your live-system. Defaults to
-"lenny" (being current Debian/stable). Supported values are: etch, lenny, sid.
-Debian "squeeze" (current Debian/testing) requires base.tgz
-(/etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/....tar.gz) or a recent version of debootstrap.
+Specify the Debian suite you want to use for your live-system. If unset defaults
+to "testing". Supported values are: stable, testing, unstable (or their
+corresponding release names like "wheezy"). Please be aware that recent Debian
+suites might require a recent base.tgz
+(${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz) or a recent version of
+debootstrap.
-t **TEMPLATE_DIRECTORY**::
Update existing chroot instead of rebuilding it from scratch. This option is
based on the softupdate feature of FAI.
+ -U **USERNAME**::
+
+Sets ownership of all build output files to specified username before exiting.
+
-v **VERSION_NUMBER**::
Specify version number of the release.
-z::
-Use ZLIB instead of LZMA compression in mksquashfs part of the build process.
+Use ZLIB instead of LZMA/XZ compression in mksquashfs part of the build process.
[[usage-examples]]
Usage examples
--------------
-To get a small, Debian-stable and grml-based Live-CD using /grml/grml-live
+To get a Debian-stable and Grml-based Live-CD using /grml/grml-live
as build and output directory just run:
# grml-live
-To get a small Debian-unstable and grml-small based Live-CD using
-/home/mika/grml-live as build and output directory just use:
-
- # grml-live -s sid -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 -o /home/mika/grml-live
-
-To get a medium sized, Debian-unstable and grml-based Live-CD for i386
-architecture using /grml/grml-live as build and output directory just run:
-
- # grml-live -s sid -a i386 -c GRMLBASE,GRML_MEDIUM,I386
+To get a 64bit Debian-testing and grml-small based Live-CD using /srv/grml-live
+as build and output directory use the following command line on your amd64
+system:
-To get a small, Debian-unstable and grml-based Live-CD using /tmp as build and
-output directory and use grml_0.0-3.iso as ISO name (placed inside
-/tmp/grml_isos) just invoke:
-
- # grml-live -o /tmp -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 -s sid -i grml_0.0-3.iso
+ # grml-live -s testing -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,AMD64 -o /srv/grml-live
[NOTE]
-If you have about 700MB of free space inside /dev/shm (being a tmpfs, usually
-you should have >=1GB of RAM) just run "mount -o remount,suid,dev,rw /dev/shm"
-and use /dev/shm as build and output directory - resulting in very fast build
-process. But please be aware of the fact that rebooting your system will result
-in an empty /dev/shm, so please use another directory for $CHROOT_OUTPUT,
-$BUILD_OUTPUT and $ISO_OUTPUT if you plan to create more persistent output. :)
+If you have enough RAM, just run "mount -t tmpfs none /media/ramdisk" to get a
+tmpfs ("RAMDISK"), and use /media/ramdisk as build and output directory - this
+results in a very fast build process. Note that these files will be gone when
+rebooting.
[[main-features]]
Main features of grml-live
--------------------------
-* create a grml-/Debian-based Linux Live-CD with one single command
+* create a Grml-/Debian-based Linux Live-CD with one single command
* class based concept, providing a maximum of flexibility
* native support of FAI features
-* multi-arch support (work in progress)
-
[[class-concept]]
The class concept
-----------------
GRML_SMALL, GRML_MEDIUM or GRML_FULL). The following files and directories are
relevant for class GRMLBASE by default:
- /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/GRMLBASE/
- /etc/grml/fai/config/debconf/GRMLBASE
- /etc/grml/fai/config/class/GRMLBASE.var
- /etc/grml/fai/config/hooks/instsoft.GRMLBASE
- /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config/GRMLBASE
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/scripts/GRMLBASE/
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/debconf/GRMLBASE
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/class/GRMLBASE.var
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/hooks/instsoft.GRMLBASE
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/package_config/GRMLBASE
Take a look at the next section for information about the concept of those
files/directories.
If you want to use your own configuration, extend an existing configuration
and/or add additional packages to your ISO just invent a new class (or extend an
existing one). For example if you want to use your own class named "FOOBAR" just
-set CLASSES="GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386" inside /etc/grml/grml-live.local or
-invoke grml-live using the classes option: "grml-live -c
-GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,FOOBAR ...".
+set CLASSES="GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,AMD64,FOOBAR" inside /etc/grml/grml-live.local
+or invoke grml-live using the classes option: "grml-live -c
+GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,AMD64,FOOBAR ...".
More details regarding the class concept can be found in the documentation of
FAI itself (being available at /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/).
-----------------
The package selection part of the classes can be found in
-/etc/grml/fai/config/package_config whereas some further classes are defined for
-example in /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/ so specific feature sets can be
+${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/package_config whereas some further classes are defined for
+example in ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/scripts/ so specific feature sets can be
selected. The following classes are predefined:
-* DEBORPHAN: get rid of all packages listed in output of Deborphan
+* DEBORPHAN: get rid of all packages listed in output of deborphan
+
+* FRESHCLAM: execute freshclam (if it's present) to update clamav definitions
+(increases resulting ISO size ~70MB). By default it's skipped to avoid bigger
+ISO size.
* GRMLBASE: the main class responsible for getting a minimal subset of what's
-defining a grml system. Important parts of the buildprocess are specified in
+defining a Grml system. Important parts of the buildprocess are specified in
this class as well, so unless you have a really good reason you should always
use this class.
-* GRML_FULL: full featured grml, also known as the "normal", full grml.
+* GRML_FULL: full featured Grml, also known as the "normal", full grml as
+introduced in December 2011 (~350MB ISO size).
-* GRML_MEDIUM: medium sized grml version, known as grml-medium
+* GRML_MEDIUM: medium sized Grml version, used to be known as grml-medium
+until December 2011 (~220MB ISO size).
-* GRML_POWERPC: grml for PowerPC architecture, not supported yet (still work in
-progress)
+* GRML_SMALL: minimum sized Grml version, known as grml-small (~110MB ISO
+size).
-* GRML_SMALL: minimum sized grml version, known as grml-small
+* GRML_XL: large size Grml version, used to be known as "full grml" until
+December 2011 (~700MB ISO size).
* LATEX: LaTeX(-related) packages like auctex, texlive,...
(which used to be shipped by grml before the LaTeX removal)
* REMOVE_DOCS: get rid of documentation directories (like /usr/share/doc,
/usr/share/man/, /usr/share/info,...)
+* SOURCES: retrieve Debian source packages after installation. Files will be
+placed in the output directory under grml_sources.
+
* XORG: providing important packages for use with a base grml-featured X.org
setup
Notice that grml-live ships FAI configuration files that do not use the same
namespace as the FAI packages itself. This ensures that grml-live does not clash
with your usual FAI configuration, so instead of /etc/fai/fai.conf (package
-fai-client) grml uses /etc/grml/fai/fai.conf instead. For more details see
+fai-client) grml uses ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/fai.conf instead. For more details see
below. To get an idea how another configuration or example files could look like
check out /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/examples/simple/ (provided by Debian package
fai-doc). Furthermore /usr/share/doc/fai-doc/fai-guide.html/ch-config.html
/etc/grml/grml-live.local
All the local configuration should go to this file. This file overrides any
-defaults of grml-live. Configurations via /etc/grml/grml-live.local are prefered
+defaults of grml-live. Configurations via /etc/grml/grml-live.local are preferred
over the ones from /etc/grml/grml-live.conf. If you want to override settings
from /etc/grml/grml-live.local as well you have to specify them on the grml-live
commandline.
- /etc/grml/fai/fai.conf
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/fai.conf
Main configuration file for FAI which specifies where all the configuration
files and scripts for FAI/grml-live can be found. By default the configuration
variables are FAI_CONFIG_SRC=file:///etc/grml/fai/config and
-FAI_CONFIGDIR=/etc/grml/fai/config - both pointing to a directory shipped by
+GRML_FAI_CONFIG=/etc/grml/fai/config - both pointing to a directory shipped by
grml-live out-of-the-box so you shouldn't have to configure anything in this
file.
- /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf
-
-This file is used by make-fai-nfsroot(8) only. Usually you don't have to change
-anything inside this file. If you want to modify NFSROOT though you can adjust
-it there.
-
- /etc/grml/fai/NFSROOT
-
-This file specifies the package list for creating the NFSROOT.
-
- /etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list
-
-This file specifies which mirrors should be considered for retrieving the Debian
-packages when creating the main chroot (including all the software you would
-like to see included). Important: this file should *not* be adjusted manually!
-Instead use the GRML_LIVE_SOURCES variable inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf or
-/etc/grml/grml-live.local which modifies /etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list
-on-the-fly via grml-live then. If you want to generally adjust apt configuration
-check out /etc/grml/fai/files/etc/apt instead.
-
- /etc/grml/fai/config/
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/
The main directory for configuration of FAI/grml-live. More details below.
- /etc/grml/fai/config/class/
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/class/
This directory contains files which specify main configuration variables for the
FAI classes.
- /etc/grml/fai/config/debconf/
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/debconf/
This directory provides the files for preseeding/configuration of debconf
through files.
- /etc/grml/fai/config/hooks/
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/hooks/
This directory provides files for customising the build process through hooks.
Hooks are user defined programs or scripts, which are called during the
installation process.
- /etc/grml/fai/config/package_config/
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/package_config/
Directory with lists of software packages to be installed or removed. The
different classes describe what should find its way to your ISO. When running
-"grml-live -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386 ..." only the configuration of GRMLBASE,
-GRML_SMALL and and I386 will be taken. If you use 'grml-live -c
-GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,FOOBAR ...' then the files of GRMLBASE, GRML_SMALL,
-I386 **plus** the files from FOOBAR will be taken. So just create a new class to
+"grml-live -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,AMD64 ..." only the configuration of GRMLBASE,
+GRML_SMALL and and AMD64 will be taken. If you use 'grml-live -c
+GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,AMD64,FOOBAR ...' then the files of GRMLBASE, GRML_SMALL,
+AMD64 **plus** the files from FOOBAR will be taken. So just create a new class to
adjust the package selection according to your needs. Please notice that the
directory GRMLBASE contains a package list defining a minimum but still
reasonable package configuration.
- /etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/scripts/
Scripts for customising the ISO within the build process.
- /etc/grml/fai/files/
-
-This directory provides files used inside the scripts of
-/etc/grml/fai/config/scripts/*. For a full documentation what happens with the
-files please refer to the source of the scripts.
-
- /etc/grml/fai/live-initramfs/
+ ${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/live-initramfs/
This directory provides the files used for building the initramfs/initrd via
live-initramfs(8).
Available log files
-------------------
-grml-live itself logs to /var/log/grml-live.log. Unless you set PRESERVE_LOGFILE
-in your grml-live configuration the file is cleared on each new invocation of
-grml-live.
-
-The FAI part of grml-live logs to /var/log/fai/$HOSTNAME/ - so the
-default being /var/log/fai/grml/.
-
-If you are using the grml-live buildd you will find the logs of the grml-live
-run at /var/log/grml-buildd.stdout and /var/log/grml-buildd.stderr.
+Starting with grml-live version 0.17.0 you should find log files in a directory
+named 'grml_logs' in the output directory (next to grml_isos, grml_chroot,...).
-If you want to store build information in a database just install the
-grml-live-db Debian package. Further details available in the grml-live-db
-manpage.
+grml-live versions before 0.17.0 used to log into /var/log/grml-live.log
+and /var/log/fai/grml.
[[requirements]]
Requirements for the build system
---------------------------------
* any Debian based system should be sufficient (if it doesn't work it's a bug,
-please send us a bug report then) [a usual
-link:http://grml.org/grml2hd/[grml2hd] harddisk installation (using grml or
-grml-medium) ships all you need]. Check out <<deploy-on-debian,How do I deploy
+please send us a bug report then). Check out <<deploy-on-debian,How do I deploy
grml-live on a plain Debian installation>> for details how to set up grml-live
on a plain, original Debian system.
total free disk space
* fast network access for retrieving the Debian packages used for creating the
-chroot (check out "local mirror" and "NFSROOT" to workaround this problem as far
-as possible)
+chroot (check out "local mirror" to workaround this problem as far as possible)
For further information see next section.
Current state of grml-live with squashfs-tools and kernel
---------------------------------------------------------
-To make it easier to track problems this section documents current state of
-grml-live playing together with squashfs-tools / squashfs-lzma-tools (for
-building the compressed file) and the kernel version. Documentation of this
-section is up2date by 7rd of september 2009, please report any bugs you
-encounter.
-
-Difference between squashfs-lzma-tools and squashfs-tools
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-Whereas the ZLIB compression is much faster in the build process, the LZMA
-compression provides a smaller resulting ISO. If you're wondering: the official
-Grml builds use the LZMA compression.
-
-Squashfs-tools was introduced in Debian and once provided support for LZMA
-compression. Sadly LZMA compression within squashfs-tools became unsupported and
-therefore squashfs-lzma-tools had to be introduced by the Grml team. Different
-kernel versions provide different squashfs file formats (version 3.x for kernel
-versions until 2.6.28-grml[64], since kernel 2.6.31-grml[64] it's the 4.x
-format).
-
-If you're wondering which package supports what, here's a short overview:
-
-* squashfs-tools 1:4.0-1: ZLIB as default, no LZMA support/options, file format
-version 4
-
-* squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7: ZLIB as default, no LZMA support/options, file format
-version 3
-
-* squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1: LZMA as default, ZLIB support via -nolzma
-option, file format version 3
-
-* squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2: ZLIB as default, LZMA support via -lzma option,
-file format version 4
-
-* squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1: LZMA as default, ZLIB support via -nolzma option,
-file format version 3
-
-Depending on the kernel version you want to use you need different versions
-squashfs-tools/squashfs-lzma-tools. Yes, that's pretty a mess (don't ask how
-much this sucks for us developers) - though this is supposed to calm down with
-the recent integration of squashfs file format 4 in the mainline kernel. Support
-for LZMA is pending and should dramatically simplify the situation for
-developers as well as users as soon as it's available mainline.
-
-Using squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 on the build system
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 is available via the grml repositories. It provides
-the mksquashfs-lzma and unsquashfs-lzma binaries. The package does NOT conflict
-with Debian's squashfs-tools package (you can install both of them at the same
-time).
-
-The packages can be downloaded from
-link:http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma-tools/[http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma-tools/]
-
-It provides support for the new squashfs file format version 4 and therefore
-requires kernel versions newer than 2.6.28-grml[64]. It supports LZMA as well as
-ZLIB compression. Just use the defaults for enabling LZMA or use grml-live's
-'-z' option if you want to use ZLIB instead.
-
-* Kernel 2.6.23-grml[64]: does not work
-* Kernel 2.6.26-grml[64]: does not work
-* Kernel 2.6.28-grml[64]: does not work
-* Kernel 2.6.31-grml[64]: works
-
-[NOTE]
-
-Please use squashfs-lzma-tools >=4.0-2 from Grml if you want to remaster any
-grml release being MORE RECENT than 2009.05.
-
-Using squashfs-tools 1:4.0-X on the build system
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-squashfs-tools >=1:4.0-1 is available in Debian/unstable and Debian/testing. It
-provides the mksquashfs and unsquashfs binaries. The package does NOT
-conflict with the squashfs-lzma-tools 4.0-2 package (you can install both of
-them at the same time).
-
-The packages can be downloaded from
-link:ftp://ftp.de.debian.org/debian/pool/main/s/squashfs-tools/[ftp://ftp.de.debian.org/debian/pool/main/s/squashfs-tools/]
-
-It provides support for the new squashfs file format version 4 and therefore
-requires kernel versions newer than 2.6.28-grml[64].
-
-It does NOT support LZMA compression. If you need LZMA support please use
-Grml's squashfs-lzma-tools (see section above) instead.
-
-* Kernel 2.6.23-grml[64]: does not work
-* Kernel 2.6.26-grml[64]: does not work
-* Kernel 2.6.28-grml[64]: does not work
-* Kernel 2.6.31-grml[64]: works
-
-[NOTE]
-Please use squashfs-tools >=1:4.0-1 only if you want to remaster grml releases
-MORE RECENT than 2009.05 using the ZLIB compression.
-
-Using squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 on the build system
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 from the grml repository supports kernel
-2.6.26-grml[64] and 2.6.28-grml[64] using both LZMA and ZLIB (-nolzma)
-compression. It's the recommended package for building ISOs with grml-live
-currently!
-
-The packages can be downloaded from
-link:http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma/[http://deb.grml.org/pool/main/s/squashfs-lzma/].
-
-[NOTE]
-Please use squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 if you want to remaster grml release
-2008.11 or 2009.05.
-
-Using squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 on the build system
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 is available through
-http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.3-7_i386.deb (for x86) or
-http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.3-7_amd64.deb (for amd64) [both build
-on and for Debian/etch but working with testing and unstable as well].
-
-Please notice that squashfs-tools 1:3.3-7 does NOT support LZMA compression at
-all (so you won't be able to remaster release 2008.11 and 2009.05 using LZMA for
-example). The -nolzma option of mksquashfs is not available therefore (even
-though grml-live will deactivate it for you automatically anyway). Please use
-squashfs-lzma-tools instead.
-
-* Kernel 2.6.23-grml: does NOT work, please use squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1
- instead if you still want to use kernel 2.6.23 (not
- recommended)
-* Kernel 2.6.26-grml: works (without LZMA compression only of course!)
-* Kernel 2.6.28-grml: works (without LZMA compression only of course!)
-
-Using squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1 on the build system
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-squashfs-tools 1:3.2r2-9exp1 is available via the grml-testing repository,
-running:
-
- # aptitude install squashfs-tools=1:3.2r2-9exp1
-
-or directly via downloading the files
-http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.2r2-9exp1_i386.deb (for x86) or
-http://grml.org/squashfs/squashfs-tools_3.2r2-9exp1_amd64.deb (for amd64).
-
-Using with ZLIB compression (SQUASHFS_OPTIONS='-nolzma' or -z
-option in grml-live cmdline):
-
-* Kernel 2.6.23-grml: works
-* Kernel 2.6.26-grml: works
-* Kernel 2.6.28-grml: supposed to work (not verified though)
-
-Using with LZMA compression:
-
-* Kernel 2.6.23-grml: works
-* Kernel 2.6.26-grml: does NOT work, please use ZLIB mode instead or switch
- to Debian package squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 (see section above).
-* Kernel 2.6.28-grml: does NOT work, please use ZLIB mode instead or switch
- to Debian package squashfs-lzma-tools 3.3-1 (see section above).
+Use squashfs-tools >=4.2-1 (available from Grml repositories as well as from
+Debian) to build Grml (based) ISOs featuring kernel version 2.6.38-grml[64] or
+newer.
[[faq]]
FAQ
How do I deploy grml-live on a plain Debian installation?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-The easiest way to get a running grml-live setup is to install grml or
-grml-medium using grml2hd (for example inside KVM, Virtualbox, VMware,... if you
-don't want to run it on a physical system). Of course using grml-live on a
-plain, original Debian installation is supported as well. So there we go.
-
-What we have: plain, original Debian Lenny (5.0).
+The easiest way to get a running grml-live setup is to just use Grml.
+Of course using grml-live on a plain, original Debian installation is supported
+as well. So there we go.
-What we want: build a grml-medium ISO based on Debian/squeeze for the i386
-architecture using grml-live.
-
-[IMPORTANT]
+What we have: plain, original Debian wheezy (7.x).
-If you encounter any problems while booting the resulting ISO please be aware of
-<<current_state,the 'current state of grml-live with squashfs-tools and kernel'
-section>>.
+What we want: build a Grml ISO based on Debian/wheezy for the amd64 architecture
+using grml-live.
Instructions
^^^^^^^^^^^^
# deb-src http://deb.grml.org/ grml-testing main
EOF
- # adjust apt-pinning (only prefer squashfs stuff from grml):
- cat >> /etc/apt/preferences << EOF
- Package: *
- Pin: origin deb.grml.org
- Pin-Priority: 1
-
- Package: squashfs-tools
- Pin: origin deb.grml.org
- Pin-Priority: 996
-
- Package: squashfs-lzma-tools
- Pin: origin deb.grml.org
- Pin-Priority: 996
- EOF
-
# get keyring for apt:
apt-get update
apt-get --allow-unauthenticated install grml-debian-keyring
- # install basefile so we don't have to build basic chroot from scratch:
- mkdir -p /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/
- mv base.tgz /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/I386.tar.gz
+ # optionally(!) install basefile so we don't have to build basic
+ # chroot from scratch, grab from http://daily.grml.org/
+ # mkdir -p /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/
+ # mv I386.tar.gz /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/
+ # mv AMD64.tar.gz /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/
# install relevant tools
- # please check out http://grml.org/grml-live/#current_state when encountering problems!
- apt-get -o APT::Install-Recommends=false install grml-live squashfs-lzma-tools
+ apt-get --no-install-recommends install grml-live
# adjust grml-live configuration for our needs:
cat > /etc/grml/grml-live.local << EOF
- # consider using LZMA only for space reasons (resulting in longer
- # build time but smaller ISO):
- SQUASHFS_OPTIONS="-nolzma"
- # install local files into the chroot
- CHROOT_INSTALL="/etc/grml/fai/chroot_install"
+ ## want a faster build process and don't need smaller ISOs?
+ ## if so use zlib compression
+ # SQUASHFS_OPTIONS="-comp gzip -b 256k"
+ ## want to use a specific squashfs binary?
+ # SQUASHFS_BINARY='/usr/bin/mksquashfs'
+ ## install local files into the chroot
+ # CHROOT_INSTALL="/etc/grml/fai/chroot_install"
## adjust if necessary (defaults to /grml/grml-live):
## OUTPUT="/srv/grml-live"
- FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="squeeze http://cdn.debian.net/debian/"
- ARCH="i386"
- CLASSES="GRMLBASE,GRML_MEDIUM,I386"
- # PRESERVE_LOGFILE='1'
- # ZERO_FAI_LOGFILE='1'
- GRML_LIVE_SOURCES="
- deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-stable main
- deb http://deb.grml.org/ grml-testing main
- deb http://cdn.debian.net/debian squeeze main contrib non-free
- "
+ FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="wheezy http://ftp.debian.org/debian/"
+ # ARCH="amd64"
+ CLASSES="GRMLBASE,GRML_FULL,AMD64"
EOF
# just optional(!) - upgrade FAI to latest available version:
- cat >> /etc/apt/sources.list << EOF
- # fai:
- deb http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download lenny koeln
+ cat >> /etc/apt/sources.list.d/fai.list << EOF
+ deb http://jenkins.grml.org/debian fai main
+ deb-src http://jenkins.grml.org/debian fai main
EOF
# get gpg key of FAI repos and install current FAI version:
- gpg -a --recv-keys AB9B66FD; gpg -a --export AB9B66FD | apt-key add -
+ wget -O - http://jenkins.grml.org/debian/C525F56752D4A654.asc | sudo apt-key add -
apt-get update
apt-get install fai-client fai-server fai-doc
and the ISO can be found inside /grml-live/grml-live/grml_isos/ then.
-[[fai-on-etch]]
-Help, I'm using Debian etch and I don't have FAI version >3.2
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
- wget http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-client_3.2.8_all.deb \
- http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-server_3.2.8_all.deb \
- http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/download/etch/fai-doc_3.2.8_all.deb
- dpkg -i fai-client_3.2.8_all.deb fai-server_3.2.8_all.deb fai-doc_3.2.8_all.deb
+[[grml_fai_config_variable]]
+What is $GRML_FAI_CONFIG?
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-or check out the link:http://www.informatik.uni-koeln.de/fai/[FAI-homepage] for
-further details.
+The variable '$GRML_FAI_CONFIG' is pointing to the directory /etc/grml/fai by
+default. To provide you a maximum of flexibility you can set up your own
+configuration directory (e.g. based on /etc/grml/fai) and use this directory
+running grml-live with the '-D <config_dir>' option. Now '$GRML_FAI_CONFIG'
+points to the specified directory instead of using /etc/grml/fai and all the
+configuration files, scripts and hooks will be taken from your
+'$GRML_FAI_CONFIG' directory.
[[how-to-debug]]
I've problems with the build process. How to start debugging?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Check out the logs inside /var/log/fai/... If you think it's a bug in grml-live
-send a copy of your config, logs and the commandline with a short problem
-description to <mika@grml.org>:
-
- # history | grep grml-live > /etc/grml/grml_live.cmdline
- # tar zcf grml_live_problem.tar.gz /etc/grml/grml-live.conf \
- /etc/grml/grml_live.cmdline /etc/grml/grml-buildd.conf \
- /var/log/fai /etc/grml/fai
- -> finally mail grml_live_problem.tar.gz to <mika@grml.org>
+Check out the logs inside the directory 'grml_logs' next to your grml_chroot,
+grml_isos,... directories.
If you need help with grml-live or would like to see new features as part of
grml-live you can get commercial support via
link:http://grml-solutions.com/[Grml Solutions].
-[[lzma-vs-zlib]]
-How much is the difference between LZMA and ZLIB compression?
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-ISO size (bs = blocksize):
-
-[width="45%",cols="3,^2,^2"]
-|============================================================
-|ISO |LZMA (256kB bs) |ZLIB
-|grml_sid |666M | 771M
-|grml_squeeze |659M | 761M
-|grml_lenny |624M | 723M
-|grml64_sid |677M | 791M
-|grml64_squeeze |671M | 785M
-|grml64_lenny |639M | 745M
-|grml-medium_sid |208M | 236M
-|grml-medium_squeeze |206M | 234M
-|grml-medium_lenny |193M | 220M
-|grml64-medium_sid |213M | 245M
-|grml64-medium_squeeze |213M | 244M
-|grml64-medium_lenny |201M | 231M
-|grml-small_sid |102M | 118M
-|grml-small_squeeze |101M | 117M
-|grml-small_lenny |97M | 112M
-|grml64-small_sid |103M | 120M
-|grml64-small_squeeze |103M | 120M
-|grml64-small_lenny |99M | 116M
-|============================================================
-
-Build time of grml-medium's squashfs file (depends on your system, though just
-to get the ratio between the different options):
-
-* 10 minutes and 4 seconds with LZMA default blocksize (128k)
-* 7 minutes 27 seconds with LZMA and blocksize 256k
-* 6 minutes and 8 seconds with LZMA blocksize 512k
-* 1 minute and 40 seconds with ZLIB
-
[[install-local-files]]
-How to I install further files into the chroot/ISO?
+How do I install further files into the chroot/ISO?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just point the configuration variable CHROOT_INSTALL to the directory which
Can I use my own (local) Debian mirror?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Sure. Just adjust the variables GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP (if not
-already using NFSROOT's base.tgz) inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf according to
-your needs. Please don't forget that you should use the grml servers as well
-(see default configuration) so all the grml packages can be downloaded as well.
+Yes. Set up an according sources.list configuration as class file in
+${GRML_FAI_CONFIG}/config/files/etc/apt/sources.list.d/ and adjust the variable
+FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP (if not already using a base.tgz) inside
+/etc/grml/grml-live.conf[.local]. If you're setting up your own class file don't
+forget to include the class name in the class list (grml-live -c ...).
-If you want to use a local (for example NFS mount) mirror additionally, just
-adjust MIRROR_DIRECTORY and MIRROR_SOURCES inside /etc/grml/grml-live.conf as
-well.
+If you want to use a local (for example NFS mount) mirror additionally then
+adjust MIRROR_DIRECTORY in /etc/grml/grml-live.conf[.local] as well.
-Unless you specify GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and/or FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP the default from
-/etc/grml/fai/apt/sources.list and /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf will be
-taken. If you customise the variables in /etc/grml/grml-live.conf then the two
-files will be adjusted during runtime automatically.
+If you want to use a HTTP Proxy (like apt-cacher-ng), set APT_PROXY. Example:
-If MIRROR_DIRECTORY and MIRROR_SOURCES are specified the local mirror will be
-taken as first entry in the generated sources.list so it's prefered over
-non-local mirrors. Using a fallback mirror (via providing several mirrors in
-GRML_LIVE_SOURCES as used by default) is a recommended setting.
+ APT_PROXY="http://localhost:3142/"
[[add-additional-debian-packages]]
How do I add additional Debian package(s) to my CD/ISO?
and specify it when invoking grml-live then:
- # grml-live -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,I386,MIKA
+ # grml-live -c GRMLBASE,GRML_SMALL,AMD64,MIKA
[[reset-grml-live-configuration]]
I fscked up my grml-live configuration. How do I reset it to the defaults?
rm -rf /etc/grml/fai /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
dpkg -i --force-confnew --force-confmiss /path/to/grml-live_..._all.deb
-[NOTE]
-
-If you don't control your /etc using a version control system (VCS) yet it's a
-good chance to start using it now. Check out
-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/]
-for more details how to maintain /etc using the mercurial VCS.
-
[[create-a-base-tgz]]
-How do I create a base.tgz for use as NFSROOT?
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-First of all build the chroot system:
-
- mkdir /tmp/nfsroot && cd /tmp/nfsroot
- debootstrap lenny /tmp/nfsroot/ http://cdn.debian.net/debian
- tar zcf base.tgz ./
+How do I create a base.tgz?
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Then check out where your NFSROOT is located:
+First of all create the chroot using debootstrap:
- # grep '^NFSROOT' /etc/grml/fai/make-fai-nfsroot.conf
- NFSROOT=/grml/fai/nfsroot
+ BASECHROOT='/tmp/basefile'
+ debootstrap wheezy "$BASECHROOT" http://ftp.debian.org/debian
+ tar -C "$BASECHROOT" --exclude='var/cache/apt/archives/*.deb' -zcf base.tar.gz ./
-So as /grml/fai/nfsroot is your NFSROOT place the file under
-/grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/:
+[TIP]
+By default debootstrap builds a chroot matching the architecture of the running
+host system. If you're using an amd64 system and want to build an i386 base.tgz
+then invoke debootstrap using the '--arch i386' option. Disclaimer: building an
+AMD64 base.tgz won't work if you are using a 32bit kernel system of course.
- mv base.tgz /grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/base.tgz
+Then move the base.tar.gz to /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz.
+Use e.g. I386 as $CLASSNAME for i386 chroots and AMD64 for amd64 chroots.
-or even better use /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz instead.
-Use I386 as $CLASSNAME for i386 builds and AMD64 for amd64 builds.
-
-Now running "grml-live ..." will use this file as main system instead of
-executing debootstrap. Check out the output for the following lines if using
-NFSROOT:
+Now executing grml-live should use this file as base system instead of executing
+debootstrap. Check out the output for something like:
[...]
- Calling task_extrbase
- Unpacking Debian base archive
- Extracting /grml/fai/nfsroot/live/filesystem.dir/var/tmp/base.tgz
- Calling task_mirror
+ ftar: extracting //etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles///AMD64.tar.gz to /srv/grml64_testing/grml_chroot//
[...]
-or if using /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/$CLASSNAME.tar.gz for:
-
- [...]
- ftar: extracting /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles///AMD64.tar.gz to
- /grml-live/grml-live_20071029.22138/grml_chroot//
- [...]
+[TIP]
+Existing base.tgz can be found at http://daily.grml.org/
[[apt-cacher]]
-Set up apt-cacher / apt-cacher-ng for use with grml-live
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+Set up apt-cacher-ng for use with grml-live
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Make sure /etc/grml/grml-live.conf provides according GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and
+Make sure /etc/grml/grml-live.local provides according APT_PROXY and
FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP:
- # cat /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
+ # cat /etc/grml/grml-live.local
[...]
- GRML_LIVE_SOURCES="
- deb http://localhost:3142/deb.grml.org grml-stable main
- deb http://localhost:3142/deb.grml.org grml-testing main
- deb http://localhost:3142/cdn.debian.net/debian lenny main contrib non-free
- "
+ APT_PROXY="http://localhost:3142/"
[...]
- FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="lenny http://localhost:3142/cdn.debian.net/debian lenny main contrib non-free"
+ FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="wheezy http://localhost:3142/ftp.debian.org/debian wheezy main contrib non-free"
-Make sure apt-cacher / apt-cacher-ng is running ('/etc/init.d/apt-cacher
-restart' or '/etc/init.d/apt-cacher-ng restart'). That's it. All downloaded
-files will be cached in /var/cache/apt-cacher/ or /var/cache/apt-cacher-ng then.
+Make sure apt-cacher-ng is running ('/etc/init.d/apt-cacher-ng restart').
+That's it. All downloaded files will be cached in /var/cache/apt-cacher-ng then.
-[[approx]]
-Set up approx for use with grml-live
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+[[revert_manifold]]
+How do I revert the manifold feature from an ISO?
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Make sure /etc/grml/grml-live.conf provides according GRML_LIVE_SOURCES and
-FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP:
+The so called manifold feature Grml ISOs use by default allows one to use the same
+ISO for CD boot and USB boot. If you notice any problems when booting just
+revert the manifold feature running:
- # cat /etc/grml/grml-live.conf
- [...]
- GRML_LIVE_SOURCES="
- deb http://localhost:9999/grml grml-stable main
- deb http://localhost:9999/grml grml-testing main
- deb http://localhost:9999/debian lenny main contrib non-free
- "
- FAI_DEBOOTSTRAP="lenny http://localhost:9999/debian"
+ % dd if=/dev/zero of=grml.iso bs=512 count=1 conv=notrunc
-Configure approx:
+To switch from manifold to isohybrid mode (an alternative approach provided by
+syslinux) then just execute:
- # cat /etc/approx/approx.conf
- [...]
- debian http://ftp.at.debian.org/debian
- grml http://deb.grml.org/
+ % isohybrid grml.iso
+
+[[basetgz]]
+How do I create a base tar.gz (I386.tar.gz or AMD64.tar.gz)
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-Don't forget to restart approx (/etc/init.d/approx restart). That's it.
-All downloaded files will be cached in /var/cache/approx now.
+Execute the following commands (requires root):
-[[question]]
-I've a question which isn't answered by this document
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+ ARCH='amd64' # replace with i386 if necessary
+ SUITE='wheezy' # using the current stable release should always work
+ debootstrap --arch "$ARCH" --exclude=info,tasksel,tasksel-data "$SUITE" "$ARCH" http://debian.netcologne.de/debian
+ cd "$ARCH"
+ rm var/cache/apt/archives/*.deb
+ tar zcf ../"${ARCH}".tar.gz *
-Don't hesitate to contact the author: <mika@grml.org>
+And finally place the generated tarball in /etc/grml/fai/config/basefiles/ (note
+that it needs to be uppercase letters matching the class names, so: AMD64.tar.gz
+for amd64 and I386.tar.gz for i386).
[[download]]
Download / install grml-live as a Debian package
------
The source of grml-live is available at
-link:http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git[http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git]
-
-[[todo-list]]
-TODO list
----------
-
-Check out the link:http://git.grml.org/?p=grml-live.git;a=blob;f=TODO;hb=HEAD[TODO file].
+link:https://github.com/grml/grml-live/[https://github.com/grml/grml-live/]
[[bugs]]
Bugs
----
Please report feedback, link:http://grml.org/bugs/[bugreports] and wishes
-link:http://grml.org/contact/[to the grml-team]!
+link:http://grml.org/contact/[to the Grml team]!
+
+[[documentation]]
+Documentation
+-------------
+
+The most recent grml-live documentation is available online at
+http://grml.org/grml-live/ and for offline reading also available
+in different formats:
+
+* http://grml.org/grml-live/grml-live.epub
+* http://grml.org/grml-live/grml-live.pdf
[[authors]]
Authors
projects / grml-live.git / blobdiff