FAI and XenServer

[Thomas Neumann]

hiya

(everything's from memory)

> on request of Thomas Lange I added some documentation on how to run a
> paravirtualized FAI setup on Citrix XenServer:
> http://wiki.fai-project.org/wiki/Xenserver
>
> Feel free to fix my typos and add more details if you like.

I've done something similar but without any xen-magic. And it works the
same for Debian, Ubuntu and SuSE

- copy debian template to a new template
- remove hard discs from template

create new vm from template (yes, the debian template, even for ubuntu and
suse)
boot via "rescue mode"

This is important, because it gives you access to netboot via pxe!
(Downside: System is fully virtualized and therefore slower - especially
regarding I/O)

Do a normal installation via FAI/PXEBOOT
Install -xen kernel.

At this point there is nothing special anymore, except that you have to
trick update-grub into writing a correct kernel stanza.

config written by update grub

kernel /boot/xen.gz
module /boot/vmlinuz[...]
module /boot/initrd[...]

must be rewritten into

kernel /boot/vmlinuz[...]
initrd /boot/initrd[...]


Restart the system. Unless explicitely told otherwise (via 'rescue boot')
XenServer will restart in "normal" (paravirtualized) mode


In the beginning there was a lot of trial and error involved to write a
"correct" boot config. The main reason is, that XenServer doesn't "boot"
the harddisc. Instead it tries to read the boot device and figure out
everything itself. GRUB doesn't even need to be installed at all. Only the
kernel image, initrd and menu.lst are required.

tschüß
thomas

P.S.: Greetings from Vienna.