ChorusOS 5.0 Installation Guide

Chapter 5 Setting Up a Boot Server

A boot server system runs services that allow a ChorusOS target system to obtain a system image at boot time over the network.

This chapter explains how to configure a boot server running on the Solaris operating environment to respond to Reverse Address Resolution Protocol (RARP) requests from target systems and download ChorusOS system images to targets through Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP). Both services must run on the same server. For information on setting up with other protocol services, see the ChorusOS 5.0 System Administrator's Guide.

Note -

The following procedures apply to a system using NIS, not NIS+.

If you want to use DHCP, see the TCP/IP and Data Communications Administration Guide at http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/indexes/documentation/index.html.

This chapter includes the following sections:

Boot Process

The following figure shows how the boot process occurs, in chronological order from top to bottom:

Figure 5-1 Boot Process

Typically (though not for all targets), the target system bootstraps, and broadcasts a RARP request that says something like, "My Ethernet address is 8:0:20:a7:d6:f3. Could some system please tell me my IP address?" A boot server responds to the target with the IP address that it learned through /etc/ethers, NIS, DNS, or another service.

If RARP returns an IP address successfully, the target attempts to download the configuration file, /tftpboot/target_IP_address_in_hexadecimal_form, from the boot server that responded to the RARP request. This file identifies the system image file that the target is requesting.

Note -

If the target system cannot obtain its IP address through RARP, it sends a Bootstrap Protocol (BOOTP) or Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) request.

For example, if the target has IP address 129.157.197.88, the boot server address is 129.157.197.144, and the system image file is /tftpboot/chorus.bmon, the configuration file, /tftpboot/819DC558, would contain the following:

AUTOBOOT=YES
BOOTFILE=chorus.bmon
BOOTSERVER=129.157.197.144

After reading the configuration file, the target sends a TFTP request to the boot server saying, "Send me my system image file, system.image," where system.image is the path to the system image file. The boot server responds by downloading the system image file onto the target system.

Caution -

The following procedures assume that you set up only one boot server that responds to RARP requests from the target system and delivers ChorusOS system images to targets through TFTP.

Setting Up RARP Services

RARP service allows the target system to obtain its IP address over the Ethernet from the boot server.

Note -

If /tftpboot exists at boot time, a system running the Solaris operating environment starts the RARP daemon as part of normal system initialization.

The RARP daemon should run on a boot server whose IP network is the same as that of the target. See the TCP/IP and Data Communications Administration Guide and in.rarpd(1M) for details.

To Set Up RARP Services

Check /etc/nsswitch.conf on the boot server for lines starting with ethers:

$ grep ^ethers /etc/nsswitch.conf

If the output starts with	Then
`ethers: nis` For example: `ethers: nis [NOTFOUND=return] files`	Proceed to Step 2.
`ethers: files` For example: `ethers: files nis [NOTFOUND=return]`	Proceed to Step 3.
Something other than the preceding choices	Ask your NIS administrator for help.

If the output starts with

Then

ethers: nis

For example:

ethers: nis [NOTFOUND=return] files

Proceed to Step 2.

ethers: files

For example:

ethers: files nis [NOTFOUND=return]

Proceed to Step 3.

Something other than the preceding choices

Ask your NIS administrator for help.

Verify whether the target is listed in the map ethers.byname:

$ ypmatch target_hostname ethers

If the output is	Then
`target_Ethernet_address target_hostname`	Proceed to Step 4.
`Can't match key target_hostname in map ethers.byname. Reason: no such key in map.`	Verify the target Ethernet address, and then proceed to Step 3.

Add the following line to /etc/ethers on the boot server:

target_Ethernet_address               target_hostname

Start the RARP daemon on the boot server:

$ su
Password: superuser_password
# /usr/sbin/in.rarpd -a

Setting Up TFTP Services

The TFTP service allows the target system to obtain a ChorusOS system image from the boot server at boot time.

Note -

Due to network limitations in the TFTP, you may encounter difficulties when downloading large system images through TFTP.

Do not download images larger than 16 MB.

To Set Up TFTP Services

Create a /tftpboot directory on the boot server--unless it already exists:

$ ls /tftpboot
/tftpboot: No such file or directory
$ su
Password: superuser_password
# mkdir /tftpboot
# chown user:group /tftpboot
# exit
$ chmod 664 /tftpboot

The preceding commands allow user and group to write system images and boot configuration files to /tftpboot.

To enable TFTP services as part of normal system initialization, remove the comment character, #, from the TFTP daemon line in /etc/inetd.conf on the boot server:
```
tftp dgram udp wait root /usr/sbin/in.tftpd in.tftpd -s /tftpboot
```

To start the TFTP daemon on the boot server, restart inetd:

$ su
Password: superuser_password
# ps -aef | grep inetd
    root   pid     1  0   Dec 15 ?        0:00 /usr/sbin/inetd -s
# kill -1 pid
# exit