Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[Nishanth Aravamudan]

On 13.08.2014 [13:34:45 -0400], Russell Roy wrote:
> Yeah.   If I'm not mistaken the Cobbler pxe_just_once scheme relies upon
> pulling mac addrs into and out of the tftpboot files (ie netboot disabled
> means "I have no tftpboot boot entry for your mac addr.")

Yep, it's purely a configuration of hte Cobbler server thing. If the
client still tries to netboot, it should just timeout/failover (but
requires client configuration on the ordering, etc.).

> This scheme breaks down if one chooses to hand out ip addrs (dhcp) and
> boot info (tftp) anonymously ie to *any* requesting mac.   When the
> ipmi pxe just once option is available, it gives us a means to
> decouple the boot preference from the mgmt of dhcp/tftp config files.

Yes, that does seem like a good option. As I mentioned, I think to test
it, it  should be straightforward to use a trigger, and then someone
could open an issue/work on a code-fix (probably needs a configuration
entry, etc.).

-Nish

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Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[Russell Roy]

Yeah.   If I'm not mistaken the Cobbler pxe_just_once scheme relies upon
pulling mac addrs into and out of the tftpboot files (ie netboot disabled
means "I have no tftpboot boot entry for your mac addr.")   This scheme
breaks down if one chooses to hand out ip addrs (dhcp) and boot info (tftp)
anonymously ie to *any* requesting mac.   When the ipmi pxe just once
option is available, it gives us a means to decouple the boot preference
from the mgmt of dhcp/tftp config files.


On Wed, Aug 13, 2014 at 12:25 PM, Nishanth Aravamudan <
n...@linux.vnet.ibm.com> wrote:

> On 13.08.2014 [16:56:15 +0200], Andr? Gem?nd wrote:
> > They act on two different levels. The ipmi chassis bootdev pxe command
> > really sets the device that the BIOS probes for booting. That way you
> > don't need to set your machine boot order to prefer network boots
> > permanently in BIOS, but can leave the default and change it ad-hoc.
> > We also use this (but trigger it manually).
>
> Right, to make it explicit:
>
> pxe_just_once is a Cobbler-level configuration bit, which tells a
> Cobbler snippet to unset "netboot-enabled" for a system when it finishes
> the install (that actually is in the snippet itself). So it translates
> to "configure the Cobbler server to PXE boot this system once".
>
> The IPMI command is on the physical system (target) and tells it to use
> the network interface to boot on the next boot. The boot after that
> should go back to the default boot order (unknown to Cobbler). So it
> translates to "configure the victim server to PXE boot on the next
> reboot".
>
> Thanks,
> Nish
>
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Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[Nishanth Aravamudan]

On 13.08.2014 [10:58:12 -0400], Jennifer Patrick wrote:
> Is there a PXE once option in cobbler?  Basically, my logic is that with a
> large amount of servers set to boot CD/HD/Network i'd like it if the
> already flexible cobbler can also issue a pxe flag to system (Like when you
> toggle "netboot_enabled") so that way the system will know to netboot the
> next time it's booted, and can commence with a network install.

pxe_just_once is a global flag to Cobbler, which changes the way one of
the kickstart snippets works -- it unsets netboot-enabled when invoked
in the %post section. It still relies on the victim server netbooting in
the first place and issuing that snippet.

Now, you *could* make a change locally to run IPMI pxe when
netboot_enabled is set for each system, on sync, and then "un-run" it
(I'm not sure if there is an equivalent of turn off "pxe" mode) in the
%post snippet. If the latter doesn't exist (that is turning on pxe mode
is really a one-off, and will automatically disable on victim reboot),
then I think you're best off just using a trigger on sync?

-Nish

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Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[Nishanth Aravamudan]

On 13.08.2014 [16:56:15 +0200], Andr? Gem?nd wrote:
> They act on two different levels. The ipmi chassis bootdev pxe command
> really sets the device that the BIOS probes for booting. That way you
> don't need to set your machine boot order to prefer network boots
> permanently in BIOS, but can leave the default and change it ad-hoc.
> We also use this (but trigger it manually).

Right, to make it explicit:

pxe_just_once is a Cobbler-level configuration bit, which tells a
Cobbler snippet to unset "netboot-enabled" for a system when it finishes
the install (that actually is in the snippet itself). So it translates
to "configure the Cobbler server to PXE boot this system once".

The IPMI command is on the physical system (target) and tells it to use
the network interface to boot on the next boot. The boot after that
should go back to the default boot order (unknown to Cobbler). So it
translates to "configure the victim server to PXE boot on the next
reboot".

Thanks,
Nish

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Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[Jennifer Patrick]

Is there a PXE once option in cobbler?  Basically, my logic is that with a
large amount of servers set to boot CD/HD/Network i'd like it if the
already flexible cobbler can also issue a pxe flag to system (Like when you
toggle "netboot_enabled") so that way the system will know to netboot the
next time it's booted, and can commence with a network install.

Does that help?

Thanks.
Jennnifer.


On Wed, Aug 13, 2014 at 10:49 AM, Michael Tiernan  wrote:

> > On 12.08.2014 [14:36:50 -0400], Jennifer Patrick wrote:
> >> Hiya.
> >>
> >> Just wondering if anyone has figured out a way via the API, or how to
> >> show-horn it into the web-interface, to enable cobbler to set a pxe boot
> >> flag on a system.  Currently in cobbler we can do the equivalent of:
>
> May I ask why this is preferred instead of using the "PXE Once" option
> for the system?
>
> Not questioning your logic, just trying to learn.
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-- 

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Jennifer Patrick  / Systems Engineer
 617-335-6284
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Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[André Gemünd]

They act on two different levels. The ipmi chassis bootdev pxe command really 
sets the device that the BIOS probes for booting. That way you don't need to 
set your machine boot order to prefer network boots permanently in BIOS, but 
can leave the default and change it ad-hoc. We also use this (but trigger it 
manually).

Greetings
Andre

- Ursprüngliche Mail -
> > On 12.08.2014 [14:36:50 -0400], Jennifer Patrick wrote:
> >> Hiya.
> >>
> >> Just wondering if anyone has figured out a way via the API, or how
> >> to
> >> show-horn it into the web-interface, to enable cobbler to set a
> >> pxe boot
> >> flag on a system.  Currently in cobbler we can do the equivalent
> >> of:
> 
> May I ask why this is preferred instead of using the "PXE Once"
> option
> for the system?
> 
> Not questioning your logic, just trying to learn.
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-- 
André Gemünd
Fraunhofer-Institute for Algorithms and Scientific Computing
andre.gemu...@scai.fraunhofer.de
Tel: +49 2241 14-2193
/C=DE/O=Fraunhofer/OU=SCAI/OU=People/CN=Andre Gemuend
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Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[Michael Tiernan]

> On 12.08.2014 [14:36:50 -0400], Jennifer Patrick wrote:
>> Hiya.
>>
>> Just wondering if anyone has figured out a way via the API, or how to
>> show-horn it into the web-interface, to enable cobbler to set a pxe boot
>> flag on a system.  Currently in cobbler we can do the equivalent of:

May I ask why this is preferred instead of using the "PXE Once" option
for the system?

Not questioning your logic, just trying to learn.
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Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[Nishanth Aravamudan]

On 12.08.2014 [14:36:50 -0400], Jennifer Patrick wrote:
> Hiya.
> 
> Just wondering if anyone has figured out a way via the API, or how to
> show-horn it into the web-interface, to enable cobbler to set a pxe boot
> flag on a system.  Currently in cobbler we can do the equivalent of:
> 
> ipmitool -H 1.2.3.4 -U USER -P PASS chassis power on
> ipmitool -H 1.2.3.4 -U USER -P PASS chassis power off

Well, and that itself is done via the fence commands, right? Not via
cobbler proper at all.

> for powering on/off...
> 
> 
> But can we enable a way to do:
> ipmitool -H 1.2.3.4 -U USER -P PASS chassis bootdev pxe   ?

This is slightly more reasonably done in Cobbler proper, as only Cobbler
knows if a system is about to be netboot'd (can check for
netboot_enabled is True for a system object). I would think you could do
it via a trigger, though? I'm not sure on the timing you would need, but
pre-install makes some sense (if pre-install comes before power-cycle)
or otherwise, you could do it on the sync that's necessary to setup the
PXE files anyways. But there, you could look for any systems that have
their power management set to impitool and run the command you mention
above.

I don't think you want to extend the fence agent itself, just because
then it will try and set the bootdev to pxe every time you power-cycle,
which isn't exactly what you want to do.

Thanks,
Nish

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Re: [cobbler] Enabling pxe boot option via ipmi?

[Alan Evangelista]

On 08/12/2014 03:36 PM, Jennifer Patrick wrote:

Hiya.

Just wondering if anyone has figured out a way via the API, or how to 
show-horn it into the web-interface, to enable cobbler to set a pxe 
boot flag on a system.  Currently in cobbler we can do the equivalent of:


ipmitool -H 1.2.3.4 -U USER -P PASS chassis power on
ipmitool -H 1.2.3.4 -U USER -P PASS chassis power off

for powering on/off...


But can we enable a way to do:
ipmitool -H 1.2.3.4 -U USER -P PASS chassis bootdev pxe   ?

That would allow us to flag systems for booting off the network 
interface upon the next reboot, and that way, we don't always have to 
have the network device set as the first boot device in the bios. 
 (The method that we currently use)




It should work. We will probably implement the same thing soon. The only 
diff is we will support x86 and Power architectures.


You can run this ipmi command automatically when user restarts the 
system (easier for user) or you can create a new option in web UI.



Regards,
Alan Evangelista

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