kickstart

This was our shop’s first real dive into kickstarts. The material I read in Visible Ops really emphasized track able/repeatable processes for setting up systems. One great way to do that is through kickstart scripts and some kind of version control system. We used Subversion. I’ve edited a few parts out of this, but I spent a while finding several kickstart scripts that accomplished parts of what we needed. I highly customized one for our environment....

Here’s the ‘script’ read from while doing our ESX upgrades: In general: Do lots of up front work with kickstarts and analysis Each ESX Host Put host in maintenance mode Shut Down File request with storage administrator to make only boot LUN is visible to host as we are about to do some potentially damaging operations Put in new HBA (QLA4050) Boot to floppy diskette with QLA 4050 BIOS firmware updates Upgrade HBA BIOS iFlash If the system detects a QLx40xx controller, it displays the following message: QLx40xx Adapter found at I/O address: xxxxxxxx You will need to enter the adapter address Select “FB” to flash the BIOS....