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mk-initrd-oneSIS

Usage: mk-initrd-oneSIS [Option]... $<$initrd$>$ $<$kernel-version$>$
This program prepares an initrd for bootstrapping oneSIS nodes.

initrd is the pathname of the initial ramdisk to create.
Kernel modules are used for the given kernel-version.

Options:
-s, -size=STRING Specify size of initrd (default: 4096)
-d, -scsi Include scsi_hostadapter modules
-p, -preload=STRING Add the specified module (loads before SCSI modules)
-w, -with=STRING Add the specified module (loads after SCSI modules)
-v, -variant=STRING Specify the class or node variant to use
-t, -template=FILE Use the specified initrd template.
    (default: /usr/share/oneSIS/initrd-dhclient.gz)
-b, -basedir=DIR Look for files relative to DIR (default: /)
-f, -force Force overwrite of an existing initrd
-nn, -nonfs Omit inclusion of NFS modules
-td, -tempdir=DIR Use alternate temporary directory instead of /tmp
-q, -quiet Suppress output
     
--- Initrd Behavior Flags ---
-am, -automount Auto-mount labeled partitions and swapon swap
    partitions from the initrd
-rw, -readwrite=STRING Auto-mount specified labeled partitions read-write
    The string 'ALL' will mount all partitions read-write
-nd, -nodhcp Don't run a DHCP client from the initrd

An alternate method for booting oneSIS systems is to bootstrap using an initial ramdisk (initrd). By using mk-initrd-oneSIS, an initrd can be built that is customized for an entire cluster or for any subset of nodes.

Kernel modules needed for NFS and those specified by any eth0 aliases in /etc/modules.conf are included automatically in the initrd and loaded at boot time. Likewise, any scsi_hostadapter alias in /etc/modules.conf will cause the corresponding driver to be loaded when the -scsi option is given.

Any other modules can be included with command-line arguments. All modules must exist in /lib/modules/kernel-version relative to the basedir.

For example, to create an initrd for a node running a 2.6.12 kernel with an e1000 network card and IDE disk support built into the kernel, assuming kernel modules are installed in /lib/modules/2.6.12, you would type:

One initrd template is included with oneSIS that can be configured to perform several varying tasks (described in section 3.2). Others can be derived from this one to perform specialized pre-boot tasks.

Local disk partitions that have been created with DEPLOYMOUNT, or DEPLOYSWAP directives and the mk-diskful script (see section 6.5) can be mounted automatically (or swapped-on) from the initrd.

To automount locally deployed partitions on the system described above:

Any locally deployed partitions can also be mounted read-write. One must be aware that system utilities may write to the filesystem and erase your carefully crafted symlinks to /ram, especially in directories like /var and /etc during a system boot. To automount the locally deployed /etc directory read-write: Other behavior in the initrd can be controlled by supplying options to mk-initrd-oneSIS. If any other functionality is needed in the initrd, a new template can be derived from an existing one to provide the extra functionality, as described in section 3.2.2.

Note: mk-initrd-oneSIS does not currently look at /etc/fstab to determine which local partitions to mount.


next up previous contents
Next: mk-diskful Up: Utility Programs Previous: copy-rootfs   Contents
root 2005-06-19