Installing your own PXE Server to allow network hosts to boot PING (Optional step)

Directory names are given here as samples. Adapt the following according to your specific needs and configuration.
  • If you've got a working RIS Server (like MS Windows Server 2000 or 2003) :

    1. You probably have a \\server_name\RemInst\Setup\English\Images\ directory, used to share images for the RIS server.

    2. Create the following folders:
      • \\server_name\RemInst\Setup\English\Images\PING\
      • \\server_name\RemInst\Setup\English\Images\PING\i386\
      • \\server_name\RemInst\Setup\English\Images\PING\i386\templates\
      • \\server_name\RemInst\Setup\English\Images\PING\i386\templates\pxelinux.cfg\

    3. In the \\server_name\RemInst\...\templates\ directory, download the following files:

    4. In the \\server_name\RemInst\...\templates\ directory, create a text file that you'll name ping.sif, containing:
      [OSChooser]
Description = "PING 1.10 (Partimage Is Not Ghost)"
Help = ""
LaunchFile = "Setup\English\Images\PING\i386\templates\pxelinux.0"
ImageType = Flat
Version="1.10"
    5. In the \\server_name\RemInst\...\templates\pxelinux.cfg\ directory, create a text file that you'll name default, containing:
      DEFAULT rescue
PROMPT 0
LABEL rescue
KERNEL kernel
APPEND vga=normal devfs=nomount pxe ramdisk_size=45000 load_ramdisk=1 init=/linuxrc prompt_ramdisk=0 initrd=initrd.gz root=/dev/ram0 rw noacpi noapm pci=noacpi lba acpi=off apm=off


  • If you have no working RIS Server and want to build your own easily :

    1. Install TFTPD32 from Ph. Jumin's web site

    2. On your future PXE / RIS Server, create the following directories:
      • D:\PXE\
      • D:\PXE\i386\
      • D:\PXE\i386\templates\
      • D:\PXE\i386\templates\pxelinux.cfg\

    3. In the D:\PXE\i386\templates\ directory, download the following files:

    4. In the D:\PXE\i386\templates\pxelinux.cfg\ directory, create a text file that you'll name default, containing:
      DEFAULT rescue
PROMPT 0
LABEL rescue
KERNEL kernel
APPEND vga=normal devfs=nomount pxe ramdisk_size=45000 load_ramdisk=1 init=/linuxrc prompt_ramdisk=0 initrd=initrd.gz root=/dev/ram0 rw noacpi noapm pci=noacpi lba acpi=off apm=off

    5. Launch TFTPD and configure it the following way:

      		6.  If you've got several network cards in your computer, you'll have to choose in the server interface area the one that communicates with your other LAN hosts.
      		Configure your DHCP Server here. Booting with PXE is not possible unless you define it. A common network configuration is to have addresses like 192.168.0.x with 192.168.0.1 as the router (often a workstation connected both to the internet, both to the LAN, and sharing the internet connection on the LAN).
      		Nothing special here.

    6. That's all ! Test your PXE Server: go to a LAN workstation, reboot it, and press F12 to boot on the network. Note: if you don't see the F12 prompt, you might have to modify the BIOS setup and enable PXE.

      In the following section, we'll be booting from a CD, made by burning the PING ISO. But this should give exactly the same result.

NEXT  (Using PING)

BACK  (Downloading and Burning the PING ISO)

Summary


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