PXE boot server

What follows is a step by step instruction how to setup the PXE boot server for Fedora 13. Note! the steps include setting up DHCP server, be sure not to configure it to corporate network, or you might get a visit from angry netadmin.

• Install needed servers

yum install tftp-server dhcp syslinux

• Configure DHCP (/etc/dhcp/dhcpd.conf)

ddns-update-style interim;
next-server 192.168.2.14
subnet 192.168.2.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 {
    range 192.168.2.10 192.168.2.15;
    default-lease-time 36000;
    max-lease-time 48000;
    option routers 192.168.2.14;
    option domain-name-servers 192.168.2.14;
    option subnet-mask 255.255.255.0;
    option domain-name "meegoai";
    option time-offset -8;
}
host netbook {
    #set to the mac address of *your* netbook
    hardware ethernet 00:24:54:06:e8:ba
    fixed-address 192.168.2.15;
    option host-name "meegonetbook";
    filename "pxelinux.0";
}

• Activate tftp

Set "disabled=no" in

/etc/xinetd.d/tftp 

Check also that TFTP is not blocked by your firewall.

• Make the PXE server ip static

/etc/init.d/NetworkManager stop
ifconfig eth0 192.168.2.14 up

...or something more eloquent.

• Copy pxelinux.0 so it can be found by during boot.

cp /usr/share/syslinux/pxelinux.0 /var/lib/tftpboot/

• Copy the initrd and kernel from the tar ball to tftboot dir

mkdir /var/lib/tftpboot/meegoai
cp initrd.img vmlinuz  /var/lib/tftpboot/meegoai

• Configure the images for boot menu

mkdir  /var/lib/tftpboot/pxelinux.cfg

Create file /var/lib/tftpboot/pxelinux.cfg/default:

DISPLAY boot.txt
DEFAULT meegoai
LABEL meegoai
kernel meegoai/vmlinuz
    append rootdelay=1 root=/dev/ram0 initrd=meegoai/initrd.img --
LABEL local
    localboot 0
PROMPT 3
TIMEOUT 0

and a file for boomenu, /var/lib/tftpboot/boot.txt:

- Boot Menu -
=============
meegoai
local

• Start services

service dhcpd start
service xinetd restart
service httpd start