Cloning servers with ignite - single config file?

[EEESEC]

Is there a way I can get all my archives for all servers to be automatically listed when booting a client from my ignite server as opposed to having to copy and manipulate the CINDEX and other files in /var/opt/ignite/clients/ before it can be seen by a different client?  It's an annoyance to have to do this when cloning lots of servers.  Haven't seen anything in the documentation specifically about this.

Thanks.

[Ken Grabowski]

Are you actually cloning a lot of servers or are you trying to build a lot of servers from a standard image? 

Ignite has a golden image capability, see chapter 11 from the Ignite UX Administration Guide.  You can use this method to set up one or more golden images to build your servers from. You can list all your golden images in your ignite configuration files so that you can choose the image needed for any given host build.

[pradeep m]

In addition to the Ignite-UX Administrator Guide, you can also refer the HP Ignite-UX Guide Troubleshooting which has the step by step instructions with example about configuring Golden Images:

Click here to access HP Ignite-UX Guided Troubleshooting. 

From the above link -> Choose "Configuration / How-to Guide" -> choose "Golden Image Creation and Configuration"

This Ignite-UX guided troubleshooting talks about most common configuration and troubleshooting in Ignite-UX. 

[EEESEC]

To be more specific, what I use is the make_net_recovery command and have all the recovery archives sent to an NFS share exported from an Ignite server.  When I Ignite a system I'd like to be able to choose any of these network archives.  By default Ignite creates seperate config file for each systems recovery archive and binds it to a server by IP and MAC. 

I always have to "trick" Ignite by editing a number of conf files and creating sym links to be able to use a different servers network ignite. (Servers are actually blades and are they are all the same.) Not a big deal just a bit time consuming.   Have been through the Ignite UX Admin guide a number of times. I guess I could write a script that parses and updates them automatically...

How do all of you load systems via Ignite on the netowrk with the ability to use any image you have out there?  Would think this is relatively common and am wondering if I am just missing something.  I have been through the Ignite UX guides and couldn't find this particular info.

Thanks.

[Ken Grabowski]

The make_net_recovery utility is intended for use in a DR scenario.  The assumption is you are recovering a given system from a hardware failure.  There is no built in function for using the image to restore to different hardware. Just the manual process you are already using. 

Back when we use to have fewer systems and a tape drive everywhere, we tended to use the make_tape_recovery and move the physical tape to where we needed it.  It did/does not require changing the configuration.

I have not run into a scenario where I needed to move a given host from one piece of hardware to another on a frequent basis.  I have on the overhand had many scenario's where I needed to quickly create a new server with a fixed configuration on a similar piece of hardware. The recommended way of doing that is with the Ignite Golden Image. It preservers most of a servers configuration, while striping identity so that a new host name and address can be applied at installation. That can be configured the way you want, with a list of configurations to chose from during the installation.