PXE vs PXE

[Dazed_75]

Turns out the two PXE servers I built do totally different things and really
should be called PXE based Install Servers AND I can imagine a third which
might more properly be described as a PXE Boot Server.  BTW, for those who
do not know, PXE stands for Pre-eXecution Environment and really does let
you boot a machine from the network.  Anyway, here are the three types I
mentioned:

   1. from https://help.ubuntu.com/community/PXEInstallMultiDistro I built a
   server that does PXE boots from files stored entirely on the PXE server.
   Those files came from .iso files that had been previously mounted and the
   necessary material extracted when the server is set up.  The .iso files need
   not be kept since they are not used during a PXE boot.  The booting is
   generally into a Live environment with the option of installing.
   2. from
   http://www.howtoforge.com/install-multiple-linux-distributions-via-pxe-the-easy-wayI
built a PXE server that does PXE boots using only a few files resident
on
   the PXE server and retrieves most of the material from the internet EVERY
   TIME a client uses the PXE based boot.  These all seem to boot directly to
   an installer (no live environment).
   3. I have not seen any article for this but I can imagine PXE booting
   being used simply to boot a system where the OS and Application files only
   live on the PXE server.  Configuration and user files could live locally or
   on the server.  I suspect PXE is never used this way but do not know.

BTW, the server I built for #2 only works for some of the distributions it
purports to.  Both the Fedora and CentOS installs fail because the install
procedures ask for information that the client doing the booting cannot
provide.  Ubuntu Karmic and Mandriva seem to work fine.  The single entry
for Karmic appears able to install all the core distributions (i.e. Ubuntu,
Kubuntu, etc).  The Mandriva install lets you choose KDE, GNOME, or CUSTOM
(whatever that means).

It seems to me that method 1 is superior for speed and bandwidth
considerations.  Method 2 seems better for the ability to install variations
of configuration or distro builds.  I suspect it would be possible to do
both in a single PXE server though it would be more work.

What I would like to see for method #1 is that the .iso files were retained
for use in burning discs either on the PXE server or a client on the net
(not a PXE function) AND might be mounted by the PXE server function rather
than having to extract files when building the server.  Since all three uses
only require reading the .iso's I would think they could be shared.

Opinions?  And is anyone interested in this?

-- 
Dazed_75 a.k.a. Larry

The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions,
that I wish it always to be kept alive.
 - Thomas Jefferson
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