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Non-interactive IBM Z LPAR (s390x) installation using autoinstall

This non-interactive installation uses ‘autoinstall’, which can be considered the successor to the Debian installer (d-i) and preseed on Ubuntu. This is a detailed step-by-step guide, including output and logs (which are partially a bit shortened, as indicated by ‘…’, to limit the size of this document).

The example logical partition (LPAR) here uses zFCP storage and is connected to a VLAN network.
For a DASD and a non-VLAN network example, please see the non-interactive IBM z/VM (s390x) autoinstallation guide.

  • Start with the preparation of the (FTP) install server (if it doesn’t already exist).

    user@local:~$ ssh admin@installserver.local
admin@installserver:~$ mkdir -p /srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04
admin@installserver:~$ wget http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntu-server/focal/daily-live/current/focal-live-server-s390x.iso --directory-prefix=/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04
--2020-06-26 12:18:48--  http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntu-server/focal/daily-live/current/focal-live-server-s390x.iso
Resolving cdimage.ubuntu.com (cdimage.ubuntu.com)... 2001:67c:1560:8001::1d, 2001:67c:1360:8001::28, 2001:67c:1360:8001::27, 
 ...
Connecting to cdimage.ubuntu.com (cdimage.ubuntu.com)|2001:67c:1560:8001::1d|:80... connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
Length: 700952576 (668M) [application/x-iso9660-image]
Saving to: ‘focal-live-server-s390x.iso’

focal-live-server-s 100%[===================>] 668.48M  2.73MB/s    in 4m 54s  

2020-06-26 12:23:42 (2.27 MB/s) - ‘focal-live-server-s390x.iso’ saved [700952576/700952576]
admin@installserver:~$

  • The ISO image needs to be extracted now. Since files in its boot folder need to be modified, loopback mount is not an option here:

    admin@installserver:~$ cd /srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ mkdir iso
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ sudo mount -o loop ./focal-live-server-s390x.iso ./iso
[sudo] password for admin: 
mount: /home/user/iso-test/iso: WARNING: device write-protected, mounted read-only.
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ ls -l
total 684530
-rw-rw-r--  1 user user 700952576 Jun 26 10:12 focal-live-server-s390x.iso
dr-xr-xr-x 10 root    root         2048 Jun 26 10:12 iso
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ rsync -rtvz ./iso/ . && sync
sending incremental file list
skipping non-regular file "ubuntu"
skipping non-regular file "ubuntu-ports"
./
README.diskdefines
boot.catalog
md5sum.txt
ubuntu.ins
skipping non-regular file "dists/stable"
skipping non-regular file "dists/unstable"
.disk/
.disk/base_installable
.disk/casper-uuid-generic
.disk/cd_type
.disk/info
boot/
boot/README.boot
boot/initrd.off
boot/initrd.siz
boot/initrd.ubuntu
boot/kernel.ubuntu
boot/parmfile.ubuntu
boot/ubuntu.exec
boot/ubuntu.ikr
boot/ubuntu.ins
casper/
  ...
sent 681,509,758 bytes  received 1,857 bytes  22,344,643.11 bytes/sec
total size is 700,317,941  speedup is 1.03
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ ls -l
total 684578
dr-xr-xr-x  2 user user      4096 Jun 26 10:12 boot
-r--r--r--  1 user user      2048 Jun 26 10:12 boot.catalog
dr-xr-xr-x  3 user user      4096 Jun 26 10:12 casper
dr-xr-xr-x  3 user user      4096 Jun 26 10:11 dists
-rw-rw-r--  1 user user 700952576 Jun 26 10:12 focal-live-server-s390x.iso
dr-xr-xr-x  2 user user      4096 Jun 26 10:11 install
dr-xr-xr-x 10 root    root         2048 Jun 26 10:12 iso
-r--r--r--  1 user user      4944 Jun 26 10:12 md5sum.txt
dr-xr-xr-x  2 user user      4096 Jun 26 10:11 pics
dr-xr-xr-x  3 user user      4096 Jun 26 10:11 pool
dr-xr-xr-x  2 user user      4096 Jun 26 10:11 preseed
-r--r--r--  1 user user       236 Jun 26 10:11 README.diskdefines
-r--r--r--  1 user user       185 Jun 26 10:12 ubuntu.ins

  • Now create ins and parm files dedicated to the LPAR that will be installed (here zlinlpar), based on the default ins and parm files that are shipped with the ISO image:

    admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ chmod -R +rw ./boot
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ cp ./boot/ubuntu.ins ./boot/ubuntu_zlinlpar.ins
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ cp ./boot/parmfile.ubuntu ./boot/parmfile.zlinlpar
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ 

    admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ vi ./boot/ubuntu_zlinlpar.ins
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ cat ./boot/ubuntu_zlinlpar.ins
* Ubuntu for z Series (default kernel)
kernel.ubuntu 0x00000000
initrd.off 0x0001040c
initrd.siz 0x00010414
parmfile.zlinlpar 0x00010480
initrd.ubuntu 0x01000000
admin@installserver:~$ 

    admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ vi ./boot/parmfile.zlinlpar
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ cat ./boot/parmfile.zlinlpar

    ip=10.11.12.42::10.11.12.1:255.255.255.0:zlinlpar:encc000.4711:none:10.11.12.1 vlan=encc000.4711:encc000 url=http://installserver.local:80/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04/focal-live-server-s390x.iso autoinstall ds=nocloud-net;s=http://installserver.local:80/autoinstall/zlinlpar/ --- quiet

  • Now make sure an FTP server is running in the installserver with /srv/ftp as ftp-server root (as used in this example).

  • Now prepare an autoinstall (HTTP) server, which hosts the configuration data for the non-interactive installation.

    admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ mkdir -p /srv/www/autoinstall/zlinlpar
admin@installserver:/srv/ftp/ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04$ cd /srv/www/autoinstall/zlinlpar
admin@installserver:/srv/www/autoinstall/zlinlpar$ 
admin@installserver:/srv/www/autoinstall/zlinlpar$ echo "instance-id: $(uuidgen || openssl rand -base64 8)" > meta-data
admin@installserver:/srv/www/autoinstall/zlinlpar$ cat meta-data
instance-id: 2c2215fb-6a38-417f-b72f-376b1cc44f01
admin@installserver:/srv/www/autoinstall/zlinlpar$

    admin@installserver:/srv/www/autoinstall/zlinlpar$ vi user-data
admin@installserver:/srv/www/autoinstall/zlinlpar$ cat user-data
#cloud-config
autoinstall:
  version: 1
  refresh-installer:
    update: yes
  reporting:
    builtin:
      type: print
  apt:
    preserve_sources_list: false
    primary:
    - arches: [amd64, i386]
      uri: http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu
    - arches: [default]
      uri: http://ports.ubuntu.com/ubuntu-ports
  keyboard:
    layout: en
    variant: us
  locale: en_US
  identity:
    hostname: zlinlpar
    password: 
"$6$ebJ1f8wxED22bTL4F46P0"
      username: ubuntu
    user-data:
      timezone: America/Boston
      users:
        - name: ubuntu
          password: 
"$6$KwuxED22bTL4F46P0"
          lock_passwd: false
    early-commands:
      - touch /tmp/lets_activate_the_s390x_devices
      - chzdev zfcp -e e000
      - chzdev zfcp -e e100
      - chzdev zfcp-lun -e --online
      - touch /tmp/s390x_devices_activation_done
    network:
      ethernets:
        encc000: {}
      version: 2
      vlans:
        encc000.4711:
          addresses: [10.11.12.42/24]
          gateway4: 10.11.12.1
          id: 4711
          link: encc000
          nameservers:
            addresses: [10.11.12.1]
    ssh:
      install-server: true
      allow-pw: true
      authorized-keys: ['ssh-rsa  meQwtZ user@workstation # ssh-import-id lp:user']
  admin@installserver:~$

  • For s390x installations the early-commands section is the interesting part:

    early-commands:
  - touch /tmp/lets_activate_the_s390x_devices
  - chzdev zfcp -e e000
  - chzdev zfcp -e e100
  - chzdev zfcp-lun -e --online
  - touch /tmp/s390x_devices_activation_done

    The first and last early-commands are optional; they only frame and indicate the real s390x command activation.

    In this particular example, two zFCP hosts (host-bus-adapters) are enabled via their addresses e000 (chzdev zfcp -e e000) and e100 (chzdev zfcp -e e000). These have certain logical unit numbers (LUNs) assigned that are all automatically discovered and activated by chzdev zfcp-lun -e --online.

    Activation of a direct-access storage device (DASD) would look like this: chzdev dasd -e 1f00, and a qeth device activation looks like: chzdev qeth -e c000.

See also:
For more details about the autoinstall config options, please have a look at the autoinstall reference and autoinstall schema pages.

  • Now make sure a HTTP server is running with /srv/www as web-server root (in this particular example).

  • Next steps need to be done at the hardware management console (HMC). First, connect to the HMC and proceed with the ‘Load From Removable Media and Server’ task.

  • Then, start the ‘Load from Removable Media or Server’ task under ‘Recovery’ → ‘Load from Removable Media or Server’ on your specific LPAR that you are going to install, and fill out the following fields (the contents will be of course different on your system):

    FTP Source 	
Host computer:	installserver.local
User ID:	ftpuser
Password: ********
Account (optional):	
File location (optional): ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04/boot

  • Now confirm the entered data and click ‘OK’.

  • At the ‘Load from Removable Media or Server - Select Software to Install’ screen, choose the LPAR that is going to be installed, here:

    ubuntu-daily-live-server-20.04/boot/ubuntu_zlinlpar.ins   Ubuntu for z Series (default kernel)

  • Confirm again with ‘OK’.

  • And another confirmation about the ‘Load will cause jobs to be cancelled’.

  • Then, another ‘Yes’ – understanding that it’s a disruptive task:

    Disruptive Task Confirmation : Load from Removable Media or Server

  • Now monitor the ‘Load from Removable media or Server Progress’ screen and confirm it once again when the status changes from ‘Please wait while the image is being loaded.’ to ‘Success’.

  • Then navigate to ‘Daily’ → ‘Operating System Messages’ to monitor the initial program load (IPL) of the install system …

    Message
chzdev: Unknown device type or device ID format: c000.4711
Use 'chzdev --help' for more information
QETH device 0.0.c000:0.0.c001:0.0.c002 configured
IP-Config: encc000.4711 hardware address 1a:3c:99:55:2a:ef mtu 1500
IP-Config: encc000.4711 guessed broadcast address 10.11.12.255
IP-Config: encc000.4711 complete:
address: 10.11.12.42    broadcast: 10.11.12.255   netmask: 255.255.255.0

gateway: 10.11.12.1     dns0     : 10.11.12.1     dns1   : 0.0.0.0

host   : zlinlpar
rootserver: 0.0.0.0 rootpath:
filename  :
Connecting to installserver.local:80 (installserver.local:80)
focal-live-server-s3   5% |*                               | 39.9M  0:00:15 ETA
focal-live-server-s3  22% |*******                         |  147M  0:00:07 ETA
focal-live-server-s3  38% |************                    |  254M  0:00:04 ETA
focal-live-server-s3  53% |*****************               |  355M  0:00:03 ETA
focal-live-server-s3  67% |*********************           |  453M  0:00:02 ETA
focal-live-server-s3  81% |**************************      |  545M  0:00:01 ETA
focal-live-server-s3  94% |*****************************  |  633M  0:00:00 ETA
focal-live-server-s3 100% |******************************|  668M  0:00:00 ETA
mount: mounting /cow on /root/cow failed: No such file or directory
Connecting to plymouth: Connection refused
passwd: password expiry information changed.
Using CD-ROM mount point /cdrom/
Identifying... [5d25356068b713167814807dd678c261-2]
Scanning disc for index files...
Found 2 package indexes, 0 source indexes, 0 translation indexes and 1 signature
Found label 'Ubuntu-Server 20.04 LTS _Focal Fossa_ - Release s390x (20200616)'
This disc is called:
'Ubuntu-Server 20.04 LTS _Focal Fossa_ - Release s390x (20200616)'
...
[   61.190916] cloud-init[2076]: Cloud-init v. 20.1-10-g71af48df-0ubuntu5 running
'modules:final' at Fri, 26 Jun 2020 11:02:01 +0000. Up 61.09 seconds.
[   61.191002] cloud-init[2076]: ci-info: no authorized SSH keys fingerprints fo
und for user installer.
[   61.191071] cloud-init[2076]: Cloud-init v. 20.1-10-g71af48df-0ubuntu5 finished at Fri, 26 Jun 2020 11:02:01 +0000.
Datasource DataSourceNoCloudNet [seed=cmdline,
/var/lib/cloud/seed/nocloud,
http://installserver.local:80/autoinstall/zlinlpar/]
[dsmode=net].  Up 61.18 seconds
[   61.191136] cloud-init[2076]: Welcome to Ubuntu Server Installer!
[   61.191202] cloud-init[2076]: Above you will find SSH host keys and a random
password set for the `installer` user. You can use these credentials to ssh-in
and complete the installation. If you provided SSH keys in the cloud-init datasource,
they were also provisioned to the installer user.
[   61.191273] cloud-init[2076]: If you have access to the graphical console,
like TTY1 or HMC ASCII terminal you can complete the installation there too.

It is possible to connect to the installer over the network, which
might allow the use of a more capable terminal.

To connect, SSH to installer@10.11.12.42.

The password you should use is ''i7UFdP8fhiVVMme3qqH8''.

The host key fingerprints are:

RSA     SHA256:rBXLeUke3D4gKdsruKEajHjocxc9hr3PI
ECDSA   SHA256:KZZYFswtKxFXWQPuQS9QpOBUoS6RHswis
ED25519 SHA256:s+5tZfagx0zffC6gYRGW3t1KcBH6f+Vt0

Ubuntu 20.04 LTS ubuntu-server sclp_line0

  • At short notice, you can even log in to the system with the user ‘installer’ and the temporary password that was given at the end of the boot-up process (see above) of the installation system:

    user@workstation:~$ ssh installer@zlinlpar
The authenticity of host 'zlinlpar (10.11.12.42)' can't be established.
ECDSA key fingerprint is SHA256:O/dU/D8jJAEGQcbqKGE9La24IRxUPLpzzs5li9F6Vvk.
Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no/[fingerprint])? yes
Warning: Permanently added 'zlinlpar,10.11.12.42' (ECDSA) to the list of known hosts.
installer@zlinlpar's password: 
Welcome to Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (GNU/Linux 5.4.0-37-generic s390x)

 * Documentation:  https://help.ubuntu.com
 * Management:     https://landscape.canonical.com
 * Support:        https://ubuntu.com/pro

  System information as of Fri Jun 26 11:08:18 UTC 2020

  System load:    1.25      Memory usage: 4%   Processes:       192
  Usage of /home: unknown   Swap usage:   0%   Users logged in: 0

0 updates can be installed immediately.
0 of these updates are security updates.


The list of available updates is more than a week old.
To check for new updates run: sudo apt update


The programs included with the Ubuntu system are free software;
the exact distribution terms for each program are described in the
individual files in /usr/share/doc/*/copyright.

Ubuntu comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by
applicable law.

the installer running on /dev/tty1 will perform the autoinstall

press enter to start a shell

  • Notice that it informs you about a currently-running autoinstall process:

    the installer running on /dev/tty1 will perform the autoinstall

  • Nevertheless, we can quickly check some things – though only until the autoinstall process has finished and the post-install reboot has been triggered:

    root@ubuntu-server:/# ls -l /tmp/lets_activate_the_s390x_devices 
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 0 Jun 26 11:08 /tmp/lets_activate_the_s390x_devices
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 0 Jun 26 11:09 /tmp/s390x_devices_activation_done

root@ubuntu-server:/# lszdev | grep yes
zfcp-host    0.0.e000                                        yes  yes   
zfcp-host    0.0.e100                                        yes  yes   
zfcp-lun     0.0.e000:0x50050763060b16b6:0x4026400200000000  yes  yes   sdb sg1
zfcp-lun     0.0.e000:0x50050763061b16b6:0x4026400200000000  yes  yes   sda sg0
zfcp-lun     0.0.e100:0x50050763060b16b6:0x4026400200000000  yes  yes   sdd sg3
zfcp-lun     0.0.e100:0x50050763061b16b6:0x4026400200000000  yes  yes   sdc sg2
qeth         0.0.c000:0.0.c001:0.0.c002                      yes  no    encc000
root@ubuntu-server:/#

  • If you wait long enough you’ll see the remote session get closed:

    root@ubuntu-server:/# Connection to zlinlpar closed by remote host.
Connection to zlinlpar closed.
user@workstation:~$

  • As well as at the console:

    ubuntu-server login:

[[0;1;31mFAILED[0m] Failed unmounting [0;1;39m/cdrom[0m.
[  169.161139] sd-umoun[15600]: Failed to unmount /oldroot: Device or resource busy
[  169.161550] sd-umoun[15601]: Failed to unmount /oldroot/cdrom: Device or resource busy
[  169.168118] shutdown[1]: Failed to finalize  file systems, loop devices, ignoring
Total: 282 Selected: 0

Command:

  • …and that the post-install reboot gets triggered:

    Message
Mounting [0;1;39mKernel Configuration File System[0m...
Starting [0;1;39mApply Kernel Variables[0m...
[[0;32m  OK  [0m] Finished [0;1;39mRemount Root and Kernel File Systems[0m.
[[0;32m  OK  [0m] Finished [0;1;39mUncomplicated firewall[0m.
[[0;32m  OK  [0m] Mounted [0;1;39mFUSE Control File System[0m.
[[0;32m  OK  [0m] Mounted [0;1;39mKernel Configuration File System[0m.
...
[   35.378928] cloud-init[2565]: Cloud-init v. 20.1-10-g71af48df-0ubuntu5 runnin
g 'modules:final' at Fri, 26 Jun 2020 11:10:44 +0000. Up 35.29 seconds.
[   35.378978] cloud-init[2565]: Cloud-init v. 20.1-10-g71af48df-0ubuntu5 finish
ed at Fri, 26 Jun 2020 11:10:44 +0000. Datasource DataSourceNone.  Up 35.37 seconds
[   35.379008] cloud-init[2565]: 2020-06-26 11:10:44,359 - cc_final_message.py[W
ARNING]: Used fallback datasource
[[0;32m  OK  [0m] Finished [0;1;39mExecute cloud user/final scripts[0m.
[[0;32m  OK  [0m] Reached target [0;1;39mCloud-init target[0m.

zlinlpar login:

  • With the completion of the reboot, the autoinstall is finished and the LPAR is ready to use:

    user@workstation:~$ ssh-keygen -f "/home/user/.ssh/known_hosts" -R "zlinlpar"
# Host zlinlpar found: line 163
/home/user/.ssh/known_hosts updated.
Original contents retained as /home/user/.ssh/known_hosts.old
user@workstation:~$ ssh ubuntu@zlinlpar
The authenticity of host 'zlinlpar (10.11.12.42)' can't be established.
ECDSA key fingerprint is SHA256:iGtCArEg+ZnoZlgtOkvmyy0gPY8UEI+f7zoISOF+m/0.
Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no/[fingerprint])? yes
Warning: Permanently added 'zlinlpar,10.11.12.42' (ECDSA) to the list of known hosts.
Welcome to Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (GNU/Linux 5.4.0-39-generic s390x)

 * Documentation:  https://help.ubuntu.com
 * Management:     https://landscape.canonical.com
 * Support:        https://ubuntu.com/pro

  System information as of Fri 26 Jun 2020 11:12:23 AM UTC

  System load: 0.21               Memory usage: 3%   Processes:       189
  Usage of /:  28.2% of 30.88GB   Swap usage:   0%   Users logged in: 0

10 updates can be installed immediately.
0 of these updates are security updates.
To see these additional updates run: apt list --upgradable

The programs included with the Ubuntu system are free software;
the exact distribution terms for each program are described in the
individual files in /usr/share/doc/*/copyright.

Ubuntu comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY,
to the extent permitted by applicable law.

To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
See "man sudo_root" for details.

ubuntu@zlinlpar:~$ uptime
 11:12:35 up 2 min,  1 user,  load average: 0.18, 0.17, 0.08
ubuntu@zlinlpar:~$ lsb_release -a
No LSB modules are available.
Distributor ID:	Ubuntu
Description:	Ubuntu 20.04 LTS
Release:	20.04
Codename:	focal
ubuntu@zlinlpar:~$ uname -a
Linux zlinlpar 5.4.0-39-generic #43-Ubuntu SMP Fri Jun 19 10:27:17
UTC 2020 s390x s390x s390x 
GNU/Linux
ubuntu@zlinlpar:~$ lszdev | grep yes
zfcp-host    0.0.e000                                        yes  yes   
zfcp-host    0.0.e100                                        yes  yes   
zfcp-lun     0.0.e000:0x50050763060b16b6:0x4026400200000000  yes  yes   
sdb sg1
zfcp-lun     0.0.e000:0x50050763061b16b6:0x4026400200000000  yes  yes   
sda sg0
zfcp-lun     0.0.e100:0x50050763060b16b6:0x4026400200000000  yes  yes   
sdc sg2
zfcp-lun     0.0.e100:0x50050763061b16b6:0x4026400200000000  yes  yes   
sdd sg3
qeth         0.0.c000:0.0.c001:0.0.c002                      yes  yes   encc000
ubuntu@zlinlpar:~$ exit
logout
Connection to zlinlpar closed.
user@workstation:~$

Some closing notes

  • It’s always best to use the latest installer and autoinstall components. Be sure to update the installer to the most recent version, or just use a current daily live-server image.

  • The ISO image specified with the kernel parameters needs to fit in the boot folder. Its kernel and initrd are specified in the ‘Load from Removable Media and Server’ task at the hardware management console (HMC).

  • In addition to activating disk storage resources in early-commands, other devices like OSA/qeth can be added and activated there, too. This is not needed for the basic network device, as specified in the kernel parameters used for the installation (that one is automatically handled).

  • If everything is properly set up – FTP server for the image, HTTP server for the autoinstall config files – the installation can be as quick as 2 to 3 minutes. Of course this depends on the complexity of the autoinstall YAML file.

  • There is a simple way of generating a sample autoinstall YAML file; one can perform an interactive Subiquity installation, grab the file /var/log/installer/autoinstall-user-data, and use it as an example – but beware that the early-commands entries to activate the s390x-specific devices need to be added manually!

Previous s390x install via LPAR Next Virtual machines: QEMU

This page was last modified 1 year, 2 months ago. Help improve this document in the forum.