[GLLUG] One Ubuntu image on multiple machines?

Richard Houser rick at divinesymphony.net
Tue Mar 25 23:07:04 EDT 2008


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Al Puzzuoli wrote:
| Just wondering whether anyone can point me to a write-up on what factors
| to consider when deploying a single Ubuntu image to multiple machines?

I'm not specifically familiar with Ubuntu, but from general Linux
experience, this isn't something you should do.  Really, it's a
completely backwards construct that Windows users are nearly forced into
due to fundamental problems in the way the OS is setup.  Linux
distributions typically have VERY good installers, so you don't get the
type of limitations you do with Microsoft environments.

Instead, configure an automated installation from bootable media
(perhaps PXE to automate the whole thing with a network-based
installation?).  Setting up something like kickstart, autoinstall, etc.
is fairly easy, very fast, and extremely safe.  I've done several of
these with Mandriva (a.k.a. Mandrake) and know others that did it with
RedHat, Solaris, etc. as well.

Using a customized install process also makes reinstalls, upgrades, etc.
easy as you can use all the distribution's hardware detection
capabilities.  For the record, the Windows shops that are more current
tend to follow this approach as much as they are able with things like
BartPE, but windows installation programs take forever by comparison.

If you are willing to read a few docs, I doubt this will be that much
work.  In my case, it first became worth the time investment once I got
up to about four home machines to maintain (especially since one of
those can't support a video card).

| I want to dual boot a lab environment with Windows and Ubuntu, and
| perhaps also integrate Ubuntu into the Windows domain.


| Does linux have an equivalent to the SID?

Only at the application level.  For example, you will have similar
constructs if you use Samba to add this to a Windows domain.  Also, you
will have private keys for things like ssh that are different per machine.

| Also, how would I go about adding an element of randomness to the
hostnames for purposes of DHCP?

This isn't relavent to the image.  Your DHCP configuration should be
assigning the hostname, not just blindly using what a client suggest.
You can generate whatever rules you like; perhaps you could consider
techniques such as basing the hostname off a hash of the MAC address so
~ it is easy to determine offline?
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