[lug] up2date and skip list AND install server

[D. Stimits]

Gordon Golding wrote:
> Does anyone know where the ignore/skip list for up2date lives? 

I'm a fan of yum, and if you are using fedora, you will have yum 
available too. The ignore/skip list for that is in /etc/yum.conf, and on 
FC4 they have individual servers within /etc/yum.repos.d/ (just set 
enabled=1 to enable, and to 0 to disable). Make sure you do not enable 
devel/testing.

> I have a large number of servers to set up.
> I want things as clean as possible.  I always do a FC 3 or 4 with minimal install.
> 
> After initial install, some people just hit up2date and let it install everything.  
> I take a long time to walk through the ignore/skip list for each machine.
> 
> I want to do one and copy the skip list to the others before doing up2date.
> 
> ALSO - 
> How can I set up an install server with Fedora Core 3 or 4?

What I do (and this is so fast and easy) is to create this directory 
tree somewhere in the apache install on a working linux box...e.g. here:
/var/www/html/iso/
...then as subdirs:
disc1/
disc2/
disc3/
disc4/
rescuecd/

Then you download the iso's to that machine, and mount them on those 
mount points on loopback, making sure they are readable by the apache 
server. After that you have a few choices on making use of this.

The choice I use is I start with a regular install CD for that FC, and 
right at the start when it asks for the install method, I name the 
http:// address to the root of that. All it requires is setting a static 
or other IP at the install startup so that you can reach it.

Another choice I believe is kickstart, with pre-created package lists, 
but I grew frustrated with how difficult it is to edit these and have it 
work right, so I don't even bother.

You could also arrange to do a tftp/bootp/nfs style install by enabling 
this in the machine bios, and having the proper boot floppy set up for 
this. I haven't done this in so long though that I couldn't give you the 
steps...but doing this means you can access the install media by either 
nfs/tftp or by the http. Http is so simple though I doubt I'll ever 
bother with the nfs stuff.

D. Stimits, stimits AT comcast DOT net