[Modularit-devel] Types of VM installations

[Miki Vazquez]

http://softlibre.barrapunto.com/softlibre/09/08/03/213202.shtml


2009/8/2 Miguel Armas <kuko at canarytek.com>

> Hi all
> we are starting to rethink the virtual machine installation method to
> support non-paravirtual vm
>
> These are the three methods we are thinking of
>
>  * Use appliance-tools: Tools from thincrust.org that allow to create
> appliance VM templates
>    * Pros:
>      * Already existing project, we just need to document and create
> kickstart files
>      * Very simple to use and share appliance
>      * Its a RedHat ET project, so it integrates with other tools as
> virt-image, oVirt, etc
>      * They are working on support for EC2, vmware, etc
>    * Cons:
>      * Uses anaconda code base, only works for distros supported by
> anaconda (not for debian/ubuntu)
>      * Mixing versions, since we run everything in the dom0, we may
> have problems creating appliance different versions. For example,
> right now it's not possible to create a Fedore10 livecd from Fedora11.
> We may workaround this problem running appliance-creator under mock
>
>  * Use the --bootstrap in vmtools: it basically uses debootstrap for
> debian and yum chroot for fedora/centos
>    * Pros:
>      * Simple, already done
>    * Cons:
>      * Right now it only works for paravirtual vm that uses exported
> partitions (not virtual disks with partitions)
>      * To support virtual disks we may need some work
>      * We may have problems booting the created vm (grub, etc)
> because we are mixing versions (just like appliance-tools)
>
>  * Use virt-manager: Prepare e setup where we start a virtual machine
> and use e preconfigured netboot and unattended install (kickstart and
> pre-seed)
>    * We will need to setup a DHCP/TFTP combined server in the dom0 to
> serve the installation images
>    * Since every dom0 has a private net libvirt0, we can use this
> private network for vm deploy
>    * During the vm install we need to use serial console, because we
> may be installing remotely without access to connect to the graphic
> console
>    * We need to either setup a local repo or cache all downoloaded
> packages in the dom0 (for all supported distros)
>    * Pros:
>      * We can use this method for ANY system (even windows servers)
>      * We can use it to install in real hardware or in different
> virtualization platforms (vmware, etc)
>    * Cons:
>      * May require a lot of work
>      * We need serial console during the install
>      * If we install in the virbr0 network we need to change config
> and network setup in the VM to go into production
>
> I'm interested in knowing which methods people would prefer and if
> anyone has any more suggestions
>
> Salu2!
> --
> Miguel Armas <kuko at canarytek.com>
> CanaryTek Consultoria y Sistemas SL
> ModularIT http://www.modularit.org/
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>



-- 

Miki Vazquez
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