Red Hat Knowledgebase

Release Found: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 3

Limitation:
A change in the IBM® System p5™ 185 and IBM Intellistation® POWER™ 185 requires changes to the standard installation procedures as described in this document.

These instructions explain how to use the serial console to install Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS 4 Update 3 on the IBM System p5 185 or IBM Intellistation POWER 185. These procedures describe a network installation of the operating system.

Network installation using a serial console

1. Plug the serial cable into the serial port immediately adjacent to the USB ports. On the rack mounted system, this is the bottom serial port. On a deskside system, this is the serial port on the left side when looking at the back of the system. Use baud rate 9600.

   Note: If using the incorrect serial port, the early stages of the boot process will be seen but it will stop after the "returning from prom init" message. If this occurs, power off the system and attach the serial cable to the correct serial port before restarting the installation process.

2. Power the system on and follow the on-screen prompts until the following screen is seen:

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                   1 = SMS Menu                          5 = Default Boot List
                   8 = Open Firmware Prompt              6 = Stored Boot List
   
         
                  Memory        Keyboard        Network        SCSI        Speaker
   
   

3. Select Open Firmware Prompt.
4. Set the boot parameter for the serial console by entering the following command:

         setenv boot-file console=ttyS4

5. Return to the start up menu by entering the following command:

         dev packages/gui obe

6. When the start up menu appears, select SMS Menu. When the SMS Main Menu is displayed, select Setup Remote IPL (Initial Program Load).
7. Select the appropriate network adapter. Then, select IP Parameters, and enter the appropriate settings for the network configuration.
8. Return to the main menu and select Select Boot Options -> Select Install/Boot Device -> Network.
9. Select the network adapter that was configured in step 7 as the boot device.
10. At the Select Task menu, select Normal Mode Boot, and then exit from SMS. The system will proceed to install Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 3.
11. After the network configuration has been completed, a prompt will appear to enable the firewall. If the firewall is enabled, which is the default, perform the following steps to connect using SSH if necessary (as described in step 13):
    1. Select Enable Firewall (this is selected by default) and then select Customize.
    2. At the Customize Firewall Configuration screen, select Remote Login (SSH) to allow incoming SSH connections and then select OK.
    3. This will return to the prompt to enable the firewall. Select OK.

12. Follow the remaining prompts to complete the installation. When the installation is complete, the system will reboot.

    Note:If the reboot stops when the boot: prompt appears, there maybe a need to enter linux at the boot: prompt in order to proceed with the boot process.

13. After the operating system starts, Kudzu, the Hardware Discovery Utility, will prompt the system to press a key to start configuring new hardware. Press a key immediately; there is a 29 second time limit on this prompt.

    If the prompt times out, complete the following steps after the system finishes booting (when new lines of information stop printing on the screen):

    1. From another system with an SSH client installed, use ssh to log in as the root user to the server hostname (the system where Red Hat Enterprise Linux is being installed). For example, to connect to hostname from another system running Linux, use the following command:

                   
       ssh root@hostname
       

    2. Open the file /etc/inittab for editing. After the line, '#Rungettys in standard runlevels', add the following line:

       co:2345:respawn:/sbin/agetty ttyS4 9600 vt100-nav

    3. Open the file /etc/securetty for editing. Add the following as the last line of the file: ttyS4
    4. Run the command telinit q. This completes the configuration of the system. The system will show the login creen.
14. Select Configure. Follow the on screen prompts until the following message: "Your /etc/inittab is not suitable for serial console operation. Would you like to update it?" Select Yes.
15. The next prompt will be, "Your /etc/securetty does not contain 'ttyS4' device, which means root won't be able to log in on console. Would you like to update it?" Select Yes. When the configuration of the system is finished, a login prompt will appear on the serial console.

© Copyright International Business Machines Corporation 2006. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

This document is also available in PDF format from IBM at: http://techsupport.services.ibm.com/server/lopdiags/info/RHEL4U3on185.pdf