I recently discovered how to use a Debian preseed file while building a VM in kvm. After hand-crafting my Devuan preseed file, here it is in all my customized and I’m sure duplicate-filled and bogus-answer-encrusted glory.
How I use this
I define a variable, and plug it into the important parts.
vm=d2-04a ; time sudo virt-install -n "${vm}" --memory 2048 \
--vcpus=1 --os-variant=debiantesting -v \
--disk path=/var/lib/libvirt/images/"${vm}".qcow2,size=20 \
-l /mnt/public/Support/SetupsBig/Linux/devuan_ascii_2.0.0-beta_amd64_DVD.iso \
--initrd-inject=/mnt/public/Support/Platforms/devuan/preseed/preseed.cfg \
--extra-args "hostname=${vm} NOTIFYEMAIL=bgstack15@gmail.com interface=auto" \
--debug --network type=bridge,source=br0 --noautoconsole
Some thoughts
For some reason I was unable to get the preseed to work with the non-beta Ascii iso. When I started the preseed vm activity, I already had the beta disc so I was using it first before I downloaded the release disc, which didn’t even work. So I reverted to the beta disc. Please share any results, working or otherwise, you have when trying this with the release disc.
I do some tricky stuff in here with grub and the ceres release. Apparently consolekit messes with some of the files grub wants to lay down in /boot (having to do with locales), so I had to create this complex solution. I don’t even care that it’s “grub-legacy.” It seems a little simpler for a simpler time, and also works, so why bother doing anything different?
The preseed file
# File: /mnt/public/Support/Platforms/devuan/devuan-preseed1.txt
# Locations:
# /mnt/public/Support/Platforms/devuan/devuan-preseed1.txt
# Author: bgstack15
# Startdate: 2019-06-25
# Title: Kickstart for CentOS 7 for ipa.example.com
# Purpose: To provide an easy installation for VMs and other systems in the Mersey network
# History:
# 2017-06 I learned how to use kickstart files for the RHCSA EX-200 exam
# 2017-08-08 Added notifyemail to --extra-args
# 2017-10-29 major revision to use local repository
# 2019-06-25 fork from centos7-ks.cfg
# Usage with virt-install:
# vm=d2-04a ; time sudo virt-install -n "${vm}" --memory 2048 --vcpus=1 --os-variant=debiantesting -v --disk path=/var/lib/libvirt/images/"${vm}".qcow2,size=20 -l /mnt/public/Support/SetupsBig/Linux/devuan_ascii_2.0.0-beta_amd64_DVD.iso --initrd-inject=/mnt/public/Support/Platforms/devuan/preseed/preseed.cfg --extra-args "hostname=${vm} NOTIFYEMAIL=bgstack15@gmail.com interface=auto" --debug --network type=bridge,source=br0 --noautoconsole
# vm=d2-04a; sudo virsh destroy "${vm}"; sudo virsh undefine --remove-all-storage "${vm}";
# Reference:
# https://sysadmin.compxtreme.ro/automatically-set-the-hostname-during-kickstart-installation/
# /mnt/public/Support/Platforms/CentOS7/install-vm.txt
# https://serverfault.com/questions/481244/preseed-command-string-fail-with-newline-character-using-virt-install-initrd-inj
# https://www.debian.org/releases/stable/i386/apbs01.html.en
# https://github.com/jameswthorne/preseeds/blob/master/debian-7-wheezy-unattended.seed
# syntax for --location https://www.queryxchange.com/q/1_908324/virt-install-preseed-not-working/
# example preseed https://www.debian.org/releases/stable/example-preseed.txt
# skip next dvd question https://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/409212/preseed-directive-to-skip-another-cd-dvd-scanning
# grub problem caused by consolekit:amd64 https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=915947#10
# https://stackoverflow.com/questions/39861614/how-to-fully-automate-unattended-virt-install
# https://www.debian.org/releases/stable/i386/apbs03.html.en
# https://dev1galaxy.org/viewtopic.php?id=1853
# https://www.cyberciti.biz/faq/howto-setup-serial-console-on-debian-linux/
# Improve:
# discover how to send email, using postfix or sendmail. Don't care which, but exclude exim4.
# echo "$( hostname ) has IP $( ip -4 -o a s eth0 | awk '{print $4}' | sed -r -e 's/\/.*$//' )" |
# add the kernel lines: console=ttyS0 console=tty1. Get this to work; tried manually but perhaps devuan doesn't use console the same way?
d-i debian-installer/country string US
d-i debian-installer/keymap select us
d-i debian-installer/language string en
d-i debian-installer/locale string en_US
d-i localechooser/supported-locales string en_US.UTF-8
d-i keyboard-configuration/layoutcode string us
d-i keyboard-configuration/variantcode string
d-i keyboard-configuration/xkb-keymap select us
d-i netcfg/disable_autoconfig boolean false
d-i netcfg/get_domain string ipa.example.com
d-i netcfg/wireless_wep string
# disable asking for non-free firmware, because this is a vm and has none
d-i hw-detect/load_firmware boolean false
#d-i apt-setup/enable-source-repositories boolean false
# ORIGINAL d-i apt-setup/services-select multiselect security updates, release updates, backported software
d-i apt-setup/contrib boolean true
d-i apt-setup/disable-cdrom-entries boolean true
d-i apt-setup/non-free boolean true
d-i apt-setup/use_mirror boolean true
d-i mirror/country string manual
d-i mirror/http/directory string /devuan
d-i mirror/http/hostname string deb.devuan.org
d-i mirror/http/proxy string
d-i mirror/protocol string http
d-i mirror/suite string testing
d-i apt-setup/cdrom/set-failed boolean false
d-i apt-setup/cdrom/set-first boolean false
d-i apt-setup/cdrom/set-next boolean false
# my repos and ceres
d-i apt-setup/local0/comment string exampledeb
d-i apt-setup/local0/key string http://www.example.com/example/repo/deb/exampledeb.gpg
d-i apt-setup/local0/repository string http://www.example.com/example/repo/deb/ /
d-i apt-setup/local1/comment string devuan-deb
d-i apt-setup/local1/key string http://www.example.com/example/repo/deb/exampledeb.gpg
d-i apt-setup/local1/repository string http://www.example.com/example/repo/devuan-deb/ /
d-i apt-setup/local2/comment string ceres
d-i apt-setup/local2/key string https://pkgmaster.devuan.org/merged/dists/ceres/Release.gpg
d-i apt-setup/local2/repository string http://pkgmaster.devuan.org/merged ceres main contrib non-free
# if for some reason I really need to turn off the gpg key check:
#d-i debian-installer/allow_unauthenticated boolean false
tasksel tasksel/first multiselect standard, ssh-server
# adapted from /mnt/public/Support/Platforms/devuan/devuan.txt, main fluxbox desktop, but for a vm
# no xscreensaver, for a vm.
d-i pkgsel/include string \
alsamixergui alttab apt-transport-https bgconf bgscripts bgscripts-core \
cifs-utils curl fluxbox freeipa-client git grub lightdm lightdm-gtk-greeter \
mlocate net-tools nfs-common ntpdate oddjob-mkhomedir=0.1-1 openssh-server \
p7zip palemoon palemoon-ublock-origin parted qemu-guest-agent rsync scite \
screen spice-vdagent strace sudo tcpdump vim vlc volumeicon-alsa waterfox \
xfce4-terminal xfe xserver-xorg-video-qxl
d-i pkgsel/upgrade select none
popularity-contest popularity-contest/participate boolean true
d-i clock-setup/ntp boolean true
d-i clock-setup/ntp-server string dns1.ipa.example.com
d-i time/zone string America/New_York
# skip grub during main part, because we will do it in late_command
d-i grub-installer/skip boolean true
# these next 2 are experimental
d-i grub-installer/skip-again boolean true
d-i grub-installer/skip-confirm boolean true
d-i grub-installer/confirm_skip boolean true
d-i nobootloader/confirmation_common boolean true
d-i lilo-installer/skip boolean true
#d-i grub-installer/with_other_os boolean true
#d-i grub-installer/only_debian boolean true
#d-i grub-installer/grub2_instead_of_grub_legacy boolean true
#d-i grub-installer/bootdev string /dev/vda
#d-i grub-installer/choose_bootdev select /dev/vda
#grub-installer grub-installer/force-efi-extra-removable boolean false
d-i passwd/root-password password somethingStrongHere
d-i passwd/root-password-again password somethingStrongHere
d-i partman-auto/choose_recipe select home
d-i partman-auto-crypto/erase_disks boolean false
d-i partman-auto/disk string /dev/vda
d-i partman-auto/init_automatically_partition select biggest_free
d-i partman-auto/method string lvm
d-i partman/choose_label string gpt
d-i partman/choose_partition select finish
d-i partman/confirm boolean true
d-i partman/confirm_nooverwrite boolean true
d-i partman/confirm_write_new_label boolean true
d-i partman/default_label string gpt
#d-i partman-lvm/confirm boolean true
d-i partman-lvm/confirm_nooverwrite boolean true
d-i partman-md/confirm_nooverwrite boolean true
#d-i partman/mount_style select uuid
d-i partman-partitioning/confirm_write_new_label boolean true
# Uncomment this to add multiarch configuration for i386
#d-i apt-setup/multiarch string i386
d-i passwd/make-user boolean true
d-i passwd/user-fullname string bgstack15
d-i passwd/username string bgstack15
d-i passwd/user-password-crypted password $6$85aKM2DkiD5g9r3D$zkbcVES1Bzu.b5dBJxklSggEJzswZBlVAyc9LUUIzMA2OLRH2PD2ZWE9Q40Wtw/3OOxDM2nF031hfD4s5LGuG1
d-i passwd/user-default-groups string audio cdrom video
d-i finish-install/reboot_in_progress note
d-i cdrom-detect/eject boolean true
# additional application stuff just in case it works and is useful
# LDAP server URI:
d-i shared/ldapns/ldap-server string ldapi:///ipa.example.com
d-i openssh-server/password-authentication boolean true
d-i openssh-server/permit-root-login boolean false
# Remove consolekit from ceres, which disrupts /boot/grub/local/*mo files, that grub-install wants.
d-i preseed/late_command string in-target apt-get purge -q -y -o Dpkg::Options::="--force-confdef" -o Dpkg::Options::="--force-confold" consolekit exim4\* ; \
apt-get install -q -y -o Dpkg::Options::="--force-confdef" -o Dpkg::Options::="--force-confold" postfix ; \
in-target grub-install /dev/vda ; in-target update-grub ; \
in-target wget http://www.example.com/example/certs/ca-ipa.example.com.crt -O /usr/local/share/ca-certificates/ca-ipa.example.com.crt && update-ca-certificates || : ; \
in-target su bgstack15 -c "sudo /usr/bin/bgconf.py" 1>/root/clone.log 2>&1 ; \
in-target sed -i -r -e '/^kernel/s/(\s*console=.{1,7}[0-9])*\s*$/ console=tty0 console=ttyS0/;' /boot/grub/menu.lst ; \
in-target sed -i -r -e '$aT0:23:respawn:/sbin/getty -L ttyS0 9600 vt100' /etc/inittab
Knowledge Base 