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InfoPlease validate that you have the latest Ubuntu installed. Click here for the installation steps. |
Introduction
The operating system (OS) is a special kind of software that controls your server’s hardware and provides various services to the applications/software running on it. When you install an OS, you need to make some important decisions that will affect how well your computer runs and how you manage your files.
Choosing the Drive: Choose the drive wisely for the OS. It's better to use the smallest drive available. If all are equal, select the first drive from the list.
Partitioning: Decide whether to use the entire drive for the OS or divide it into smaller sections called partitions. Partitions help you manage space efficiently by not using the whole disk for the operating system. You can divide the drive into required sizes for different purposes.
File System: Decide how your data will be organized on the drive. This is called the file system. Different operating systems use different file systems (e.g., Windows uses NTFS, Linux often uses ext4/Xfs). The file system helps the OS track where your files are stored.
Hardware
The following server/system configurations are for demonstration purposes only:
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This guide is based on Supermicro servers.
Accessing the IPMI Console and Booting the Server from a Downloaded DVD Image (ISO image)
Open your web browser, enter the IP address or hostname of the server’s IPMI, and log in to the server's IPMI using your credentials.
Load the DVD/ISO image into the virtual drive using the 'Remote Control' option from the left side menu of the IPMI dashboard.
Click 'Launch Console' to launch the IPMI remote console.
A similar warning message may appear regarding the certificate. If so, click Continue, then Run.
Now, you will see the console screen. Click Virtual Media → Virtual Storage to load the DVD ISO image.
Select the logical drive type as 'ISO image'. Click Open Image to provide the path to the DVD ISO image.
From the file explorer browse, select the downloaded ISO file and click Open.
After selecting the DVD ISO image, click OK.
Once the DVD ISO image is loaded into the virtual drive, the next step is to select the boot medium in the BIOS menu. Choose the virtual drive as the boot device. This ensures that when the server starts, it will boot from the DVD ISO image.
In the BIOS menu, change the boot order or priorities. Ensure that the Virtual Media is set as the first choice by moving the Virtual CDROM option to the top of the list. Upon rebooting, the system will quickly pick the virtual CDROM as the booting device.
After selecting the booting device, save the BIOS changes and reboot the system.
Installing the Operating System from ISO image
After rebooting, the server screen will appear as shown below. This is the OS menu; select the Ubuntu Server with the HE kernel and press the Enter key. Follow the steps for the complete installation.
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Please wait while the system prepares for installation and checks the hardware.
Select your preferred language. In this example, we are using English.
Choose the keyboard layout and variant according to your preferred language. After making your selection, press 'Done'. Use the up-down arrows or, in some cases, the 'Tab' key for selection, and then press 'Enter.
Choose the installation type as Ubuntu Server and then choose Done.
Select a network interface or network card for configuration. The operating system will use this interface to communicate. The default configuration is set to DHCP, but you can change it to a static IP address by configuring it manually. Once selected, press ‘Done’. If you wish to use network bonding, you can do so by selecting the 'active-backup' option.
Ignore this step. We do not use a proxy. Select 'Done' and move to the next step.
The archive mirror is a server on the internet that hosts the Ubuntu OS, software packages, and updates. The default address of the mirror server is provided below. Leave it as it is, select 'Done', and move to the next step.
Storage Configuration
Choose a disk to create logical partitions for installing the operating system and other purposes. We need to select the drive carefully to avoid wasting space. Typically, the OS does not take much space - 300 to 500 GB is sufficient. Other partitions may require a few hundred GBs, so it's recommended to select the smallest or most adequate-sized disk. By default, the Ubuntu installer chooses the largest disk, but we do not need that. If all disks are of the same size, choose the first disk. We are going to create 5 logical partitions: 4 from the first disk and 1 from the second disk.
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Let's create the 5th logical partition using the entire available free space.
A pop-up window will appear. Select xfs from the Format menu option and /var/lib from the Mount menu option. This will dedicate all the available free space to "/var/lib," where the containers reside. Enter the maximum size displayed on the screen.
A warning appears stating that the disk will be formatted for OS installation. Click Continue to proceed.
User Creation
Please provide the following information to set up a user profile and select Done.
Name - Name of the user
Server name - Specify the server name (hostname)
Username - Choose a unique username for logging into the system
Password - Create a strong password to enhance security
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Final Package Selection and Installation
Select the Enable Ubuntu Pro to ensure that your system stays up-to-date and secure.
Select the "Continue" to proceed.
Select Install OpenSSH Server, set “Import SSH Identity” to No, and select Done to proceed.
If the following screen appears during installation, ignore it and select Done to proceed.
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