Difference between revisions of "Server Build Checklist"
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'''Install Debian Squeeze''' - Boot to network and install Debian Squeeze to local disks, choose hostname, leave domain name as “fglan”<br> | '''Install Debian Squeeze''' - Boot to network and install Debian Squeeze to local disks, choose hostname, leave domain name as “fglan”<br> | ||
===='''Setup Software RAID'''==== | ===='''Setup Software RAID'''==== | ||
− | + | ||
'''Partition Disks:''' | '''Partition Disks:''' | ||
*Create small partition (400-500M) on each device | *Create small partition (400-500M) on each device | ||
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**create volume (1G) named swap (use as swap) | **create volume (1G) named swap (use as swap) | ||
**create volume (remaining) named srv (mounted at /srv, ext3 filesystem)<br><br> | **create volume (remaining) named srv (mounted at /srv, ext3 filesystem)<br><br> | ||
+ | *Debian Wiki Guide to Software RAIDs: http://wiki.debian.org/DebianInstaller/SoftwareRaidRoot | ||
*Wikipedia RAID article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAID | *Wikipedia RAID article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAID | ||
Revision as of 13:36, 16 May 2012
Preliminaries
Check for blown caps - Examine all of the capacitors
Check battery - Confirm that the CMOS battery is at least 3 volts
Boot Process - Ensure that the server boots properly in the following ways:
- Boots from CD - use an Ubuntu Live CD, leave Ubuntu running for next step
- Boots automatically after power loss - while still in Ubuntu from the previous step, unplug all power cords (and the keyboard for the next step) from the server to simulate a sudden power loss. It should reboot automatically - if not, check BIOS settings.
- Boots without keyboard - the server may report a "Keyboard failure" error - this is okay as long it boots successfully without human intervention, such as "press key X to continue..."
RAID & LVM Setup (Build ONLY)
Install Debian Squeeze - Boot to network and install Debian Squeeze to local disks, choose hostname, leave domain name as “fglan”
Setup Software RAID
Partition Disks:
- Create small partition (400-500M) on each device
- primary partition at the beginning of the drive
- use as “physical volume for RAID”
- set as bootable
- Create large partition (all remaining space) on each device
- primary, not bootable
Setup RAID for small partitions: RAID1 (bootable) with the number of devices equal to number of disks
Setup RAID for large partitions:
- For 2-3 disks:Setup RAID1, with number of devices equal to number of disks
- For 4+ disks:Setup RAID6, with number of devices equal to number of disks
Configure LVM - configure larger RAID1 or RAID6 array as LVM volume
- Create Logical Volume Group with same name as hostname
- Select Large RAID array as LVM Volume
- create volume (4G) named root (mounted at /, ext3 filesystem)
- create volume (1G) named swap (use as swap)
- create volume (remaining) named srv (mounted at /srv, ext3 filesystem)
- Debian Wiki Guide to Software RAIDs: http://wiki.debian.org/DebianInstaller/SoftwareRaidRoot
- Wikipedia RAID article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAID
Diagnostics & Databases
- Confirm that the server can boot from the local disk(s),
- Test any USB ports (front and back),
- Test the video ports (front and back),
- Test network ports (at terminal:
ifconfig eth0 up
,ifconfig eth1 up
, thentail -f /var/log/syslog
, and when you plug and unplug the ethernet cable, you should see reasonable printouts. Ctrl-C to stop thetail
command.), - QC Only: Remove any SATA/SAS drives and give them to your Instructor,
- Run printme:
- Boot from network,
- Select printme from the network boot menu,
- Log in as guest,
- Open a terminal,
- Run printme,
- Record whether it's Tower or Rackmount and its size (1U, 2U, 3U, etc.), multiple power supplies, if it's using hardware raid, and anything else noteworthy.
- Fill out the Server Specs sticker based on whether you are doing Build or QC:
- BUILD:
- Put System ID on server specs sticker,
- Processor speed (GHz) and type (Xeon, Opteron),
- Number of physical processors and number of cores per processor,
- Number and type (DDR, DDR2) of RAM slots,
- Number of RAM sticks with their type, speed, and size,
- Number of hard drive bays and their interfaces (IDE, SCSI, SATA),
- Do not print! Instead, put your Volunteer ID on a piece of tape on the system.
- QC:
- Confirm the accuracy of information already on the Specs sticker,
- The total amount of installed RAM,
- The number, type, and size of installed hard drives (IDE & SCSI only),
- Print the printme, and tape it to the top of the system.
- BUILD:
- Have your Instructor look over the printme,
- Move the system to the Server Build KVM and run Memtest, if it hasn't already been done.
- Consult your Instructor for a new project!