UNIX Hints & Hacks |
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Appendix B: System Installation Checklist |
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Whether you are installing the operating system for the first time or you are rebuilding the operating system, you should always have a plan of attack so things go smoothly. This checklist is designed to help you configure your system prior to the install so you don't miss or forget anything. Use this checklist as a guide. It was designed to be generic for all environments. Because all environments are unique, this checklist should work for most, but it can be modified to work best for your environment. I have designed the installation sheet with the following necessary information in mind.
System Information --When you build or rebuild the system, you need to know the system's configuration. The first part covers this data. It includes the hostname, IP address, domain name, platform, OS version to load, number and size of CPUs, internal and external devices (both real-time), online and offline storage with disk drives, and tape devices.
Drive Configurations -- Spend some time on this one. You need to configure the partitions, volume groups, or logical volumes. When these are formatted and the partitions and volumes are labeled, on some flavors there is no turning back. You have to reinstall UNIX to repartition the disks. So make the time to plan out the configurations of your disks.
Software Installations -- This area is designed to allow you to verify that all the software, third-party or not, is installed and nothing gets left off. After each piece is installed you can mark it off as complete.
NFS Mount Points -- On many installations, you will find that mount points will need to be created if you coexist with other systems on a LAN or WAN. The installation sheet provides the opportunity to plan your NFS mount points ahead of time so there is no confusion as to which directory structures need to be mounted to this system.
Backups-- Along the right side of the sheet, I have included a way to track your backups through the installation process. If you are installing UNIX on a workstation, you will probably ignore this area. If you plan for a high-availability production server, you will more than likely want to create a full system backup after each critical stage of the installation process. The area is set up with dates to be written in after a particular backup has finished. The backups include a system backup of the current state of the OS before you start anything, a system backup after the base OS has been installed, and another full system backup after all the third-party software has been installed. The final backup would be after all the patches have been installed and the system is fully configured.
Symbolic Links -- When systems are built and placed into a customized environment, symbolic links need to be created. An area has been set up so you enter the links as if you were typing them straight in.
Comments-- A comment area is there to remind you of any issues in the future or during the process. A comment is a specific instruction or note.
Other Considerations --If a system is being rebuilt, there are many files that can carry over to the new version of the operating system. Use this section to list any files that you need to back up to another system or to tape that can be used again without re-creating them. Also in this area, you can list out patches and configuration files that will need special attention.
I think this is a well-rounded installation checklist that will help you with your planning of the new system. Here is a sample of the checklist filled out in one environment. A blank version follows it for you to copy and use.
Disk Device |
Mount point |
Size |
Disk Device |
Mount point |
Size |
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/dev/root |
/ |
9GB |
___________ |
___________ |
____ |
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dks5d2s7 |
/usr2 |
70GB |
___________ |
___________ |
____ |
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Finished (Y)/(N) |
Software Description |
Finished(Y)/(N |
Software Description |
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Yes |
Legato Networker 5 |
Yes |
Samba |
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Yes |
Usenet News |
No |
Sendmail |
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Yes |
NIS/YP |
Yes |
DNS |
Other Considerations |
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Special Files |
Configurations |
Patch Numbers |
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UNIX Hints & Hacks |
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Appendix B: System Installation Checklist |
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