Setup Linux PXE remote installation boot server for various distributions

by nixCraft on December 20, 2006 · 6 comments· Last updated December 20, 2006

Remote Installation Services using Preboot eXecution Environment (PXE) BIOS enabled computers is good way to deploy large pool of servers and workstations

Since PXE is an environment to bootstrap computers using a network interface card independently of available hard disks and/or installed operating systems, you can use the same for installing various Linux distributions.

Our friend Falko has posted a detailed how to that explains how to set up a PXE install server with Ubuntu 6.10 (Edgy Eft).

From the article:
A PXE install server allows your client computers to boot and install a Linux distribution over the network, without the need of burning Linux iso images onto a CD/DVD, boot floppy images, etc. This is handy if your client computers don't have CD or floppy drives, or if you want to set up multiple computers at the same time (e.g. in a large enterprise), or simply because you want to save the money for the CDs/DVDs. In this article I show how to configure a PXE server that allows you to boot multiple distributions: Ubuntu Edgy/Dapper, Debian Etch/Sarge, Fedora Core 6, CentOS 4.4, OpenSuSE 10.2, and Mandriva 2007.

=> Setting Up A PXE Install Server For Multiple Linux Distributions With Ubuntu Edgy Eft

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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Althaf January 29, 2008 at 4:32 am: Hi,
I have a pxe server installed on SLES os and working fine for Linux OSes. I want to use the same server for installing Windows OSes also. Can we install Windows by using PXE server, if possible please tell me the procedure to implement it.
Althaf.
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2 DEBASHISH March 18, 2009 at 11:57 am: YES YOU CAN USE IT BY APPLYING THE SAME
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3 Steve Du May 20, 2009 at 8:09 am: If I have a PXE server setup already with DHCP, TFTP…, I plan to use it for Centos 5 installation.
1. What type of files do I need for the server? For examples, ISO image file of Centos 5 or extracted contents of ISO (Centos 5)?
2. Once I have it ready, how does the client machine able to boot from the PXE server?
Thank you for your help!
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4 Trainer February 11, 2010 at 5:28 am: Hi
I have set up diskless environment in RHEL 5.4 and boot as well install Red hat Linux via pxe now i want to install or boot diskless windows via the same RHEL 5.4 environment pls help me in doing so
thanks
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5 Ram Murthy December 5, 2011 at 6:36 am: Hi DEBASHISH,
As you have told in the above post, that windows flavors can also boot with PXE server built in Linux. Could you please suggest me how PXE booting solution for windows flavors. I have completed booting the following Operating Systems : Windows XP, and some of the Linux flavors.
Thanks in advance,
Ram Murthy
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6 Ram Murthy December 5, 2011 at 6:41 am: Hi friends,
I have not mentioned one thing in the above post. All that i have completed PXE booting is ISO based installations, that means we need not require to split the iso. We can install them directly from the remote PXE server.
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