SuSE Linux from Internet

Support knowledgebase (lmuelle_suselinux_internet)
Applies to

SuSE Linux: All versions

SuSE Linux is also available in an FTP version either directly from ftp://ftp.SuSE.com/pub/suse/ or from our primary mirror ftp://ftp.GwDG.de/pub/linux/suse/. Please use a mirror site near your network. This procedure guarantees best bandwidth and lowers provider costs. Find a list of our international mirrors at http://www.SuSE.com/us/support/download/ftp/int_mirrors.html and a list of german mirrors at http://www.SuSE.de/de/support/download/ftp/inland.html.

For the FTP version, you are not entitled to installation support in any form. Exchange of experience via mailing lists http://www.SuSE.com/us/support/mailinglists/ or paid support is, of course, available. Refer to http://www.SuSE.com/us/services/.

The major differences from the purchasable SuSE Linux version is


Installation via FTP

All file links belongs to directories beneath <VERSION>/<ARCH>/. Instead of "<VERSION>, use the appropriate version number of the desired distribution, such as "7.3". "<ARCH>" describes the corresponding hardware architecture, such as "i386, ppc, sparc". In addition to the architecture, also find, for some older SuSE Linux versions, language dependent mutations (like "i386.de, sparc.de"; de for german).

For an FTP installation, the computer must have at least 64 MB RAM. The installation source should be prepared as described in README.FTP.

If you are not able or willing to install with YaST2®, you have the possibility within three seconds after appearance of the boot prompt "boot" to force installation with YaST1® using the input parameter "manual".

  1. Fetch, for the time being, the boot disk image from the directory disks/ via FTP. Which of those different images is needed for your system is described in detail in the README file in the same directory.
    Because of the quantity of different modules, not all of them fit on the boot floppy disk. Depending on the hardware you use, it could be necessary to create one or two floppy disks for additional modules.

    Transfer implicitly the data via FTP only in binary mode!

  2. On a DOS/Windows system, use the program rawrite, which you can find in directory dosutils/rawrite/, to generate the floppy boot disk image. On a Unix or Linux system, use dd to create a floppy boot disk with the command dd if=bootdisk of=/dev/fd0 bs=8192 .
  3. Boot your computer with this floppy boot disk. First, linuxrc loads the relevant drivers as kernel modules. Then, choose language, monitor type, and keyboard settings.
  4. Load all necessary modules for your computer system (network interface card, SCSI or PCMCIA support).
  5. Choose "Start installation / system" -> "Start installation/update".
  6. Choose Network (FTP) as the source medium.
  7. Answer no to the question about "Bootp".
  8. Fill out the following fields: your own IP address, netmask, gateway, name server, and the IP address of the FTP server. Select "no" for the proxy question. If you configured a name server, you can alternatively supply the FTP server name instead of the FTP server's IP address.

    Example: You choose 152.2.210.121 or 64.28.67.101 as the IP address of the FTP server. Then enter

    /pub/suse/suse/i386/7.3
    
    (this is valid for version 7.3!) as the directory on this server.
  9. Now the installation environment via Internet is loaded and YaST® is started. YaST® is the installation and configuration tool of the SuSE Linux distribution.
  10. The YaST® welcome screen appears. Choose Install Linux from scratch. The interactive installation procedure leads you through the installation process.
Apple users should fetch ftp://ftp.SuSE.com/pub/suse/ppc/boot/suseboot7.hqx to enable starting the installation process from Mac OS. With this, skip the first four steps of the directions.

Remarks

Directly mounting the whole distribution via NFS or SMBFS smbmount is possible when using

	linux01.GwDG.de (134.76.13.21)

The NFS directory for the distribution tree is, as of 2001-07-04,

	/suse/7.1/axp
	/suse/7.1/ppc
	/suse/7.3/i386
	/suse/7.3/sparc

and for the update tree needed for updating individual packages,

	/suse/suse_update/
For non-i386 architectures
	/suse/ftp.suse.com/suse/<arch>/update/

The SMB share is called SuSE. The distribution and update tree resides there. The SMB service can be used if UDP pakets to the outside are blocked by your local firewall.

To use the SMB service, an intermediary local system is required. On the one hand, this system must import the data via

	mount -t smbfs //linux01.GwDG.de/SuSE /mounts/linux01
On the other, the system must reexport the SuSE data via NFS. Therefore, you do not need a local copy of the files.

If you also provide such a NFS or SMB service to export SuSE Linux data and want it mentioned on this page, please contact the author via the address at the bottom.


Potential Problems:

You tranferred SuSE Linux from an FTP Server with ( http://www.SuSE.com/us/support/download/ftp/) mirror software on a local computer. During the installation process, YaST1® outputs the following message:
	Search for already installed packages.. rpm: permission denied

Reason:

The mirror software did not transfer the rights for the executable files correctly.

Solution:

Before starting the installation , read the file README.FTP first.


ISO images of SuSE Linux

SuSE Linux AG is one of the leading providers of Open Source software worldwide: this is the reason why we, too, have committed ourselves to the support and further development of the Open Source community.

SuSE Linux AG, with over 100 full-time developers, is making a substantial contribution to the further development of the Linux Open Source operating system and its related programs. We are one of the main driving forces in the fields of development of the kernel, KDE, XFree86, compiler, ALSA, USB, and multiple-platforms. We are also supporting the internationalization of the Linux project.

In our SuSE Linux Open Source operating system, we bring together a wide range of freely available programs, applications, and tools. This is our carefully assembled product, which we provide and distribute for 6 platforms (Intel/AMD, IA64, PPC, AXP, S/390, and Sparc).

Above all, we strive to ensure the high quality of SuSE Linux and that it is as up-to-date as possible. In addition, we want to guarantee the constant high quality of our documentation and our support in the interest of all customers.

To maintain this service in the future, as well as meeting the accompanying wishes of our customers, we are dependent on sales of our products and services and must ensure that an adequate cost structure exists within our company.

For the purposes of testing and evaluation, we have made a great effort to provide a variation of SuSE Linux that does not need to be installed and that makes it extremely easy to try out SuSE Linux or examine its hardware requirements.

With our SuSE Linux FTP version (SuSE Linux Professional excludes commercial program packages, which we are not allowed to for download), we provide a free service for all those who wish to install SuSE Linux via FTP.

We are currently providing ISO images for download for most of non-Intel/AMD/PPC platforms (IA64, S/390 and Sparc), since these products cannot be made available everywhere, worldwide and at the accustomed speed.

Of course, we would be pleased to present you and your company with our complete range of services http://www.SuSE.com/us/services/. Request our product catalog online at http://www.SuSE.com/us/products/ or via mail.


Many thanks for productive feedback to Eberhard Mönkeberg <emoenke at GwDG dot de>.


See also:
o Updating Individual RPM Packages of the SuSE Linux Distribution
o rpm - The package manager of SuSE Linux

Keywords: SUSELINUX, FTP, NFS, RPM, PERMISSION, DISTRIBUTION, INTERNET, INTERNATIONAL VERSION, ISOIMAGES

Categories: SuSE , Package-Installation

Feedback welcome: Send Mail to lmuelle+sdb@SuSE.de (Please give the following subject: SDB-lmuelle_suselinux_internet)
SDB-lmuelle_suselinux_internet, Copyright SuSE Linux AG, Nürnberg, Germany - Version: 28. Mar 2001
SuSE Linux AG - Last generated: 14. Oct 2002 by lmuelle (sdb_gen 1.40.0)