Packer - Revision history

Leo at 00:30, 19 February 2022

2022-02-19T00:30:51Z

@@ Line 150: / Line 150: @@
 ==== CloudStack ====
-The CloudStack Packer plugin isn't so great. Issues include:
+The CloudStack Packer plugin isn't the best but it does function. However, there are some limitations to be aware of:
-# It doesn't support boot_command which means that booting from a unmodified .iso is useless.
+# The plugin doesn't support <code>boot_command</code> which means you can't automate the OS install using Packer. Rather, you'll need to make the install media boot and start the install process automatically using some other way (eg. [[Insert a kickstart file into a iso image|baking a Kickstart file into the ISO]]).
-# The latest release of the plugin is broken against CloudStack 1.16. You have to compile the most recent one yourself
+# As of February 2022, the latest release of the plugin is broken against CloudStack 1.16 and results in an error while deploying an instance. You have to compile the most recent one yourself. Instructions to do this are given below.
-{{Navbox Linux}}
+===== Setup the CloudStack Packer plugin =====
 [[Category:Linux]]
 [[Category:LinuxUtilities]]

Leo: /* CloudStack */

2022-02-18T02:13:32Z

CloudStack

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:13, 18 February 2022
Line 150:		Line 150:

	==== CloudStack ====		==== CloudStack ====
	The CloudStack Packer plugin isn't so great. It doesn't support boot_command which means that booting from a unmodified .iso is useless.		The CloudStack Packer plugin isn't so great. Issues include:

			# It doesn't support boot_command which means that booting from a unmodified .iso is useless.
			# The latest release of the plugin is broken against CloudStack 1.16. You have to compile the most recent one yourself

	{{Navbox Linux}}		{{Navbox Linux}}
	[[Category:Linux]]		[[Category:Linux]]
	[[Category:LinuxUtilities]]		[[Category:LinuxUtilities]]

Leo at 23:32, 17 February 2022

2022-02-17T23:32:24Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:32, 17 February 2022
Line 1:		Line 1:
	~~== Quick introduction ==~~
	Packer automates the creation of VM images. To that end, you need to tell Packer where to build the VM, how to boot the VM, and how to finish setting up the VM. Each of these steps are defined in the builder and one or more provisioner components.		Packer automates the creation of VM images. To that end, you need to tell Packer where to build the VM, how to boot the VM, and how to finish setting up the VM. Each of these steps are defined in the builder and one or more provisioner components.

			== Setup ==

			=== Install Packer ===
			See: https://www.packer.io/downloads

			==== Ubuntu ====
			{{Highlight
			\| code = # curl -fsSL https://apt.releases.hashicorp.com/gpg {{!}} apt-key add -
			# apt-add-repository "deb [arch=amd64] https://apt.releases.hashicorp.com $(lsb_release -cs) main"
			# apt-get update && sudo apt-get install packer
			\| lang = terminal
			}}

			==== Red Hat / Fedora / Rocky Linux ====
			{{Highlight
			\| code = # dnf install -y dnf-plugins-core
			# dnf config-manager --add-repo https://rpm.releases.hashicorp.com/fedora/hashicorp.repo
			# dnf -y install packer
			\| lang = terminal
			}}

			== Quick introduction ==
	To help you get a sense of what Packer can do, this page will go over how to create a simple Alpine Linux template on Proxmox using Packer.		To help you get a sense of what Packer can do, this page will go over how to create a simple Alpine Linux template on Proxmox using Packer.

	=== ~~Defining the~~ Packer configuration ===		=== Concepts ===

			==== The Packer configuration file ====
	You can either write a Packer configuration in native HCL (HashCorp's own language) or JSON. Native HCL configs should end with a <code>.pkr.hcl</code> file extension, otherwise it will be read as JSON. I'll be using the older json format for now.		You can either write a Packer configuration in native HCL (HashCorp's own language) or JSON. Native HCL configs should end with a <code>.pkr.hcl</code> file extension, otherwise it will be read as JSON. I'll be using the older json format for now.

	We will define two things in our configuration: a builder, and any number of provisioners.		We will define two things in our configuration: a builder, and any number of provisioners.

			==== Packer builder ====
	A builder is what Packer uses to interface with the hypervisor and can be something local (like VirtualBox or VMware Workstation), something remote (like a Proxmox server), or something in the cloud (like Azure, AWS EC2). You tell the builder what type of VM you want to build, what ISOs to attach, and what size of disk to use. In the example below, we use the [https://www.packer.io/docs/builders/proxmox/iso Proxmox builder] that's included with Packer. Review the builder's documentation to see what parameters are required. At the minimum, we need to specify our Proxmox server and authentication information, the network the VM should attach to, and a ISO boot media. The VM configuration can also be defined here.		A builder is what Packer uses to interface with the hypervisor and can be something local (like VirtualBox or VMware Workstation), something remote (like a Proxmox server), or something in the cloud (like Azure, AWS EC2). You tell the builder what type of VM you want to build, what ISOs to attach, and what size of disk to use. In the example below, we use the [https://www.packer.io/docs/builders/proxmox/iso Proxmox builder] that's included with Packer. Review the builder's documentation to see what parameters are required. At the minimum, we need to specify our Proxmox server and authentication information, the network the VM should attach to, and a ISO boot media. The VM configuration can also be defined here.

	Packer automates the OS installation step by sending keystrokes defined in the "boot_command" list. Everything defined in this list will be typed into the VM in sequence character by character. Some special keystrokes like the enter key or arrow keys are defined as special strings like <code><enter></code> and <code><up></code>. Short delays can be inserted with <code><wait></code> or <code><wait1></code>, and even longer delays are possible with <code><wait10m></code> for 10 minutes or <code><wait10h></code> for 10 hours. Review the builder's documentation for a detailed list of supported boot commands.		Packer automates the OS installation step by sending keystrokes defined in the "boot_command" list. Everything defined in this list will be typed into the VM in sequence character by character. Some special keystrokes like the enter key or arrow keys are defined as special strings like <code><enter></code> and <code><up></code>. Short delays can be inserted with <code><wait></code> or <code><wait1></code>, and even longer delays are possible with <code><wait10m></code> for 10 minutes or <code><wait10h></code> for 10 hours. Review the builder's documentation for a detailed list of supported boot commands.

	~~Once~~ the OS ~~installation is finished, Packer will then wait for~~ the VM ~~to come online using SSH in order to finish~~ the ~~provisioning process~~. ~~For non-Linux based systems, some~~ Packer ~~builders also supports WinRM. If you have no provisioners defined, Packer will still need to connect to~~ the VM ~~via~~ SSH ~~in order to confirm the build was successful~~. ~~Packer supports~~ a ~~wide array~~ of ~~configuration management tools~~ such as Ansible~~, Salt, and Puppet as well as running plain old shell scripts as the provisioning step~~.		==== Packer provisioner ====
			Packer will try to complete the OS setup by connecting to the VM and running the provisioner. Packer can start a provisioner on the guest VM with either SSH or WinRM. A provisioner can be as simple as a set of shell scripts to execute, to something more complex such as triggering an Ansible playbook run.

			Be aware that even if you do not have a provisioner, Packer still will need to connect to the VM once before the build process is considered successful.

			=== Examples ===

			==== Alpine Linux on Proxmox ====
	In the example below, I will set up Alpine Linux 3.15 on Proxmox from an ISO. I've added the appropriate boot_commands so that <code>setup-alpine</code> works properly (the answers file doesn't seem to work?). Once the setup is complete, I add the QEMU guest agent so that Packer is able to determine the guest's IP address and connect to it via SSH using password based authentication. Once Packer connects for the first time, it will run a series of scripts in the provisioning step to finalize the VM.		In the example below, I will set up Alpine Linux 3.15 on Proxmox from an ISO. I've added the appropriate boot_commands so that <code>setup-alpine</code> works properly (the answers file doesn't seem to work?). Once the setup is complete, I add the QEMU guest agent so that Packer is able to determine the guest's IP address and connect to it via SSH using password based authentication. Once Packer connects for the first time, it will run a series of scripts in the provisioning step to finalize the VM.
	{{Highlight		{{Highlight
Line 116:		Line 146:
	}		}
	\| lang = json		\| lang = json
			\| style = max-height:350px;overflow:scroll;
	}}		}}

			==== CloudStack ====
			The CloudStack Packer plugin isn't so great. It doesn't support boot_command which means that booting from a unmodified .iso is useless.

	{{Navbox Linux}}		{{Navbox Linux}}
	[[Category:Linux]]		[[Category:Linux]]
	[[Category:LinuxUtilities]]		[[Category:LinuxUtilities]]

Leo: Added categories and navbox

2021-12-30T01:23:08Z

Added categories and navbox

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:23, 30 December 2021
Line 117:		Line 117:
	\| lang = json		\| lang = json
	}}		}}
			{{Navbox Linux}}
			[[Category:Linux]]
			[[Category:LinuxUtilities]]

Leo: Created page with "== Quick introduction == Packer automates the creation of VM images. To that end, you need to tell Packer where to build the VM, how to boot the VM, and how to finish setting..."

2021-12-28T23:21:44Z

Created page with "== Quick introduction == Packer automates the creation of VM images. To that end, you need to tell Packer where to build the VM, how to boot the VM, and how to finish setting..."

New page

== Quick introduction ==
Packer automates the creation of VM images. To that end, you need to tell Packer where to build the VM, how to boot the VM, and how to finish setting up the VM. Each of these steps are defined in the builder and one or more provisioner components.

To help you get a sense of what Packer can do, this page will go over how to create a simple Alpine Linux template on Proxmox using Packer.

=== Defining the Packer configuration ===
You can either write a Packer configuration in native HCL (HashCorp's own language) or JSON. Native HCL configs should end with a <code>.pkr.hcl</code> file extension, otherwise it will be read as JSON. I'll be using the older json format for now.

We will define two things in our configuration: a builder, and any number of provisioners.

A builder is what Packer uses to interface with the hypervisor and can be something local (like VirtualBox or VMware Workstation), something remote (like a Proxmox server), or something in the cloud (like Azure, AWS EC2). You tell the builder what type of VM you want to build, what ISOs to attach, and what size of disk to use. In the example below, we use the [https://www.packer.io/docs/builders/proxmox/iso Proxmox builder] that's included with Packer. Review the builder's documentation to see what parameters are required. At the minimum, we need to specify our Proxmox server and authentication information, the network the VM should attach to, and a ISO boot media. The VM configuration can also be defined here.

Packer automates the OS installation step by sending keystrokes defined in the "boot_command" list. Everything defined in this list will be typed into the VM in sequence character by character. Some special keystrokes like the enter key or arrow keys are defined as special strings like <code><enter></code> and <code><up></code>. Short delays can be inserted with <code><wait></code> or <code><wait1></code>, and even longer delays are possible with <code><wait10m></code> for 10 minutes or <code><wait10h></code> for 10 hours. Review the builder's documentation for a detailed list of supported boot commands.

Once the OS installation is finished, Packer will then wait for the VM to come online using SSH in order to finish the provisioning process. For non-Linux based systems, some Packer builders also supports WinRM. If you have no provisioners defined, Packer will still need to connect to the VM via SSH in order to confirm the build was successful. Packer supports a wide array of configuration management tools such as Ansible, Salt, and Puppet as well as running plain old shell scripts as the provisioning step.

In the example below, I will set up Alpine Linux 3.15 on Proxmox from an ISO. I've added the appropriate boot_commands so that <code>setup-alpine</code> works properly (the answers file doesn't seem to work?). Once the setup is complete, I add the QEMU guest agent so that Packer is able to determine the guest's IP address and connect to it via SSH using password based authentication. Once Packer connects for the first time, it will run a series of scripts in the provisioning step to finalize the VM.
{{Highlight
| code = {
"variables": {
"username": "terraform@pam!terraform_token_id",
"token": "***"
},

"builders": [
{
"type": "proxmox",
"proxmox_url": "https://server.home.steamr.com:8006/api2/json",
"insecure_skip_tls_verify": true,
"username": "<nowiki>{{</nowiki><nowiki>user `username`}}",</nowiki>
"token": "<nowiki>{{</nowiki><nowiki>user `token`}}",</nowiki>
"node": "server",

"network_adapters": [{"bridge": "vmbr0"}],

"scsi_controller": "virtio-scsi-single",
"disks": [
{
"type": "scsi",
"disk_size": "5G",
"storage_pool": "data",
"storage_pool_type": "zfspool"
}
],

"iso_url": "http://private-mirror/alpine-virt-3.15.0-x86_64.iso",
"iso_checksum": "e97eaedb3bff39a081d1d7e67629d5c0e8fb39677d6a9dd1eaf2752e39061e02",
"iso_storage_pool": "local",

"http_directory": "http",
"boot_wait": "12s",
"boot_command": [
"root<enter><wait>",
"ifconfig eth0 up \u0026\u0026 udhcpc -i eth0<enter><wait10>",
"wget http://<nowiki>{{</nowiki><nowiki> .HTTPIP }}:</nowiki><nowiki>{{</nowiki><nowiki> .HTTPPort }}/answers<enter><wait>",</nowiki>
"BOOT_SIZE=50 setup-alpine -f answers<enter><wait2>",
"us us<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<nowiki>{{</nowiki><nowiki>user `root_pw`}}<enter><wait>",</nowiki>
"<nowiki>{{</nowiki><nowiki>user `root_pw`}}<enter><wait3>",</nowiki>
"America/Edmonton<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"<enter><wait1>",
"openssh<enter><wait1>",
"sda<enter><wait1>",
"lvm<enter><wait1>",
"sys<enter><wait1>",
"y<enter><wait20>",
"rc-service sshd stop<enter>",
"mount /dev/vg0/lv_root /mnt<enter>",
"mount --bind /dev /mnt/dev<enter>",
"chroot /mnt<enter>",
"echo 'PermitRootLogin yes' >> /etc/ssh/sshd_config<enter>",
"echo 'PermitRootLogin yes' >> /etc/ssh/sshd_config<enter><wait1>",
"sed -i -e 's/#//g' /etc/apk/repositories<enter>",
"apk update<enter><wait5>",
"apk add --no-cache qemu-guest-agent<enter><wait5>",
"rc-update add local default<enter>",
"echo -e '#!/bin/sh\\nqemu-ga -d -p /dev/vport1p1' > /etc/local.d/Qemu.start<enter>",
"chmod 755 /etc/local.d/Qemu.start<enter>",
"exit<enter>",
"umount /mnt/dev<enter><wait1>",
"umount /mnt<enter><wait1>",
"reboot<enter>"
],

"ssh_username": "root",
"ssh_password": "<nowiki>{{</nowiki><nowiki>user `root_pw`}}",</nowiki>
"ssh_timeout": "15m",

"unmount_iso": true,
"template_name": "alpine",
"template_description": "Alpine Linux, generated on <nowiki>{{</nowiki><nowiki> isotime \"2006-01-02T15:04:05Z\" }}"</nowiki>
}
],

"provisioners": [
{
"scripts": [
"scripts/00_base.sh",
"scripts/01_cloudinit.sh",
"scripts/02_docker.sh",
"scripts/05_misc.sh",
"scripts/99_cleanup.sh"
],
"type": "shell"
}
]
}
| lang = json
}}