Trying to install debian from partition /dev/vda3
Hello,
I’m trying to automate a preseeded debian installer in a virtual private server. The difficulty is that I cannot change the .iso image being presented as the cdrom drive.
1. If I install debian from the 8.2.netinstall image then it sees /dev/vda without any problems and installs fine.
2. If set a partition /dev/vda3 that is not part of running system, and format with ext2 then I can host .isos on it.
3. GRUB2 can mount the partition and open the iso as loopback.
4. I can get GRUB to launch either the netinst kernel, or the hd-media kernel, from the /dev/vda3 partition like this:
menuentry "Remaster ISO" {
set root='(hd0,3)'
loopback loop /remaster.iso
linux (loop)/install.amd/vmlinuz iso-scan/filename=/remaster.iso root=/dev/dva3 vga=788 auto=true priority=critical preseed/file=/preseed.cfg ---
initrd (loop)/install.amd/initrd.gz
(for hd-media I have different vmlinuz/initrd.gz in the partition root).
5. Neither of these kernels can see the /dev/vda or its partitions - I guess there is no virtio-blk driver?
From these tests I gather that virtio is up and running later in the install process (as the installer can write to this harddrive), but that it is unavailable during the boot process. This leads me to two questions:
Q1. Which kernel/initrd is easier to modify to use the virtio-blk dirver?
Q2. How do I do that? :)
I’m unsure how to get the source of the kernel with a configuration that matches the one in the installer image. If somebody could point to the correct package / repository then I can probably change the configuration and rebuild it.
Cheers,
Andrew
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