Brian wrote: > Bob Proulx wrote: > You are preseeding language and keymap from the command line so auto(?) > or auto=true is not required because the first two questions concerned > get answers immediately on booting. Correct. Which is why in my case it is a little hard to observe experimentally any differences. > auto=true would be needed if console-keymaps-at/keymaplocale and > locale were not on the command line but in preseed-squeeze-regular.cfg. I think so too. > Here is what I focussed on when I started looking at the > auto-install process: > > > The auto parameter is an alias for auto-install/enable and > > setting it to true delays the locale and keyboard questions > > until after there has been a chance to preseed them, . . . I think that is the critical point concerning "auto". It simply delays the asking of the question until later, after the network is up, after a network preseed might be available to preseed it. Except I am not convinced that it actually works. I recall previously (might have been a bug that is fixed now) that I could not get the question preseeded unless I put it in the initrd or on the command line. Again, this might behave differently now. > It is easy to observe that auto=true when booting a netinst ISO does not > present the language and keyboard questions in the main menu. They will > be asked after the network has been configured, but this can be avoided > by preseeding on the commnand line or in a preseed file. If preseeded in > both the file is used. Oh! I will try that later. Thanks for that hint. > The correct way to supply a preseed file with auto=true is (I think) to > only use preseed/url= or url=. Now, is that glaringly obvious to you or > anyone else from section B.2.3. or elsewhere in the Manual? The manual is a little vague. But that is what they show in the examples. > > I previously had it in the initrd/preseed.cfg file but when that > > changed for Wheezy I needed to move it to a more easily switched > > location. And so it is on the command line now. > > I've never looked at initrd preseeding and wonder what happens when > auto=true is used with it. Nothing exciting. It is basically a noop for me. I tested it and I can either leave it there or remove it. As we have determined it is only an indication that the installation is being attempted automatically in batch mode so delay the asking of the keyboard question until after a preseed has had an opportunity to ask it. But since in my case I am putting it on the command line it doesn't matter for my particular case. It might matter in other cases. > My provisional understanding is that d-i gets uppity if url= is not > given alongside auto=true. I think it is fine without. Now that I understand auto better I think it is fine to have it without a url preseed. But a url preseed is so convenient that I pretty much always want it. The time when I would want only an initrd preseed would be if I were preparing an installation cd/usb image that would install standalone without a network. Then I would put everything in the initrd preseed. > > That is how I am passing in the preseed.cfg file to the installer. > > > > http://www.debian.org/releases/stable/i386/apbs02.html.en#preseed-auto > > > > It is still a black box to me. One of these days I am going to need > > to pull the source and look to see what is happening under the hood. > > The documentation is a little vague. But as I interpret it the "auto" > > turns on a module that then reads the "url=" part and pulls in the > > preseed. > > I think "auto" is a typo. It should be "auto=true". It is documented that "auto" is an alias for "auto-install/enable=true priority=critical". I don't think it is a typo. > When auto url= is used only preseed/url appears in d-i's > /var/lib/preseed/log. What file? I don't have that file. Typo? > If you move either of your kernel command lines to the preseed file, > leaving everything else unchanged, the two questions are asked. Hmm... > Unless I'm dissuaded I'll submit a patch to Guide for this. Let me cheer you on from the sidelines. I have no idea what I would say there. But it is a little vague and could definitely use some attention to improve it. > Please see above. The documentation is not just vague but confusing. The > Guide in Section B.2.3. links to > > http://hands.com/d-i/ > > where it is said > > The features described depend on a new udeb called > auto-install . . . . > > Except there is no auto-install udeb. Research that and then wonder why > "auto" is in the documentation. I think things have drifted through refactorings as it has been developed. I will guess that originally "auto" meant, intending the installation to be batch mode automatic, take steps to enable that ability. And so probably over time it has meant different things with different versions. At one time a udeb. At one time a delay in questions. At one time something different. Would need to pull the code and read it to know what it really does not. "Rah, rah, go team!" (Sound of me cheering you on.) Bob
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