Cobbler is an open-source Linux installation server which automates the installation and configuration tasks of different Linux operating systems. It is used mainly by system administrators to deploy multiple Linux systems. In this tutorial, we will guide you step-by-step on how to install Cobbler on OpenSUSE Latest.
Before starting the installation, ensure that you have the following prerequisites:
The first step is to update the system packages to the latest version available using the following command:
sudo zypper update
To install Cobbler, you need to install some dependencies. Run the following command to install them:
sudo zypper install cobbler cobbler-web dhcp tftp-server apache2
Next, we need to configure Cobbler. Open the cobbler configuration file with your favorite text editor, using the following command:
sudo vi /etc/cobbler/settings
Then, modify the following lines as shown below:
server: 192.168.43.52 (replace with your IP address)
next_server: 192.168.43.52 (replace with your IP address)
manage_dhcp: 1
manage_dns: 0
manage_forward_zones: 0
manage_reverse_zones: 0
pxe_just_once: 1 (optional)
Save and close the file.
To start Cobbler, we need to start and enable the required services. Run the following command:
sudo systemctl start cobblerd
Then, enable the following services:
sudo systemctl enable cobblerd
sudo systemctl enable apache2
sudo systemctl enable tftp
sudo systemctl enable dhcpd
To allow external access to the Cobbler server, we need to configure the firewall to allow the necessary services. Run the following commands to open the relevant ports:
sudo firewall-cmd --add-port=69/udp --permanent
sudo firewall-cmd --add-port=80/tcp --permanent
sudo firewall-cmd --add-port=443/tcp --permanent
sudo firewall-cmd --add-port=25150/tcp --permanent
sudo firewall-cmd --reload
Finally, we can access the Cobbler web interface by opening a web browser and entering the URL:
http://<server-ip-address>/cobbler_web
Then, enter the Cobbler web interface credentials to log in.
Congratulations! You have successfully installed and configured Cobbler on OpenSUSE Latest. You can now use it to automate and manage the installation and configuration of different Linux systems.
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