Include:Copying Alpine to Flash

2018-03-21T23:47:59Z

PetitCassoulet: /* Automated */

=== Boot Alpine Linux CD-ROM ===
# Insert the Alpine Linux CD-ROM into a computer.
# Boot the computer from the Alpine Linux CD-ROM.
#* This step may require changes to the BIOS settings to select booting from CD.
# Login with the username ''root''. No password is needed.

{{Tip|If you're not able to boot from the CD, then another option is to boot from a regular Alpine installation, and [[Burning_ISOs|manually mount the ISO image to {{Path|/media/cdrom}}]].}}

=== Determine the Device Name of the {{{1|Flash Medium}}} ===
Determine the name your computer uses for your {{{1|flash medium}}}. The following step is one way to do this.
# After inserting the {{{1|flash medium}}}, run the command:
#* {{Cmd|dmesg}}
#* At the end of this command you should see the name of your {{{1|flash medium}}}, likely starting with "sd". (For example: "sda").
#* The remainder of this document will assume that your {{{1|flash medium}}} is called /dev/sda
# Use "fdisk -l" or "blkid" to check the device name by size or label

=== Format {{{1|Flash Medium}}} ===
Run fdisk (replacing sda with your {{{1|flash medium}}} name):
{{Cmd|fdisk /dev/sda}}

# (''Optional'') - Create new partition table with one FAT32 partition
#* '''d''' Delete all partitions (this may take a few steps)
#* '''n''' Create a new partition
#* '''p''' A primary partition
#* '''1''' Partition number 1
#** Use defaults for first and last cylinder (just press [Enter] twice).
#* '''t''' Change partition type
#* '''c''' Partition type (Win95 FAT32/LBA)
#Verify that the primary partition is bootable
#* '''p''' Print list of partitions
#* If there is no '*' next to the first partition, follow the next steps:
#** '''a''' <big>Make the partition bootable (set boot flag)</big>
#** '''1''' Partition number 1
#'''w''' Write your changes to the device

=== Add Alpine Linux to the {{{1|Flash Medium}}} ===
To boot from your {{{1|flash medium}}} you need to copy the contents of the CDROM to the {{{1|flash medium}}} and make it bootable. Those two operations can be automated with the [[setup-bootable]] tool or can be done manually.

See also notes to [http://it-offshore.co.uk/linux/alpine-linux/48-alpine-linux-usb-stick-kvm create an Alpine Linux USB stick from within KVM] with [[setup-bootable]].

{{Note|If the following commands fail due to 'No such file or directory', you may have to remove and reinsert the {{{1|flash medium}}}, or even reboot, to get /dev/sda1 to appear}}

==== Automated ====
{{Tip|If using Alpine Linux 1.10.4 or newer, you can use this section to complete the install. Otherwise, follow the Manual steps below.}}
{{Note|The target partition has to be formatted. Use the <code>mkdosfs</code> command from the Manual steps below if needed.}}
# Run the [[setup-alpine]] script to setup network(Alpine Linux 3.3 not contain syslinux), answer the last three questions as 'none'
## Which disk(s) would you like to use: none
## Enter where to store configs: none
## Enter apk cache directory: none
# Run "apk add syslinux" to install syslinux package
# Run "modprobe vfat" to load vfat kernel module
# Run the [[setup-bootable]] script to add Alpine Linux to the {{{1|flash medium}}} and make it bootable (replacing sda with your {{{1|flash medium}}} name):
#: {{Cmd|setup-bootable /media/cdrom /dev/sda1}}
## if "Resource busy" occurs, maybe the old files on /media/sda1, "rm /media/sda1/.alpine-release" and "reboot" to try again.
{{Note|If you get something like '<code>Failed to mount /dev/sda1 on /media/sda1</code>' when running the above [[setup-bootable]] command, you might want to try running:
{{Cmd|modprobe vfat}}
and then try re-run the [[setup-bootable]] command as described above.}}
{{Warning|If you are installing to a USB Stick, you may need to modify the {{Path|syslinux.cfg}} file to say <code>usbdisk</code> as [[#Wrong_Device_Name|described below]], or you will face possible problems booting and definite problems with the package cache. Recent versions of <code>setup-bootable</code> will specify the alpine_dev using a UUID instead, so it should work properly by default.}}

==== Manual ====
# (''Optional'') - If you created a new partition above, format the {{{1|flash medium}}} with a FAT32 filesystem (replacing sda with your {{{1|flash medium}}} name):
#: {{Cmd|apk add dosfstools<BR>mkdosfs -F32 /dev/sda1}}
# Install syslinux and MBR (replacing sda with your {{{1|flash medium}}} name):
#: {{Cmd|{{{|apk add syslinux<BR>dd if=/usr/share/syslinux/mbr.bin of=/dev/sda}}}<BR>syslinux /dev/sda1}}
#Copy the files to the {{{1|flash medium}}} (replacing sda with your {{{1|flash medium}}} name):
#: {{Cmd|<nowiki>mkdir -p /media/sda1
mount -t vfat /dev/sda1 /media/sda1
cd /media/cdrom
cp -a .alpine-release * /media/sda1/
umount /media/sda1</nowiki>}}
# (''Optional'') Remove any apkovl files that were transfered as part of the copy process. This should be done if you wish to have a fresh install. Replace sda with your {{{1|flash medium}}} name)
#: {{Cmd|<nowiki>mount -t vfat /dev/sda1 /media/sda1
rm /media/sda1/*.apkovl.tar.gz
umount /media/sda1</nowiki>}}

== Troubleshooting ==
=== Wrong Device Name ===
If you cannot boot from the {{{1|flash medium}}} and you see something like:
Mounting boot media failed.
initramfs emergency recovery shell launched. Type 'exit' to continue boot
then it is likely that the device name in {{Path|syslinux.cfg}} is wrong. You should replace the device name in this line:
append initrd=/boot/grsec.gz alpine_dev='''usbdisk''':vfat modules=loop,cramfs,sd-mod,usb-storage quiet
with the proper device name.
* For boot from USB, the device name should be 'usbdisk' (as shown above)
* For other options, you can run <code>cat /proc/partitions</code> to see the available disks (i.e. 'sda' or 'sdb')

=== Non-FAT32 Filesystems ===
When your {{{1|flash medium}}} is formatted with a filesystem other than FAT32, you might have to specify the necessary filesystem modules in the boot parameters.

To do so, mount the {{{1|flash medium}}} and change the {{Path|syslinux.cfg}} file line from
append initrd=/boot/grsec.gz alpine_dev=usbdisk:vfat modules=loop,cramfs,sd-mod,usb-storage quiet
to
append initrd=/boot/grsec.gz alpine_dev=usbdisk:'''ext3''' modules=loop,cramfs,sd-mod,usb-storage''',ext3''' quiet
in the case of an ext3 formatted partition. A similar procedure might apply to other filesystems (if they are supported by syslinux and the Alpine Linux kernel).

[[Category:Installation]]

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Include:Copying Alpine to Flash