Running Alpine in Live mode in QEMU: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 17:31, 21 January 2024

To just give Alpine Linux a try in diskless mode, qemu can be used to boot the .iso file without any need for a virtual HDD image or further configuration.

qemu-system-x86_64 -m 512 -nic user -boot d -cdrom alpine-3.20.3-x86_64.iso --accel kvm

Letting the .iso image load an apkovl

This works by mounting a persistent filesystem under /media and selecting it to store the apkovl and the apkcache.

Preparing a KVM with a virtual drive:

mkdir -p /media/usb/images qemu-img create -f raw /media/usb/images/mykvm.config 32M qemu-system-x86_64 -enable-kvm -m 384 \ -name mykvm \ -cdrom /media/usb/images/alpine-3.20.3-x86_64.iso \ -drive file=/media/usb/images/mykvm.config,if=virtio \ -net lan \ -boot d &

And inside the KVM (running Alpine Linux):

fdisk /dev/vda  #creating a partition
mkdosfs /dev/vda1
mkdir -p /media/vda1
echo "/dev/vda1 /media/vda1 vfat rw 0 0" >> /etc/fstab
mount -a
setup-alpine  # (select vda1 for saving configs)
lbu commit

The next reboot then loads the generated apkovl and apkcache found on /dev/vda1 -- completely running-from-ram based on the latest official ISO.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-If your just want to give Alpine Linux a try, qemu can be used without a disk image and further configuration.
+To just give Alpine Linux a try in diskless mode, qemu can be used to boot the .iso file without any need for a virtual HDD image or further configuration.
-{{Cmd|qemu -m 512 -cdrom alpine-3.2.0-x86_64.iso}}
+{{Cmd|qemu-system-x86_64 -m 512 -nic user -boot d -cdrom alpine-{{AlpineLatest}}-x86_64.iso --accel kvm}}
+== Letting the .iso image load an apkovl ==
-You need to issue {{Cmd|grsec nomodeset}} at boot prompt to avoid being forced in graphical mode and loosing access.
+This works by mounting a persistent filesystem under /media and selecting it to store the '''apkovl''' and the '''apkcache'''.
-<u>Question</u>: Is there a way to pass an apkovl as paramater at this stage?<br/>
+Preparing a KVM with a virtual drive:
-<u>Response</u> ''to self'': Yes. I do it like this and I mount /dev/vda1 as /media/config to store the '''apkovl''' and the '''apkcache''': <pre>
+{{cmd|mkdir -p /media/usb/images
-mkdir -p /media/usb/images
 qemu-img create -f raw /media/usb/images/mykvm.config 32M
 qemu-system-x86_64 -enable-kvm -m 384 \
 -name mykvm \
--cdrom /media/usb/images/alpine-3.2.0-x86_64.iso \
+-cdrom /media/usb/images/alpine-{{AlpineLatest}}-x86_64.iso \
--drive file=/media/usb/images/mykvm.config,if=virtio \
+-drive file{{=}}/media/usb/images/mykvm.config,if{{=}}virtio \
 -net lan \
--boot d &
+-boot d &}}
-</pre> And inside the KVM <pre>
-fdisk /dev/vda
+And inside the KVM (running Alpine Linux):
+<pre>
+fdisk /dev/vda  #creating a partition
 mkdosfs /dev/vda1
-mkdir -p /media/config
+mkdir -p /media/vda1
-echo "/dev/vda1 /media/config vfat rw 0 0" >> /etc/fstab
+echo "/dev/vda1 /media/vda1 vfat rw 0 0" >> /etc/fstab
-mount /media/config
+mount -a
-setup-alpine
+setup-alpine  # (select vda1 for saving configs)
-lbu ci
+lbu commit
-</pre> At next reboot, it will use the newly generated apkovl and apkcache stored on /dev/vda1 running in ''run-from-ram'' from the latest official ISO.
+</pre>
+The next reboot then loads the generated apkovl and apkcache found on /dev/vda1 -- completely ''running-from-ram'' based on the latest official ISO.
 [[Category:Virtualization]]