Can't install pfsense on a x64 pc

dam034

Dear users,

I want to install pfsense on a x64 pc, to try its operation.

I created the USB stick downloading the .img file and burning it with Rufus.

I can boot it, but it pauses after boot selection.

I tried both new and old kernel, but I didn't succeed.

These are two screencasts where I try with new and old kernel to boot the USB stick:
https://cdn.dampc.ga/ctv/pfsense-newkernel.mp4
https://cdn.dampc.ga/ctv/pfsense-oldkernel.mp4

Please help!

ingjrmed

Disable secure boot and check compatibility ahci or ide.

stephenw10

It is booting it's just having an issue with the console. Try setting kern.vty=sc at the loader prompt as suggested here:

https://www.netgate.com/docs/pfsense/install/upgrade-guide.html#upgrading-from-versions-older-than-pfsense-2-4-4

What hardware is that exactly? What image are you trying to boot exactly?

Steve

dam034

@stephenw10 So I'm trying to boot the USB stick burned with Rufus, the .img file is downloaded with these options:

I want if I can download a newest version, I'm thinking the 2.4.4 isn't the latest.

Where do I have to set "kern.vty=sc"? In the 6th element of the boot?

The hardware is a desktop pc with a ASUS motherboard.

Thanks

stephenw10

Set it at the boot loader OK> prompt. Enter:

set kern.vty=sc
boot

To get to a loader prompt. Either choose the menu option from the boot menu, or when Hit [Enter] to boot immediately, or any other key for command prompt. is seen during the boot process, press space or another key.

Steve

dam034

@stephenw10 I tried to do what you wrote.
The result is the same, as shown in this screencast:
https://cdn.dampc.ga/ctv/pfsense-bootoptions.mp4

Only one note: I'm trying to boot pfsense with only one network interface in the PC, can be it the problem?

Now, I don't know whatever I have to do.

Please help!

stephenw10

Hmm, some sort of console issue there. EFI frambuffer is usually OK with the standard console anyway.

Exactly what motherboard is that? What CPU is in it?

Can you try a different display? How is that one connected?
It might be defaulting to a VGA port or HDMI or whichever that is not connected to.

Steve

dam034

@stephenw10 As you can see in newkernel screencast, the PC components are these:

Motherboard: Asus P8H61-MX
CPU: Intel Pentium G860 @ 3 GHz
RAM: 8GB
Network interface: only one gigabit ethernet port, not connected when I'm trying to boot pfsense

There is also a video card, where I use the VGA output port to connect the monitor, and the HDMI port to connect the recorder to do the screencasts I attached in this topic.

This is a tower PC to test the pfsense features, a kind of development environment.
I'm also trying to boot the image (iso) on a virtual machine, but the result is the same.

Maybe there is something I'm forgetting to do.

Help!

KOM

@dam034 said in Can't install pfsense on a x64 pc:

I'm also trying to boot the image (iso) on a virtual machine, but the result is the same.

What? That shound't be. Have you confirmed that have a good ISO image by validating its hash? You may have a corrupted download if it behaves the exact same weird way on vm as well as physical.

stephenw10

Yeah, you should always be able to boot the ISO in a VM.
What hypervisor are you using?

Steve

ingjrmed

Download an older version, after install upgrade.

KOM

@ingjrmed said in Can't install pfsense on a x64 pc:

Download an older version

Good luck with that. Netgate doesn't make older versions available anymore, so you would have to hunt one down from the 'net and hope it hasn't been modified. Not the best solution.

stephenw10

If it's not possible to install the 2.4.4p1 ISO in a VM then we want to know about it. It's the first I've heard of it if that's true though.

Steve

pwood999

Screenshot above shows IMG download not ISO. Which version is being used ?

VM usually requires the ISO

asciimo

@stephenw10 I'm unable to run the ISO (pfSense-CE-2.4.4-RELEASE-p1-amd64.iso) in a VMWare ESXi 6.0 virtual machine. I get to the "select your terminal" option, and then it freezes. This is preceded by lots of errors such as:

Shared object "libgnuregex.so.5" not found, required by "grep"
Shared object "libdialog.so.8" not found, required by "dialog"

sha256 is correct.

stephenw10

Hmm, that looks pretty fundamentally broken.
Technically FreeBSD 11 (that pfSense is built on) is only supported in ESXi 6.5.
I thought people were running in 6 though.

Steve

KOM

It's been several days now and OP has yet to confirm that he checked his ISO against the hash. I strongly suspect we're wasting time talking about a corrupted ISO.

dam034

Sorry for the delay.
My hypervisor is Oracle Virtualbox 6.0, and I'm mounting the ISO downloaded with these conditions:

The behaviour is the same as the .img file on the USB stick in the real PC of which I wrote above.

I checked both the sha256 checksums and they're right.

I do not say in the VM, but at least in the real computer, how can I make everything work?

Thanks

stephenw10

Hmm, well I can't say for sure about VBox 6 but I just tested that in 5.2 and booted to the installer in both legacy and UEFI modes.

Steve

dam034

So, the use of the VM was just for testing, and I don't need it. Now I returned to the PC described 8 days ago:

@dam034 said in Can't install pfsense on a x64 pc:

Motherboard: Asus P8H61-MX

CPU: Intel Pentium G860 @ 3 GHz

RAM: 8GB

Network interface: only one gigabit ethernet port, not connected when I'm trying to boot pfsense

Today I downloaded an old release of pfsense 2.1 for x86 (at the moment), and created the USB stick with rufus for UEFI and legacy boot.
I booted it in legacy way, as shown in this screencast:
https://cdn.dampc.ga/ctv/pfsense-2.1-boot.mp4
In the video, at 0:12 I pushed "6" and at 0:42 I pushed "I".
As you can see, I received many errors in the boot, even in the configure console.

Am I wrong? And where I did mistakes?

Thanks