PXE Install

Pimmetje

Currently i am trying to install PFSense on a virtual machine using a PXE system. As i can install almost everything with this system i would like to add PFSense to the list. We are currently testing PFSense on different types of hardware and this would allow me to install PFSense without need of any bootable media.

I found some topic about it in the forum, most where very old or used links are currently not working.

My own attempts of booting the ISO gave my a error:

Mounting from cd9660:/dev/iso9660/OFSENSE failed with error 19.

Loader variables:
vfs.root.mountfrom=cd9660:/dev/iso9660/PFSENSE
vfs.root.mountfrom.options=ro

Manual root filesystem specifications:
<fstype>: <device>[options]
…</device></fstype>

By my research FreeBSD has trouble booting without NFS. Does anyone have a working PXE boot for PFSense?

doktornotor

Install media for FreeBSD 9+ itself miserably fail to PXE-boot. Known, reported years ago, noone gives a damn. Stop wasting your time.

https://forums.freebsd.org/threads/install-9-0-release-via-pxe.29144/

Pimmetje

Thanks for the replay. I think ill stick with my workaround. Booting something else from PXE and dd the flash image to the disk. That works for me :). Maybe some day they fix this.

If someone knows a decent work around i am all ears.

Again thanks for the replay.

doktornotor

@Pimmetje:

If someone knows a decent work around i am all ears.

I'd be all ears as well… this clearly moved nowhere, though. I keep testing with every point release. Been broken ever since 9.0 >:(

SethuM

Has anybody tested:
http://serverfault.com/questions/140979/pxe-boot-freebsd-iso-from-pxelinux-server/615431#615431

I followed the comments, but still unable to boot up.

Might be Admin can comment on this thread?

doktornotor

Yeah. People want to boot the ISO. Not copy files from it.

Pimmetje

I tried booting the ISO. No luck at my end. At the end i used dsl linux to dd the pfsense image on the boxes i want it on.

Maybe ill give a intern at work some time to try the post above ;)

doktornotor

Yes, as noted above, booting the ISO doesn't work. None cares at FreeBSD land.