7    Managing RIS Profile Sets

A profile set is a logically organized subdirectory of the /var/adm/ris/clients/sets directory on a RIS server. It contains configuration description files (CDFs) and user-supplied files that can be invoked during a Full Installation and used for Installation Cloning. When you register a RIS client for a RIS area, you can specify a profile set that contains CDFs or user-supplied files that you want to execute when you install software from the RIS area.

This chapter discusses the following topics:

• Creating profile set directories (Section 7.2)

• Registering RIS clients for profile sets (Section 7.3)

• Converting old configuration description files (Section 7.4)

• Determining a RIS client's profile set registration (Section 7.5)

• Removing a RIS client's profile set registration (Section 7.6)

• Deleting profile sets from the RIS server (Section 7.7)

7.1    Overview

A profile set can contain one or more of the following files:

• The install.cdf file is used for Installation Cloning.

  This file is generated in the /var/adm/smlogs directory when you install the current version of the operating system with the Full Installation process. It contains a record of the file system layout, host- and site-specific information, and the software that was installed during a Full Installation. This information can be used to clone the same installation on other systems with similar hardware.

• The config.cdf file is used for Configuration Cloning.

  This file contains network, internet, printer, and mail configuration information that has been saved from a fully installed and configured system. Use the sysman -clone -save command to create the config.cdf file whenever you want to save configuration information. The config.cdf file can be applied to a target system during a Full Installation, or it can be applied manually to a running system.

• User-supplied files are a way to extend and customize the installation process, and can contain scripts, executables, or programs. The Full Installation and Update Installation processes execute user-supplied files at predetermined points during the installation.

  User-installed files may include some or all of the following files:

  • preinstall

  • update_preinstall

  • postload

  • update_postload

  • postreboot

• Any files called by the user-supplied files.

If a RIS client system is registered for a profile set, the Full Installation process searches the client system's registered profile set and takes action if it finds any of these user-supplied files.

You can organize CDFs and user-supplied files into profile sets to support different functions or types of systems within your processing environment. For example:

• If you install and configure engineering systems differently from accounting department systems, you might create two profile set directories: engineering and accounting. Those profile sets would contain the CDFs and files you create to suit the configuration needs of both departments.

• If you maintain separate CDFs and files for servers and workstations, you might create profile set directories named server and workstation.

Refer to the Installation Guide -- Advanced Topics for information about Installation Cloning, Configuration Cloning, creating and modifying CDFs, and creating user-supplied files.

7.2    Creating Profile Sets

The /var/adm/ris/clients/sets directory can contain many profile sets. Each of the profile set directories may contain CDFs and user-supplied files, as well as any files called by them.

Use the following procedure to create profile sets:

1. Log in to the RIS server as root or use the su command to gain superuser privileges.

2. Go to the profile sets directory:

   # cd /var/adm/ris/clients/sets
   

3. Create the profile set directory. For example:

   # mkdir engineering
   

4. Go to the newly created directory to ensure that the necessary files are copied to the correct destination. For example:

   # cd engineering
   

5. Copy the CDFs, any user-supplied files, and all other related files from your working area to the new engineering profile set directory using a copy tool such as cp, ftp, or rcp.

   For example, if your CDFs and user-supplied files are in the /users/dev/working directory on the same system:

   # cp /users/dev/working/install.cdf .
   # cp /users/dev/working/config.cdf .
   # cp /users/dev/working/preinstall .
   # cp /users/dev/working/update_preinstall .
   # cp /users/dev/working/postload .
   # cp /users/dev/working/update_postload .
   # cp /users/dev/working/postreboot .
   

6. Use the chmod command to ensure that all files have execute permission:

   # chmod 755 *
   

7.3    Registering Clients for Profile Sets

After you copy CDFs and other files to the profile set directory, you can register RIS clients for cloning or for user-supplied file invocation during a full RIS installation. You do this by registering new clients to a profile set as well as to a RIS environment.

In Example 7-1, you have established profile sets for client workstations in different departments. You are registering the client pubs08 for the operating system in the RIS area ris0.alpha and for the profile set techpubs.

Example 7-1:  Sample RIS Client Profile Set Registration

# /usr/sbin/ris
*** RIS Utility Main Menu ***
 
a) ADD a client
d) DELETE software products
i) INSTALL software products
l) LIST registered clients
m) MODIFY a client
r) REMOVE a client
s) SHOW software products in remote installation environments
x) EXIT
 
Enter your choice: a
 
You have chosen to add a client for remote installation services.
 
The following conditions must be met to add a client:
 
1. You must know the client processor's host name
2. The client's host name must be in your system's host database(s).
3. You must know whether the client is on an Ethernet, FDDI, or Token
   Ring network.
4. You must know the client's hardware Ethernet, FDDI, or Token
   Ring address if the client is registering to install operating
   system software.
5. If the client and the server reside on different subnets, you will
   need the address of the gateway(s) that the client can use to
   communicate with the server.
 
Do you want to continue? (y/n) [y]: y
 
Enter the client processor's hostname or press RETURN to quit: pubs08
 
Select the remote installation environment:
 
    1)  /var/adm/ris/ris0.alpha
          'Operating System Release N ( Rev nnn )'
          'OS Worldwide Language Support Version N ( Rev nnn
)'
 
    2)  /var/adm/ris/ris1.alpha
          'Something else in this RIS area'
 
Enter your choice or press RETURN to quit: 1
 
Select one or more products for the client to install
from /var/adm/ris/ris0.alpha:
 
Product    Description
   1    'Operating System Release N ( Rev nnn )'
   2    'OS Worldwide Language Support Version N ( Rev nnn )'
 
Enter one or more choices as a space-separated list
(for example, 1 2 3) or "all" for all products [all]: 1
 
You chose the following products:
 
   1    'Operating System Release N ( Rev nnn )'
 
Is that correct? (y/n) [y]: y
 
Do you want to specify an Installation Profile Set for use
during the installation of this client? [y/n] [n]: y
 
This RIS server has the following Installation Profile Sets available:
 
sys_admin engineering support techpubs accounting
 
Enter a set name or press <Return> to exit set selection: techpubs
 
You have selected the techpubs installation profile set.
This set contains the following files:
pubs_wksta
 
Network type:
        1) Ethernet or FDDI
        2) Token Ring
 
Enter your choice: 1
 
Enter the client processor's hardware network address.  For
example, 08-00-2b-02-67-e1: xx-xx-xx-xx-xx-xx
 
Client pubs08 has been added.
 
*** RIS Utility Main Menu ***
 
a) ADD a client
d) DELETE software products
i) INSTALL software products
l) LIST registered clients
m) MODIFY a client
r) REMOVE a client
s) SHOW software products in remote installation environments
x) EXIT
 
Enter your choice: x
 
#

If the CDF in the profile set you select requires software subsets that do not exist in the selected RIS environment, you see the following message:

The selected CDF, /var/adm/ris/clients/sets/techpubs/install.cdf, specifies
software subsets that are not present in the selected RIS environment.  The
missing software subsets are:  subsetname1 subsetname2 subsetname3
subsetname4 subsetname5 subsetname6
 
Please select a different set.
 
This RIS server has the following Installation Profile Sets available: 
 
sys_admin engineering support techpubs accounting
 
Enter a set name or press <Return> to exit set selection:

Either choose a different profile set or exit without selecting a profile set. If necessary, you can modify the RIS client to select a different RIS environment or add the product containing the required subsets to the RIS area.

7.4    Converting Old Configuration Description Files

If you had existing CDFs in the /var/adm/ris/clients/cdf directory, RIS must convert the old CDFs into profile sets. The first time you invoke the ris utility after you install this version of the operating system, the ris utility creates new profile set directories in the /var/adm/ris/clients/sets directory and copies the old CDFs into these profile sets, renaming them if necessary. You may see conversion messages similar to the following:

Converting old cdf directory to new sets directory format...
CDF File acctng moved to set acctng and renamed install.cdf
CDF File acctng.cdf moved to set acctng1 and renamed install.cdf
CDF File acctng1.cdf moved to set acctng11 and renamed install.cdf
CDF File acctng.cdf2 moved to set acctng12 and renamed install.cdf
done

After the old CDFs are converted to profile sets, these messages are not displayed again.

7.5    Determining RIS Client Profile Set Registration

To determine if a RIS client is registered to a profile set, examine the RIS database file, /var/adm/ris/clients/risdb, on the RIS server. The name of the profile set is specified in the fourth field; fields are separated by a colon. In the following sample entry in the risdb file, the client system portland is registered to the engineering profile set:

portland:xx-xx-xx-xx-xx-xx:ris2.alpha,product_1:engineering

7.6    Removing RIS Client Profile Set Registration

You can remove a client from profile set registration by using the Modify option from the RIS Utility Main Menu. When you are prompted to specify a profile set for the client, enter n or press [Return] to register the client without specifying a profile set.

7.7    Deleting Profile Sets from the RIS Server

If a profile set is no longer needed, you can delete it by removing its subdirectory from the /var/adm/ris/clients/sets directory.

Examine the RIS database file on the RIS server, /var/adm/ris/clients/risdb, before deleting a profile set to ensure that no clients are registered to it. The name of the profile set is specified in the fourth field; fields are separated by a colon ( : ). In the following sample entry in the risdb file, the client vallejo is registered to the accounting profile set:

vallejo:xx-xx-xx-xx-xx-xx:ris2.alpha,product_1:accounting