Fedora 9 Installation - Appendix A. Boot Options

Appendix A. Boot Options

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The Fedora installation system includes a range of functions and options for administrators. To use boot options, enter linux option at the boot: prompt.

If you specify more than one option, separate each of the options by a single space. For example:

linux option1 option2 option3

	Anaconda Boot Options
	The anaconda installer has many boot options, most are listed on the wiki https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Anaconda/Options.

	Kernel Boot Options
	The https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/KernelCommonProblems page lists many common kernel boot options. The full list of kernel options is in the file /usr/share/doc/kernel-doc-`version`/Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt, which is installed with the kernel-doc package.

	Rescue Mode
	The Fedora installation and rescue discs may either boot with rescue mode, or load the installation system. For more information on rescue discs and rescue mode, refer to Section A.6.2, “Booting Your Computer with the Rescue Mode”.

A.1. Configuring the Installation System at the Boot Menu

You can use the boot menu to specify a number of settings for the installation system, including:

language
display resolution
interface type
Installation method
network settings

A.1.1. Specifying the Language

To set the language for both the installation process and the final system, specify the ISO code for that language with the lang option. Use the keymap option to configure the correct keyboard layout.

For example, the ISO codes el_GR and gr identify the Greek language and the Greek keyboard layout:

linux lang=el_GR keymap=gr

A.1.2. Configuring the Interface

You may force the installation system to use the lowest possible screen resolution (640x480) with the lowres option. To use a specific display resolution, enter resolution=setting as a boot option. For example, to set the display resolution to 1024x768, enter:

linux resolution=1024x768

To run the installation process in text mode, enter:

  linux text

To enable support for a serial console, enter serial as an additional option.

A.1.3. Specifying the Installation Method

Use the askmethod option to display additional menus that enable you to specify the installation method and network settings. You may also configure the installation method and network settings at the boot: prompt itself.

To specify the installation method from the boot: prompt, use the method option. Refer to Table A.1, “Installation Methods” for the supported installation methods.

Installation Method	Option Format
CD or DVD drive	`method=cdrom`
Hard Drive	`method=hd://device/`
HTTP Server	`method=https://server.mydomain.com/directory/`
FTP Server	`method=ftp://server.mydomain.com/directory/`
NFS Server	`method=nfs:server.mydomain.com:/directory/`

Table A.1. Installation Methods

A.1.4. Manually Configuring the Network Settings

By default, the installation system uses DHCP to automatically obtain the correct network settings. To manually configure the network settings yourself, either enter them in the Configure TCP/IP screen, or at the boot: prompt. You may specify the ip address, netmask, gateway, and dns server settings for the installation system at the prompt. If you specify the network configuration at the boot: prompt, these settings are used for the installation process, and the Configure TCP/IP screen does not appear.

This example configures the network settings for an installation system that uses the IP address 192.168.1.10:

linux ip=192.168.1.10 netmask=255.255.255.0 gateway=192.168.1.1 dns=192.168.1.2,192.168.1.3

	Configuring the Installed System
	Use the Network Configuration screen to specify the network settings for the new system. Refer to Chapter 9, Network Configuration for more information on configuring the network settings for the installed system.