Network install of Oracle Linux
Fast installs start with a small iso image.
To install Oracle Linux, you’ll need to download an iso image. From there the iso image can be transfered either to a flash disk (e.g. USB drive), or attached to a Virtual Machine. Then, Oracle Linux can be installed.
The full iso image is over 9GB, and there are many environment profiles available on it that can be selected.
However if a GUI is not desired, or a web console is better, then a boot iso image will be enough. The boot iso is a smaller image at less than 1GB, and so is faster to download and create a flash disk.
Install
The initial screen to install Linux is as below:
Choose a language, and then the main install screen will be presented.
As the boot iso image doesn’t have the packages included, the network repository needs to be manually specified.
The possible repos for the binary packages are:
- Intel
https://yum.oracle.com/repo/OracleLinux/OL9/baseos/latest/x86_64/
- ARM
http://yum.oracle.com/repo/OracleLinux/OL9/baseos/latest/aarch64
After the repo has been specified, the installer will check that the URL is correct.
Next, return to the main install screen and specify the root password.
Then can specify the type of environment that you want to install.
There isn’t the range of environments as the full 9GB iso image has, but even the basic install will have a web interface (shown later).
On the main install screen, when all the missing details are complete, then you’ll be ready to begin the installation.
The install will involve downloading the packages from the URL specified earlier.
After a few minutes, the install is complete.
Startup
After a reboot, the login screen will display, and there will be a message to activate the web console as follows:
systemctl enable --now cockpit.socket
With the web console enabled, on the next reboot, you’ll get another message with the URL of the web console.
If you’re running Oracle Linux inside a Virtualbox virtual machine, then you’ll be able connect via a local port forward similar to this from a browser:
http://localhost:9090/Your browser on another host will then give you the opportunity to login to the web console.
After you login, then the functionality of the web console is presented to you.
Paul Guerin has presented at some of the world’s leading Oracle conferences, including Oracle Open World 2013. Since 2015, his work has been featured in the IOUG Best Practices Tip Booklet, and in publications from AUSOUG, Oracle Technology Network, Quest, and Oracle Developers (Medium). In 2019, he was awarded as a most valued contributor for the My Oracle Support Community. He continues to be a participant of the Oracle ACE program.
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