knoppix-terminalserver wrong!

**Beakie** · 06-18-2003, 11:01 AM

Hello RockMumbles and others!

Thanks for your response.

When you run from the HD-install, do you run knoppix as the compressed image or as the "expanded" system - in other words, can you simply edit config files in the system and add applications with apt-get as you do with a "normal" Debian?

KDE not running well eh? That's a shame.

Ok, I will here briefly explain the (to me) ideal layout of the cluster I plan to construct and let you guys see if it is possible to do that, according to the difficulties mentioned above.

One computer shall be the "master node" (aka server

), from which the openmosix cluster can be monitored and controlled. This is the only box with a HD and a CD player. The other nodes are diskless and shall boot into clusterknoppix over the network using the service provided by the server and then join the cluster. As far as I understand, this should be able to do more or less automatically - once the server is up, the bios of the nodes should be set to boot from the LAN, right? The server is the only node that actually "contains" any software.

However, I do not want to run the clusterknoppix server from a CD for various reasons. 1. Program latency and spin-down effects when running from CD. 2. Occupied CD-drive. 3. No ability to update files, programs and other aspects of the OS.

I want one "Debianized" HD-install on the server and run the others off the network (which, most importantly, saves me from buying CD and HD drives).

For this I need to retain the function of the terminalserver, don't I? Or maybe I have misunderstood this. The problem seems to be to be able to retain the function while at the same time having a "normal" (not CD-image on a HD-disk) installation of ClusterKnoppix.

I can not figure out how to explain this in a better way, so I hope someone of you understand.

Do you think this is possible to do with ClusterKnoppix, with relatively "little" hacking/manual configuration from my part, or should I try to construct this from scratch with Debian or Gentoo?

The latter requires setting up hardware detection, openmosix and lan-booting and dynamical node-joining manually I guess. With the risk of distracting from the problems above, I think have to put this potential cluster idea into its context. The main points are that this is going to be a scientific cluster that 1) can be administrated easily and not only by me/geeks, 2) that can be constructed from cheep nodes - diskless AMD rack nodes can cost as little as about 500 dollars/euro, 3) expanded (and "heterogenized") when budget allows for it, and finally 4) crunch numbers effectively. Minimal administration and maximal fun

Were it not for the shortcomings mentioned above, ClusterKnoppix seems just VERY VERY RIGHT for the task.

Did you read all of this? I'm impressed!

**RockMumbles** · 06-19-2003, 12:22 AM

For this I need to retain the function of the terminalserver, don't I?

Yes!

--rock

**uteck** · 06-19-2003, 03:51 PM

One computer shall be the "master node" (aka server ), from which the openmosix cluster can be monitored and controlled. This is the only box with a HD and a CD player. The other nodes are diskless and shall boot into clusterknoppix over the network using the service provided by the server and then join the cluster. As far as I understand, this should be able to do more or less automatically - once the server is up, the bios of the nodes should be set to boot from the LAN, right? The server is the only node that actually "contains" any software.

This is what I am setting up. Following the instructions posted by Omak(Thanks again

) I have 1 master with a hard drive installed version, and now 2 others that boot from it over the network. I had to use the rom-o-matic to make floppys for them to boot off of so they will boot from the network. (Network booting is not an option for their BIOS) I might try adding rom chips to the NIC's but not now.
I have not installed any additional sofware yet on the /cdrom/knoppix work around, but I am confident that it will work since Omak has not been wrong yet.
Since the machines can only hold 64MB of ram I am going to try installing a 1GB hard drive so they can use it as swap, and to store setings. A Pentium 200 can take while to boot.

**dolphin** · 06-19-2003, 06:21 PM

mm interesting.. I'll add this as an option to my next clusterknoppix release

--Wim

**Beakie** · 06-20-2003, 02:40 PM

hello again guys/gals,

nice to see that topology working for you uteck, and that Wim has taken a look at this. and kudos to Omak! now I feel confident to persuade my supervisor to buy the hardware

. Short question about swappig - do your nodes swap in a virtual RAM swap or do they access the harddrive of the server to swap?

I have a million questions about the ClusterKnoppix-OpenMosix cluster, but I am afraid that they are a bit too off-topic to be accepted here. Maybe I should migrate to another forum somewhere? But you all seem very nice and helpful, so I will give it a shot.

When booting the nodes off the LAN in CK, is "cluster performance" (in this case; program loading and thread migration) limited by network, harddrive, memory or processor speed? I guess any of these could be bottlenecks, but, for instance, is a 100MBit network sufficient for say 10 2GHz nodes with 333MHz memory interface? Can this question even be asked?

I have not yet tried CK myself, but is the SSH-serverscript found in Knoppix still around in CK?

Have a nice midsummer's eve! (Pseudo-kinky viking holiday in Sweden)

**RockMumbles** · 06-20-2003, 03:34 PM

From what I've been told

they access the harddrive of the server to swap

that's why a small swap hd would be nice addition.

Are these computers going to be on a separate network? The reason I ask is at home where I have a linux router with dhcp running I CAN use the terminalserver, but at school where we have a win2K network I cannot use the terminalserver because of problems on the win2k network with its dhcp server.

--rock

**uteck** · 06-20-2003, 04:26 PM

I formated the 1 GB drive as DOS, but the computer booting from the mosix terminal server still does not mount it as a swap drive. I will have to try adding a dos drive to the server and see it that dose it. Or perhaps that mesage about dos drives is not applicable to the terminal servers?

**anonp** · 06-30-2003, 10:19 AM

Hi all,

I am also trying to get Knoppix Terminal Server to run off my HD and also be able to customize it. I have followed Omak's direction but I am encountering problems.

1. The client complains that the /linuxrc: 10.0.0.240:/cdrom: not found

2. then, things like cp, mv, etc cannot be found...

I am using 3.2-2003-6-6.

Can someone pls post their linuxrc? Any idea what's wrong? Pls help.

Thanks.

**Omak** · 07-05-2003, 03:10 PM

Originally Posted by anonp

Hi all,

I am also trying to get Knoppix Terminal Server to run off my HD and also be able to customize it. I have followed Omak's direction but I am encountering problems.

1. The client complains that the /linuxrc: 10.0.0.240:/cdrom: not found

2. then, things like cp, mv, etc cannot be found...

I am using 3.2-2003-6-6.

Can someone pls post their linuxrc? Any idea what's wrong? Pls help.

Thanks.

Please read posts one by one from the first one. You'll found the right way.

**pooh_** · 10-09-2003, 12:42 PM

Omak,

Interesting steps you've made here, compliments.

I would really like to know if you have further 'fine tuned' your idea's and steps.
Are you still working on it ?

Chez Chez Nin