FOG Post-Image Tasks without Client
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I am setting up FOG in a “manufacturer” type setting, whereby the box gets shipped out after imaging. I don’t want the FOG client installed on the image in the field.
I have setup Capone to image based on MOBO - all is good there. The trick is while (or after) imaging, I want to drop a specific file on the box (which file will depend on the client). Since the FOG client isn’t installed on the image, I don’t believe I can use a snap-in. Is that a correct understanding?
Other workaround/thoughts I had were:
- Somehow develop a separate script/utility or trigger that would watch the MySQL table to identify a client has been imaged and remotely connect to the PC and drop a file.
- Setup a cron job on the image so it runs when booted to grab the file via TFTP. Except I only want this to run once and then delete itself. Easy with runonce on windows, not so much on Linux.
- Somehow mess with PXE to add a menu item to “save the file”, which would be done after the PXE image is run.
FYI, I have to be able to support clients that are Windows-based and Linux-based.
Any suggestions/leads will be so very appreciated.
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aren’t you required to setup the windows PCs to do the OOBE for your clients?
why not just drop the file in the image?
You could use your sysprep to run a file once -
Thank you for the response. There are several “clients”, each of them have the same image, with the exception of a different license file that gets dropped on the box. I was trying to avoid having a whole separate image for each client just for the license file. For the windows boxes, we do not run sysprep because we want the image directly tied to the hardware - which we control.
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You can still have an image sysprepped that’s still tied to hardware. Just don’t choose the generalize option.
Use the unattend file to set the key you need for activation. It would take some work but you can actually generate the unattend file and have it post into the proper place after the imaging completes, but before the system reboots for the first time.
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Sorry I don’t know a lot about sysprep. When you mention sysprep for setting the key, are you referring to the windows key? The key file I mentioned is for a 3rd party application running on the box, not for windows itself. is that something that sysprep can do?
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I was under the impression you were talking about activating windows.
WIth the new information, you wouldn’t need to sysprep at all. But using some scripting you could setup the systems with the file you’re referring to for activating that other hardware.
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Thanks Tom. That’s exactly what I expected, but I’m stuck on the approach. How do I customize FOG to take an action after the box is imaged? Or do I create a mysql trigger to call the script? Or does the script live on the imaged client and act on boot?
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It requires modifying the init.gz file slightly.
Maybe add a function that gets the file it needs.
Basic simple steps are:
Mount the proper partition (probably /dev/sda2)Then copy the file through nfs (probably already Mounted) to the location you need on in the drive.
It won’t be simple, nor too hard either.
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I use start up scripts to active my Windows and my services. I set up my programs to install silently and I use a file to answer the questions. This could include your key to your program. I don’t know that this is the proper way to handle the situation, but I get pretty inventive with what I know how to do.
You need to be good at scripting before you attempt this.
