Skipping chkdsk?
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My co-workers have been asking if there is a way to disable checkdisk after a machine is imaged. It doesn’t bother me at all, but it is a concern to them. We run the bypass which shouldn’t be a big concern, but wasn’t sure if there was any config file we could modify to make them happy.
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I just tested putting a image onto a new (blank) virtual machine. It’s a WinXP image. It did not run a check disk after laying down the image. This makes me think it’s a setting in the image that you’re using.
Also, what’s the problem with letting check disk run? We have hundreds of machines that run a check disk every night on reboot and experience no issues from that.
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Basically, by using the bypass, it’s essentially doing a quick image and if I remember right, a quick image forces a checkdisk. I don’t have a problem with it, but my job is not to replace/install computers. When we receive computers in, it’s not unheard of to have 500-800 come in at one time but can only image about 20-30 at a time. Needless to say this takes awhile and the less time it takes, the better. Hence the request made by co-workers.
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I created registration bypass long before the option to skip check disk was availabl, from .29 You would not be able to do this without modifying init from a new version of fog to include the changes
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Can someone provide more details here? Chkdsk never runs after I image any systems, unless something has gone wrong.
I generally build a Win7 image on one computer in audit mode, add all the drivers for sysprep, shrink the partition down to the lowest drive size of the computer I keep in inventory, then do a defrag and chkdsk before I sysprep and pull the image. Works all the time and across every kind of hardware I’ve tried.
astrouga
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With FOG .32 if you were to do a quick image, it forces a check disk on restart, regardless of how the image was setup. If you were to go through and setup the machine to deploy an image from the webserver, it’ll run just fine without running check disk. The file that jdd49 made, the bypass, would be similar to doing a quick image. It does work really well, and has saved us a lot of time doing mass imaging, but due to the mass imaging, that’s why I was asked if the check disk could be removed. And quite honestly, I have no idea where to start to even look into modifying the .32 (or ,33) init file.
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Ah, I see. I don’t use the quick image much.
Modifying the init image is not a big deal. Just make a backup copy of the file before you start.
I just took a quick peek. There is a fog file in /bin with a “RUN_CHKDSK” setting and some conditions. I’ll see if I can modify it and get it to never do a checkdisk. Give me a day to take a look. I won’t have a chance to try it today.
astrouga
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I was digging around in the init image, trying to track down the “chkdsk” variable that seems to control this and eventually discovered that is is trying to get this setting from the web management! So, try this:
Other Information --> Fog Settings --> General Settings --> FOG_DISABLE_CHKDSK =1.
1 skips chkdsk, 0 runs it. Mine was set to 1 already. It seems that this is an “experimental feature” in .32.
Let me know if that works for you. If not, I’ll go back into the init image. I think I know what to adjust now.–astrouga
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I also have this “problem”. my FOG_DISABLE_CHKDSK is set to 1 in the webserver, but it doesn’t actually skip the chkdsk on a quick image. I haven’t had the chance to dig around in the init yet, but let us know if you find anything!
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Personally, I would like to see what jdd49 changed in the .29 bypass file and replicate it once .33 comes out. AFAIK the new version of FOG used Part Image? It would be nice to run the bypass with the new “imaging software”.
astrouga, what are you using the modify the file. I tend to use gedit to modify my files but init is to big to open. Are you using something else like Vi?
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[quote=“Kevin, post: 4871, member: 3”]Personally, I would like to see what jdd49 changed in the .29 bypass file and replicate it once .33 comes out. AFAIK the new version of FOG used Part Image? It would be nice to run the bypass with the new “imaging software”.
astrouga, what are you using the modify the file. I tend to use gedit to modify my files but init is to big to open. Are you using something else like Vi?[/quote]
my guess would be he’s mounting it to a temporary folder. the process is actually documented here:
[url]http://www.fogproject.org/wiki/index.php/Modifying_the_Init_Image[/url]
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Interesting, never knew that existed
Thanks -
[quote=“Kevin, post: 4876, member: 3”]Interesting, never knew that existed
Thanks[/quote]
I didn’t either. It seems it might not work though.astrouga
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[quote=“Kevin, post: 4871, member: 3”]
astrouga, what are you using the modify the file. I tend to use gedit to modify my files but init is to big to open. Are you using something else like Vi?[/quote]I’m using the “by hand” method in the link dvlsg mentioned:
[url]http://www.fogproject.org/wiki/index.php/Modifying_the_Init_Image[/url]BTW, I realized a long time ago that it takes mere minutes to do a complete reinstall of a fog sever (minus images and such). So I just take a spare system set it up with ubuntu and the latest version of fog. Whenever I want to test a system, I just take my fog server offline and bring the test one up. I don’t have to worry about whacking my working server that way and I don’t have to go to the trouble of backing it all up.
astrouga
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[quote=“astrouga, post: 4885, member: 907”]
BTW, I realized a long time ago that it takes mere minutes to do a complete reinstall of a fog sever (minus images and such). So I just take a spare system set it up with ubuntu and the latest version of fog. Whenever I want to test a system, I just take my fog server offline and bring the test one up. I don’t have to worry about whacking my working server that way and I don’t have to go to the trouble of backing it all up.
astrouga[/quote]mmmhm. i do the same thing, actually. i have FOG running as a VM in VMWare, and i have a copy i can test out.
i’m just glad i know where the chkdsk’s are coming from. i didn’t realize they were a scheduled part of the quick image until i saw this thread, haha.
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Has anyone tried setting “FOG_DISABLE_CHKDSK = 0” to see if chkdsk runs? I just finished a couple of quickimage tasks with the setting on “0” and it did not run a chkdsk. Of course, I didn’t try it with “1”.
astrouga
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[quote=“astrouga, post: 4910, member: 907”]Has anyone tried setting “FOG_DISABLE_CHKDSK = 0” to see if chkdsk runs? I just finished a couple of quickimage tasks with the setting on “0” and it did not run a chkdsk. Of course, I didn’t try it with “1”.
astrouga[/quote]
I think you’re right - the setting seems backwards. I swapped FOG_DISABLE_CHKDSK to 0, and the quick image didn’t try running a chkdsk. I’ve only had a chance to try it once on one computer. I’ll see if I can push out a quick image to another.
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Thanks for testing that out quickly.
That is what I figured after looking at the code. There is a shorthand php if-then that seems to determine it. Let us know if your get to test it on another host.
astrouga
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Yup! Same result with any quick image I try. I still haven’t had a chance to look at the init myself, but I’m glad you’re finding it! Does the if-then selection seem backwards in the php?
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Yeah, perhaps they whole “DISABLE”/“ENABLE” thing got him confused. I think it would be easier for most people to go edit the php for the FOG SETTINGS page and change the FOG_DISABLE_CHKDSK to FOG_ENABLE_CHKDSK. I’m not near my computer now, otherwise I’d insert the code and filename here. Tomorrow I guess.
astrouga