FS#15799 - Installer does not take into account a predefined raid array in /etc/mdadm.conf

Attached to Project: Release Engineering
Opened by ChrisVS (Strider) - Wednesday, 05 August 2009, 07:17 GMT
Last edited by Dieter Plaetinck (Dieter_be) - Saturday, 08 August 2009, 07:43 GMT
Task Type Bug Report
Category AIF
Status Closed
Assigned To Gerhard Brauer (GerBra)
Dieter Plaetinck (Dieter_be)
Architecture All
Severity Medium
Priority Normal
Reported Version 2009.08-alpha
Due in Version 2010.04.05-testbuild
Due Date Undecided
Percent Complete 100%
Votes 0
Private No

Details

If you pre-define your raid array via 'mdadm -D --scan >> /etc/mdadm.conf' and then start the installer the file will not be picked up by the mdadm hook in mkinitcpio.

The reason for this is probably that pacman installs the new raid packages with an empty mdadm.conf file which is consequently used by mkinitcpio.

The current workaround is to
1) complete an install
2) change the /mnt/etc/mdadm.conf with the command above
3) re-enter the install and only mount filessystems

mkinitcpio will then pick up the altered /mnt/etc/mdadm.conf.
This task depends upon

Closed by  Dieter Plaetinck (Dieter_be)
Saturday, 08 August 2009, 07:43 GMT
Reason for closing:  Duplicate
Additional comments about closing:  dup of  FS#14149 
Comment by Gerhard Brauer (GerBra) - Wednesday, 05 August 2009, 07:54 GMT
Yes, this is right - and not a bug. AIF currently don't have the function to full assemble software RAID.
This must be done outside aif accorcing to the wiki article
http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Installing_with_Software_RAID_or_LVM
Only the bootloader (grub) install should work fine on sw RAID.

Steps to use your sw RAID arrays during setup/AIF:
a) Assemble your RAID arrays according to above wiki
b) Use AIF -> Blockdevice setup (your /dev/mdX devices are usable)
c) In Configure system add mdadm hook to mkinitcpio.conf
d) Outside AIF either copy your modified /etc/mdadm.conf to /mnt/etc/
Or generate it with: mdadm -E -s >> /mnt/etc/mdadm.conf
e) initrd images are build with all sw RAID infos after finished Configure step in AIF
f) Install grub bootloader from AIF (it detects a sw RAID env), grub only works on RAID level 1 of course.

We could think about to implement sw RAID setup in AIF interactive/automatic for the next versions...
I made this report related not to 2009.08, but for next release(s).
Comment by ChrisVS (Strider) - Wednesday, 05 August 2009, 08:54 GMT
Gerhard,
I know the wiki you mentioned (in fact I read it several times). I had to run the installer twice because the step you mentioned :

d) Oustide AIF either ...

How do you get outide AIF ? I only have VT 1 and 7 (to consult log message) Trying to connect via another virtual terminal did not work for me ...

Also you can not quit the installer after, say, step 3, do your thing outside the installer and then re-entered it and continue with step 4 because it demands that you pursue all steps sequentially (starting again with step 1)
Comment by Gerhard Brauer (GerBra) - Wednesday, 05 August 2009, 09:55 GMT
You have all the other tty consoles, ex. tty2 (ALT+F2). This is what i meant with "outside" (my english is not the best<g>)

Right, quitting or pausing/resuming AIF is not possible, but step d) is a part of mkinitcpio (which is called from AIF).
The "best time" to copy ex. the madadm.conf into the system you currently are installing is before saying "Done" in "Configure System". After "DONE" the initrd images according to the installed systems are build - and so mkinitcpio's mdadm HOOK inlcludes the previos copied /mnt/etc/madadm.conf...

Short: you could do several things (here: copy the RAID config from /etc to /mnt/etc (/mnt is the TARGET) without leaving a running AIF...
Comment by Dieter Plaetinck (Dieter_be) - Saturday, 08 August 2009, 07:43 GMT
See  FS#14149  for softraid support

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