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1 To create a initramfs image, the most simple command is:
2 ----
3 # dracut
4 ----
5
6 This will generate a general purpose initramfs image, with all possible
7 functionality resulting of the combination of the installed dracut modules and
8 system tools. The image is /boot/initramfs-_++<kernel version>++_.img and
9 contains the kernel modules of the currently active kernel with version
10 _++<kernel version>++_.
11
12 If the initramfs image already exists, dracut will display an error message, and
13 to overwrite the existing image, you have to use the --force option.
14 ----
15 # dracut --force
16 ----
17
18 If you want to specify another filename for the resulting image you would issue
19 a command like:
20 ----
21 # dracut foobar.img
22 ----
23
24 To generate an image for a specific kernel version, the command would be:
25 ----
26 # dracut foobar.img 2.6.40-1.rc5.f20
27 ----
28
29 A shortcut to generate the image at the default location for a specific kernel
30 version is:
31 ----
32 # dracut --kver 2.6.40-1.rc5.f20
33 ----
34
35 If you want to create lighter, smaller initramfs images, you may want to specify
36 the --hostonly or -H option. Using this option, the resulting image will
37 contain only those dracut modules, kernel modules and filesystems, which are
38 needed to boot this specific machine. This has the drawback, that you can't put
39 the disk on another controller or machine, and that you can't switch to another
40 root filesystem, without recreating the initramfs image. The usage of the
41 --hostonly option is only for experts and you will have to keep the broken
42 pieces. At least keep a copy of a general purpose image (and corresponding
43 kernel) as a fallback to rescue your system.
44
45 === Inspecting the Contents
46 To see the contents of the image created by dracut, you can use the lsinitrd
47 tool.
48 ----
49 # lsinitrd | less
50 ----
51
52 To display the contents of a file in the initramfs also use the lsinitrd tool:
53 ----
54 # lsinitrd -f /etc/ld.so.conf
55 include ld.so.conf.d/*.conf
56 ----
57
58 === Adding dracut Modules
59 Some dracut modules are turned off by default and have to be activated manually.
60 You can do this by adding the dracut modules to the configuration file
61 _/etc/dracut.conf_ or _/etc/dracut.conf.d/myconf.conf_. See *dracut.conf*(5).
62 You can also add dracut modules on the command line
63 by using the -a or --add option:
64 ----
65 # dracut --add bootchart initramfs-bootchart.img
66 ----
67
68 To see a list of available dracut modules, use the --list-modules option:
69 ----
70 # dracut --list-modules
71 ----
72
73 === Omitting dracut Modules
74 Sometimes you don't want a dracut module to be included for reasons of speed,
75 size or functionality. To do this, either specify the omit_dracutmodules
76 variable in the _dracut.conf_ or _/etc/dracut.conf.d/myconf.conf_ configuration
77 file (see *dracut.conf*(5)), or use the -o or --omit option
78 on the command line:
79 ----
80 # dracut -o "multipath lvm" no-multipath-lvm.img
81 ----
82
83 === Adding Kernel Modules
84 If you need a special kernel module in the initramfs, which is not
85 automatically picked up by dracut, you have the use the --add-drivers option
86 on the command line or the drivers variable in the _/etc/dracut.conf_
87 or _/etc/dracut.conf.d/myconf.conf_ configuration file (see *dracut.conf*(5)):
88 ----
89 # dracut --add-drivers mymod initramfs-with-mymod.img
90 ----
91
92 === Boot parameters
93 An initramfs generated without the "hostonly" mode, does not contain any system
94 configuration files (except for some special exceptions), so the configuration
95 has to be done on the kernel command line. With this flexibility, you can easily
96 boot from a changed root partition, without the need to recompile the initramfs
97 image. So, you could completely change your root partition (move it inside a md
98 raid with encryption and LVM on top), as long as you specify the correct
99 filesystem LABEL or UUID on the kernel command line for your root device, dracut
100 will find it and boot from it.
101
102 The kernel command line can also be provided by the dhcp server with the
103 root-path option. See <<NetworkBoot>>.
104
105 For a full reference of all kernel command line parameters,
106 see *dracut.cmdline*(5).
107
108 To get a quick start for the suitable kernel command line on your system,
109 use the __--print-cmdline__ option:
110 ----
111 # dracut --print-cmdline
112 root=UUID=8b8b6f91-95c7-4da2-831b-171e12179081 rootflags=rw,relatime,discard,data=ordered rootfstype=ext4
113 ----
114
115 ==== Specifying the root Device
116 This is the only option dracut really needs to boot from your root partition.
117 Because your root partition can live in various environments, there are a lot of
118 formats for the root= option. The most basic one is root=_++<path to device
119 node>++_:
120 ----
121 root=/dev/sda2
122 ----
123
124 Because device node names can change, dependent on the drive ordering, you are
125 encouraged to use the filesystem identifier (UUID) or filesystem label (LABEL)
126 to specify your root partition:
127 ----
128 root=UUID=19e9dda3-5a38-484d-a9b0-fa6b067d0331
129 ----
130
131 or
132
133 ----
134 root=LABEL=myrootpartitionlabel
135 ----
136
137 To see all UUIDs or LABELs on your system, do:
138 ----
139 # ls -l /dev/disk/by-uuid
140 ----
141
142 or
143
144 ----
145 # ls -l /dev/disk/by-label
146 ----
147
148 If your root partition is on the network see <<NetworkBoot>>.
149
150 ==== Keyboard Settings
151 If you have to input passwords for encrypted disk volumes, you might want to set
152 the keyboard layout and specify a display font.
153
154 A typical german kernel command would contain:
155 ----
156 rd.vconsole.font=latarcyrheb-sun16 rd.vconsole.keymap=de-latin1-nodeadkeys rd.locale.LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
157 ----
158
159 Setting these options can override the setting stored on your system, if you use
160 a modern init system, like systemd.
161
162 ==== Blacklisting Kernel Modules
163 Sometimes it is required to prevent the automatic kernel module loading of a
164 specific kernel module. To do this, just add rd.blacklist=_++<kernel module
165 name>++_, with _++<kernel module name>++_ not containing the _.ko_
166 suffix, to the kernel command line. For example:
167 ----
168 rd.driver.blacklist=mptsas rd.driver.blacklist=nouveau
169 ----
170
171 The option can be specified multiple times on the kernel command line.
172
173 ==== Speeding up the Boot Process
174 If you want to speed up the boot process, you can specify as much information
175 for dracut on the kernel command as possible. For example, you can tell dracut,
176 that you root partition is not on a LVM volume or not on a raid partition, or
177 that it lives inside a specific crypto LUKS encrypted volume. By default, dracut
178 searches everywhere. A typical dracut kernel command line for a plain primary or
179 logical partition would contain:
180 ----
181 rd.luks=0 rd.lvm=0 rd.md=0 rd.dm=0
182 ----
183
184 This turns off every automatic assembly of LVM, MD raids, DM raids and
185 crypto LUKS.
186
187 Of course, you could also omit the dracut modules in the initramfs creation
188 process, but then you would lose the possibility to turn it on on demand.
189
190
191 [[Injecting]]
192 === Injecting custom Files
193 To add your own files to the initramfs image, you have several possibilities.
194
195 The --include option let you specify a source path and a target path.
196 For example
197 ----
198 # dracut --include cmdline-preset /etc/cmdline.d/mycmdline.conf initramfs-cmdline-pre.img
199 ----
200 will create an initramfs image, where the file cmdline-preset will be copied
201 inside the initramfs to _/etc/cmdline.d/mycmdline.conf_. --include can only
202 be specified once.
203
204
205 ----
206 # mkdir -p rd.live.overlay/etc/cmdline.d
207 # mkdir -p rd.live.overlay/etc/conf.d
208 # echo "ip=dhcp" >> rd.live.overlay/etc/cmdline.d/mycmdline.conf
209 # echo export FOO=testtest >> rd.live.overlay/etc/conf.d/testvar.conf
210 # echo export BAR=testtest >> rd.live.overlay/etc/conf.d/testvar.conf
211 # tree rd.live.overlay/
212 rd.live.overlay/
213 `-- etc
214 |-- cmdline.d
215 | `-- mycmdline.conf
216 `-- conf.d
217 `-- testvar.conf
218
219 # dracut --include rd.live.overlay / initramfs-rd.live.overlay.img
220 ----
221
222 This will put the contents of the rd.live.overlay directory into the root of the
223 initramfs image.
224
225 The --install option let you specify several files, which will get installed in
226 the initramfs image at the same location, as they are present on initramfs
227 creation time.
228
229
230 ----
231 # dracut --install 'strace fsck.ext3 ssh' initramfs-dbg.img
232 ----
233
234 This will create an initramfs with the strace, fsck.ext3 and ssh executables,
235 together with the libraries needed to start those. The --install option can be
236 specified multiple times.
237
238
239 [[NetworkBoot]]
240 === Network Boot
241
242 If your root partition is on a network drive, you have to have the network
243 dracut modules installed to create a network aware initramfs image.
244
245 If you specify ip=dhcp on the kernel command line, then dracut asks a dhcp
246 server about the ip address for the machine. The dhcp server can also serve an
247 additional root-path, which will set the root device for dracut. With this
248 mechanism, you have static configuration on your client machine and a
249 centralized boot configuration on your TFTP/DHCP server. If you can't pass a
250 kernel command line, then you can inject _/etc/cmdline.d/mycmdline.conf_, with a
251 method described in <<Injecting>>.
252
253 ==== Reducing the Image Size
254
255 To reduce the size of the initramfs, you should create it with by omitting all
256 dracut modules, which you know, you don't need to boot the machine.
257
258 You can also specify the exact dracut and kernel modules to produce a very tiny
259 initramfs image.
260
261 For example for a NFS image, you would do:
262
263
264 ----
265 # dracut -m "nfs network base" initramfs-nfs-only.img
266 ----
267
268 Then you would boot from this image with your target machine and reduce the size
269 once more by creating it on the target machine with the --host-only option:
270
271
272 ----
273 # dracut -m "nfs network base" --host-only initramfs-nfs-host-only.img
274 ----
275
276 This will reduce the size of the initramfs image significantly.
277
278
279 == Troubleshooting
280
281 If the boot process does not succeed, you have several options to debug the
282 situation. Some of the basic operations are covered here. For more information
283 you should also visit:
284 https://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/utils/boot/dracut/dracut.html
285
286
287 [[identifying-your-problem-area]]
288 === Identifying your problem area
289 . Remove ''rhgb'' and ''quiet'' from the kernel command line
290 . Add ''rd.shell'' to the kernel command line. This will present a shell should
291 dracut be unable to locate your root device
292 . Add ''rd.shell rd.debug log_buf_len=1M'' to the kernel command line so that
293 dracut shell commands are printed as they are executed
294 . The file /run/initramfs/rdsosreport.txt is generated,
295 which contains all the logs and the output of all significant tools, which are
296 mentioned later.
297
298 If you want to save that output, simply mount /boot by hand or insert an USB
299 stick and mount that. Then you can store the output for later inspection.
300
301 [[information-to-include-in-your-report]]
302 === Information to include in your report
303
304 [[all-bug-reports]]
305 ==== All bug reports
306 In all cases, the following should be mentioned and attached to your bug report:
307
308 * The exact kernel command-line used. Typically from the bootloader
309 configuration file (e.g. _/boot/grub2/grub.cfg_) or from _/proc/cmdline_.
310 * A copy of your disk partition information from _/etc/fstab_, which might be
311 obtained booting an old working initramfs or a rescue medium.
312 * Turn on dracut debugging (see _the 'debugging dracut' section_), and attach
313 the file /run/initramfs/rdsosreport.txt.
314 * If you use a dracut configuration file, please include _/etc/dracut.conf_ and
315 all files in _/etc/dracut.conf.d/*.conf_
316
317 [[network-root-device-related-problems]]
318 ==== Network root device related problems
319 This section details information to include when experiencing problems on a
320 system whose root device is located on a network attached volume (e.g. iSCSI,
321 NFS or NBD). As well as the information from <<all-bug-reports>>, include the
322 following information:
323
324
325 * Please include the output of
326 +
327 ----
328 # /sbin/ifup <interfacename>
329 # ip addr show
330 ----
331
332 [[debugging-dracut]]
333 === Debugging dracut
334
335
336 [[configure-a-serial-console]]
337 ==== Configure a serial console
338
339 Successfully debugging dracut will require some form of console
340 logging during the system boot. This section documents configuring a
341 serial console connection to record boot messages.
342
343 . First, enable serial console output for both the kernel and the bootloader.
344 . Open the file _/boot/grub2/grub.cfg_ for editing. Below the line ''timeout=5'', add
345 the following:
346 +
347 ----
348 serial --unit=0 --speed=9600
349 terminal --timeout=5 serial console
350 ----
351 +
352 . Also in _/boot/grub2/grub.cfg_, add the following boot arguemnts to the ''kernel''
353 line:
354 +
355 ----
356 console=tty0 console=ttyS0,9600
357 ----
358 +
359 . When finished, the _/boot/grub2/grub.cfg_ file should look similar to the example
360 below.
361 +
362 ----
363 default=0
364 timeout=5
365 serial --unit=0 --speed=9600
366 terminal --timeout=5 serial console
367 title Fedora (2.6.29.5-191.fc11.x86_64)
368 root (hd0,0)
369 kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.29.5-191.fc11.x86_64 ro root=/dev/mapper/vg_uc1-lv_root console=tty0 console=ttyS0,9600
370 initrd /dracut-2.6.29.5-191.fc11.x86_64.img
371 ----
372 +
373 . More detailed information on how to configure the kernel for console output
374 can be found at
375 http://www.faqs.org/docs/Linux-HOWTO/Remote-Serial-Console-HOWTO.html#CONFIGURE-KERNEL.
376 . Redirecting non-interactive output
377 +
378 --
379 NOTE: You can redirect all non-interactive output to _/dev/kmsg_ and the kernel
380 will put it out on the console when it reaches the kernel buffer by doing
381
382 ----
383 # exec >/dev/kmsg 2>&1 </dev/console
384 ----
385 --
386
387 [[using-the-dracut-shell]]
388 ==== Using the dracut shell
389
390 dracut offers a shell for interactive debugging in the event dracut fails to
391 locate your root filesystem. To enable the shell:
392
393 . Add the boot parameter ''rd.shell'' to your bootloader configuration file
394 (e.g. _/boot/grub2/grub.cfg_)
395 . Remove the boot arguments ''rhgb'' and ''quiet''
396 +
397 A sample _/boot/grub2/grub.cfg_ bootloader configuration file is listed below.
398 +
399 ----
400 default=0
401 timeout=5
402 serial --unit=0 --speed=9600
403 terminal --timeout=5 serial console
404 title Fedora (2.6.29.5-191.fc11.x86_64)
405 root (hd0,0)
406 kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.29.5-191.fc11.x86_64 ro root=/dev/mapper/vg_uc1-lv_root console=tty0 rd.shell
407 initrd /dracut-2.6.29.5-191.fc11.x86_64.img
408 ----
409 +
410 . If system boot fails, you will be dropped into a shell as seen in the example
411 below.
412 +
413 ----
414 No root device found
415 Dropping to debug shell.
416
417 #
418 ----
419 +
420 . Use this shell prompt to gather the information requested above
421 (see <<all-bug-reports>>).
422
423 [[accessing-the-root-volume-from-the-dracut-shell]]
424 ==== Accessing the root volume from the dracut shell
425 From the dracut debug shell, you can manually perform the task of locating and
426 preparing your root volume for boot. The required steps will depend on how your
427 root volume is configured. Common scenarios include:
428
429 * A block device (e.g. _/dev/sda7_)
430 * A LVM logical volume (e.g. _/dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00_)
431 * An encrypted device
432 (e.g. _/dev/mapper/luks-4d5972ea-901c-4584-bd75-1da802417d83_)
433 * A network attached device
434 (e.g. _netroot=iscsi:@192.168.0.4::3260::iqn.2009-02.org.example:for.all_)
435
436 The exact method for locating and preparing will vary. However, to continue with
437 a successful boot, the objective is to locate your root volume and create a
438 symlink _/dev/root_ which points to the file system. For example, the following
439 example demonstrates accessing and booting a root volume that is an encrypted
440 LVM Logical volume.
441
442 . Inspect your partitions using parted
443 +
444 ----
445 # parted /dev/sda -s p
446 Model: ATA HTS541060G9AT00 (scsi)
447 Disk /dev/sda: 60.0GB
448 Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B
449 Partition Table: msdos
450 Number Start End Size Type File system Flags
451 1 32.3kB 10.8GB 107MB primary ext4 boot
452 2 10.8GB 55.6GB 44.7GB logical lvm
453 ----
454 +
455 . You recall that your root volume was a LVM logical volume. Scan and activate
456 any logical volumes.
457 +
458 ----
459 # lvm vgscan
460 # lvm vgchange -ay
461 ----
462 +
463 . You should see any logical volumes now using the command blkid:
464 +
465 ----
466 # blkid
467 /dev/sda1: UUID="3de247f3-5de4-4a44-afc5-1fe179750cf7" TYPE="ext4"
468 /dev/sda2: UUID="Ek4dQw-cOtq-5MJu-OGRF-xz5k-O2l8-wdDj0I" TYPE="LVM2_member"
469 /dev/mapper/linux-root: UUID="def0269e-424b-4752-acf3-1077bf96ad2c" TYPE="crypto_LUKS"
470 /dev/mapper/linux-home: UUID="c69127c1-f153-4ea2-b58e-4cbfa9257c5e" TYPE="ext3"
471 /dev/mapper/linux-swap: UUID="47b4d329-975c-4c08-b218-f9c9bf3635f1" TYPE="swap"
472 ----
473 +
474 . From the output above, you recall that your root volume exists on an encrypted
475 block device. Following the guidance disk encryption guidance from the
476 Installation Guide, you unlock your encrypted root volume.
477 +
478 ----
479 # UUID=$(cryptsetup luksUUID /dev/mapper/linux-root)
480 # cryptsetup luksOpen /dev/mapper/linux-root luks-$UUID
481 Enter passphrase for /dev/mapper/linux-root:
482 Key slot 0 unlocked.
483 ----
484 +
485 . Next, make a symbolic link to the unlocked root volume
486 +
487 ----
488 # ln -s /dev/mapper/luks-$UUID /dev/root
489 ----
490 +
491 . With the root volume available, you may continue booting the system by exiting
492 the dracut shell
493 +
494 ----
495 # exit
496 ----
497
498 [[additional-dracut-boot-parameters]]
499 ==== Additional dracut boot parameters
500 For more debugging options, see *dracut.cmdline*(7).
501
502
503 [[debugging-dracut-on-shutdown]]
504 ==== Debugging dracut on shutdown
505
506 To debug the shutdown sequence on systemd systems, you can _rd.break_
507 on _pre-shutdown_ or _shutdown_.
508
509 To do this from an already booted system:
510 ----
511 # mkdir -p /run/initramfs/etc/cmdline.d
512 # echo "rd.debug rd.break=pre-shutdown rd.break=shutdown" > /run/initramfs/etc/cmdline.d/debug.conf
513 # touch /run/initramfs/.need_shutdown
514 ----
515
516 This will give you a dracut shell after the system pivot'ed back in the
517 initramfs.
518