How to use Builder to create a Node
This page is intended to formalize how to use the current Builder scripts in the PTP subversion repository
( http://svn.personaltelco.net/svn/ptp )
to build a Captive Portal Personal Telco Branded router on a computer with two ethernet cards.
The current state of builder is a working proof of concept. In the future all of the fuctionality of these process will be part of Adhocracy.
Step One (Prepare the Hardware)
For a matter of maintaining support and stability in a rational way we have choosen to use Debian Woody (Stable) as the Linux distrobution to build upon. These scripts expect to find a computer that has a minimal debian install, two ethernet cards, and a connection to the Internet.
partition the hard disk
Currently the most common hard drive size that we have been using is a 2G drive. Normally this is the way the particions are created.
256M Swap
256M /
512M /var
1G /home
install Debian Woody
Perform a minimal stable install easily accomplished with a Debian Stable r3 or r2 netinst disk.
Install with a 2.4 kernel
boot: bf2.4
Do not run taskel
Do not run dselect
Upon reboot, only create the root user, tell the mail subsystem to do nothing, enable all choices for encrypting passwords, and answer the default for most other questions (More detail later)
Do not run taskel
Do not run dselect
Step Two (Create Nodedb Entry)
Go to http://maps.personaltelco.net/
Create an entry in nodedb which contains the details of the node location. Please use the naming scheme
'Personal Telco - Node Name'
Document the Node number which was assigned to the location.
Step Three (Create Configuration Files)
Define Network Address Allocation
Go to the wiki page NetworkAddressAllocations and define the network that will be used for the node.
Please use network allocations that are efficient for the network you are installing
ie. You probably don't need to use a full /24
Create files with node-preconfig.sh
Create a working directory to run the builder script node-preconfig.sh
mkdir builder
cd builder
wget http://svn.personaltelco.net/svn/ptp/code/trunk/builder/node-preconfig.sh
chmod 755 node-preconfig.sh
Now run node-preconfig.sh with the -s option
./node-preconfig.sh -s
and complete the following questions in a way that is applicable to your node location:
[aaronb@laptop builder]$ ./node-preconfig.sh -s
Node number: 608
Location (20 char. or less): Urban Grind - Pearl District
Contact: ops@personaltelco.net
Hostname: grank
Domain: personaltelco.net
FQDN is grank.personaltelco.net
Internet IP address (or 'dhcp'): dhcp
Internet DNS address 1: 64.122.195.142
Internet DNS address 2 (or 'none'): 198.107.22.251
PTPnet IP address: 10.11.47.1
PTPnet network address: 10.11.47.0
PTPnet network mask: 255.255.255.0
PTPnet broadcast address: 10.11.47.255
PTPnet DHCP server pool start address: 10.11.47.50
PTPnet DHCP server pool finish address: 10.11.47.200
This will create and commit the configuration files for your node into the repository