“Make configuration choices ahead of time, then watch the
system install without your help.“
“Red Hat has an automatic installation facility in 6.x that’s
pretty impressive (and I’m not just saying that because I own
shares in the company, either). It’s called Kickstart, and it’s
similar to the Solaris utility of the same name, if you’re familiar
with that. Kickstart allows you to install a full system just by
inserting a boot floppy and starting the computer. You can make
partitioning, X setup, network, and package choices ahead of time,
then let the install run without your intervention. This is great
if you have machines that need to have an OS reinstalled often, as
is often the case in lab environments.”
“In my PC lab, I often need to install a variety of operating
systems on several types of machines, and then mix and match again
later. Kickstart saves me time by letting me start an installation
and then walk away. Unlike the process of duplicating a disk, I
don’t need a master hard drive, and each machine that I configure
can have different packages installed on it.”