Installation

Installation#

Installation methods#

You can install NethServer 8 on a supported distribution or use one of pre-built images. Both methods require a working Internet connection.

Install on a supported distribution#

Pick your preferred Linux distribution between supported ones.

Start the installation procedure as root:

curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NethServer/ns8-core/ns8-stable/core/install.sh | bash

If the curl command is not available try to install it with:

apt install curl || dnf install curl

Pre-built image#

NethServer 8 provides an image built upon the stable foundation Rocky Linux 9, making it suitable for a wide range of server applications.

The pre-built image uses Cloud-init for network initialization. The default method to obtain network configuration is the DHCP protocol. Refer to your virtualization platform documentation for more information about Cloud-init support.

NS8 image download links#

Platform

Format

Size

URL

QEMU/Proxmox

qcow2

1.7 GB

https://tinyurl.com/ns8-rocky-qcow2

VMWare

vmdk

3.0 GB

https://tinyurl.com/ns8-rocky-vmdk

Choose the qcow2 image format if you are using a KVM-based virtualization platform, like Proxmox, or the vmdk format if you are using something like VMware.

When the image download has completed verify the file integrity with the sha256 checksum file. Download the checksum then run for example the following command:

sha256sum --ignore-missing -c CHECKSUM

Virtualization platform-specific notes:

  • For VMWare, configure the virtual machine to use the IDE driver for the disk.

  • For Proxmox, change the default CPU model to anything other than kvm64.

Finally, start the NS8 image within your virtualization platform, or upload it to a cloud provider to create a public virtual machine.

Default OS administrative credentials are

  • Username: root

  • Password: Nethesis,1234

Access the system console and log in using the default credentials. Upon the first login, you will be prompted to change the password.

To obtain administrative SSH access to the system, create a personal user account in the wheel group and set a password. For instance, execute the following commands and enter the desired password:

useradd -G wheel ethan.smith
passwd ethan.smith

After logging in with the personal user account, gain root access by executing:

sudo su -

Warning

If DHCP was used to obtain the initial network configuration, change the Rocky Linux network settings and configure a static IP address. For more information refer to Node network setup.

Post-installation steps#

When the installation script completes or the pre-built image has started, access the Web user interface at:

https://<server_ip_or_fqdn>/cluster-admin/

Hint

If the node is unreachable, refer to Node network setup.

The default credentials for logging in to the cluster-admin interface are:

  • Username: admin

  • Password: Nethesis,1234

Choose Create cluster and follow the procedure to set up a new single-node cluster. Alternatively, you can join the node to an existing cluster as described in Cluster management, or restore a cluster backup as detailed in Disaster recovery.

For security reasons, change the admin password immediately if it is still set to the default value.

Ensure the node’s Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) is correct and meets the DNS requirements.

Even if running on a single node, the system will set up a Virtual Private Network (VPN) for the cluster. This VPN setup will allow you to add more nodes in the future. The proposed default values should be suitable for most environments, as it theoretically accommodates up to 254 cluster nodes. However, ensure that the VPN network (CIDR) does not conflict with your existing network environment, as it cannot be changed once set.

Finally, click the Create cluster button. Your NS8 is now ready.

By default, the new cluster is named NethServer 8. If you wish to change it:

  • Go to the Settings page and click on the Cluster card.

  • Enter a new name in the Cluster label field.

  • Click the Save settings button.

Not sure where to go from here? You can:

Uninstall#

You can uninstall NS8 from your Linux distribution.

The uninstall command attempts to stop and erase core components and additional modules. Handle it with care because it erases everything under /home and /var/lib/nethserver directories.

To uninstall NS8, execute:

bash /var/lib/nethserver/node/uninstall.sh