Felitaur Enterprises Linux System Administration | Felitaur Enterprises Homepage
Instructions for Installing CentOS 6 using vmware and a USB drive (10-12Gb or larger)
Download free VMware player
  1. First make sure your USB HD is showing up under "My Computer", and if not, you may have to initialize/partition/format it.
    (And if it is a NTFS formatted drive, hopefully you remembered to give "All" permissions to "Everyone" in windows.
  2. Download and unzip the Updated VMWare Image for CentOS (RHEL with 12Gb)
  3. Put your DVD into drive.
  4. Start the vmware player
  5. click "open" and guide it to the .vmx file on your USB HD (probably e:)
  6. You may have to click "Take ownership"
  7. A colored menu screen shows up, just make sure the top choice is selected and hit [enter]
    (NOTE: You have to click inside the VMware window and then hit enter)
  8. Test CD Install Media (Skip this by [tab]ing to skip and hit enter)
  9. Welcome to CentOS
    Just click on [next]
  10. Language selection
    Just click on [next]
  11. Keyboard Selection
    Just click on [next]
  12. What type of storage devices? Leave it on "Basic Storage Devices" and hit [enter]
  13. Just click "yes to discard existing data"
  14. Please Name the computer, make sure to click the [configure network] button and follow instructions in class,
    Mainly
  15. Set the root password (try NOT to forget this)
  16. What type of installation would you like?
    check "Create Custom Layout" and click [next]
  17. Please Select a device
    This screen should list your virtual drive as /dev/sda with just "Free 10000" or something similar below.
  18. Choose "sda" under hard drives, click on [create] and leave "standard partition" checked and just click on that [create] button.
    1. On the new menu that pops up, set Mount point to "/home" (there is a pull down menu to use)
    2. Filesystem Type: Leave at "ext4"
    3. Size (MB) 1500Mb (minimum, can give it more if you want)
    4. Leave at "Fixed Size"
    5. Hit ok.
  19. Choose "sda" again under hard drives, click on [create] and leave "standard partition" checked and just click on that [create] button.
    1. On the new menu that pops up, leave the "Mount point" blank
    2. Filesystem Type: Change to "Swap"
    3. Size (MB) 3-400Mb
    4. Leave at "Fixed Size"
    5. Hit ok.
  20. Choose "sda" again under hard drives, click on [create] and leave "standard partition" checked and just click on that [create] button.
    1. On the new menu that pops up, set Mount point to "/" (there is a pull down menu to use)
    2. Filesystem Type: Leave at "ext4"
    3. Check "Fill to Maximum Allowable Size"
    4. Hit ok.
  21. If all is well, click [next], agree to format, then again click on "write changes to disk"
    1. The Grub Boot loader will be installed [next]
  22. It now asks you for the Type of Install you want
    We will choose "Basic Server" and click Customize Now!!!!! at the bottom, and then click "next".
Default Installation of CentOS

  1. DO NOT UNCHECK ANYTHING unless I tell you to!

  2. NOTE: There are three things to consider:
    The Category you are presently altering in the LEFT window
    The Package Group you are altering in the RIGHT window
    and the "Optional Packages Button" at the bottom
    So pay attention.
  3. Base System (check the following Boxes)
  4. Servers (Check the following Boxes)
  5. Web Services (Check the following Boxes)
  6. Databases (check the following boxes)
  7. System Management (skip past this)
  8. Virtualization (Skip past this)
  9. Desktops (check the following boxes)
  10. Applications (Check the following boxes)
  11. Development (check the following boxes)
  12. Skip the rest and click [next]
  13. Unresolved Dependencies- IF this shows, Just click [next]
  14. About to Install
    Just Click [Next] and lean back and relax, expect about 25-50 minutes depending on your drive
  15. When done with the install
  16. Remove the Install DVD
  17. Click "Reboot"
  18. Hit (enter) when the "boot:" prompt shows
  19. Cross your fingers ;)
  20. It will now boot up into a configuration screen
  21. Network does not appear to be configured by default FIX THIS
  22. Fire up Firefox by clicking on the firefox logo (next to the word "System" in the upper left of the screen)

Shutting Down for the Day

  1. Once you have set the runlevel to "3" and you have rebooted, you will do the following each day:
  2. Click "Actions" in the upper left corner of the screen
  3. Click on "logout" and say "Yes"
  4. After Xwindows shuts down, type su [enter] at the prompt, and your root password
  5. At the prompt type "/sbin/shutdown -h now"
  6. Then shut down VMware (sometimes takes a minute)
  7. Left Click on the USB icon and click "stop usb device"
  8. Remove your Drive from the USB
Felitaur Enterprises Linux System Administration | Felitaur Enterprises Homepage