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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP6

Installation Quick Start

Publication Date: December 12, 2024

This Quick Start guides you step by step through the installation of SUSE® Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP6.

1 Welcome to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server

Use the following procedures to install the product on all supported hardware platforms. They assume you have successfully booted/IPLed into the installation system. For more detailed installation instructions and deployment strategies, refer to Book “Deployment Guide”. For platform-specific preparations required to boot or IPL into the installation system, refer to the following parts of the aforementioned guide:

  • Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 2 “Installation on AMD64 and Intel 64”

  • Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 3 “Installation on AArch64”

  • Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 4 “Installation on IBM POWER”

  • Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 5 “Installation on IBM Z and LinuxONE”

1.1 The Unified Installer

Starting with SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15, the installation medium only consists of the Unified Installer, a minimal system for installing, updating and registering all SUSE Linux Enterprise base products. During the installation you can add functionality by selecting modules and extensions to be installed on top of the Unified Installer.

1.2 Installing offline or without registration

The default installation medium SLE-15-SP6-Online-ARCH-GM-media1.iso is optimized for size and does not contain any modules and extensions. Therefore, the installation requires network access to register your product and retrieve repository data for the modules and extensions.

For installation without registering the system, use the SLE-15-SP6-Full-ARCH-GM-media1.iso image from https://www.suse.com/download/sles/ and refer to Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 9 “Installation steps”, Section 9.7.3 “Installing without registration” for instructions.

Tip
Tip: Copying the installation media image to a removable flash disk

Use the following command to copy the contents of the installation image to a removable flash disk.

> sudo dd if=IMAGE of=FLASH_DISK bs=4M && sync

IMAGE needs to be replaced with the path to the SLE-15-SP6-Online-ARCH-GM-media1.iso or SLE-15-SP6-Full-ARCH-GM-media1.iso image file. FLASH_DISK needs to be replaced with the flash device. To identify the device, insert it and run:

# grep -Ff <(hwinfo --disk --short) <(hwinfo --usb --short)
disk:
  /dev/sdc             General USB Flash Disk

Make sure the size of the device is sufficient for the desired image. You can check the size of the device with:

# fdisk -l /dev/sdc | grep -e "^/dev"
     /dev/sdc1  *     2048 31490047 31488000  15G 83 Linux

In this example, the device has a capacity of 15 GB. The command to use for the SLE-15-SP6-Full-ARCH-GM-media1.iso would be:

dd if=SLE-15-SP6-Full-ARCH-GM-media1.iso of=/dev/sdc bs=4M && sync

The device must not be mounted when running the dd command. Note that all data on the partition will be erased!

2 The installation procedure

To install SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, boot or IPL into the installer from the Unified Installer medium and start the installation.

2.1 Language, keyboard and product selection

Language, keyboard and product selection screen

The Language and Keyboard Layout settings are initialized with the language you chose on the boot screen. If you did not change the default, it will be English (US). Change the settings here, if necessary. Use the Keyboard Test text box to test the layout.

With the Unified Installer, you can install all SUSE Linux Enterprise base products:

Select a product for installation. You need to have a registration code for the respective product. In this document, it is assumed you have chosen SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. Proceed with Next.

Tip
Tip: Light and high-contrast themes

If you have difficulties reading the labels in the installer, you can change the widget colors and theme.

Click the Change the widget theme button or press ShiftF3 to open a theme selection dialog. Select a theme from the list and Close the dialog.

ShiftF4 switches to the color scheme for vision-impaired users. Press the buttons again to switch back to the default scheme.

2.2 License agreement

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server License Agreement screen

Read the License Agreement. It is presented in the language you have chosen on the boot screen. Translations are available via the License Language drop-down list. You need to accept the agreement by checking I Agree to the License Terms to install SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. Proceed with Next.

2.3 Network settings

Network Settings screen

A system analysis is performed, where the installer probes for storage devices and tries to find other installed systems. If the network was automatically configured via DHCP during the start of the installation, you will be taken to the registration step.

If the network is not yet configured, the Network Settings dialog opens. Choose a network interface from the list and configure it with Edit. Alternatively, Add an interface manually. See Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 9 “Installation steps”, Section 9.6 “Network settings” and Book “Administration Guide”, Chapter 23 “Basic networking”, Section 23.4 “Configuring a network connection with YaST” for more information. If you prefer to do an installation without network access, skip this step without making any changes and proceed with Next.

2.4 IBM Z: disk activation

Skip this step if you are not installing on IBM Z hardware.

Disk Activation screen

Configure the attached hard disks. Select DASD, Fibre Channel Attached SCSI Disks (zFCP), or iSCSI for the installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. The DASD and zFCP configuration buttons are only available if the corresponding devices are attached. Proceed with Next to set up the selected disk type. For more information, refer to Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 9 “Installation steps”, Section 9.5 “IBM Z: disk activation”.

2.5 Registration

Registration screen

To get technical support and product updates, you need to register and activate SUSE Linux Enterprise Server with the SUSE Customer Center or a local registration server. Registering your product at this stage also grants you immediate access to the update repository. This enables you to install the system with the latest updates and patches available.

When registering, repositories and dependencies for modules and extensions are loaded from the registration server.

Register system via scc.suse.com

To register with the SUSE Customer Center, enter the E-mail Address associated with your SUSE Customer Center account and the Registration Code for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. Proceed with Next.

Register system via local RMT server

If your organization provides a local registration server, you may alternatively register there. Activate Register System via local RMT Server and either choose a URL from the drop-down list or type in an address. Proceed with Next.

Skip registration

If you are offline or want to skip registration, activate Skip Registration. Accept the warning with OK and proceed with Next.

Important
Important: Skipping the registration

Your system and extensions need to be registered in order to retrieve updates and to be eligible for support. Skipping the registration is only possible when installing from the SLE-15-SP6-Full-ARCH-GM-media1.iso image.

If you do not register during the installation, you can do so at any time later from the running system. To do so, run YaST › Product Registration or the command-line tool SUSEConnect.

Tip
Tip: Installing product patches at installation time

After SUSE Linux Enterprise Server has been successfully registered, you are asked whether to install the latest available online updates during the installation. If choosing Yes, the system will be installed with the most current packages without having to apply the updates after installation. Activating this option is recommended.

Note
Note: Firewall settings for receiving updates

By default, the firewall on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server only blocks incoming connections. If your system is behind another firewall that blocks outgoing traffic, make sure to allow connections to https://scc.suse.com/ and https://updates.suse.com on ports 80 and 443 in order to receive updates.

2.6 Extension and module selection

Extension and Module Selection screen

After the system is successfully registered, the installer lists modules and extensions that are available for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. Modules are components that allow you to customize the product according to your needs. They are included in your SUSE Linux Enterprise Server subscription. Extensions add functionality to your product. They must be purchased separately.

The availability of certain modules or extensions depends on the product selected in the first step of the installation. For a description of the modules and their lifecycles, select a module to see the accompanying text. More detailed information is available in the Modules and Extensions Quick Start.

The selection of modules indirectly affects the scope of the installation, because it defines which software sources (repositories) are available for installation and in the running system.

The following modules and extensions are available for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server:

Basesystem Module

This module adds a basic system on top of the Unified Installer. It is required by all other modules and extensions. The scope of an installation that only contains the base system is comparable to the installation pattern minimal system of previous SUSE Linux Enterprise Server versions. This module is selected for installation by default and should not be deselected.

Dependencies: None

Certifications Module

Contains the FIPS certification packages.

Dependencies: Server Applications

Confidential Computing Technical Preview

Contains packages related to confidential computing.

Dependencies: Basesystem

Containers Module

Contains support and tools for containers.

Dependencies: Basesystem

Desktop Applications Module

Adds a graphical user interface and essential desktop applications to the system.

Dependencies: Basesystem

Development Tools Module

Contains compilers (including gcc) and libraries required for compiling and debugging applications. Replaces the former Software Development Kit (SDK).

Dependencies: Basesystem, Desktop Applications

High Performance Computing (HPC) Module

Provides specific tools commonly used for high performance, numerically intensive workloads.

Dependencies: Basesystem

Legacy Module

Helps you with migrating applications from earlier versions of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and other systems to SLES 15 SP6, by providing packages which are discontinued on SUSE Linux Enterprise. Packages in this module are selected based on the requirement for migration and the level of complexity of configuration.

This module is recommended when migrating from a previous product version.

Dependencies: Basesystem, Server Applications

NVIDIA Compute Module

Contains the NVIDIA CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) drivers.

The software in this module is provided by NVIDIA under the CUDA End User License Agreement and is not supported by SUSE.

Dependencies: Basesystem

Public Cloud Module

Contains all tools required to create images for deploying SUSE Linux Enterprise Server in cloud environments such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Google Compute Platform, or OpenStack.

Dependencies: Basesystem, Server Applications

Python 3 Module

This module contains the most recent version of the selected Python 3 packages.

Dependencies: Basesystem

SAP Business One Server

This module contains packages and system configuration specific to SAP Business One Server. It is maintained and supported by the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server product subscription.

Dependencies: Basesystem, Server Applications, Desktop Applications, Development Tools

Server Applications Module

Adds server functionality by providing network services such as DHCP server, name server, or Web server. This module is selected for installation by default; deselecting it is not recommended.

Dependencies: Basesystem

SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability

Adds clustering support for mission critical setups to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. This extension requires a separate license key.

Dependencies: Basesystem, Server Applications

SUSE Linux Enterprise Live Patching

Adds support for performing critical patching without having to shut down the system. This extension requires a separate license key.

Dependencies: Basesystem, Server Applications

SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension

Extends the functionality of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server with packages from SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop, like additional desktop applications (office suite, e-mail client, graphical editor, etc.) and libraries. It allows to combine both products to create a fully featured workstation. This extension requires a separate license key.

Dependencies: Basesystem, Desktop Applications

SUSE Package Hub

Provides access to packages for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server maintained by the openSUSE community. These packages are delivered without L3 support and do not interfere with the supportability of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. For more information, refer to https://packagehub.suse.com/.

Dependencies: Basesystem

Transactional Server Module

Adds support for transactional updates. Updates are either applied to the system all together in a single transaction, or not. This happens without influencing the running system. If an update fails, or if the successful update is deemed to be incompatible or otherwise incorrect, it can be discarded to immediately return the system to its previous functioning state.

Dependencies: Basesystem

Web and Scripting Module

Contains packages intended for a running Web server.

Dependencies: Basesystem, Server Applications

Some modules depend on the installation of other modules. Therefore, when selecting a module, other modules may be selected automatically to fulfill dependencies.

Depending on the product, the registration server can mark modules and extensions as recommended. Recommended modules and extensions are preselected for registration and installation. To avoid installing these recommendations, deselect them manually.

Select the modules and extensions you want to install and proceed with Next. In case you have chosen one or more extensions, you will be prompted to provide the respective registration codes. Depending on your choice, it may also be necessary to accept additional license agreements.

Important
Important: Default modules for offline installation

When performing an offline installation from the SLE-15-SP6-Full-ARCH-GM-media1.iso, only the Basesystem Module is selected by default. To install the complete default package set of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, additionally select the Server Applications Module.

2.7 Add-on product

Add On Product screen

The Add-On Product dialog allows you to add additional software sources (called repositories) to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server that are not provided by the SUSE Customer Center. Add-on products may include third-party products and drivers as well as additional software for your system.

Tip
Tip: Adding drivers during the installation

You can also add driver update repositories via the Add-On Product dialog. Driver updates for SUSE Linux Enterprise are provided at https://drivers.suse.com/. These drivers have been created via the SUSE SolidDriver Program.

If you want to skip this step, proceed with Next. Otherwise, activate I would like to install an additional Add On Product. Specify a media type, a local path, or a network resource hosting the repository and follow the on-screen instructions.

Check Download Repository Description Files to download the files describing the repository now. If deactivated, they will be downloaded after the installation has started. Proceed with Next and insert a medium if required. Depending on the content of the product, it may be necessary to accept additional license agreements. Proceed with Next. If you have chosen an add-on product requiring a registration key, you will be asked to enter it before proceeding to the next step.

2.8 System role

System Role screen

The availability of system roles depends on your selection of modules and extensions. System roles define, for example, the set of software patterns that is going to be preselected for the installation. Refer to the description on screen to make your choice. Select a role and proceed with Next. If from the enabled modules only one role or no role is suitable for the respective base product, the System Role dialog is omitted.

Tip
Tip: Release notes

From this point on, the Release Notes can be viewed from any screen during the installation process by selecting Release Notes.

2.9 Suggested partitioning

Suggested Partitioning screen

Review the partition setup proposed by the system. If necessary, change it. You have the following options:

Guided setup

Starts a wizard which lets you refine the partitioning proposal. The options available here depend on your system setup. If it contains more than a single hard disk, you may choose which disk(s) to use and where to place the root partition. If the disk(s) already contain partitions, decide whether to remove or resize them.

In subsequent steps, you may also add LVM support and disk encryption. You can change the file system for the root partition and decide whether or not to have a separate home partition.

Expert partitioner

Opens the Expert Partitioner described in Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 11 “Expert Partitioner”, Section 11.1 “Using the Expert Partitioner. This gives you full control over the partitioning setup and lets you create a custom setup. This option is intended for experts.

Warning
Warning: Disk space units

Note that for partitioning purposes, disk space is measured in binary units, rather than in decimal units. For example, if you enter sizes of 1GB, 1GiB or 1G, they all signify 1 GiB (Gibibyte), as opposed to 1 GB (Gigabyte).

Binary

1 GiB = 1 073 741 824 bytes.

Decimal

1 GB = 1 000 000 000 bytes.

Difference

1 GiB ≈ 1.07 GB.

To accept the proposed setup without any changes, choose Next to proceed.

2.10 Clock and time zone

Clock and Time Zone screen

Select the clock and time zone to use in your system. To manually adjust the time or to configure an NTP server for time synchronization, choose Other Settings. See Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 9 “Installation steps”, Section 9.12 “Clock and time zone” for detailed information. Proceed with Next.

2.11 Local user

Local User screen

To create a local user, type the first and last name in the User’s Full Name field, the login name in the Username field, and the password in the Password field.

The password should be at least eight characters long and should contain both uppercase and lowercase letters and numbers. The maximum length for passwords is 72 characters, and passwords are case-sensitive.

For security reasons, it is also strongly recommended not to enable the Automatic Login. You should also not Use this Password for the System Administrator but rather provide a separate root password in the next installation step.

If you install on a system where a previous Linux installation was found, you may Import User Data from a Previous Installation. Click Choose User for a list of available user accounts. Select one or more users.

In an environment where users are centrally managed (for example, by NIS or LDAP), you can skip the creation of local users. Select Skip User Creation in this case.

Proceed with Next.

2.12 Authentication for the system administrator root

Authentication for the system administrator “root” screen

Type a password for the system administrator (called the root user) or provide a public SSH key. If you want, you can use both.

Because the root user is equipped with extensive permissions, the password should be chosen carefully. You should never forget the root password! After you entered it here, the password cannot be retrieved.

Tip
Tip: Passwords and keyboard layout

It is recommended to only use US ASCII characters. In case of a system error or when you need to start your system in rescue mode, the keyboard may not be localized.

If you want to access the system remotely via SSH using a public key, import a key from a removable media or an existing partition. See Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 9 “Installation steps”, Section 9.14 “Authentication for the system administrator root for more information.

Proceed with Next.

2.13 Installation settings

Installation Settings screen

Use the Installation Settings screen to review and—if necessary—change several proposed installation settings. The current configuration is listed for each setting. To change it, click the headline. Some settings, such as firewall or SSH, can be changed directly by clicking the respective links.

Important
Important: Remote access

Changes you can make here can also be made later at any time from the installed system. However, if you need remote access right after the installation, you may need to open the SSH port in the Security settings.

Software

The scope of the installation is defined by the modules and extensions you have chosen for this installation. However, depending on your selection, not all packages available in a module are selected for installation.

Clicking Software opens the Software Selection and System Tasks screen, where you can change the software selection by selecting or deselecting patterns. Each pattern contains several software packages needed for specific functions (for example, KVM Host Server). For a more detailed selection based on software packages to install, select Details to switch to the YaST Software Manager. See Book “Administration Guide”, Chapter 8 “Installing or removing software” for more information.

Booting

This section shows the boot loader configuration. Changing the defaults is only recommended if really needed. Refer to Book “Administration Guide”, Chapter 18 “The boot loader GRUB 2” for details.

Security

The CPU Mitigations refer to kernel boot command-line parameters for software mitigations that have been deployed to prevent CPU side-channel attacks. Click the selected entry to choose a different option. For details, see Book “Administration Guide”, Chapter 18 “The boot loader GRUB 2” CPU Mitigations.

By default, the Firewall is enabled on all configured network interfaces. To completely disable firewalld, click disable (not recommended). Refer to Book “Security and Hardening Guide”, Chapter 23 “Masquerading and firewalls” for configuration details.

Note
Note: Firewall settings for receiving updates

By default, the firewall on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server only blocks incoming connections. If your system is behind another firewall that blocks outgoing traffic, make sure to allow connections to https://scc.suse.com/ and https://updates.suse.com on ports 80 and 443 in order to receive updates.

The SSH service is enabled by default, but its port (22) is closed in the firewall. Click open to open the port or disable to disable the service. Note that if SSH is disabled, remote logins will not be possible. Refer to Book “Security and Hardening Guide”, Chapter 22 “Securing network operations with OpenSSH” for more information.

The default Major Linux Security Module is AppAmpor. To disable it, select None as module in the Security settings.

Security Policies

Click to enable the Defense Information Systems Agency STIG security policy. If any installation settings are incompatible with the policy, you will be prompted to modify them accordingly. Some settings can be adjusted automatically, others require user input.

Enabling a security profile enables a full SCAP remediation on first boot. You can also perform a scan only or do nothing and manually remediate the system later with OpenSCAP. For more information, refer to Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 9 “Installation steps”, Section 9.15.4 “Security Profiles.

Network configuration

Displays the current network configuration. By default, wicked is used for server installations and NetworkManager for desktop workloads. Click Network Configuration to change the settings. For details, see Book “Administration Guide”, Chapter 23 “Basic networking”, Section 23.4 “Configuring a network connection with YaST”.

Important
Important: Support for NetworkManager

SUSE only supports NetworkManager for desktop workloads with SLED or the Workstation extension. All server certifications are done with wicked as the network configuration tool, and using NetworkManager may invalidate them. NetworkManager is not supported by SUSE for server workloads.

Kdump

Kdump saves the memory image (core dump) to the file system in case the kernel crashes. This enables you to find the cause of the crash by debugging the dump file. Kdump is preconfigured and enabled by default. See Book “System Analysis and Tuning Guide”, Chapter 20 “Kexec and Kdump”, Section 20.7 “Basic Kdump configuration” for more information.

Default systemd target

If you have installed the desktop applications module, the system boots into the graphical target, with network, multiuser and display manager support. Switch to multi-user if you do not need to log in via display manager.

System

View detailed hardware information by clicking System. In the resulting screen you can also change Kernel Settings—see Book “Deployment Guide”, Chapter 9 “Installation steps”, Section 9.15.10 “System for more information.

2.14 Start the installation

Installation Settings screen with Confirm Installation dialog

After you have finalized the system configuration on the Installation Settings screen, click Install. Depending on your software selection, you may need to agree to license agreements before the installation confirmation screen pops up. Up to this point, no changes have been made to your system. After you click Install a second time, the installation process starts.

2.15 The installation process

Performing Installation screen

During the installation, the progress is shown. After the installation routine has finished, the computer is rebooted into the installed system.

3 Legal notice

Copyright© 2006– 2024 SUSE LLC and contributors. All rights reserved.

Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or (at your option) version 1.3; with the Invariant Section being this copyright notice and license. A copy of the license version 1.2 is included in the section entitled GNU Free Documentation License.

For SUSE trademarks, see https://www.suse.com/company/legal/. All other third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Trademark symbols (®, ™ etc.) denote trademarks of SUSE and its affiliates. Asterisks (*) denote third-party trademarks.

All information found in this book has been compiled with utmost attention to detail. However, this does not guarantee complete accuracy. Neither SUSE LLC, its affiliates, the authors, nor the translators shall be held liable for possible errors or the consequences thereof.