Running up2date on a server with no internet access

[columb]

We have a number of totally identical RedHat ES4 boxes. Some have internet access, some don't. What I am trying to do is
[ol]
[li]Run up2date on one of the servers with internet access[/li]
[li]Tar up the packages and burn to CD[/li]
[li]Copy the packages to /var/spool/up2date on each of the servers without internet access[/li]
[li]Run up2date to install the packages[/li]
[/ol]
It's the last step where it all stops working. Whichever flags I try on up2date it trys to contact RHN and then times out and fails. I've read the man page until I almost know it by heart but still can't figure it out. Any pointers please?

Columb Healy

 

[thedaver]

Can you just run an rsync or other ftp build to make a local up2date server? That way you configure your servers to speak on the local network to your one up2date server

D.E.R. Management - IT Project Management Consulting

http://www.dermanagement.com/

 

[columb]

Thanks for your reply.

I'm a bit limited for choices. These servers live in a DMZ where my ability to add extra servers an or use certain protocols is strictly limited.

Columb Healy

 

[pansophic]

I'm not sure why you would even use up2date in this case. You could just type rpm -U *.rpm and perform the same function, without the overhead of the up2date function.

Am I missing something?


pansophic

 

[thedaver]

Using pansophic's approach, you could bring the .rpms down to a central server on your network and then have each "slave" rsync the .RPM archive locally and use pansophic's command.

HOWEVER, you are now responsible for dealing with package dependencies!!! up2date would have reached out and gotten other packages to resolve dependencies in cases where they were not available locally.

D.E.R. Management - IT Project Management Consulting

http://www.dermanagement.com/

 

[pansophic]

I thought that he said that he was running up2date on an Internet attached machine, and then just grabbing the packages that were downloaded by up2date and moving them to machines that cannot access the Internet. Wouldn't that have already resolved any dependencies?

I am assuming that the configuration of the Internet machine is the same as the isolated hosts, of course.


pansophic

 

[Annihilannic]

Why not set up one of the internet connected machines as an RHN satellite server (i.e. an up2date proxy)?

Annihilannic.

 

[columb]

Thanks for all your input on this guys. Given that all my servers are clones then copying the contents of /var/spool/up2date onto CD and running rpm -U may well be the simplest answer. However I'd like to research the up2date proxy idea some more. Annihilannic can you point me at any documentation about setting up the servers with internet access to be up2date proxies?

Columb Healy

 

[Annihilannic]

This page and the related links on the left hand side should be a good starting point:

https://rhn.redhat.com/rhn/help/release-notes/satellite/index.jsp

I'm not sure how much of this is available for free and how much needs some kind of support agreement...

Alternatively you could simply set up squid to proxy the up2date connections?

Annihilannic.