User Manual FWA-3050
_ v0.2 20200207.docx
Copyright
2017
Advantech Co. Ltd. All rights reserved.
Page 34
PXE boot usually does not allow for OS installation over network as the PXE client will only load a single file
from the boot server. Similarly, booting Linux over network is usually a two stage process. In the first step, a
boot loader such a grub or mini OS such as SysLinux are loaded via PXE from the boot server. The boot loader
or miniOS then load the actual target OS which usually consists of multiple files which decompressed and
installed into a RAM disk. The detailed process and required configuration of such network install will heavily
depend on the target OS and boot loader / miniOS used. Please refer to the related documentation
available.
PXE boot requires a DHCP server and a TFTP server in the network to complete. DHCP Server and TFTP server
are commonly run on the same machine and collectively referred to as “boot server”. Setting up such a boot
server implies a couple of steps. How-to guides for setting up Linux as PXE boot server are available on the
internet, e.g.
https://www.debianadministration.org/article/478/Setting_up_a_server_for_PXE_network_booting
Please note that it is recommended to setup a separate network / subnet for network booting as
the DHCP required for PXE booting may conflict with existing DHCP servers in your network.
