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Chapter 14. Troubleshooting Installation on IBM Power Systems

This chapter discusses some common installation problems and their solutions.
For debugging purposes, Anaconda logs installation actions into files in the /tmp directory. These files are listed in the following table.

Table 14.1. Log Files Generated During the Installation

Log file Contents
/tmp/anaconda.log general Anaconda messages
/tmp/program.log all external programs run during the installation
/tmp/storage.log extensive storage module information
/tmp/packaging.log yum and rpm package installation messages
/tmp/syslog hardware-related system messages
If the installation fails, the messages from these files are consolidated into /tmp/anaconda-tb-identifier, where identifier is a random string.
After successful installation, by default, these files will be copied to the installed system under the directory /var/log/anaconda/. However, if installation is unsuccessful, or if the inst.nosave=all or inst.nosave=logs options are used when booting the installation system, these logs will only exist in the installation program's RAM disk. This means they are not saved permanently and will be lost once the system is powered down. To store them permanently, copy those files to another system on the network by using scp on the system running the installation program, or copy them to a mounted storage device (such as an USB flash drive). Details on how to transfer the log files over the network are below.

Note

The following procedure requires the installation system to be able to access the network and the target system to be able to receive files over the ssh protocol.

Procedure 14.1. Transferring Log Files Over the Network

  1. On the system you are installing, press Ctrl+Alt+F2 to access a shell prompt. You will be logged into a root account and you will have access to the installation program's temporary file system.
  2. Switch to the /tmp directory where the log files are located: 
    # cd /tmp
  3. Copy the log files onto another system on the network using the scp command: 
    # scp *log user@address:path
    Replace user with a valid user name on the target system, address with the target system's address or host name, and path with the path to the directory you want to save the log files into. For example, if you want to log in as john to a system with an IP address of 192.168.0.122 and place the log files into the /home/john/logs/ directory on that system, the command will have the following form: 
    # scp *log john@192.168.0.122:/home/john/logs/
    When connecting to the target system for the first time, the SSH client asks you to confirm that the fingerprint of the remote system is correct and that you want to continue: 
    The authenticity of host '192.168.0.122 (192.168.0.122)' can't be established.
ECDSA key fingerprint is a4:60:76:eb:b2:d0:aa:23:af:3d:59:5c:de:bb:c4:42.
Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no)?
    Type yes and press Enter to continue. Then, provide a valid password when prompted. The files will start transferring to the specified directory on the target system.
The log files from the installation are now permanently saved on the target system and available for review.

14.1. Trouble Beginning the Installation

14.1.1. Problems with Booting into the Graphical Installation

Systems with some video cards have trouble booting into the graphical installation program. If the installation program does not run using its default settings, it attempts to run in a lower resolution mode. If that still fails, the installation program attempts to run in text mode.
There are several possible solutions to display issues, most of which involve specifying custom boot options. For more information, see Section 23.1, “Configuring the Installation System at the Boot Menu”.
Use the basic graphics mode
You can attempt to perform the installation using the basic graphics driver. To do this, edit the installation program's options at the boot: prompt and append inst.xdriver=vesa at the end of the command line.
Specify the display resolution manually
If the installation program fails to detect your screen resolution, you can override the automatic detection and specify it manually. To do this, append the inst.resolution=x option at the boot menu, where x is your display's resolution (for example, 1024x768).

14.1.2. Serial Console Not Detected

In some cases, attempting to install in text mode using a serial console will result in no output on the console. This happens on systems which have a graphics card, but no monitor connected. If Anaconda detects a graphics card, it will attempt to use it for a display, even if no display is connected.
If you want to perform a text-based installation on a serial console, use the inst.text and console= boot options. See Chapter 23, Boot Options for more details.