Date: Sun, 11 Aug 2002 15:16:18 -0600 (CST) From: Ryan Thompson <ryan@sasknow.com> To: Fox <foxbsd@gristle.to> Cc: freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Headless server Message-ID: <20020811145328.V35437-100000@ren.sasknow.com> In-Reply-To: <5.0.2.1.0.20020811141911.00ab3720@pop-server.austin.rr.com>
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Fox wrote to freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG: > > Hello, > > I've just installed my first FreeBSD box, using 4.6, and I am very > pleased with it. I have been running it headless, but the only thing > I really did to make it headless was to remove the keyboard and > monitor. That works :-) Some BIOSs refuse to boot if a keyboard is not present (remember all the "No keyboard detected. Press <F1> to continue." jokes?), but often there is a setting to ignore/turn off that warning. Check that on new hardware before you disconnect everything. Serial consoles are handy if used judiciously. Notably, they're good for logging, and for remote installs where you have a couple of servers in someone else's data centre. Two serial ports on each allows you to use one to access the other if a NIC goes down. Just make sure you test your configuration thoroughly before shipping your servers across the continent. :-) With newer systems that have USB ports, though, I just use a rolling utility cart (picked up for $12 at the liquidation store next door), with a cheap monitor (with extended VGA cable to reach the servers mounted high in the 7' racks), and a USB keyboard. The whole setup cost under $200, and easily scales to hundreds of servers. :-) - Ryan -- Ryan Thompson <ryan@sasknow.com> SaskNow Technologies - http://www.sasknow.com 901 1st Avenue North - Saskatoon, SK - S7K 1Y4 Tel: 306-664-3600 Fax: 306-244-7037 Saskatoon Toll-Free: 877-727-5669 (877-SASKNOW) North America To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message
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