This is a Vagrant Environment for a Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) gateway.

Usage

Install the Ubuntu 20.04 base box.

Run create_empty_box.sh to create the empty environment (the PXE client machines use it as a base box).

Run vagrant up gateway --no-destroy-on-error to launch the gateway.

Run vagrant up debian_live --no-destroy-on-error to launch the debian_live (Debian Live) PXE client. This assumes you have ../debian-live-builder-vagrant/live-image-amd64.hybrid.iso built as described at the rgl/debian-live-builder-vagrant repository.

Run vagrant up linuxkit --no-destroy-on-error to launch the linuxkit (LinuxKit) PXE client. This assumes you have ../linuxkit-vagrant/shared/sshd-kernel (and sshd-initrd.img) built as described at the rgl/linuxkit-vagrant repository.

Run vagrant up tcl --no-destroy-on-error to launch the tcl (Tiny Core Linux) PXE client.

Run vagrant up winpe --no-destroy-on-error to launch the winpe (Windows PE) PXE client. This assumes you have ../windows-pe-vagrant/tmp/winpe-amd64.iso built as described at the rgl/windows-pe-vagrant repository. Note that vagrant wont be able to connect to it; the idea is just to see it PXE boot.

The winpe (Windows PE) PXE client can also install Windows from a SMB network share into the local disk, as described at the end of the windows-server-2022/startup.ps1 file.

PXE boot

This is roughly how Debian Live Linux is booted on a PXE PC:

1. The PC broadcasts an DHCP request
2. The DHCP server offers the TFTP server address (10.10.10.2) in the Next server IP address field and the bootloader (debian-live/lpxelinux.0) filename in the Boot file name field
3. The PC TFTP downloads the debian-live/lpxelinux.0 file
4. lpxelinux.0 HTTP downloads ldlinux.c32 with a request similar to:

   GET /debian-live/ldlinux.c32 HTTP/1.0
   Host: 10.10.10.2
   User-Agent: Syslinux/6.03
   Connection: close
   Cookie: _Syslinux_ip=10.10.10.100%3A10.10.10.2%3A10.10.10.2%3A255.255.255.0
   Cookie: _Syslinux_BOOTIF=01-08-00-27-00-00-03
   Cookie: _Syslinux_SYSUUID=00000000-0000-4000-8000-000000000003
   Cookie: _Syslinux_CPU=6PXL
   Cookie: _Syslinux_SYSVENDOR=innotek+GmbH
   Cookie: _Syslinux_SYSPRODUCT=VirtualBox
   Cookie: _Syslinux_SYSVERSION=1.2
   Cookie: _Syslinux_SYSSERIAL=0
   Cookie: _Syslinux_SYSFAMILY=Virtual+Machine
   Cookie: _Syslinux_MBVENDOR=Oracle+Corporation
   Cookie: _Syslinux_MBPRODUCT=VirtualBox
   Cookie: _Syslinux_MBVERSION=1.2
   Cookie: _Syslinux_MBSERIAL=0
   Cookie: _Syslinux_BIOSVENDOR=innotek+GmbH
   Cookie: _Syslinux_BIOSVERSION=VirtualBox
   Cookie: _Syslinux_SYSFF=1
   

5. lpxelinux.0 HTTP downloads the configuration from one the first addresses that return an HTTP 200:

   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/00000000-0000-4000-8000-000000000003
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/01-08-00-27-00-00-03
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/0A0A0A64
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/0A0A0A6
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/0A0A0A
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/0A0A0
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/0A0A
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/0A0
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/0A
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/0
   /debian-live/pxelinux.cfg/default
   

6. lpxelinux.0 HTTP downloads and loads linux and initrd into memory
7. lpxelinux.0 transfers control to linux
8. initrd HTTP downloads and mounts the root filesystem (filesystem.squashfs)

You can see all of this if you run the following command on your linux host before launching the debian_live vm:

vagrant ssh-config gateway >tmp/gateway-ssh-config.conf
wireshark -k -i <(ssh -F tmp/gateway-ssh-config.conf gateway 'sudo tcpdump -s 0 -U -n -i eth1 -w - not port 22')