Setup RedHat Enterprise Linux 8 server

By | November 9, 2020

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 server installation verify details step by step for beginner and best practice. This guideline supposes to help you to understand to Red Hat Enterprise linux installation process from the start till the end.

  1. Assume we have one virtual machine with below specification:
    • RAM: 2GB
    • CPU: 2 cores
    • Hard Disk: 30GB
  2. To start up the virtual machine and install RHEL, click on “Start up this guest operating system“. The RHEL installation console will show up, then use the arrow key up to select “Install Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.x.x“. Press key “Tab” to edit boot option then add this settings at the end: “biosdevname=0 net.ifnames=0“, press Enter to continue.
    * Note: Starting RHEL 7, Red Hat has introduced Consistent Network Device Naming which ensures network devices are given consistent names across reboots. It is strongly recommended this feature is not disabled. But if you still want the old ethX style of naming for the network interfaces, use above settings.
  3. Select your preferer language and continue
  4. In the Installation Summary, we should start 1st priority with “Network & Host Name” because if network connectivity is ready, then we also can configure other settings like NTP in “Time & Date”.
    4.1. Configure Network & Host Name

    • As mention above, our network interface named with ethX style
    • Set your server “Host Name”
    • Click “Apply”
    • Turn on network interface “ON”
    • Click “Configure…” to set static IP address
    • In “Gerneral” tab, check on “Connect automatically with priority = 0”
    • Move to “IPv4 Settings” tab. Change “Method to Manual”, Add “Address = <your IP address>, Network = <your subnet mask, i.e: /24, or 255.255.255.0>, Gateway = <your default gateway IP>”, Set “DNS servers = <1.1.1.1 (CloudFlare public DNS), 8.8.8.8 (Google public DNS)>”
    • In case, we do not use IPv6, so we can just set “Method to Ignore” in “IPv6 Settings” tab, and then click “Save” to continue.

    4.2. Configure Time & Date

    • Select “Region to Asia”
    • Select “City to Phnom Penh”
    • Turn on “Network Time to ON” and click setting icon to set NTP servers addresses
    • For Cambodia, we also can use public NTP for Asia Zone as the following

    4.3. Configure Installation Destination (partitions)

    • Select your primary installation disk
    • Select “Storage Configuration to Custom” and click “Done”
    • Click on “+” to create new linux partition and mount point, in case
      • /boot = 500MB
      • swap = 2GB
      • /home = 2GB
      • /var/log = 2GB
      • /var/log/audit = 1GB
      • /var/tmp = 1GB
      • /var = 5GB
      • /tmp = 1GB
      • / = all available disk spaces
      • Note: this is the standard and best practice linux partition from “CIS Benchmarks“. However you have your own standard too, but at least we should have separate partitions for “/boot, swap and /”
      • You can change the volume group name by click on “Modify”
      • Change name and save
    • Once you click on “Done”, it will ask for confirmation, so just click on “Accept Change

    4.4. In “Software Selection”, select the “Minimal Install” as base environment

  5. Finally click on “Begin installation” and set your root’s password

Thanks for your attention!

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