LTSP netbooted fat client
This is the support area for the fat client script that allows a workstation to become a net booted multimedia station with centralised management from a LTSP (Linux Terminal Server Project) server. All CPU and RAM run on the client, as opposed to on the server, as is the case with normal thin clients. This means the server has far less stress on it, and used network bandwidth doesn't cause system freezes. It is ideal for multimedia systems, or creative stations (blender, gimp, kino, VLC, etc)
The minimum requirements are ~ 256mb ram and 600 mhz for a high fat client, with the low fat client probably requiring less.
The package list it comes with is as follows: ubuntu-desktop human-theme ubuntu-artwork edubuntu-artwork edubuntu-desktop language-pack-gnome-en firefox ubufox evolution libflashsupport avahi-daemon gnome-mount flashplugin-nonfree swfdec-mozilla pidgin
with the following additional packages if you choose the --highfat option: openoffice.org openclipart-openoffice.org ubuntu-restricted-extras tuxpaint tuxmath tuxtype vlc mplayer banshee blender kino inkscape celestia mozilla-mplayer mozilla-acroread acroread realplayer childsplay childsplay-plugins scribus xsane
It has been fully tested on Ubuntu Intrepid Ibex. Instructions are to save the corresponding file to /usr/share/ltsp/plugins/ltsp-build-client/Ubuntu/030-fatclient
Before you run the script you must make sure you have NFS installed and the /home folder shared (on the server) so fatclient can use it:
sudo apt-get install portmap nfs-kernel-server nfs-common echo "/home 192.168.0.0/24(rw,no_root_squash,async)" | sudo tee -a /etc/exports /dev/null sudo exportfs -a
To run the script do: sudo ltsp-build-client --chroot (name-of-chroot) --fatclient Ubuntu --highfat
where name of chroot could be something like fati386.
Download it here
The final step is to tell DHCP which clients are fatclients and which are thinclients. Edit /etc/ltsp/dhcpd.conf
and make sure your file looks something like this:
#
# Default LTSP dhcpd.conf config file.
#
authoritative;
subnet 192.168.0.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 {
option domain-name "example.com";
option domain-name-servers 192.168.0.1;
option broadcast-address 192.168.0.255;
option routers 192.168.0.1;
# next-server 192.168.0.254;
option subnet-mask 255.255.255.0;
pool {
allow unknown-clients;
range 192.168.0.50 192.168.0.254;
}
}
# regular thin clients
group {
deny unknown-clients;
get-lease-hostnames true; ### make sure you're /etc/hosts contains all the hostnames of the clients
if substring( option vendor-class-identifier , 0 , 9 ) = "PXEClient" {
filename "/ltsp/i386/pxelinux.0";
} else {
filename "/ltsp/i386/nbi.img";
}
option root-path "/opt/ltsp/i386/";
host thinclient1 {
hardware ethernet the:thin:client:mac:add:ress;
fixed-address 192.168.0.20;
}
}
# fatclients with highfat
group {
deny unknown-clients;
get-lease-hostnames true; ### make sure you're /etc/hosts contains all the hostnames of the clients
if substring( option vendor-class-identifier , 0 , 9 ) = "PXEClient" {
filename "/ltsp/fati386/pxelinux.0";
}
else {
filename "/ltsp/fati386/nbi.img";
}
option root-path "/opt/ltsp/fati386/";
host fatclient1 {
hardware ethernet the:thin:client:mac:add:ress;
fixed-address 192.168.0.2;
}
}
