I want to add Applications to Netinstall image.

[easer353]

I'm a newbie here. Here is what I want to do. I have a Mac Mini as my server. It's running 10.8.3 and I purchased the server add on. I want to create a Netinstall and add programs like Firefox, Skype, and ect. I want my laptop to be able to install the OS as well as the added programs. I've tried many times and it just won't work. I reboot my laptop and I see the Netinstall I created. When I install, I don't see the programs I thought I put in the SIU. So, my question is how do I do this? What files do the programs need to be or do I need to do anything to them? I've dragged and dropped them in Add packages. I just need someone to tell me a step by step solution here. Please help. I've been through the forum, and no clear instructions on how to accomplish this. The apple support site is no use to me. It seems like the community knows more. Thank you in advance.

 

[easer353]

is this possible?

 

[kryten2]

I'm a newbie here. Here is what I want to do. I have a Mac Mini as my server. It's running 10.8.3 and I purchased the server add on. I want to create a Netinstall and add programs like Firefox, Skype, and ect. I want my laptop to be able to install the OS as well as the added programs. I've tried many times and it just won't work. I reboot my laptop and I see the Netinstall I created. When I install, I don't see the programs I thought I put in the SIU. So, my question is how do I do this? What files do the programs need to be or do I need to do anything to them? I've dragged and dropped them in Add packages. I just need someone to tell me a step by step solution here. Please help. I've been through the forum, and no clear instructions on how to accomplish this. The apple support site is no use to me. It seems like the community knows more. Thank you in advance.

It may not be relevant because it's from SL 10.6 documentation but I suggest you read the section Adding Software to NetBoot and NetInstall Images at the end of page 41 here. A lot of things changed with ML. More information about creating packages on ML here and here

 

[rlkarren]

If you have an already configured Netinstall image, use Disk Utility to convert it to a read/write image. Mount it, install your packages to the mounted disk image, unmount it and then convert it to a compressed dmg.

To make sure it's a valid netrestore image, use asr on the command line to scan it.

$asr imagescan --source /path/to/image

Off the top of my head, I think that'll work. Adding packages to the SIU Workflow didn't work for me last time I used it either. I was in a hurry so I chose to investigate later.

I was using 10.8.3 for both the netboot image and the netrestore image.

 

[easer353]

Hi, when you say mount it, do I convert to read and write as you said, and then where do I install Firefox? After it's installed, do I convert it back to a compressed image?

 

[rlkarren]

Your netinstall image should be a DMG file, which is a Mac OS DiskIMaGe. Use Disk Utility to convert it to a R/W image.

Open Disk Utility. Choose File -> Open Disk Image. This will begin an image verification step and will mount the image on your desktop when completed. Highlight the mounted drive in Disk Utility and Umount it by clicking the "Unmount" button at the top of Disk Utility. Then, highlight the DMG file in Disk Utility, and click "Convert" button at the top of Disk Utility. Convert it to a Read/Write image.

At this point I don't remember if it creates a NEW DMG or if it simply converts the original. Either way, keep track where the Read/write image is located.

When completed, mount the R/W image using the same button as before. Open the mounted drive and navigate to it's /Applications directory and place all your applications there. You can also install updates at this point to your image. Just run the updates and choose the mounted disk image as the destination.

When finished, using the same method as before re-convert it to a compressed image.

Again, at this point I don't remember if the conversion back to compressed DMG scans it for restoring or not. Attempt to restore it to a disk and if it fails, you have to run the asr command on the command line I provided before, which makes it a restorable image.

Like I said, this is from memory and the last time I tried using SIU, (on ML), I was in a hurry and it failed. But, in the past this has been my method for updating DMG's without using SIU.