3 novaboot - A tool for booting various operating systems on various hardware or in qemu
9 __novaboot__ \[option\]... \[--\] script...
11 __./script__ \[option\]...
15 This program makes it easier to boot NOVA or other operating system
16 (OS) on different targets (machines or emulators). It reads a so
17 called novaboot script, that specifies the boot configuration, and
18 setups the target to boot that configuration. Setting up the target
19 means to generate the bootloader configuration files, deploy the
20 binaries and other needed files to proper locations, perhaps on a
21 remote boot server and reset the target. Then, target's serial output
22 is redirected to standard output if that is possible.
24 A typical way of using novaboot is to make the novaboot script
25 executable and set its first line to _\#!/usr/bin/env novaboot_. Then,
26 booting a particular OS configuration becomes the same as executing a
27 local program - the novaboot script.
29 For example, with `novaboot` you can:
31 1. Run an OS in Qemu. This is the default action when no other action is
32 specified by command line switches. Thus running `novaboot ./script`
33 (or `./script` as described above) will run Qemu and make it boot the
34 configuration specified in the _script_.
35 2. Create a bootloader configuration file (currently supported
36 bootloaders are GRUB, GRUB2, Pulsar and uBoot) and copy it with all
37 other files needed for booting to another, perhaps remote, location.
39 ./script --server=192.168.1.1:/tftp --iprelay=192.168.1.2
41 This command copies files to the TFTP server and uses
42 TCP/IP-controlled relay to reset the test box and receive its serial
45 3. Run DHCP and TFTP server on developer's machine to PXE-boot the OS
50 When a PXE-bootable machine is connected via Ethernet to developer's
51 machine, it will boot the configuration described in _script_.
53 4. Create bootable ISO images. E.g.
55 novaboot --iso -- script1 script2
57 The created ISO image will have GRUB bootloader installed on it and
58 the boot menu will allow selecting between _script1_ and _script2_
61 Note that the options needed for a specific target can be stored in a
62 ["CONFIGURATION FILE"](#configuration-file) and then it is sufficient to use only the
63 __\-t__ option to specify the name of the target.
67 Novaboot performs its work in several phases. Each phase can be
68 influenced by several options, certain phases can be skipped. The list
69 of phases (in the execution order) and the corresponding options
72 ## Configuration reading phase
74 After starting, novaboot reads configuration files. By default, it
75 searches for files named `.novaboot` starting from the directory of
76 the novaboot script (or working directory, see bellow) and continuing
77 upwards up to the root directory. The configuration files are read in
78 order from the root directory downwards with latter files overriding
79 settings from the former ones.
81 In certain cases, the location of the novaboot script cannot be
82 determined in this early phase. This happens either when the script is
83 read from the standard input or when novaboot is invoked explicitly
84 and options precede the script name, as in the example ["4."](#4) above.
85 In this case the current working directory is used as a starting point
86 for configuration file search.
88 - \-c, --config=_filename_
90 Use the specified configuration file instead of the default one(s).
92 ## Command line processing phase
96 Dump the current configuration to stdout end exits. Useful as an
97 initial template for a configuration file.
101 Print short (__\-h__) or long (__\--help__) help.
103 - \-t, --target=_target_
105 This option serves as a user configurable shortcut for other novaboot
106 options. The effect of this option is the same as the options stored
107 in the `%targets` configuration variable under key _target_. See
108 also ["CONFIGURATION FILE"](#configuration-file).
110 ## Script preprocessing phase
112 This phases allows to modify the parsed novaboot script before it is
113 used in the later phases.
115 - \-a, --append=_parameters_
117 Append a string to the first `load` line in the novaboot script. This
118 can be used to append parameters to the kernel's or root task's
119 command line. Can appear multiple times.
123 Use `bender` chainloader. Bender scans the PCI bus for PCI serial
124 ports and stores the information about them in the BIOS data area for
127 - \--chainloader=_chainloader_
129 Chainloader that is loaded before the kernel and other files specified
130 in the novaboot script. E.g. 'bin/boot/bender promisc'.
134 Print the modules to boot and their parameters after this phase
135 finishes. Then exit. This is useful for seeing the effect of other
136 options in this section.
138 - \-k, --kernel=`file`
140 Replace the first word on the first `load` line in the novaboot
143 - \--scriptmod=_perl expression_
145 When novaboot script is read, _perl expression_ is executed for every
146 line (in $\_ variable). For example, `novaboot
147 --scriptmod=s/sigma0/omega6/g` replaces every occurrence of _sigma0_
148 in the script with _omega6_.
150 When this option is present, it overrides _$script\_modifier_ variable
151 from the configuration file, which has the same effect. If this option
152 is given multiple times all expressions are evaluated in the command
155 ## File generation phase
157 In this phase, files needed for booting are generated in a so called
158 _build directory_ (see [--build-dir](https://metacpan.org/pod/--build-dir)). In most cases configuration
159 for a bootloader is generated automatically by novaboot. It is also
160 possible to generate other files using _heredoc_ or _"<"_ syntax in
161 novaboot scripts. Finally, binaries can be generated in this phases by
162 running `scons` or `make`.
164 - \--build-dir=_directory_
166 Overrides the default build directory location.
168 The default build directory location is determined as follows: If the
169 configuration file defines the `$builddir` variable, its value is
170 used. Otherwise, it is the directory that contains the first processed
173 See also [BUILDDIR](https://metacpan.org/pod/BUILDDIR) variable.
175 - \-g, --grub\[=_filename_\]
177 Generates grub bootloader menu file. If the _filename_ is not
178 specified, `menu.lst` is used. The _filename_ is relative to the
179 build directory (see __\--build-dir__).
181 - \--grub-preamble=_prefix_
183 Specifies the _preable_ that is at the beginning of the generated
184 GRUB or GRUB2 config files. This is useful for specifying GRUB's
187 - \--grub-prefix=_prefix_
189 Specifies _prefix_ that is put in front of every file name in GRUB's
190 `menu.lst`. The default value is the absolute path to the build directory.
192 If the _prefix_ contains string $NAME, it will be replaced with the
193 name of the novaboot script (see also __\--name__).
195 - \--grub2\[=_filename_\]
197 Generate GRUB2 menuentry in _filename_. If _filename_ is not
198 specified `grub.cfg` is used. The content of the menuentry can be
199 customized with __\--grub-preable__, __\--grub2-prolog__ or
200 __\--grub\_prefix__ options.
202 In order to use the the generated menuentry on your development
203 machine that uses GRUB2, append the following snippet to
204 `/etc/grub.d/40_custom` file and regenerate your grub configuration,
205 i.e. run update-grub on Debian/Ubuntu.
207 if [ -f /path/to/nul/build/grub.cfg ]; then
208 source /path/to/nul/build/grub.cfg
211 - \--grub2-prolog=_prolog_
213 Specifies text _preable_ that is put at the beginning of the entry
216 - \-m, --make\[=make command\]
218 Runs `make` to build files that are not generated by novaboot itself.
222 Use the name _string_ instead of the name of the novaboot script.
223 This name is used for things like a title of grub menu or for the
224 server directory where the boot files are copied to.
228 Do not generate files on the fly (i.e. "<" syntax) except for the
229 files generated via "<<WORD" syntax.
231 - \-p, --pulsar\[=mac\]
233 Generates pulsar bootloader configuration file named `config-_mac_`
234 The _mac_ string is typically a MAC address and defaults to
237 - \--scons\[=scons command\]
239 Runs `scons` to build files that are not generated by novaboot
244 Strip _rom://_ prefix from command lines and generated config files.
245 The _rom://_ prefix is used by NUL. For NRE, it has to be stripped.
249 Exit novaboot after file generation phase.
251 ## Target connection check
253 If supported by the target, the connection to it is made and it is
254 checked whether the target is not occupied by another novaboot
257 - \--iprelay=_addr\[:port\]_
259 Use TCP/IP relay and serial port to access the target's serial port
260 and powercycle it. The IP address of the relay is given by _addr_
261 parameter. If _port_ is not specified, it default to 23.
263 Note: This option is supposed to work with HWG-ER02a IP relays.
265 - \-s, --serial\[=device\]
267 Target's serial line is connected to host's serial line (device). The
268 default value for device is `/dev/ttyUSB0`.
270 The value of this option is exported in NB\_NOVABOOT environment
271 variable to all subprocesses run by `novaboot`.
275 Specifies settings passed to `stty` invoked on the serial line
276 specified with __\--serial__ option. If this option is not given,
277 `stty` is called with `raw -crtscts -onlcr 115200` settings.
279 - \--remote-cmd=_cmd_
281 Command that mediates connection to the target's serial line. For
282 example `ssh server 'cu -l /dev/ttyS0'`.
284 - \--remote-expect=_string_
286 Wait for reception of _string_ after establishing the the remote
287 connection before continuing.
289 ## File deployment phase
291 In some setups, it is necessary to copy the files needed for booting
292 to a particular location, e.g. to a TFTP boot server or to the
297 Turns your workstation into a DHCP and TFTP server so that the OS can
298 be booted via PXE BIOS (or similar mechanism) on the test machine
299 directly connected by a plain Ethernet cable to your workstation.
301 The DHCP and TFTP servers require root privileges and `novaboot`
302 uses `sudo` command to obtain those. You can put the following to
303 _/etc/sudoers_ to allow running the necessary commands without
306 Cmnd_Alias NOVABOOT = /bin/ip a add 10.23.23.1/24 dev eth0, /bin/ip l set dev eth0 up, /usr/sbin/dhcpd -d -cf dhcpd.conf -lf dhcpd.leases -pf dhcpd.pid, /usr/sbin/in.tftpd --foreground --secure -v -v -v --pidfile tftpd.pid *, /usr/bin/touch dhcpd.leases, /usr/bin/pkill --pidfile=dhcpd.pid, /usr/bin/pkill --pidfile=tftpd.pid
307 your_login ALL=NOPASSWD: NOVABOOT
309 - \--iso\[=filename\]
311 Generates the ISO image that boots NOVA system via GRUB. If no filename
312 is given, the image is stored under _NAME_.iso, where _NAME_ is the name
313 of the novaboot script (see also __\--name__).
315 - \--server\[=\[\[user@\]server:\]path\]
317 Copy all files needed for booting to another location (implies __\-g__
318 unless __\--grub2__ is given). The files will be copied (by __rsync__
319 tool) to the directory _path_. If the _path_ contains string $NAME,
320 it will be replaced with the name of the novaboot script (see also
325 If __\--server__ is used and its value ends with $NAME, then after
326 copying the files, a new bootloader configuration file (e.g. menu.lst)
327 is created at _path-wo-name_, i.e. the path specified by __\--server__
328 with $NAME part removed. The content of the file is created by
329 concatenating all files of the same name from all subdirectories of
330 _path-wo-name_ found on the "server".
332 - \--rsync-flags=_flags_
334 Specifies which _flags_ are appended to `rsync` command line when
335 copying files as a result of _\--server_ option.
337 ## Target power-on and reset phase
341 Switch on/off the target machine. Currently works only with
344 - \-Q, --qemu\[=_qemu-binary_\]
346 Boot the configuration in qemu. Optionally, the name of qemu binary
347 can be specified as a parameter.
349 - \--qemu-append=_flags_
351 Append _flags_ to the default qemu flags (QEMU\_FLAGS variable or
352 `-cpu coreduo -smp 2`).
354 - \-q, --qemu-flags=_flags_
356 Replace the default qemu flags (QEMU\_FLAGS variable or `-cpu coreduo
357 -smp 2`) with _flags_ specified here.
361 Command that resets the target.
363 ## Interaction with the bootloader on the target
367 Interact with uBoot bootloader to boot the thing described in the
368 novaboot script. Implementation of this option is currently tied to a
369 particular board that we use. It may be subject to changes in the
374 Command(s) to send the U-Boot bootloader before loading the images and
377 ## Target interaction phase
379 In this phase, target's serial output is redirected to stdout and if
380 stdin is a TTY, it is redirected to the target's serial input allowing
381 interactive work with the target.
385 When _string_ is sent by the target, novaboot exits. This option can
386 be specified multiple times.
388 If _string_ is `-re`, then the next __\--exiton__'s _string_ is
389 treated as regular expression. For example:
391 --exiton -re --exiton 'error:.*failed'
395 Setup things for interactive use of target. Your terminal will be
396 switched to raw mode. In raw mode, your system does not process input
397 in any way (no echoing of entered characters, no interpretation
398 special characters). This, among others, means that Ctrl-C is passed
399 to the target and does no longer interrupt novaboot. Use "~~."
400 sequence to exit novaboot.
404 When _string_ is received from the target, send the string specified
405 with the subsequent __\--send\*__ option to the target.
407 - \--expect-re=_regex_
409 When target's output matches regular expression _regex_, send the
410 string specified with the subsequent __\--send\*__ option to the target.
412 - \--expect-raw=_perl-code_
414 Provides direct control over Perl's Expect module.
418 Send _string_ to the target after the previously specified
419 __\--expect\*__ was matched in the target's output. The _string_ may
420 contain escape sequences such as "\\n".
422 Note that _string_ is actually interpreted by Perl, so it can contain
423 much more that escape sequences. This behavior may change in the
426 Example: `--expect='login: ' --send='root\n'`
428 - \--sendcont=_string_
430 Similar to __\--send__ but continue expecting more input.
432 Example: `--expect='Continue?' --sendcont='yes\n'`
434 # NOVABOOT SCRIPT SYNTAX
436 The syntax tries to mimic POSIX shell syntax. The syntax is defined
437 with the following rules.
439 Lines starting with "\#" and empty lines are ignored.
441 Lines that end with "\\" are concatenated with the following line after
442 removal of the final "\\" and leading whitespace of the following line.
444 Lines of the form _VARIABLE=..._ (i.e. matching '^\[A-Z\_\]+=' regular
445 expression) assign values to internal variables. See [VARIABLES](https://metacpan.org/pod/VARIABLES)
448 Lines starting with `load` keyword represent modules to boot. The
449 word after `load` is a file name (relative to the build directory
450 (see __\--build-dir__) of the module to load and the remaining words are
451 passed to it as the command line parameters.
453 When the `load` line ends with "<<WORD" then the subsequent lines
454 until the line containing solely WORD are copied literally to the file
455 named on that line. This is similar to shell's heredoc feature.
457 When the `load` line ends with "< CMD" then command CMD is executed
458 with `/bin/sh` and its standard output is stored in the file named on
459 that line. The SRCDIR variable in CMD's environment is set to the
460 absolute path of the directory containing the interpreted novaboot
464 \#!/usr/bin/env novaboot
465 WVDESC=Example program
466 load bin/apps/sigma0.nul S0\_DEFAULT script\_start:1,1 \\
467 verbose hostkeyb:0,0x60,1,12,2
468 load bin/apps/hello.nul
469 load hello.nulconfig <<EOF
470 sigma0::mem:16 name::/s0/log name::/s0/timer name::/s0/fs/rom ||
471 rom://bin/apps/hello.nul
474 This example will load three modules: `sigma0.nul`, `hello.nul` and
475 `hello.nulconfig`. sigma0 receives some command line parameters and
476 `hello.nulconfig` file is generated on the fly from the lines between
481 The following variables are interpreted in the novaboot script:
485 Novaboot chdir()s to this directory before file generation phase. The
486 directory name specified here is relative to the build directory
487 specified by other means (see ["--build-dir"](#build-dir)).
491 Assigning this variable has the same effect as specifying ["--exiton"](#exiton)
496 Parameters passed to hypervisor. The default value is "serial", unless
497 overridden in configuration file.
501 The kernel to use instead of the hypervisor specified in the
502 configuration file with the `$hypervisor` variable. The value should
503 contain the name of the kernel image as well as its command line
504 parameters. If this variable is defined and non-empty, the variable
505 HYPERVISOR\_PARAMS is not used.
509 Use a specific qemu binary (can be overridden with __\-Q__) and flags
510 when booting this script under qemu. If QEMU\_FLAGS variable is also
511 specified flags specified in QEMU variable are replaced by those in
516 Use specific qemu flags (can be overridden with __\-q__).
520 Description of the wvtest-compliant program.
524 The timeout in seconds for WvTest harness. If no complete line appears
525 in the test output within the time specified here, the test fails. It
526 is necessary to specify this for long running tests that produce no
531 Novaboot can read its configuration from one or more files. By
532 default, novaboot looks for files named `.novaboot` as described in
533 ["Configuration reading phase"](#configuration-reading-phase). Alternatively, its location can be
534 specified with the __\-c__ switch or with the NOVABOOT\_CONFIG
535 environment variable. The configuration file has perl syntax and
536 should set values of certain Perl variables. The current configuration
537 can be dumped with the __\--dump-config__ switch. Some configuration
538 variables can be overridden by environment variables (see below) or by
539 command line switches.
541 Supported configuration variables include:
545 Build directory location relative to the location of the configuration
550 Default target (see below) to use when no target is explicitly
551 specified on command line with the __\--target__ option.
555 Hash of shortcuts to be used with the __\--target__ option. If the hash
556 contains, for instance, the following pair of values
558 'mybox' => '--server=boot:/tftproot --serial=/dev/ttyUSB0 --grub',
560 then the following two commands are equivalent:
562 ./script --server=boot:/tftproot --serial=/dev/ttyUSB0 --grub
565 # ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
567 Some options can be specified not only via config file or command line
568 but also through environment variables. Environment variables override
569 the values from configuration file and command line parameters
570 override the environment variables.
574 Name of the novaboot configuration file to use instead of the default
579 Defining this variable has the same meaning as __\--bender__ option.
583 Michal Sojka <sojka@os.inf.tu-dresden.de>