Configuring the bootstrap file from the console
For the Provisioning Server to start a target device, a boot file is downloaded by the Provisioning Services MBA or PXE-compliant boot ROM. This file must be configured so that it contains the information needed to communicate with the servers.
Use the Configure Bootstrap dialog, located in the server’s contextual menu, to define the IP addresses for up to four Provisioning Servers in the boot file.
Note: For alternative boot methods, refer to Using the Manage Boot Devices Utility.
The Configure Bootstrap dialog includes the following fields:
General tab: Configure bootstrap
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Bootstrap File | The currently selected boot file displays. If you want to select a different boot file to configure, click the Add button or Read Servers from Database button. |
| IP Settings | The IP Address, Subnet Mask, Gateway, and Port for up to four Provisioning Servers. |
| Add | Click the Add button to include a Provisioning Server to the file. Up to four Provisioning Servers are specified. |
| Edit | Highlight an existing Provisioning Server from the list, then click the Edit button to edit this server’s IP settings. |
| Remove | Select an existing Provisioning Server from the list, then click the Remove button to remove this server from the list of available Provisioning Servers. |
| Move Up and Move Down | Select an existing Provisioning Server, and click to move up or down in the list of Provisioning Servers. The order in which the Provisioning Servers appear in the list determines the order in which the Provisioning Servers are accessed should a server fail. |
| Read Servers from Database | To populate the boot file with the Stream Service IP settings already configured in the database, click the Read Servers from Database button. This process clears the list then populates the list with the first four servers found in the database. |
Target device IP: Configure bootstrap
| Use DHCP to retrieve target device IP | Select this option to retrieve target device IP; default method. |
| Use static target device IP | Selecting this method requires a primary and secondary DNS and Domain. |
Server lookup: Configure bootstrap
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Use DNS | Select this option to use DNS to find the server. The host name displays in the Host name textbox. If this option is selected and the Use DHCP to retrieve Device IP option is selected (under Device IP Configuration settings), your DHCP server needs to provide option 6 (DNS Server). Note: If using HA, specify up to four Provisioning Servers for the same Host name on your DNS server. |
| Use static IP | Use the static IP address of the Provisioning Server from which to boot from. If you select this option, click Add to enter the following Provisioning Server information, then click OK to exit the dialog: IP address, subnet mask, gateway, port (default is 6910). Note: If using HA, enter up to four Provisioning Servers. If you are not using HA, only enter one. Use the Move Up and Move Down buttons to sort the Provisioning Servers boot order. The first Provisioning Server listed is the server that the target device attempts to boot from. |
Options tab: Configure bootstrap
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Verbose mode | Select the Verbose Mode option if you want to monitor the boot process on the target device (optional) or view system messages. |
| Interrupt safe mode | Select Interrupt Safe Mode if you are having trouble with your target device failing early in the boot process. |
| Advanced memory support | This setting enables the bootstrap to work with newer Windows OS versions and is enabled by default. Only disable this setting if your target device is hanging or behaving erratically in early boot phase. |
| Network recovery method | Restore Network Connections — Selecting this option results in the target device attempting indefinitely to restore its connection to the Provisioning Server. Reboot to Hard Drive — A hard drive must exist on the target device. Selecting this option instructs the target device to perform a hardware reset to force a reboot after failing to re-establish communications. The user determines the number of seconds to wait before rebooting. Assuming the network connection cannot be established, PXE fails, and the system reboots to the local hard drive. The default number of seconds is 50, to be compatible with HA configurations. |
| Login polling timeout | Enter the time, in milliseconds, between retries when polling for Provisioning Servers. Each Provisioning Server is sent a login request packet in sequence. The first Provisioning Server that responds is used. In non-HA systems, this time-out simply defines how often to retry the single available Provisioning Server with the initial login request. This time-out defines how quickly the round-robin routine switches from one Provisioning Server to the next in trying to find an active Provisioning Server. The valid range is from 1,000 milliseconds to 60,000 milliseconds. |
| Login general timeout | Enter the time-out, in milliseconds, for all login associated packets, except the initial login polling time-out. This time-out is longer than the polling time-out, because the Provisioning Server needs time to contact all associated servers. Some servers may be down and require retries and time-outs from the Provisioning Server to the other Provisioning Servers to determine if they are indeed online or not. The valid range is from 1,000 milliseconds to 60,000 milliseconds. |
Configuring the bootstrap File
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In the Console, select a Provisioning Server within the Servers folder in the tree, then select Configure bootstrap from the Actions pane or the context menu. The Configure Bootstrap dialog appears.
Select the boot file that was copied to the directory you selected during the Provisioning Server setup. Because the server returns the list of bootstrap files found under Provisioning Services ProgramData, the server must be active for the Configure Bootstrap menu item to appear.
Important:
If a previous version of Provisioning services was installed on this server, you must change the default location from:
C:\Program Files\Citrix\Provisioning Services
to:
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Citrix\Provisioning Services\Tftpboot
If the default is not changed, the bootstrap file cannot be configured from the Console and target devices fail to boot; receiving a ‘Missing TFTP’ error message.
If you installed the Console on a separate machine, select the path of the remote Provisioning Server (which has boot services installed).
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The Configuration Wizard writes the list of IP addresses to the database for the server. Selecting Read Servers from the Database gets the first IP and Port for the server and populates it into the list. This step should only be performed when the list is blank, or to replace the whole list with new values. These values are set in the Streaming network cards section of the Configuration Wizard’s Network Communications page. Provisioning Services uses the first network card selected.
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Choose from the following options:
- Select the Verbose Mode option if you want to monitor the boot process on the target device (optional). This enables system messaging on the target device.
- Select Interrupt Safe Mode if the target device hangs early in the boot process.
- Select Advanced Memory Support option to enable the bootstrap to work with newer Windows OS versions (enabled by default). Only disable this setting if your target device is hanging or behaving erratically in early boot phase.
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Select from the following Network Recovery Methods:
- Restore Network Connections - Selecting this option results in the target device attempting indefinitely to restore its connection to the Provisioning Server.
- Reboot to Hard Drive - Selecting this option instructs the target device to perform a hardware reset to force a reboot after failing to re-establish communications for a defined number of seconds. The user determines the number of seconds to wait before rebooting. Assuming the network connection cannot be established, PXE fails and the system reboots to the local hard drive. The default number of seconds is 50. Click the Browse button to search for and select the folder created in Step 1, or enter a full path or UNC name.
Note: If the partition containing the vDisks is formatted as a FAT file system, a message displays a warning that this could result in suboptimal performance. Citrix recommends using NTFS to format the partition containing the vDisks. Do not change the address in the Port field.
Caution: All boot services (PXE, TFTP) must be on the same NIC (IP). But the Stream Service can be on a different NIC. The Stream Service allows you to bind to multiple IPs (NICs).
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Configure the following:
Login Polling Timeout
Enter the time, in milliseconds, between retries when polling for servers. Each server is sent a login request packet in sequence. The first server that responds is used. This time-out simply defines how often to retry the single available server with the initial login request. This time-out defines how quickly the round-robin routine switches from one server to the next, in trying to find an active server. The valid range is from 1,000 milliseconds to 60,000 milliseconds.
Login General Timeout
Enter the time-out, in milliseconds, for all login associated packets, except the initial login polling time-out. The valid range is from 1,000 milliseconds to 60,000 milliseconds.
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Click OK to save your changes.