Install Lightning Wire Labs Mini appliance via serial console

Hello,

I am trying to do the initial setup of a new Lightning Wire Labs Mini appliance.

The appliance is connected via null modem cable (serial) and I receive the following error message after first firing up or when I try via USB stick to install current version (2.29) of ipFire.

What is causing this error and what is needed to get it ipFire installed / started via serial console?

Is it possible that I missed something?

Thanks

Looks like a typical Linux boot to me. What does happen after that? Is it stuck at this point or does it continue with more messages?

Also how did you prepare / create the usb stick?

A shot in the dark: Maybe some UEFI-configurations need to be adjusted like secure-boot or anything else?

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You have not selelected “sseerriiaall ccoonnssoollee ooppttiioonnss” in the first bootloader menu because without you try to boot the installation via video output.

Make sure that your terminal screen is large enough because the first menu prints every character twice which is a bios bug.

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I had a running serial connection active when I fired up the Lightning Wire Labs Mini appliance for the first time, but it seems although I missed it. What are the steps I need to take to come to this first time boot selection again? I tried with different versions of ipFire on a USB stick, however no serial connection is offered.
Thanks again for everybody’s support.

You need to choose “Other Installation Options”, in sub-menu should me the choice “Install IPFire Serial Console” or something like this.

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this might help (look for on first boot . . .):

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looks like you boot in uEFI mode. The mini appliance should not have an uEFI firmware or is this the new one?

In this case you need to add “console=ttyS0,115200n8” to the kernel commandline or use at least core190 (which is not relased yet)

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I just had the same problem with my old MiniAppliance.

Flashed Dasharo UEFI on it (self compiled, works pretty good), wanted to reinstall IPFire and was a bit confuzzled.

@arne_f’s suggestion is absolutely correct, I just wanted to make it clearer for the people not so familiar with linux.

When this screen appears:

01

press “e” on your keyboard. On the next screen type in what Arne suggested so that it looks like this

02

After that just press “Ctrl” and “x” at the same time (just like grub suggests). The booting will continue and the console-installation will work just like it did with good old SeaBIOS.

Greetings

Alex

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Thanks for all the replies and contributions. I learned a lot and was able to get started / permanently added via TTY.
For others which might facing similar issue if serial console is not provided as an start/installation option, press “e” to edit IPFire startup by adding “console=ttyS0,115200n8” to the end of the Linux… line item and press “control + x” to start.

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Okay, we need to distinguish between the old and the new IPFire Mini Appliance as the latter has UEFI and the old one does not - unless you reflashed it.

This line is something that has to be added temporarily until Core Update 190 is released which will have an option to install from the serial console out of the box.

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