PXE bootable image of OpenWrt

Installing and Using OpenWrt
1

I have set up a PXE server and would like to try booting OpenWrt from it.
Has anyone done this?
I have managed to boot an mfslinux iso image but it doesn't include drivers for my NIC.

2

I assume you've already read them ?

3

Actually, none of those topics are relevant to me as I already have a working PXE server set up.
I want to be able to PXE boot OpenWrt from it.

4

that's a topic for your DHCP server, and the client using PXE.

booting an openwrt initramfs, like the one you had created in your other thread, should work.

5

I was trying to find an OpenWrt ISO. I have been able to PXE boot numerous ISOs.

What file would need to use openwrt initramfs?

6

there aren't any premade images available.

you should have created one in your other thread, what's wrong with it ?

1 Like
7

I couldn't manage to create one.

8

then why create a thread about PXE booting openwrt, when you've got nothing to boot ?

1 Like
9

First, referring to your other post, OpenWrt isn't distributed as an iso file, and it does not make sense to try to repackage it into an iso file. It does not have an installer program like other Linux distributions.

"PXE booting an ISO file" is not a direct operation. The PXE code in the BIOS does not understand ISO files. What actually happens depends on a third-party ecosystem in the PXE server. First it boots a small kernel written by the third party to the client. This kernel mounts the remote iso file as a network drive then chain-boots it.

This is unnecessary with OpenWrt since one of the distribution formats of OpenWrt is an initramfs-kernel blob which can be directly PXE booted as a vmlinuz file.

10

Here is my PXE menu entry for mfslinux which boots up OK and would serve it's purpose if it included a driver for my NIC:-

LABEL mfsLinux-new
   MENU LABEL mfsLinux-new
   kernel memdisk
   initrd iso/mfslinux.iso
   append iso raw
    TEXT HELP
    mfslinux test
    ENDTEXT