Including custom tools when creating LiveCD

[metaylor]

I am creating images using LiveCD. I am using the following command

livecd-creator \
--config=/usr/share/livecd-tools/livecd-fedora-desktop.ks --fslabel=Fedora-LiveCD

I want to include some C++ custom tools in the image so that these tools are available when the LiveCD is used.

Any ideas on how to I can do this?

[ryptyde]

You can edit the "livecd-fedora-desktop.ks" file and add your extras under the %packages heading also look at the "livecd-fedora-developer.ks" file and see how the packages are setup there or maybe just use that .ks file.

[metaylor]

Thanks for the reply. I have an additional questions for clarification. The tools that I want to add are not packages or located in a repository. They are executables I have in a local directory.

Does this matter? Do I just add them to the kickstart file or do I have to set up a repository and put them there?

[ryptyde]

I have made livecds using the regular fedora repos some third party and local repo using rpms only so I can't be of much help on how to get your executables included. By "executables" would that be something used in Windows?

[metaylor]

No, by executables I am referring to the output of a successfully compilation of C++ program or project on Fedora 9 Linux.

And thanks for the support.

[NoEffex]

If you mean binaries, assuming it uses squashfs, you would extract the squashfs, then edit the filesystem with the files you want to have, and where. Then you would recompress the filesystem.

Although this is a Ubuntu guide, it still applies to squashfs, and I've used it before.

EDIT: I just found another seemingly simpler one

# mount /some/file.sqfs /mnt -o loop  
# rsync -aP /mnt/ /somewhere/big  
# umount /mnt  
(do edits to /somewhere/big)  
# mksquashfs /somewhere/big /some/new-file.sqfs

[metaylor]

ok thanks for the support

[Dangermouse]

Hi just a suggestion, but what i do usually is make any extra stuff like files and scripts i want to add into a rpm first, i found that was the easiest way for me.

[sideways]

you can add any custom files in the %post section of the kickstart file

http://forums.fedoraforum.org/showthread.php?t=202290

I've used this to include an entire (compressed) backup of my fedora install on a livedvd

[metaylor]

I have added the following line to the %post section of livecd-fedora-8-desktop.ks file

cp /home/metaylor/main $INSTALL_ROOT/fedora

I created a liveCD and booted using it. When I logged on as I did not see the file named main in the /home/fedora directory.

Should this have worked?

[sideways]

Originally Posted by metaylor

I have added the following line to the %post section of livecd-fedora-8-desktop.ks file

cp /home/metaylor/main $INSTALL_ROOT/fedora

I created a liveCD and booted using it. When I logged on as I did not see the file named main in the /home/fedora directory.

Should this have worked?

Yes, but it will be /fedora not /home/fedora

use $INSTALL_ROOT/home/fedora if the latter was the intention

[metaylor]

I tried both with no success. I have attached the kickstart file I used. Perhaps you can take a quick review of it.

[metaylor]

I was able to get this to work using the following commands

%post --nochroot
cp -r /home/metaylor/diagnostics $LIVE_ROOT/opt
cp -r /home/metaylor/diagnostics $INSTALL_ROOT/opt
%end

It appears that I misunderstood which $INSTALL_ROOT and $LIVE_ROOT.