XenServer: Setup an ISO share

To Create a New Partition 

e.g. Use the Remaining portion of the XenServer Install Disk

1. Get the current partition table (using a lower case L at the end):
   fdisk –l

If you need a new Partition:

1. Assuming your install disk is at /dev/sda1 then run the following to get more information:
   gdisk /dev/sda
2. Print the partition table by entering 'p' at the gdisk command prompt:
   Command (? for help): p
3. If you need a new partition enter n and accept the defaults:
   Command (? for help): n          
   Partition number (3-128, default 3):
   First sector (34-488327006, default = 16777250) or {+-}size{KMGT}:
   Last sector (16779264-488327006, default = 488327006) or {+-}size{KMGT}:
   Hex code (L to show codes, 0 to enter raw code, Enter = 0700): 
4. Enter the 'p' command to check your new partition exists
5. Enter 'w' to save your changes
6. Reboot
7. Format it for use as an ISO share:
    mkfs.ext3 /dev/sdaX
   where X is the number

To Use an Existing Disk

Setup a share on your local XenServer to use when installing new VMs:

1. Run the following to assess your server's setup:
   df -h
2. Note the ‘large’ sector ending with a GUID and cd to it e.g.
   cd /var/run/sr-mount/<GUID>

Make a Mount Point and Add It to XenServer

1. Make a mount point:
   mkdir /mnt/isos 
2. Mount it:
   mount /dev/sda3 /mnt/isos
3. Check its mounted:
   df
4. Add it to fstab so it's available on reboot (see Ubuntu's docs for more info):
   echo "/dev/sda3 /mnt/isos ext3 defaults 1 1" >> /etc/fstab
5. Check the mounting works:
   sudo mount -a
6. Add it to XenServer:
• Make it available in XenServer:
  xe-mount-iso-sr /mnt/isos –o bind
• Create the XenServer point:
  xe sr-create name-label=ISOs type=iso device-config:location=/mnt/isos device-config:legacy_mode=true content-type=iso
  NB: you might need to change the location to:
  /var/run/sr-mount/<UUID>/isos
7. Check it and view it's UUID:
   xe sr-list
   

To Delete a Storage Repository

1. Get the UUID of the SR:
   xe sr-list
2. Get the PDB UUID of the SR:
   xe pbd-list sr-uuid=[UUID of the SR]
3. Unplug the PDB using the first UUID returned:
   xe pbd-unplug uuid=[UUID of PDB]
4. 'Forget' the SR:
   xe sr-forget uuid=[UUID of SR]
5. Check it's gone:
   xe sr-list

Installing an OS

You can use a remote URL to install e.g. http://www.mirrorservice.org/sites/archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/

1. Put an ISO on the server:
• Get an ISO e.g
  cd /mnt/isos
  wget http://releases.ubuntu.com/16.04.1/ubuntu-16.04.1-server-amd64.iso
• or scp one up:
  scp /Users/<username>/Downloads/ubuntu-14.04.1-server-amd64.iso root@192.168.0.6:/mnt/isos
• Use a program like FileZilla to connect via SFTP
2. Re scan the archive:
   Find the uuid: xe pbd-list
   xe sr-scan uuid=<sr UUID>

Credits

Rod Smith: A gdisk Walkthrough