Installing Arch Linux on a ServerAstra cloud instance or dedicated server

This guide provides step-by-step instructions on how to install Arch Linux. This process is aimed at users with a basic understanding of Linux commands and network configurations.

Prerequisites

Either a server or cloud instance with ServerAstra.
Arch Linux ISO access
Basic familiarity with Linux command line interface.

TIP: For BMC access please refer to Guide to Interpreting the YAML Configuration and Connecting to IPKVM and IPMI IPKVM guide

Step 1: Connecting the Arch Linux ISO

Select the ISO for Arch Linux version either:
- from our repository and:
  - attach it in the VPS configuration CDROM section
  - attach it via provisioned BMC (IPMI, iDRAC, KVM over IP, etc)
- download from official Arch Linux website and:
  - upload to our cloud panel (size must be less than 6GB) in the VPS configuration section with [+] button
  - connect to BMC (IPMI, iDRAC, KVM over IP, etc) in the IPKVM console (either JAVA or HTML5 depending on server brand)

Step 2: Boot the Server

Restart your server.
Access your server’s boot menu and select the option to boot from the virtual CDROM containing the Arch ISO.
If you are unable to boot to ISO seek help from our Support team to assist.

Step 3: Set Up the Internet Connection

Ensure your server is connected to the internet. For Cloud Instance connections, Arch Linux should connect automatically via DHCP. If you need to configure it manually or set up a wireless connection, run the following commands in the root console of ISO booted Arch Linux:
```
ip link
```
Note the network interface name which is connected and up and running. Replace in the next command %NETIF% with that interface name and %IP% and %GW with designated IP address (including subnet) and gateway from YAML configuration sent to you by ServerAstra team upon deployment of dedicated server
```
ip addr add %IP% dev %NETIF%
ip route add default via %GW%
```
For example if your IP is 10.0.0.5/24, gateway is 10.0.0.1 and interface name is enp45s0 the resulting command will be:
```
ip addr add 10.0.0.5/24 dev enp45s0
ip route add default via 10.0.0.1
```

Step 4: Partition the Disk

Use the lsblk command to list all available disks and partitions.

Partition the disk using fdisk (for MBR), cfdisk, sfdisk or parted. For a simple setup, assuming disk name /dev/sda:

A root partition (/dev/sda1)
Optionally, a swap partition (/dev/sda2)

Example using fdisk:

fdisk /dev/sda
> n       # Create new partition
> p       # Primary partition
> 1       # Partition number
>         # Default - start at beginning of disk
> +20G    # Partition size
> n       # Create another new partition
> p       # Primary partition
> 2       # Partition number
>         # Default, starts immediately after preceding partition
> +2G     # Swap partition size
> t       # Change partition type
> 2       # Select partition 2
> 82      # Linux swap / Solaris
> w       # Write changes and exit

Step 5: Format the Partitions

mkfs.ext4 /dev/sda1 # Format the root partition
mkswap /dev/sda2    # Set up the swap partition
swapon /dev/sda2    # Enable the swap partition

Step 6: Mount the File System

mount /dev/sda1 /mnt

Step 7: Install Arch Linux

Install the base system and essential packages:

pacstrap /mnt base linux linux-firmware nano openssh grub

Generate an fstab file:

genfstab -U /mnt >> /mnt/etc/fstab

Step 8: Chroot into Your Installation

arch-chroot /mnt

Step 9: Configure the System

Set the time zone:

ln -sf /usr/share/zoneinfo/Region/City /etc/localtime
hwclock --systohc

Generate locales by uncommenting en_US.UTF-8 UTF-8 and other needed locales in /etc/locale.gen, then run:

locale-gen

Create the locale.conf file, and set the LANG variable:

echo "LANG=en_US.UTF-8" > /etc/locale.conf

Set the hostname:

echo "serverastra-customer" > /etc/hostname

Setup networking, replace %NETIF%, %IP% and %GW% like mentioned in Step 3, %DNS% is Nameserver from same YAML configuration:

systemctl enable systemd-networkd
cat << EOF > /etc/systemd/network/10-serverastra.network
[Match]
Name=%NETIF%
[Network]
Address=%IP%
Gateway=%GW%
DNS=%DNS%
EOF

Step 10: Install Bootloader

You can install a variety of bootloaders in Arch Linux. We will pick the most popular, GRUB. Installation:

pacman -S grub
grub-install --target=i386-pc /dev/sda
grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg
mkinitcpio -P

TIP: If you encounter pacman errors due to keys expiring - try repopulating keys and reinstalling keyring:
pacman-key --init
pacman-key --populate
pacman -Sy archlinux-keyring

Step 11: Set Root Password

passwd

Step 12: Reboot

Exit from chroot:

exit

Unmount all partitions:

umount -R /mnt

Reboot the server:

reboot

Now, your server should boot into Arch Linux. Customize your setup by installing additional packages and configuring services as needed.