Offline installation

[mirkobrombin]

To achieve a full offline installation, we would have to populate a containers storage with desktop image. Since we have 3 different images, we have to generate 3 different ISOs:

• desktop
• nvidia
• vm

[taukakao]

Yes, but I have another suggestion:
We could probably make the user select a file in the regular installer containing the image. So a user could have two USBs or just load their image onto the flashed USB somewhere.

This would be less complicated then always building three ISOs (plus a online ISO probably) and would open up the possibility of installing custom images right from the start.

[mirkobrombin]

Good idea, the user could have the tarball downloaded in addition to the ISO and have albius use it

[axtloss]

This can't replace isos with the images loaded already. if anything it should be an extra option since, we cannot expect users to have two USB drives

[mirkobrombin]

Yeah I was thinking of it as an extra option. I think the initial proposal is still the only solution to provide a full offline solution without asking the user to prepare 2 USB. The only problem is that generating 4 different ISOs (net, desktop, nvidia, vm) would require a good structure and automation/integration with the website.

In both cases providing a rootfs, whatever it is bundled with the ISO or not, is easier and would just require minor changes to Albius.

[taukakao]

Coudn't we do something similar to ventoy where the user could just load the tarball onto the flashed USB drive?

[axtloss]

That would require changes to the live iso which is just not worth it honestly, an extra option (like debian already has for external/offline apt repositories) is the one thats easiest to implement and most helpful