InstallerForWindows
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| == Assumptions == | == Design == |
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| * ntfs-3g doesn't break the world * ubiquity pre-seeding is implemented (else we fall back to alternate for gutsy) == Design == |
=== Bundled LiveCD Version === |
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| === Comments (ago) === | === Standalone Version === |
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| * What questions are asked by the windows interface and how many questions by ubiquity? Possibly password by ubiquity (for security reasons) and the rest by the windows front-end. * Showing 2 separate wizards may look awkward, the user should feel confortable. * The Windows front-end can detect processes from the live system: e.g. detect whether a screen reader is active. We should take advantage of that. * Is the full desktop loaded when Ubiquity is run in non-interactive mode or is some frontend run in full screen mode to display progress information? * I suggest to have a dropdown to select the size/target with the following entries: 4GB, 5GB, 6GB...(up to max feasible size), Use Available Free Space (if detected), Use Drive X: (one entry for each empty partition detected), Boot LiveCD (avoids bios problems and makes live cd available to people with no CD-Rom). * See Also the ["CommunityGutsyIdeas/Installation"] for more windows-friendly installation methods * Debian's [http://goodbye-microsoft.com/more.html win32-installer] can be considered a good alternative - it install's a real debian (not loopmounted) using ntloader. |
Evaluate the possibility of providing the standalone version of Wubi as an installation option on Ubuntu website. Some of the advantages: * No CD burning * The installer itself is less than 1MB, it takes more bandwidth to send a picture of Ubuntu to a friend... => Easy to "pass it around" * Built-in advanced download manager with automatic mirror selection, segmented downloads (not yet available), (partial) checksums, and download resume => No nee to ask about a mirror. * Automatic architecture detection => No need to ask about the architecture. * Allows to choose any member of the Ubuntu family with a single installer. => More exposure for other flavors * Several installation techniques can be used (whether the end user is made aware of that is a different issue). Wubi might come with built-in CD burner and/or hd-media-like installation support (requires online resizing) and/or netboot installations as well as loop-installations. |
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| * Option to install to a real partition * Set the size of the image file (5GB is default) * Better post-install management features. A control panel running in windows that lets you resize discs, make backups, select between different installed systems. |
* Improved downloader with segmented downloads and bittorrent client * Built-in CD Burner: we are evaluating the possibility of bundling an ISO burner. Cdrtools would be a good match but the license is an issue. A mingw build of cdrkit might be a good solution (if possible). * Expandable images: using hybrid images zeroed for the first 4-5GB (via fallocate) and sparse for n GB more. It depends on how well new version of ntfs-3g can cope with that, alternatively can use LVM with several files of 2GB. * Option to install to a real partition (would result in hdmedia-like installations, requires online resizing) * Netboot support (via alternate initrd, alternative to hdmedia-like installations) * Expandable image files * Support native NTFS installation, it does not require much change on Wubi side, but it requires additional ntfs-3g features (unlikely in the short term) * Better post-install management features. A control panel running in windows that lets you resize disks, make backups, select between different installed systems. * Improved detection of settings of live windows session (inf files for monitor resolution, screen readers...) * See Also the ["CommunityGutsyIdeas/Installation"] for more windows-friendly installation methods * Debian's [http://goodbye-microsoft.com/more.html win32-installer] can be considered a good alternative - it install's a real debian (not loopmounted) using ntloader. [It would be easy to add netboot capabilities to Wubi, hdmedia type installations would be a better option, but are technically more challenging -- Ago ] |
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| * Merge [http://launchpad.net/lupin lupin] patches in with d-i and intramfs to support loop-installation mode. * Add usplash to the initial install boot (perhaps we get this for free with the Live CD ISO?) |
* Merge upstream the patches now in lupin-support and wubi/override_files |
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| * While there will be only a single installer, it will detect which distro is in use from metadata on the detected CD or ISO image, and select artwork and kernel boot parameters (preseed files, etc.) appropriately. | * While there will be only a single installer, it will detect which distro is in use from metadata on the detected CD or ISO image, and select artwork and kernel boot parameters (preseed files, etc.) appropriately. [Implemented] |
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| * Unmounting of userspace filesystems should be improved upstream (sendsigs) * Unmounting of host filesystems should be improved upstream (umountfs) * Fix update-grub and grub-installer to take into account loopinstallations * Support fallocate in ntfs-3g and vfat to generate preallocated disk images quickly (or support windows-side diskimage creation) (ntfs-3g + kernel devs) * Improve on syctl hacks, check whether there is a better way to improve journal robustness in nested filesystems * Allow suspend-to-ram/disk with fuse filesystems (kernel devs) * Allow suspend-to-disk with swap on file (kernel devs) * Fsck in ntfs-3g (ntfs-3g) * Online resizing to support hd-media type installations (unlikely, but there is always hope!) * Proper external override hooks for installation ISO are very useful, they hopefully will not be needed for wubi-8.04, but they should be improved and generalized (ubuntu-installer) * Official isolist/metalink support (https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu-cdimage/+bug/140458) * Better detection of existing settings (active screen readers, other accessibility tools, sys/inf files for screen resolution and other hardware settings, propietary fonts?, codecs? wireless drivers?). * Make Ubiquity aware of existing loop-installations (part of the https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/ubiquity-preserve-home discussion?) * Proper build scripts. |
This specification is marked as Approved in Launchpad. Please contact the Assignee or another knowledgeable person before making changes.
Launchpad Entry: installer-for-windows
Packages affected: ubiquity, casper, winfoss, wubi
Summary
A loop-mounted Ubuntu install initiated in Windows. The installer asks fewer questions and does not partition or format drives.
Release Note
Installing Ubuntu is now even easier for Windows users! The small installer program will copy a fully-functional Ubuntu system into a directory on your Windows drive, which you can then boot in a "dual-boot" configuration. This is a great way to try out Ubuntu over a period of time, with no re-partitioning or formatting required. For long-term use, we recommend migrating to a native disk install.
Please note that suspend functionality is disabled when using this Ubuntu configuration.
Rationale
Windows users are often more comfortable downloading and running a small ubuntu-setup.exe file than downloading and burning an ISO. This also avoids the requirement of booting from the CD, which can be troublesome as some laptops do not have a CD drive and many systems are configured to boot from the hard disk first.
Advantages
- No disk resizing or partitioning required
- No CD burning required, works on laptops without CD drives
- Easy to remove Ubuntu from the system, restoring the system to its previous state
- The bootloader is not replaced, an additional boot option is addded to it
- Ubuntu is installed/uninstalled as any other application, which is comfortable for the user
- Runs at near-native speeds using all system resources (provided the loop mounting is efficient)
- Uses all available hardware as a normal install would (in like a virtualbox install)
Use Cases
- Sindre wants to give Linux a try but uses his only computer for work and does not want to repartition his drive, worried that something will break. The Live CD he received guides him through installing Ubuntu in a file on his widows system, which he then boots into.
- Hellena writes tech reviews for on-line journals. She has tested various Linux distros in the past using VMware, but this does not quite yield a native experience. On the Ubuntu website she finds a small download that runs in Windows and produces a loop mounted install. After testing and reviewing she can delete it easily.
Design
Bundled LiveCD Version
A small executable that can be included on the CD which does the following:
If an Ubuntu CD is not present in a CD drive, locates the ISO on your system or downloads it via [http://hampus.vox.nu/metadl/ metadl] (which can be taught to perform mirror selection)
- Asks for a user name and password
- Gathers information from Windows for the remaining install settings
Creates a 5GB image file in a user-defined location, C:\ubuntu by default
- Creates a pre-seed file for the install
- Adds Ubuntu entry to the Windows bootloader
- Reboots to start an install process (non-interactive)
- if a CD is present in a drive, uses that; otherwise loop-mounts an ISO image from the Windows drive
- loop-mounts disk image from the Windows drive
- Will use a pre-seed enabled version of ubiquity
- Reboot again to start Ubuntu (or Windows)
- Allows simple removal of Ubuntu if desired, via a Windows-based uninstaller in add/remove programs
- Installer can be launched from the WinFOSS browser
Standalone Version
Evaluate the possibility of providing the standalone version of Wubi as an installation option on Ubuntu website. Some of the advantages:
- No CD burning
The installer itself is less than 1MB, it takes more bandwidth to send a picture of Ubuntu to a friend... => Easy to "pass it around"
Built-in advanced download manager with automatic mirror selection, segmented downloads (not yet available), (partial) checksums, and download resume => No nee to ask about a mirror.
Automatic architecture detection => No need to ask about the architecture.
Allows to choose any member of the Ubuntu family with a single installer. => More exposure for other flavors
- Several installation techniques can be used (whether the end user is made aware of that is a different issue). Wubi might come with built-in CD burner and/or hd-media-like installation support (requires online resizing) and/or netboot installations as well as loop-installations.
Optional features
- Teach the ubiquity migration assistant to migrate from a loop-mounted file in Windows
- Improved downloader with segmented downloads and bittorrent client
- Built-in CD Burner: we are evaluating the possibility of bundling an ISO burner. Cdrtools would be a good match but the license is an issue. A mingw build of cdrkit might be a good solution (if possible).
- Expandable images: using hybrid images zeroed for the first 4-5GB (via fallocate) and sparse for n GB more. It depends on how well new version of ntfs-3g can cope with that, alternatively can use LVM with several files of 2GB.
- Option to install to a real partition (would result in hdmedia-like installations, requires online resizing)
- Netboot support (via alternate initrd, alternative to hdmedia-like installations)
- Expandable image files
- Support native NTFS installation, it does not require much change on Wubi side, but it requires additional ntfs-3g features (unlikely in the short term)
- Better post-install management features. A control panel running in windows that lets you resize disks, make backups, select between different installed systems.
- Improved detection of settings of live windows session (inf files for monitor resolution, screen readers...)
- See Also the ["CommunityGutsyIdeas/Installation"] for more windows-friendly installation methods
Debian's [http://goodbye-microsoft.com/more.html win32-installer] can be considered a good alternative - it install's a real debian (not loopmounted) using ntloader. [It would be easy to add netboot capabilities to Wubi, hdmedia type installations would be a better option, but are technically more challenging -- Ago ]
Implementation
- Windows installer is written in NSIS with various plug-ins (bittorrent, what else?)
- Tighten the graphical design with a nice NSIS skin and suitable ubuntu graphics (Ngompa: look at ExperienceUI)
- Merge upstream the patches now in lupin-support and wubi/override_files
- Refinement and testing of Vista support
- Different versions for Ubuntu, Edubuntu, Kubuntu and Xubuntu, where only the artwork and ISO differ.
- While there will be only a single installer, it will detect which distro is in use from metadata on the detected CD or ISO image, and select artwork and kernel boot parameters (preseed files, etc.) appropriately. [Implemented]
Website
- Prominent download location on the website
Test/Demo Plan
- Widespread community testing
- Test the install procedure on a range of hardware and Windows versions
Outstanding Issues
- Unmounting of userspace filesystems should be improved upstream (sendsigs)
- Unmounting of host filesystems should be improved upstream (umountfs)
- Fix update-grub and grub-installer to take into account loopinstallations
- Support fallocate in ntfs-3g and vfat to generate preallocated disk images quickly (or support windows-side diskimage creation) (ntfs-3g + kernel devs)
- Improve on syctl hacks, check whether there is a better way to improve journal robustness in nested filesystems
- Allow suspend-to-ram/disk with fuse filesystems (kernel devs)
- Allow suspend-to-disk with swap on file (kernel devs)
- Fsck in ntfs-3g (ntfs-3g)
- Online resizing to support hd-media type installations (unlikely, but there is always hope!)
- Proper external override hooks for installation ISO are very useful, they hopefully will not be needed for wubi-8.04, but they should be improved and generalized (ubuntu-installer)
Official isolist/metalink support (https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu-cdimage/+bug/140458)
- Better detection of existing settings (active screen readers, other accessibility tools, sys/inf files for screen resolution and other hardware settings, propietary fonts?, codecs? wireless drivers?).
Make Ubiquity aware of existing loop-installations (part of the https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/ubiquity-preserve-home discussion?)
- Proper build scripts.
InstallerForWindows (last edited 2008-08-06 16:32:01 by localhost)