Red Hat SummitChapter 13. Preparing a remote installation by using RDP
13.1. Remote desktop protocol overview
Use the graphical user interface method of installing RHEL when you boot the system from a CD, DVD, or USB flash drive, or from a network using PXE. However, many enterprise systems, for example, IBM Power Systems and 64-bit IBM Z, are located in remote data center environments that are run autonomously and are not connected to a display, keyboard, and mouse. These systems are often referred to as headless systems and they are typically controlled over a network connection. The RHEL installation program includes a Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) installation that runs the graphical installation on the target machine, but control of the graphical installation is handled by another system on the network.
The RHEL installation program is configured to start on the target system and wait for an RDP viewer that is installed on another system before proceeding. The IP address and port are displayed on the target system. You can use the RDP viewer to connect to the target system remotely by using the IP address and port, and complete the graphical installation.
13.2. Considerations for using remote desktop protocol
By default, the installation program has an RDP server included. Consider the following items when performing a remote RHEL installation by using RDP:
- RDP client application
-
An RDP client application is required to perform an RDP installation. RDP client applications are available in the repositories of most Linux distributions, and free RDP client applications are also available for other operating systems such as Windows or might even be built-in. The
GNOME ConnectionsRDP client application is available in RHEL. It is a part of the GNOME desktop environment and is installed as part of thegnome-connectionspackage. - Network and firewall
- If the target system is not allowed inbound connections by a firewall, then you must enable incoming RDP connections or disable the firewall. Disabling a firewall can have security implications. See the Security hardening document for more information about configuring the firewall.
- Custom Boot Options
- You must specify custom boot options to start an RDP installation and the installation instructions might differ depending on your system architecture.
'%20d='M201.5%20305.5c-13.8%200-24.9-11.1-24.9-24.6%200-13.8%2011.1-24.9%2024.9-24.9%2013.6%200%2024.6%2011.1%2024.6%2024.9%200%2013.6-11.1%2024.6-24.6%2024.6zM504%20256c0%20137-111%20248-248%20248S8%20393%208%20256%20119%208%20256%208s248%20111%20248%20248zm-132.3-41.2c-9.4%200-17.7%203.9-23.8%2010-22.4-15.5-52.6-25.5-86.1-26.6l17.4-78.3%2055.4%2012.5c0%2013.6%2011.1%2024.6%2024.6%2024.6%2013.8%200%2024.9-11.3%2024.9-24.9s-11.1-24.9-24.9-24.9c-9.7%200-18%205.8-22.1%2013.8l-61.2-13.6c-3-.8-6.1%201.4-6.9%204.4l-19.1%2086.4c-33.2%201.4-63.1%2011.3-85.5%2026.8-6.1-6.4-14.7-10.2-24.1-10.2-34.9%200-46.3%2046.9-14.4%2062.8-1.1%205-1.7%2010.2-1.7%2015.5%200%2052.6%2059.2%2095.2%20132%2095.2%2073.1%200%20132.3-42.6%20132.3-95.2%200-5.3-.6-10.8-1.9-15.8%2031.3-16%2019.8-62.5-14.9-62.5zM302.8%20331c-18.2%2018.2-76.1%2017.9-93.6%200-2.2-2.2-6.1-2.2-8.3%200-2.5%202.5-2.5%206.4%200%208.6%2022.8%2022.8%2087.3%2022.8%20110.2%200%202.5-2.2%202.5-6.1%200-8.6-2.2-2.2-6.1-2.2-8.3%200zm7.7-75c-13.6%200-24.6%2011.1-24.6%2024.9%200%2013.6%2011.1%2024.6%2024.6%2024.6%2013.8%200%2024.9-11.1%2024.9-24.6%200-13.8-11-24.9-24.9-24.9z'/%3e%3c/svg%3e){kind=small}