21.2. Package selection in Kickstart

Specify an entire environment to be installed as a line starting with the @^ symbols:

%packages
@^Infrastructure Server
%end

This installs all packages which are part of the Infrastructure Server environment. All available environments are described in the repository/repodata/*-comps-repository.architecture.xml file on the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 Installation DVD.

Only a single environment should be specified in the Kickstart file. If more environments are specified, only the last specified environment is used.

Specify groups, one entry to a line, starting with an @ symbol, and then the full group name or group id as given in the *-comps-repository.architecture.xml file. For example:

%packages
@X Window System
@Desktop
@Sound and Video
%end

The Core group is always selected - it is not necessary to specify it in the %packages section.

Specify individual packages by name, one entry to a line. You can use the asterisk character (*) as a wildcard in package names. For example:

%packages
sqlite
curl
aspell
docbook*
%end

The docbook* entry includes the packages docbook-dtds and docbook-style that match the pattern represented with the wildcard.

Specify profiles for module streams, one entry to a line, using the syntax for profiles:

%packages
@module:stream/profile
%end

This installs all packages listed in the specified profile of the module stream.

Modules and groups use the same syntax starting with the @ symbol. When a module and a package group exist with the same name, the module takes precedence.

In Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, modules are present only in the AppStream repository. To list available modules, use the dnf module list command on an installed Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 system.

It is also possible to enable module streams using the module Kickstart command and then install packages contained in the module stream by naming them directly.

Use a leading dash (-) to specify packages or groups to exclude from the installation. For example:

%packages
-@Graphical Administration Tools
-autofs
-ipa*compat
%end

Configure the installed system for multilib packages, to allow installing 32-bit packages on a 64-bit system, and install packages specified in this section as such.

Normally, on an AMD64 and Intel 64 system, you can install only the x86_64 and the noarch packages. However, with the --multilib option, you can automatically install the 32-bit AMD and the i686 Intel system packages available, if any.

This only applies to packages explicitly specified in the %packages section. Packages which are only being installed as dependencies without being specified in the Kickstart file are only installed in architecture versions in which they are needed, even if they are available for more architectures.

You can configure Anaconda to install packages in multilib mode during the installation of the system. Use one of the following options to enable multilib mode:

Disables installation of the @Core package group which is otherwise always installed by default. Disabling the @Core package group with --nocore should be only used for creating lightweight containers; installing a desktop or server system with --nocore will result in an unusable system.

Install packages marked as optional in the group definition in the *-comps-repository.architecture.xml file, in addition to installing the default selections.

Some package groups, such as Scientific Support, do not have any mandatory or default packages specified - only optional packages. In this case the --optional option must always be used, otherwise no packages from this group will be installed.