291 lines
12 KiB
Markdown
291 lines
12 KiB
Markdown
# PXEForge
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Container-native PXE boot server. A Rust reimplementation of
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[iVentoy (ventoy/PXE)](https://github.com/ventoy/PXE), designed from scratch
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for Docker/OCI and OpenShift. Upload `.iso` files via the web UI; network
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clients PXE-boot them.
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> **Status:** Phase 3 MVP. Container image builds and runs, gate flow
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> validated end-to-end (two clients join queue → operator assigns in UI →
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> both wake within 1 s with the correct boot script). Ready for real
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> hardware validation.
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## Design non-negotiables
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1. **Fully offline / air-gap deployable.** Zero CDN assets. Zero external
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HTTP calls from the server, the browser, or the generated iPXE scripts.
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Build the container once, run forever disconnected.
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2. **iPXE is a backend implementation detail.** No `.ipxe` upload path, no
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manual script editing, no iPXE terminology in the UI. Every knob in the
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web UI maps to a specific script-generation behavior inside the binary.
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3. **The client trust store is off-limits.** No test-signed drivers, no
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`bcdedit /set testsigning on`, no certificates injected into WinPE or
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the target OS.
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## What it does
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1. **DHCP proxy** (RFC 4578). Coexists with your existing DHCP server —
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never assigns IPs. Listens on UDP 67 + UDP 4011.
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2. **TFTP server** (RFC 1350 + RFC 2347/2348/2349/7440 option negotiation)
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that serves architecture-specific iPXE binaries to firmware PXE ROMs.
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3. **HTTP server** that serves the web UI, the generated iPXE boot scripts,
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raw ISOs (with Range), and files inside ISOs without prior extraction.
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4. **ISO introspection**: auto-detects the distro family and generates the
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appropriate kernel+initrd or wimboot chain. No manual config.
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5. **Hierarchical PXE menu** mirroring the Phase 2 spec:
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```
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Default > Boot from Local HDD
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Installers > Linux Installers / Windows Installers
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Tools > Utilities / PXEForge Shell / Network Card Info
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Gated Deployment
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```
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6. **Gated Deployment queue** — the "horse race gate" flow. A client that
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selects *Gated Deployment* gets a numbered position and waits. The
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operator picks an ISO in the web UI and fires it to every waiting
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client simultaneously.
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7. **Web UI** (Netbox-style): sidebar nav (Dashboard / Clients / Gated
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Deployment / Images / Settings / About), top tabs, dark theme, teal
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accents. All assets served from the binary — no external requests.
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8. **Settings API** lets you change the default boot-menu timeout (default
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600s), the timeout action (stay / Local HDD / Gated Deployment), and
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feature toggles like Windows ISO support. The iPXE scripts regenerate
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on every request using current settings.
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### Architectures supported on day one
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| DHCP option 93 | Architecture | Binary served |
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|----------------|-----------------|-------------------------|
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| `0x0000` | Legacy x86 BIOS | `undionly.kpxe` |
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| `0x0006` | IA32 UEFI | `snponly-i386.efi` |
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| `0x0007`/`0x0009` | x86_64 UEFI | `snponly.efi` |
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| `0x000B` | ARM64 UEFI | `snponly-arm64.efi` |
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UEFI firmware that sends `HTTPClient` in option 60 is handled too — we
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skip TFTP and respond with an HTTP URL.
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## Quick start — MVP container (recommended)
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```bash
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# 1. Pull bundled iPXE binaries (~2 MB, one-time).
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./scripts/fetch-ipxe.sh
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# 2. Build the container image (~3 min first time).
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docker buildx build -f deploy/docker/Dockerfile -t pxeforge:0.1.0 --load .
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# 3. Run it on the box plugged into your PXE network. Set PUBLIC_IP to
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# this host's LAN address so advertised iPXE URLs are reachable.
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docker run -d --name pxeforge \
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--network host \
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-e PXEFORGE_PUBLIC_IP=10.0.0.5 \
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-e PXEFORGE_DHCP_MODE=proxy \
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-v $PWD/data/isos:/var/lib/pxeforge/isos \
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-v $PWD/data/work:/var/lib/pxeforge/work \
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pxeforge:0.1.0
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# 4. Open the UI and drop an ISO in.
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open http://10.0.0.5
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```
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Host networking is required in proxy mode so the container sees DHCPDISCOVER
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broadcasts from the PXE VLAN. On macOS/Windows hosts Docker runs in a Linux
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VM, so "host" means the VM — use `pxeforge-dev` in `docker-compose.yml` for
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API-only testing on a laptop.
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### Quick start — docker compose
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```bash
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# MVP / API testing on a laptop (no DHCP, high ports):
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PXEFORGE_PUBLIC_IP=127.0.0.1 docker compose up pxeforge-dev
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# Real PXE deployment on a Linux host (host network, DHCP proxy on):
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PXEFORGE_PUBLIC_IP=10.0.0.5 docker compose up pxeforge
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```
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### Multi-arch build + push
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For deploying to x86_64 servers, build both arches in one manifest:
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```bash
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# One-time: bootstrap a multi-arch builder.
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docker buildx create --name pxeforge-multi --driver docker-container --use
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# Build + push both linux/amd64 and linux/arm64 under one tag.
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docker buildx build --builder pxeforge-multi \
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--platform linux/amd64,linux/arm64 \
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-t ghcr.io/YOUR-ORG/pxeforge:0.1.0 \
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--push \
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-f deploy/docker/Dockerfile .
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```
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On an Apple Silicon host, the amd64 stage runs under QEMU emulation (~10-15 min for a cold cache). On a Linux x86_64 host, both arches build natively at normal speed. CI runners on GitHub Actions with `docker/build-push-action@v5` handle this cleanly.
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### Build from source (no container)
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```bash
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./scripts/fetch-ipxe.sh
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cargo run --release # needs NET_BIND_SERVICE or root for :80/:69
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```
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### Container health probes
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| Endpoint | Purpose |
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|-------------|---------------------------------------------------------------|
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| `/healthz` | Liveness — HTTP stack alive. Always 200. |
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| `/readyz` | Readiness — 200 only if iPXE binaries bundled + ISO dir OK. |
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| `/api/status` | Full JSON status: versions, assets, counts, live settings, SMB state. |
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### Pre-seeding ISOs from a directory
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For CI, pre-baked homelab deployments, or a fresh PVC, the binary has a
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`seed` subcommand that imports every `*.iso` from a host path through the
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same pipeline the web UI uses (introspection + boot-entry generation):
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```bash
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docker run --rm \
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-v /my/iso-library:/seed:ro \
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-v pxeforge-data:/var/lib/pxeforge/isos \
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-e PXEFORGE_PUBLIC_IP=10.0.0.5 \
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pxeforge:0.1.0 seed --from /seed
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# Dry run first to see what would be imported:
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docker run --rm -v /my/iso-library:/seed:ro pxeforge:0.1.0 seed --from /seed --dry-run
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```
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### Environment overrides
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| Var | Default | Meaning |
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|------------------------|-----------------------------|----------------------------------------|
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| `PXEFORGE_HTTP_PORT` | `80` | Web UI + boot script HTTP port |
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| `PXEFORGE_TFTP_PORT` | `69` | TFTP port |
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| `PXEFORGE_DHCP_PORT` | `67` | DHCP server-side port |
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| `PXEFORGE_DHCP_MODE` | `proxy` | `proxy` or `disabled` |
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| `PXEFORGE_PUBLIC_IP` | auto-detect | Advertised IP for clients. Startup **fails** if unset and auto-detect returns loopback. |
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| `PXEFORGE_ISO_DIR` | `/var/lib/pxeforge/isos` | Where uploaded ISOs live |
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| `PXEFORGE_WORK_DIR` | `/var/lib/pxeforge/work` | Scratch + runtime settings |
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| `PXEFORGE_LOG` | `info,pxeforge=debug` | `tracing` filter |
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## What the boot menu looks like on a real client
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```
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PXEForge - network boot menu
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------------------------- Default -------------------------
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Boot from Local HDD
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----------------------- Installers -----------------------
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Linux Installers >
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Windows Installers > (only if enabled in Settings)
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-------------------------- Tools --------------------------
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Tools > Utilities / Shell /
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NIC Info / Reboot /
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Exit and continue BIOS
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---------------------- Gated Deployment ------------------
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Gated Deployment (join queue)
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```
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Linux/Windows submenus show file sizes iVentoy-style:
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```
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PXEForge - Linux Installers
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[ 4376 MB] CentOS-7-x86_64-DVD-1810
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[ 2002 MB] Fedora-Workstation-Live-x86_64-38-1.6
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[ 4699 MB] ubuntu-22.04.2-desktop-amd64
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< Back to main menu
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```
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iPXE never appears in the UI — the whole hierarchy above is generated from
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ISOs you upload via drag-and-drop in the web UI plus toggles in Settings.
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## OpenShift
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```bash
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oc apply -f deploy/openshift/
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oc -n pxeforge get all
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oc -n pxeforge get route pxeforge -o jsonpath='{.spec.host}'
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```
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### Why a custom SCC?
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The default `restricted-v2` blocks `hostNetwork` and all capabilities. PXE
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cannot work without host network (CNI overlays don't deliver L2 broadcast
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into pod netns), and we need `NET_BIND_SERVICE` to bind <1024. The custom
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`pxeforge-scc` grants exactly those two and nothing else. No raw sockets,
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no privileged mode — proxy-mode DHCP sidesteps the usual requirements.
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### What's on host ports
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| Port | Proto | Purpose |
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|----------|-------|---------------------------------|
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| 67 | UDP | DHCP server (proxy replies) |
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| 69 | UDP | TFTP |
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| 4011 | UDP | PXE Boot Server discovery |
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| 80 | TCP | Web UI + HTTP boot assets |
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The OpenShift Route only covers 80/TCP. Clients on the PXE network talk to
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the node's host IP directly for UDP.
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## Windows support
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Enabled by toggling **Windows ISO support** under Settings. The flow:
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1. Upload a stock Microsoft Windows install ISO (vanilla, no pre-processing).
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2. On upload, PXEForge extracts the ISO and uses `wimlib-imagex` to rewrite
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image index 2 (WinPE) of `sources/boot.wim`. It injects exactly two
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plain-text files:
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- `Windows/System32/winpeshl.ini` — tells WinPE to run `startnet.cmd`.
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- `Windows/System32/startnet.cmd` — runs `wpeinit`, waits for the SMB
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host to be reachable, `net use Z: \\<server>\<share> /user:guest`,
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then `Z:\setup.exe`.
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3. The container's Samba `smbd` serves the extracted install tree on :445.
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4. The client gets chainloaded into wimboot → patched WinPE → Windows Setup
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running off the SMB share. **Every binary the client executes is stock
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Microsoft-signed.**
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### What we never do
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- Ship drivers — signed, test-signed, or otherwise — that load on the client.
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- Install certificates into the target's trust store or WinPE boot policy.
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- Recommend `bcdedit /set testsigning on` or any equivalent signing-policy
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weakening.
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### Credit & limitations
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The SMB-based approach is adapted from [Bootimus](https://github.com/garybowers/bootimus)
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(Apache-2.0). Re-implemented in Rust; no code was copied verbatim. Known
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operational constraints inherited from the design:
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- **Port 445 must be directly reachable from PXE clients.** `net use`
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ignores alternate ports. In OpenShift this means `hostPort: 445` on the
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deployment; on a host that already runs SMB it will collide.
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- Windows 10/11 client SKUs are the tested target. Server SKUs untested.
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- Hardware with NICs/storage controllers missing from WinPE's bundled
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drivers will need a driver-pack injection step (not yet implemented).
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## Gated Deployment
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The "horse race gate" flow, end to end:
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1. A client boots and picks **Gated Deployment** in the PXE menu (or falls
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through on timeout with the default `timeout_action`).
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2. The client joins the queue, gets a numbered gate position, and enters a
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long-poll loop (25s per request, auto-renewed).
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3. In the web UI's **Gated Deployment** tab, the operator sees each waiting
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client with its MAC, IP, arch, and position.
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4. The operator selects an image and clicks **Launch for all waiting**.
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The server broadcasts the assignment to every gated client via a
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`tokio::sync::Notify`; each client's next poll returns the boot script
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for the chosen image.
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5. Every client chains the same image at effectively the same moment — the
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gate opens and the horses run together.
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No user-facing iPXE anywhere in this flow. The client only ever runs
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scripts we generate; the operator only interacts with the web UI.
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## Architecture
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See [`docs/architecture.md`](docs/architecture.md) for the protocol stack,
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crate layout, and the full decision log.
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## Licence
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MIT OR Apache-2.0.
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