Sun Management Center Change Manager 1.0.1 Reference Manual

## flar(1MCM)

NAME | SYNOPSIS | DESCRIPTION | SUBCOMMANDS | OPTIONS | EXAMPLES | OPERANDS | EXIT STATUS | ATTRIBUTES | SEE ALSO

#### NAME

flar– administer flash archives

#### SYNOPSIS

`flar` create `-n` name [`-R` root] [`-H`] [`-I`] [`-S`] [`-c`] [`-t`[`-p` posn][`-b` blocksize]] [`-i` date] [`-u` section…] [`-U` key=value…] [`-m` master] [`-f` [filelist | -][`-F`]] [`-a` author] [`-e` descr | `-E` descr_file] [`-T` type] [`-x` exclude…] [`-y` include…] [`-z` filelist…] [`-X` filelist…] archive
`flar` combine [`-d` dir] [`-u` section…] [`-t`[`-p` posn][`-b` blocksize]] archive
`flar` split [`-d` dir] [`-u` section…] [`-f`] [`-S` section] [`-t`[`-p` posn][`-b` blocksize]] archive
`flar` info [`-l`] [`-k` keyword] [`-t`[`-p` posn][`-b` blocksize]] archive

#### DESCRIPTION

The `flar` command is used to administer flash archives. A flash archive is an easily transportable version of a reference configuration of the Solaris operating environment, plus other optional software. Such an archive is used for the rapid installation of the Solaris software on large numbers of machines. You can create a flash archive using either `flar` with the `create` subcommand or the flarcreate(1MCM) command. See flash_archive(4CM).

In flash terminology, a system on which an archive is created is called a master. The system image stored in the archive is deployed to systems that are called clones.

An archive is created with the `create` subcommand. It contains all the files that are in a system image.

You can run `flar create` in multiuser or single-user mode. You can also use the command when the master system is booted from the first Solaris software CD or from a Solaris net image. Archive creation should be performed when the master system is in as stable a state as possible.

Following the creation of a flash archive, you can use custom JumpStart to clone the archive on multiple systems.

#### SUBCOMMANDS

The `flar` command includes subcommands for creating, combining, splitting, and providing information about archives. A subcommand is the first argument in a `flar` command line. The subcommands are as follows:

`create`

  Create a new flash archive, of a name you specify with the `-n` argument, based on the currently running system.

  The `create` subcommand requires superuser privileges.

`combine`

  Combine the individual sections that make up an archive into the archive. If dir is specified (see `-d` option), the sections will be gathered from dir. Otherwise, they will be gathered from the current directory. Each section is assumed to be in a separate file, the names of which are the section names. At a minimum, the archive cookie (`cookie`), archive identification (`identification`), and archive files (`archive`) sections must be present. If `archive` is a directory, its contents are archived using `cpio` prior to inclusion in the archive. If so specified in the `identification` section, the contents are compressed.

  Note that no validation is performed on any of the sections. In particular, no fields in the `identification` section are validated or updated. See flash_archive(4CM) for a description of the archive sections.

``info``

  Extract information on an archive. This subcommand is analogous to `pkginfo`.

`split`

  Split an archive into one file for each section of the archive. Each section is copied into a separate file in dir, if dir is specified (see `-d` option), or the current directory if it is not. The files resulting from the split are named after the sections. The archive cookie is stored in a file named `cookie`. If section is specified (see `-u` option), only the named section is copied.

The options for each subcommand are described in OPTIONS.

#### OPTIONS

The `create` subcommand has one required option:

`-n` name

  Is the value of the `content_name` keyword. See flash_archive(4CM).

Following are the options for the `create` subcommand. Many of these options supply values for keywords in the identification section of a file containing a flash archive. See flash_archive(4CM) for a description of these keywords.

`-a` author

  Provides an author name for the archive identification section of the new flash archive. If you do not specify `-a`, no author name is included in the identification section.

`-c`

  Compresses the archive using compress(1).

`-e` descr

  Is the description to be included in the archive as the value of the `content_description` archive identification key. This option is incompatible with `-E`.

`-E` descr_file

  Is the description to be used as the value of the archive identification `content_description` key as retrieved from the file descr_file. This option is incompatible with `-e`.

`-f` filelist

  Uses the contents of filelist as a list of files to include in the archive. The files are included in addition to the usual file list, unless `-F` is specified (see the `-F` option). If filelist is `-`, the list is taken from standard input.

`-F`

  Includes only files in the list specified by `-f`. This option makes `-f` filelist an absolute list, rather than a list that is appended to the usual file list.

`-H`

  Does not generate a hash identifier.

`-i` date

  By default, the value for the `creation_date` field in the identification section is generated automatically, based on the current system time and date. If you specify the `-i` option, date is used instead.

`-I`

  Ignores integrity check. To prevent you from excluding important system files from an archive, `flar` runs an integrity check. This check examines all files registered in a system package database and stops archive creation if any of them are excluded. Use this option to override this integrity check.

`-m` master

  By default, the value for the `creation_master` field in the identification section is the name of the system on which you run `flar create`, as reported by `uname` `-n`. If you specify `-m`, master is used instead.

`-R` root

  Creates the archive from the file system tree mounted at root. If you do not specify this option, `flar` creates an archive from a file system mounted at `/`.

`-S`

  Skips the disk space check. Without `-S`, `flar` builds a compressed archive in memory before writing the archive to disk, to ensure you have sufficient disk space. Use `-S` to skip this step. The result of the use of `-S` is a significant decrease in the time it takes to create an archive.

`-T` type

  Is the content type included in the archive as the value of the `content_type` archive identification key. If you do not specify `-T`, the `content_type` keyword is not included.

`-u` section ...

  Include the user-defined section located in the file section in the archive. section must be a blank-separated list of section names as described in the flash_archive(4CM) man page.

`-U` key=value...

  Includes one or more user-defined keywords and their values in the archive identification section. See flash_archive(4CM).

`-x` exclude ...

  Excludes the file or directory exclude from the archive. Note that the exclude file or directory is assumed to be relative to the alternate root specified using `-R`. If the parent directory of the file exclude is included with the `-y` option (see `-y` include), then only the specific file or directory specified by exclude is excluded. Conversely, if the parent directory of an included file is specified for exclusion, then only the file include is included. For example, if you specify:

  `-x` `/a` `-y` `/a/b`

  all of `/a` except for `/a/b` is excluded. If you specify:

  `-y` `/a` `-x` `/a/b`

  all of `/a` except for `/a/b` is included.

`-X` filelist ...

  Uses the contents of filelist as a list of files to exclude from the archive. If filelist is `–`, the list is taken from standard input.

`-y` include ...

  Includes the file or directory include in the archive. Note that the exclude file or directory is assumed to be relative to the alternate root specified using `-R`. See the description of the `-x` option for a description of the interaction of the `-x` and `-y` options.

`-z` filelist ...

  Is a list of files prefixed with a plus (`+`) or minus (`-`). A plus indicates that a file should be included in the archive. The minus indicates exclusion. If filelist is `–`, the list is taken from standard input.

The options for the `info` subcommand are as follows:

`-k` keyword

  Returns only the value of the keyword keyword.

`-l`

  Lists all files in the archive. Does not process content from any sections other than the `archive` section.

Following are the `info` options to use with tape archives:

`-b` blocksize

  Is the block size to use when creating the archive. If not specified, a default block size of 64K is used.

`-p` posn

  Specifies the position on the tape device where the archive should be created. If not specified, the current position of the tape device is examined.

`-t`

  Indicates that the archive to be analyzed is located on a tape device. The path to the device is specified by archive (see OPERANDS).

The options for the `split` and `combine` (split and combine archives) subcommands are as follows:

`-d` dir

  Retrieves sections from dir, rather than from the current directory.

`-f`

  (Used with `split` only.) Extracts the `archive` section into a directory called `archive`, rather than placing it in a file of the same name as the section.

`-S` section

  (Used with `split` only.) Extracts only the section named section from the archive.

`-u` section...

  Appends section to the list of sections to be included. The default list includes the `cookie`, `identification`, and `archive` sections. section can be a single section name or a space-separated list of section names.

The following options are used with tape archives (with both `split` and `combine`):

`-b` blocksize

  Is the block size to be used when creating the archive. If not specified, a default block size of 64K is used.

`-p` posn

  Used only with `-t`. Specifies the position on the tape device where the archive should be created. If not specified, the current position of the tape device is used.

`-t`

  Creates an archive on or reads an archive from a tape device. The archive operand (see OPERANDS) is assumed to be the name of the tape device.

#### EXAMPLES

##### Example 1 Creating a Flash Archive

The following command creates a flash archive named `pogoS9` and stores it in `/export/home/archives/s9fcs.flar`. The currently running system is the basis for the new archive.

    # flar create -n pogoS9 /export/home/archives/s9fcs.flar

#### OPERANDS

The following operand is supported:

archive

  Path to tape device if the `-t` option was used. Otherwise, the complete path name of a flash archive. A file containing a flash archive has a standard file extension of `.flar`.

#### EXIT STATUS

The following exit values are returned for the `create`, `split`, and `combine` subcommands:

`0`

  Successful completion.

`0`

  An error occurred.

The following exit values are returned for the `info` subcommand:

`0`

  Successful completion.

`1`

  Command failed. If the `-k` option is used and the requested keyword is not found, `flar` returns `2`.

#### ATTRIBUTES

See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attributes:

ATTRIBUTE TYPE | ATTRIBUTE VALUE
--- | ---
Availability | SUNWinst

#### SEE ALSO

compress(1), flarcreate(1MCM), flash_archive(4CM), attributes(5)

SunOS 5.9 Last Revised 30 April 2003

NAME | SYNOPSIS | DESCRIPTION | SUBCOMMANDS | OPTIONS | EXAMPLES | OPERANDS | EXIT STATUS | ATTRIBUTES | SEE ALSO

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