Added section enhanced configuration (blivet)

docs/modules/ROOT/pages/installation/sw-raid-upon-installation.adoc

@@ -1,12 +1,13 @@
-= Exkurs: Configuring a software RAID upon interactive installation
+= Excursus: Configuring a software RAID upon interactive installation
 Peter Boy; Stephen Daley; Kevin Fenzi
 :page-authors: {author}, {author_2}, {author_3}
-:revnumber: F37-F41
-:revdate: 2024-10-27
+:revnumber: F37-F42
+:revdate: 2025-08-20
 
 [abstract]
 This Exkurs describes the configuration of a _software RAID_ as part of an interactive Fedora Server Edition installation. In this case, the RAID capability is provided by operating system drivers and processed bei the computer CPU. It does not cover firmware raid (also called Windows RAID), which provide this capability via the computer internal firmware, nor hardware raid, where dedicated integrated hardware modules or adapters completely relieve the computer CPU of the raid processing.   
 
+
 The RAID configuraton starts at the "Installation Destination" window.
 
 .The Installation Destination window
@@ -36,7 +37,9 @@ Unfortunately, Anaconda does not necessarily keep the arrangement of the partiti
 
 * the "**Advanced Custom (Blivet-GUI)**" option 
 +
-(coming soon)
+This way, you can and must perform each individual step of partitioning, configuring LVM volumes and creating file systems by yourself. This is the more laborious way.
++
+The advantage is that you can define every detail and you will get a partitioning exactly according to your plan. And the GUI supports the work very effectively.
 
 Select all drives you want to include in the prospective RAID drive, click on the partitioning option you want to use and then on Done in the uper left corner. 
 
@@ -53,7 +56,9 @@ If the area beyond __Unknown__ contains one or more partition, check whether you
 +
 To delete a partition, click on it and then on the '-' sign at the bottom. At the end, all disks must either be empty or identically partitioned.
 
-. *On a BIOS boot system, add a biosboot partition on each disk*
+. *On a BIOS boot system only, create a biosboot partition on each disk*
++
+On a BIOS boot system, a GPT partition table as used by Fedora requires a small BIOSBoot partition for the Grub boot loader. Create it at the beginning of each disk to keep the system operational when one disk fails. Skip this step, if your host uses UEFI!
 +
 Use the "+" sign to add a partition. In the Mount Point field select 'biosboot' and set a size of 1 MiB.
 +
@@ -61,25 +66,25 @@ A biosboot entry appears in the left __New Fedora 41 Installation__ section on o
 +
 Repeat it and you see a second entry, usually on the same disk.
 +
+.The BiosBoot installation
 image:installation/sw-raid/105-custom-biosboot-1.png[]
 +
 Select the new entry and click on __Modify__ at __Device(s)__. In the device list select one of the other disks. Then select __Update Settings__. 
 +
 Anaconda updates the list of partitions in the _New Fedora 41 installation_ section so that the biosboot partition is now the first partition on different disks. 
 +
+.The adjusted BiosBoot installation
 image:installation/sw-raid/110-custom-biosboot-2.png[]
 +
 Repeat the step until all disks have a biosboot partition. This is necessary so that the system can boot from any of the other disks if the first disk fails. 
 
-. *On a UEFI boot system, add an EFI partition*
+. *On a UEFI boot system only, create an EFI partition*
 +
 Use the "+" sign to add a partition. The "__Add a new Mount Point form__" form opens up 
 +
-====
-* select /boot/efi as the mount point
-* enter 600 Mib as size
-* Tick "Add Mount Point"
-====
+ * select /boot/efi as the mount point
+ * enter 600 Mib as size
+ * Tick "Add Mount Point"
 +
 The installation window refreshes and now shows a /boot/efi partition on the left side under SYSTEM and a number of properties for this partition on the right side.
 +
@@ -92,18 +97,14 @@ Find the property Device Type and use the drop down list to change Standard part
 +
 .Final EFI system partition properties
 image:installation/sw-raid/125-custom-efi-2.png[]
-#
-(comming soon)
 
 . *Add a __boot__ Partition*
 +
 Tick the "+" sign and a form "Add a new Mount Point" opens again. 
 +
-====
-*  select /boot as the mount point
-* enter 1 Gib as size
-* Tick "Add Mount Point"
-====
+ *  select /boot as the mount point
+ * enter 1 Gib as size
+ * Tick "Add Mount Point"
 +
 A new mount point is created on sda1. On the right side there is a form to show and modify some properties. Find the property _Device Type_ and use the drop down list to change Standard partition to __RAID__. In the right side shows up a new selection box _RAID level_ showing initially RAID1 (mirroring) in this example, because we have just 2 disks. Choose the RAID level you wish and then click on _Update Settings_ further down. 
 +
@@ -116,11 +117,9 @@ image:installation/sw-raid/130-custom-finalbootform.png[]
 +
 Use the "+" sign to add another Moint Point
 +
-====
-*  select / as the mount point
-* enter 15 Gib as size
-* Tick "Add Mount Point"
-====
+ *  select / as the mount point
+ * enter 15 Gib as size
+ * Tick "Add Mount Point"
 +
 Anaconda creates a new mount point. From the context Anaconda guesses to assign the device type LVM, to create a Volume Group using the default name _fedora_ appending the systems hostname, if you already configured the network, and to assign the device name root. The size of 15 GiB is the same as a default configuration would do. That's a lot of work that Anaconda saves you.
 +
@@ -134,7 +133,13 @@ The most important one is to adjust the RAID level. Anaconda configures a LVM wi
 .Anaconda LVM properties form
 image:installation/sw-raid/145-custom-lvm-properties.png[]
 +
-Select a proper RAID level and check the size policy. _Automatic_ means that the size of the partition and the Volume Group is just as large as the Logical Volumes you create with Anaconda here. That provides you a maximum of flexibilty to later adjust the storage organisation but also involves some additional steps to handle the Volume Group and its partition when you want do add a Logical Volume and file system. Alternatively you can set the Volume Group to maximum size, so you can add Logical Volumes with a minimum of effort, or a fixed size that fulfills your foreseeable requirements and leaving some space for later adjustments that come up as a surprise. 
+Select a proper RAID level and check the size policy.
+
+* _Automatic_ means that the size of the partition and the Volume Group is just as large as the Logical Volumes you create with Anaconda here. That provides you a maximum of flexibilty to later adjust the storage organisation but also involves some additional steps to handle the Volume Group and its partition when you want do add a Logical Volume and file system. 
+* _Maximum size_ expands the Volume Group to fill up the complete hard disk, so you can add Logical Volumes with a minimum of effort. That is the recommended way for medium size disks. 
+* _Fixed size_ lets you specify a size that fulfills your foreseeable requirements and leaving some space for later adjustments that come up as a surprise.
++
+This option also allows for an __even stronger separation of system and user data__. Specify a fixed size of 20-30 GiB for a system volume group (named e.g. fedora_sysvg). This contains the root file system and, if applicable, further system-related logical volumes. In the remaining space you will later set up  a user volume group (correspondingly named fedora_usrvg) and logical volumes for user data. This gives you the greatest possible flexibility to adapt the system area to changes in demand or technical developments without touching the precious user data at all. This is recommended for large hard disks, servers with a planned longtime lifespan, or remotely located servers.    
 
 . *Customize the storage organisation to your requirements*
 +
@@ -144,3 +149,235 @@ Some adminmistrators like to confine the /var/log subdirectory in its own Logica
 
 Finally, click on Done, in the upcomming list accept the Changes and return now to the original guide, probably xref::installation/interactive-local.adoc#_networking[Fedora Server interactive local installation] guide.
 
+== Advanced Custom partitioning
+
+Anaconda opens a new window:
+
+.The advancced custom partitioning start up screen
+image:installation/sw-raid/201-adv-custom-start.png[]
+
+. *Check all disks for existing partitions*
++
+If there are partitions on any of the hard disks, delete the partitions if they are no longer needed. Note that you can only reuse partitions that are set up identically on all hard disks. 
++
+To delete a partition, click on it and then on the circled "x" sign below. In the end, all hard disks must either be empty or identically partitioned. In the following, we assume that the hard disks are empty.
+
+. *On a BIOS boot system only, create a biosboot partition on each disk*
++
+On a BIOS boot system, a GPT partition table as used by Fedora requires a small BIOSBoot partition for the Grub boot loader. Create it at the beginning of each disk to keep the system  operational when one disk fails. Skip this step, if your host uses UEFI!
++
+Usually, the first Disk is sda and already selected. A large blue bar at the top represents the disk. Otherwise, click onto the left side onto the sda symbol. With the "plus" symbol just beyond the central sda area you start to create
+a partition.
++
+.Create a BIOS Boot partition 
+image:installation/sw-raid/205-adv-custom-biosboot.png[]
++
+First select "Bios Boot" in the „Filesystem“ selection field and then enter 1 MiB as the size. An OK creates the partition and updates the free space area. 1 MiB is quite sufficient, but sometimes the dialogue insists on 2 MiB and corrects the entry accordingly. That's fine, too.
++
+Next, click on sdb and thus activate it for editing. Repeat the process to create a BIOSBoot partition as before. 
++
+When both BIOSBoot partitions have been created, check again whether the size and position are actually the same in both cases! You can switch between the two disk views by clicking on the sda1 and sda2 icons respectively.
+
+. *On a UEFI boot system only, create an EFI partition*
++
+If you have not already done so, activate the first hard disk, usually sda, by clicking on the icon in the left column. With the "plus" symbol just beyond the central sda area you start to create a partition. 
++
+.Creating EFI system partition
+image:installation/sw-raid/210-adv-custom-uefi.png[]
++
+Anaconda sets up an EFI partition on the first disk. But a RAID system must be able to boot from any of the available disks, not just the first one. Otherwise, the system would be paralyzed if that failed. One solution is to set up the EFI partition as a RAID as well. Therefore, select "Software RAID" in the "Device type" selection box and replace "partition". Then fill out the rest of the form as indicated.
++
+ * select sda and sdb as RAID members
+ * select RAID level raid1
+ * enter 0.6 GiB size
+ * select Filesystem "EFI System Partition"
+ * enter Label "sysefi"
+ * enter Name "boot_efi"
+ * Enter Mountpoint /boot/efi 
+ * Tick "OK"
++
+The installation window refreshes and now shows a new RAID entry in the left column and a boot_efi partition in the sda disk.
++
+.Partitions list including EFI system partition
+image:installation/sw-raid/212-adv-custom-uefilist.png[]
+
+. *Creating a __boot__ Partition*
++
+Click into the free space on sda to activate it and tick the "+" sign again to open a new device form.
++
+.Creating a boot partition
+image:installation/sw-raid/215-adv-custom-boot.png[]
++
+In the “Device type” selection box, select “Software RAID” . The form changes. 
+Then fill out the rest of the form as indicated.
++
+ * select sda and sdb as RAID members
+ * select RAID level raid1
+ * enter 1.0 GiB size
+ * keep Filesystem "xfs"
+ * enter Label "sysboot"
+ * enter Name "boot"
+ * Enter Mountpoint /boot 
+ * Tick "OK"
++
+The installation window refreshes and now shows another new RAID entry in the left column and a boot partition in the sda disk.
++
+.Partitions list including EFI and boot partitions
+image:installation/sw-raid/217-adv-custom-bootlist.png[]
+
+
+. *Creating a system Volume Group*
++
+Click into the free space on sda to activate it and tick the "+" sign again to open a new device form.
++
+.Creating a system Volme Group partition
+image:installation/sw-raid/220-adv-custom-syspv.png[]
++
+Again, in the “Device type” selection box, select “Software RAID” and then fill out the rest of the form as indicated.
++
+ * select sda and sdb as RAID members
+ * select RAID level raid1
+ * Specify the size of the partition. There are basically three options.
+ ** __Leave the size as suggested by the form__, which fills the rest of the hard disk. Both system and user data are stored in a common volume group. This is appropriate for hosts with a planned lifespan of a few years or less and/or a disk capacity of less than 0.5 - 1 TB. 
+ ** __Set aside a 20–30/50 GiB partition for the system area__ and, in the next step, another partition exclusively for user data. This is particulary recommended for systems with a planned longtime lifespan, a hard disk capacity of more than 1–2 TiB, and especially for systems in remote data centers where there is never any possibility of accessing the system console. In the latter case, it is especially important to keep system and user areas strictly separated as far as possible on the same hard disk, in order to be able to carry out any system work without ever having to touch the precious user data.
+ ** In either case, __leave some free space at the end__ to allow for possible future adjustments to changing and  unpredictable needs. 
++
+In this example, we use a 30 GiB system area and the entire rest for a dedicated user area. 
++
+ * Select "physical volume (LVM)" for Filesystem.
+ * enter Name "syspv"
+ * Tick "OK"
++
+The list view refreshes and shows the harddisks with the 3 partitions and on the left column an additional RAID device.
++
+.Partitions list including EFI, boot and physical volume partitions
+image:installation/sw-raid/222-adv-custom-syspvlist.png[]
+ +
+In contrast to other GUIs, a volume group (VG) is not created immediately, but a "physical volume" is created first. Many other GUIs perform this step implicitly and automatically.
++
+Double-click onto the syspv icon in the left bar to activate it and then on the Plus sign to open a device creation form.
++
+.Partitions list including EFI, boot and physical volume partitions
+image:installation/sw-raid/224-adv-custom-sysvgform.png[]
++
+Leave the Device type and Size field as is und enter "sysvg" into the Name field. Tick OK to submit the form.
++
+The overview list screen now shows a new Volume Group device "sysvg" beyond a new category "LVM".
++
+.Devices list showing partitions, volume groups and RAID devices
+image:installation/sw-raid/226-adv-custom-sysgvlist.png[]
+
+. *Optional: Creating a user Volume Group*
++
+If you have opted for a separate user area as recommended, you should now create a corresponding volume group.  Repeat the steps from the previous section accordingly. 
+
+* Double-click on sda and into the free space to activate it and tick the "+" sign again to create an additional RAID partition and physical volume.
++
+.Creating a user physical volume on RAID
+image:installation/sw-raid/230-adv-custom-usrpv.png[] 
++
+Either leave the suggested size value as it is to set up the entire free area for user data, or choose a smaller value to keep free disposition storage.   
+
+* Double-click onto the usrpv icon in the left bar to activate it and then on the Plus sign to open a device creation form.
++
+.Partitions list including EFI, boot and physical volume partitions
+image:installation/sw-raid/234-adv-custom-usrvg.png[]
++
+Leave the Device type and Size field as is und enter "usrvg" into the Name field. Tick OK to submit the form.
++
+The overview list screen now shows a new Volume Group device "sysvg" beyond a new category "LVM".
++
+.Devices list showing partitions, two volume groups and RAID devices
+image:installation/sw-raid/236-adv-custom-usrvglist.png[]
+
+. *Creating the ROOT file system*
++
+As in the previous steps, clicking on symbol sysvg activates the unit for editing and clicking on the free area releases the plus sign. A click on the plus sign opens the dialogue for setting up a file system.
++
+.Creating the ROOT file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/240-adv-custom-rootfsform.png[]
++
+Leave the Device type and Avalable devices as is.
+
+* Specify the size of the root file system. A value of 12 GiB for the mere system files is large enough for the usual use cases and still has a lot of leeway for unusual situations.  
+* Complete the other fields as indicated and tick OK.
++
+.Devices list showing partitions, two volume groups and RAID devices
+image:installation/sw-raid/244-adv-custom-rootfslist.png[]
+
+. *Some typical optional adjustments to the storage organization*
++
+Finally, you can further customize the storage organization to your requirements. 
+
+
+* __Optional: Create a separate log file system__
++
+Some adminmistrators like to confine the /var/log subdirectory in its own Logical Volume. This prevents excessive logging from filling up the root file system. But also vice versa, that excessive outputs of a program fill up the root file system to such an extent that no more log outputs can be saved and troubleshooting is made more difficult.
++
+As in the previous steps, clicking on symbol sysvg activates the unit for editing and clicking on the free area releases the plus sign. A click on the plus sign opens the dialogue for setting up a file system.
++
+.Creating log file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/250-adv-custom-varlogform.png[]
++
+Leave the Device type and Avalable devices as is
++
+ ** Specify the size of the file system. A value of 3 or 5 GiB is usually large enough.  
+ ** Complete the form as indicated
++
+.Devices list showing the /var/log file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/254-adv-custom-varloglist.png[]
++
+
+* __Optional: Setting up a home directory storage space__
++
+An Internet server that only provides web and e-mail services usually only allows administrative users that do not use the server to store important personal data. A separate file system is often superfluous.
++
+But sometimes they need to upload some data for further processing on the server. You may want to keep those separate from the system files and create a small home file system, maybe just in the system Volume Group if you decided for a strict separation as recommended above.
++
+For a large number of users, use the user area, if available
++
+** Select a siutable Volume Group, double-click on the device in the left column (sysvg or usrvg), and then into the free space to release the "plus" button.
++
+.Creating a home file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/260-adv-custom-usrhomeform.png[]
+
+** Leave the Device type and Avalable devices as is
+** Specify a reasonable size of the home file system. For a system with only administravie users, a value of 3 or 5 GiB is usually large enough.  
+** Complete the form as indicated
++
+.Storage overview including a home file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/264-adv-custom-usrhomelist.png[]
+
+* __Optional: Setting up a server (/srv) storage space__
++
+According to the Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS), a system should store site-specific data served by the server, such as data and scripts for web servers, data offered by FTP servers, etc. in /srv. These belong into a separate file system.
+
+** Select a suitable Volume Group, in this example usrvg if available. Double-click on the device in the left column and then into the free space to release the "plus" button.
++
+.Creating a srv file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/270-adv-custom-srvform.png[]
+
+** Leave the Device type and Avalable devices as is.
+** Specify a reasonable size depending on your system plannings.
+** Complete the form as indicated.
++
+.Devices list showing the srv file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/274-adv-custom-srvlist.png[]
+
+* __If applicable: Setting up a virtual machine's storage space__
++
+
+** Select a suitable Volume Group, in this example usrvg if available. Double-click on the device in the left column and then into the free space to release the "plus" button.
++
+.Creating a libvirt file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/280-adv-libvirtform.png[]
+
+** Leave the Device type and Avalable devices as is.
+** Specify a reasonable size depending on your system plannings.
+** Complete the form as indicated.
++
+.Devices list showing libvirt file system
+image:installation/sw-raid/284-adv-custom-libvirtlist.png[]
+
+
+Finally, click on Done, in the upcomming list accept the Changes and return now to the original guide, probably xref::installation/interactive-local.adoc#_networking[Fedora Server interactive local installation] guide.