Extracting variables from within ks.cfg, interpreted from command-line

[Dan Trainor]

Chris Lumens wrote:
>> I'm using something similar to this, to define network arguments:
>>
>> network --device=eth0 \
>> 	--bootproto=static \
>> 	--ip=`/usr/bin/echo ${IPADDR}` \
>> 	--netmask=`/usr/bin/echo ${NMADDR}` \
>> 	--gateway=`/usr/bin/echo ${GWADDR}` \
>> 	--nameserver=`/usr/bin/echo ${NSADDR}`
>>
>> ...to no avail.  I see the literal contents (IPADDR=`/usr/bin/echo ) 
>> inside my system config scripts, instead of the extracted value being 
>> written to these files.  I've even gone so far as to get rid of my echo 
>> statement in an attempt to get it to work, as well as just placing 
>> ${VARNAME}, to get more familiar with how Anaconda extracts these values 
>> trying to find my mistake.
>>
>> I'm sure what I'm doing is not overly complicated - but for now, I'm 
>> stuck.  If anyone has any feedback, I'd be very eager to hear back from you.
> 
> Kickstart doesn't have any provisions for reading environment variables
> or capturing the output of programs like you're trying to do.  However,
> you can do this stuff in a %pre script, as that just gets fed to the
> shell (or whatever you set the interpreter to).  So you could write a
> pre script that generates the dynamic chunks and writes it to a file,
> then %include that file up in the command section.
> 
> That should work.
> 
> - Chris
> 

Hello again, Chris -

I'm using %pre to write to a file called /tmp/netsettings.  I'm then 
trying to %include it from within my commands section.

Every time, I'm given an error saying that /tmp/netsettings cannot be 
found.  I cannot verify this, or it's location, because Anaconda bombs 
out and locks up vt2.

I think I'm lost in chroot land.  Do I need to mount a disk in %pre in 
order to write my temp file?  What would you suggest?

Thanks!
-dant