(2024/05/07) Added Ubuntu 24.04 LTS template.; validated usage with Packer 1.10.3.
(2023/11/27) Switched all templates to HCL...finally! 😅
(2023/01/16) Added Ubuntu 22.04 LTS template; validated usage with Packer 1.8.5.
(2021/03/17) Added Photon OS 4.0 and Ubuntu 20.04 LTS templates; validated usage with Packer 1.7.0.
(2020/11/10) Added Photon OS 3.0 template; validated usage with Packer 1.6.5.
(2020/10/03) Reorganized the structure of the repository for an easier consumption (manual and through pipelines). I also validated usage with Packer 1.6.4.
(2020/04/27) Added support for Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (Focal Fosssa).
(2020/02/18) I updated my template to leverage the vsphere-iso builder (instead of vmware-iso); The vsphere-iso builder, previously maintained by JetBrains, has been merged with the Packer core in Packer 1.5.2. It will be officially supported by the Packer team at HashiCorp moving forward.
I moved to the vsphere-iso builder for 2 main reasons:
- This builder uses the vSphere API and does neither require the SSH service running on the ESXi host nor ESXi host modification (GuestIPHack enabled).
- I can use a distributed port group to connect my template during the creation.
Note: Ubuntu and Photon OS are the only templates provided in this repository for now. Others coming soon, stay tuned!
Step 1 - Clone the git repository.
Step 2 - Make a copy (or change) and adapt the cloud definition file to your environment (you will find them in the builds/clouds folder).
Step 3 - Update the buils/common.pkrvars.hcl file with your desired user credentials (or SSH key).
Step 4 - Navigate to the folder that matches the operating system (and version) that you want to build. E.g.: builds/ubuntu/24.04.
Step 4 - From that folder, edit the respective HCL file with your values, e.g. ubuntu-24.04.auto.pkrvars.hcl file or photon-4.0.auto.pkrvars.hcl. For Ubuntu 20.04, 22.04 and 24.04, adapt the user-data cloud-init file with the desired configuration (documentation for reference).
Step 5 - Run packer init . to install the required plugin(s).
Step 6 - Build your template with packer build -force -var-file="../../clouds/infra-z67.pkrvars.hcl" -var-file="../../common.pkrvars.hcl" ..
Note: adapt to filenames and location relevant to your environment.
Step 7 - Rinse and repeat for all templates you want to build. \o/
- Add support for additional OS (Debian, CentOS, Windows)
- Zero the disk before export
- Use the Content Library to store the ISOs
- Export the result in the Content Library