Capturing OS

I don't use Composer to create an image, so can't help there. What we do is as follows:

(1) Boot up a machine and install/update it however you like.
(2) When done, put the machine in Target Mode.
(3) Connect to the machine from another one and open Disk Utility
(4) Within Disk Utility, highlight the target machine and make a copy of it
(5) Upload that OS dmg into Casper Admin
(6) Double-click the dmg in Casper Admin and change its category to "OS" and Priority to "1"
(7) Create a new config for that OS and drag the dmg into it

After that, there's all sorts of tricks and things to be decided. Right now I'm rethinking if we should have it hooked to AD during imaging since that looks like it's an issue for us now.

Is the resulting OS disk image big, like over 4-5GB?
Use Disk Utility to restore your disk image to another disk/volume, can you boot from it successfully?

If it's only failing when installed from Casper Imaging, do the log files reveal anything interesting?

Your best bet is to use the installESD.dmg download from the App Store, upload it to Casper admin, mark it as an OS install, and go from there. That way you get a never booted OS install every time. My guess is that the image you captured isn't compatible with all hardware types.

What did you try to deploy this image to?

I've tried uploading the InstallESD image to Casper and setting it up as an installer but the image created seems to be devoid of a System folder and the machine just boots into the Recovery partition. Does the server OS have any relevance to this issue?

Does the server OS have any relevance to this issue?

No, but the machine you're checking that box on does. It needs to be capable of installing the OS.

This machine is definitely capable. It's a test machine I've used for a while now. Is uploading the InstallESD.dmg and setting it as an installer all you should have to do then?

Are you NetBooting machines to image them? Not sure this ever got resolved but trying to use Casper to install the InstallESD.dmg while NetBooted would result in a system where only the Recovery HD worked.

My workaround was to use InstaDMG, which now supports imaging both Macintosh HD and Recovery HD.

Ugh, seriously??

We lean on NetBoot for imaging almost exclusively.

You can still use netboot, you just use an InstaDMG created DMG file as the core of your modularized configuration instead of the InstallESD file. This is exactly what we are doing. Our InstaDMG created file ONLY has the OS. We don't bake in any updates, accounts or apps. All those goodies are additional items in our configurations.

I had the same problem (netbooted installESD install resulting in a Recovery HD only system) and jumped over to the InstaDMG method. I haven't gone back to try and figure out why it didn't work.

I've become semi obsessed with creating the perfect netboot. What I have done:

1) Clean 10.8.2 installed and fully updated on our newest mac hardware. Create admin user and turn off auto login with other very minor sys pref tweaks. Make custom login background screen (this will brand it and provide visual confirmation of a netboot). Install Casper Imaging app and DiskWarrior (launch once to get the downloaded app warning out of the way). Dock has minimum apps: Finder, Casper Imaging app, DiskWarrior and Safari.

2) Target Disk Mode the above mac and delete unnecessary apps, fonts, desktop pics, screen savers, etc. to slim down the OS. Reboot once more to make sure everything is how you want it, this is what you are capturing for a netboot. Target Disk Mode again and use System Image Utility (buried in /System/Library/CoreServices) to create a simple 10.8.2 netboot (no customizations with SIU).

3) Serve up netboot image on a dedicated ML server and share over image over NFS. I can netboot any new or used Mac with a slim and customized 10.8 netboot that is prepped for casper imaging or repair.

Been working well so far. New to Casper though...

Anyone have some amazing tips and tricks?

I have 2 questions related to your netboot creation process.

1. Does this result in a netboot image that requires a logon each time it is used? I'm assuming yes.
2. I read somewhere that wiping out any unneeded apps/fonts/junk doesn't actually speed up the netboot process. Can you confirm or deny that?

Hi guys I had the same problem with InstallESD.dmg while netbooting and found it kept just going to the recovery boot disk after imaging.

I tried raising this with my JAMF account manager Eric and explained that only InstaDMG worked and all I got back was a ... "Cool"

Ermmmm not cool.

Just wanted to throw that in there. I tried to push a bit to get a this issue looked in to and some white paper released for 10.8 imaging but decided to leave it.

1) Yes, you have to login on the netboot which helped make it secure. I also changed the apple logo to the casper imaging logo so you know right away you've netbooted. Our highest success rate for netbooting comes from holding down option at startup. Startup disk pref is about 50/50. Every now and then I have to zap PRAM after a failed netboot.

2) I think it has but still playing around. I'm pretty sure serving a netboot image over NFS has proven faster than http in my limited experience. But a lot depends on your network. I made a 10.6.8 stripped down netboot and that was fast and solid but I fear newer machines won't like it so I made a 10.8. I don't know if the whole image needs to get cached or just core stuff before the netboot starts. But I would think a 4GB netboot image as opposed to a 5.6GB would transfer and load faster.

Still trying to fine tune the process so always trying new stuff and looking for new tips and tricks.

Thought about above stuff: If you are making a netboot image out of the installESD aren't you really just making a "netinstall"? That would account for booting off it and getting the recovery HD, aka install option. A netboot has to be a capture of an installed OS. Right.....? I only ask because we made a 10.8 netinstall out of the installESD for when we just want to install a vanilla retail 10.8.