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memilanuk
Asked: 2010-09-18 14:11:40 +0800 CST

What are the F-key linked options on the initial install screen (server)?

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When booting from the server or alternative install CD, there are some choices tied to function keys (F4, F6, etc.) along the bottom of the screen. Some are relatively obvious, others... not so much so, or least it'd sure be nice to be able to read a description of what the intended usage is before committing to an install process only to find that I should have left well enough alone ;)

I can't seem to find a description of these options in the official documentation... anyone know where it might be squirreled away, or who I could get ahold of to find out?

system-installation configuration server

2 Answers

  1. The boot options for the desktop CD are documented (incompletely) at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BootOptions; there doesn't seem to be a page for the server CD, but many options are the same.

    Don't worry too much about these options: for the most part, you're not expected to understand them. Apart from the obvious ones like choosing a different keyboard layout or choosing between doing an installation, a rescue or a memory test, most options are intended for poorly-supported hardware or highly unusual requirements. If an option isn't listed on that BootOptions page, the expected workflow is to try booting, find that it doesn't work, enlist the help of Google or a guru to diagnose the problem, and learn that the problem can be worked around by adding the more_magic=xyzzy option.

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    • F1: It is obvious: It shows some help.
    • F2: Here you can enter your native language. Usually all further menus use this language setting.
    • F3: If you want to select a keyboard setting (qwertz, qwerty, Neo etc.) you can enter this here.
    • F4: has some settings regarding your graphics. If the standard settings don't apply you can select a lower resolution here.
    • F5: Accessibility features.
    • F6: The official help site has a description of all boot parameters, which you can set here. These allow you to boot with different kernel settings to fix or work around various problems.
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