A few weeks ago we shared here on the blog the news that the SUSE guys were working in your own installer and now today YaST installer developers used by openSUSE and SUSE Linux have announced the release of the first image of the installer with a new installer developed by the project D-Installer that supports the management of the installation through a web interface.
The prepared image is intended to introduce D-Installer and provides the means to install a continuously updated edition of openSUSE Tumbleweed.
For those who do not know about D-Installer, they should know that it is still positioned as an experimental project and the first release can be seen as the transformation of a conceptual idea into the form of an initial product that is already usable, but requires many improvements.
D-Installer it is about separating the user interface from the internals of YaST and making it possible to use different interfaces. YaST libraries continue to be used for installing packages, verifying computers, partitioning disks, and other functions necessary for installation, in addition to which a layer is implemented that abstracts access to the libraries through a unified D-Bus interface.
For user interaction a front-end built with web technologies has been prepared. The source includes a controller that provides access to D-Bus calls over HTTP and a web interface that is displayed to the user.
La web interface is written in JavaScript uUsing the React framework and PatternFly components. The service for binding the interface to D-Bus, as well as the integrated http server, are written in Ruby and built using ready-to-use modules developed by the Cockpit project, which are also used in Red Hat's web configurators.
We are pleased to announce the availability of the first installation image based on D-Installer. From our initial announcement in January , we've been working to go from a proof of concept that doesn't work to something you can actually use.
This article aims to summarize the current status of the project and what you can expect in the near future. Also, we'll dive into some internal details a bit so you have a better overview of the path we're following.
Installation is managed through the “Installation Summary” screen, which contains preparatory settings that are made before starting the installation, such as choosing the language and product to install, partitioning the disk, and managing users. The main difference between the new interface and YaST is that the transition to the configuration does not require the launch of individual widgets and is offered immediately.
The capabilities of the interface are still limited, for example, in the product selection section there is no possibility to manage the installation of individual sets of programs and system functions, and in the disk partition section it is only offered to select a partition for installation without the possibility to edit the partition table and change the FC type.
Of the features that need improvementThere tools to inform the user about errors that occur and organize interactive interaction in the work process (for example, displaying a password prompt when an encrypted partition is detected). Plans also include ability to change the behavior of different stages depending on the selected product or system function (for example, for MicroOS, a read-only partition is used).
Among the objectives development of D-Installer there is the elimination of the existing limitations of the graphical interface; expand the possibilities of using YaST functionality in other applications; avoiding being tied to one programming language (the D-Bus API will allow you to create plugins in different languages); encourage the creation of alternative scenarios by community representatives.
Finally if you are interested in knowing more about it, you can check the details In the following link.