Hi Larry,
don't give up on it yet :]
 From sweat and tears usually come up the best results (my very own life 
experience :])

Anyway - as you've written about disk partitioning during install - yes 
it is horrible. It might be good for desktop install for someone who 
doesn't know much about linux, but for server installation, the Anakonda 
is tremendously lacking, IMHO.

What i did when installing testing server with SL 7.0 (in regards of 
disk partitioning) i described on SL forums here:

http://scientificlinuxforum.org/index.php?showtopic=2999

I think it might help you with your need of the custom disk partitioning.


As for overall system administration - yes, it's very different to SL 5 
and SL 6 as SL 7 moved to systemd, firewalling is changed, networking 
etc etc. Something for better, something not so much (IMHO).

If i got it well, you move from SL5? If the SL 7 is not strictly 
required (because of HW of specific features) you might stick it out 
with SL 6 which gonna be around to 2020 including updates and security 
fixes. (this is what i do so far on servers i manage, as i wait for 
higher versions of SL - like SL 7.5 and higher, when the OS is more 
matured).

cheers :]


-- 
*Karel Lang*
*Unix/Linux Administration*
[log in to unmask] | +420 731 13 40 40
AUFEER DESIGN, s.r.o. | www.aufeerdesign.cz


On 07/17/2015 07:56 PM, Larry Linder wrote:
> More on installation of 7.1.
>
> We decided to not deploy SL 7.1
>
> Down loaded the nice serial manual from RH site.  Well written, and everything
> works as stated.   There still does not seem to be a way to get a simple
> Ethernet connection.
> Error message is "NO Connection"  We started out with a working box running SL
> 5.11.
>
> Since all of our users gave it a thumbs down and did not do not want this OS -
> the vote was  unanimous.
>
> The Ethernet install failure was the a show stopper.
>
> Installations we tried were the "standard", "automatic etc.
> Last night was the 16Th time we tried to install it and make some sense of it.
> So far we have tried about every thing and finally let it do a standard
> install on the OS disk.  It didn't improve anything.
> Made you think of Windows 7 - Bill computer on this time its big Red's
> computer.
>
> 1.  When looking at the /  there were two partitioned /boot, /home & / and
> that was it.   If you do a "df" -n on look at the installed stuff it is just
> a bunch a numbers and no clue as to what they all did.
> No /var, /opt, /tmp and others we use on other disks were no where to be
> found.  Just a series of characters - no meaning.
>
> 2.  We tried to load a couple of apps we use some are home grown, some are
> purchased, cad packages did not want to install.  We ordered VMWare so we
> could install some variants of Windows for special stuff and use our file
> system layout.  Down loaded it on another system but have not installed it
> due to Ethernet problem.
>
> 3.  We decided to just reload 5.11 hook up other disks and forget till SL 8.1
> comes out sometime.   We could not install a previous OS .  It seams that SL
> 7.1 has written something on the Track 00 of disk that it was installed on we
> cannot see it but it prevents you from backing to a prior OS version.
> Once you install 7.1 you have been Intercourrsed.
>
> 4.  We need a way to gracefully remove SL 7.1 if we can't then we will have to
> do a low level format on disk.
> One of the guys suggested that we take the disk out and put it on fence post
> in south forty and he would loan me his twelve Gage.  Just because a low
> level format takes so much time.
>
> 5.  We have invested about 16 hours on various installs at the shop rate and
> that is a lot of money spent for a Zero gain.
> Dan remarked that it is so secure that even as root you could do nothing.
> Reminded him of a 10 Ton Steel safe full of trash at 15 K ft. below the
> surface, secure but effectively worthless.
>
> 6.  One of the major birches is how do you tun off the goofy sound when you
> manually step back too far.  Can you imagine 50 of these noises going off at
> the same time.   This is below first grade stuff and needs to be removed.
> The last thing you need in a machine shop is a surprise when some one is
> running a mill, lathe, power sheer, drill press.
>
> One of disturbing trend is that everyone likes to use the word "Wizard"   I am
> old enough to have watched Mr. Wizard in the 50's and the usual Wizard
> experiment blew up in our faces.
> A word that should be "forbidden" in software is  "Wizard" and one other that
> I can't remember that is used in Windows and stuff I have seen in Red Hat.
>
> I need a way to uninstall 7.1 from our test system.  One way that was
> suggested was to load Windows 7.  Ouch.
>
> We have been using Unix since 79 on a PDP8, a Convex super computer, Sun Super
> Server a 16 processor Server, and for the last 10 years  We have been using
> SL  Starting with SL 4.1  Linux.  Tried to use Susi, Slackware & others that
> were around. and all had major deficiencies.
> So here we are with SL5.11 and some boxes @ SL 6.4.   They all work together
> and the network was easy and the video was excellent.
>
> Thank all of you for your help over the years.
>
> Will go back to sleep till SL 8.1 comes along. Hope its before 5.11 support is
> ended.
>
> Larry Linder
>