Copyright © 2009-2011, 2013 Jason Helfman
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This article describes building an internal FreeBSD Update Server.
The freebsd-update-server
software is written by Colin Percival <cperciva@FreeBSD.org>, Security Officer Emeritus of FreeBSD.
For users that think it is convenient to update their systems
against an official update server, building their own FreeBSD Update Server may
help to extend its functionality by supporting manually-tweaked
FreeBSD releases or by providing a local mirror that will allow faster
updates for a number of machines.
This article was subsequently printed at BSD Magazine.
Experienced users or administrators are often responsible for several machines or environments. They understand the difficult demands and challenges of maintaining such an infrastructure. Running a FreeBSD Update Server makes it easier to deploy security and software patches to selected test machines before rolling them out to production. It also means a number of systems can be updated from the local network rather than a potentially slower Internet connection. This article outlines the steps involved in creating an internal FreeBSD Update Server.
To build an internal FreeBSD Update Server some requirements should be met.
A running FreeBSD system.
Note:
At a minimum, updates require building on a FreeBSD release greater than or equal to the target release version for distribution.
A user account with at least 4 GB of available space. This will allow the creation of updates for 7.1 and 7.2, but the exact space requirements may change from version to version.
An ssh(1) account on a remote machine to upload distributed updates.
A web server, like Apache, with over half of the space required for the build. For instance, test builds for 7.1 and 7.2 consume a total amount of 4 GB, and the webserver space needed to distribute these updates is 2.6 GB.
Basic knowledge of shell scripting with Bourne shell, sh(1).
Download the
freebsd-update-server software by installing devel/subversion , and execute:
% svn co http://svn.freebsd.org/base/user/cperciva/freebsd-update-build freebsd-update-serverUpdate scripts/build.conf appropriately.
It is sourced during all build operations.
Here is the default build.conf, which should
be modified to suit your environment.
# Host platform
export HOSTPLATFORM=`uname -m`
# Host name to use inside jails
export BUILDHOSTNAME=${HOSTPLATFORM}-builder.daemonology.net
# Location of SSH key
export SSHKEY=/root/.ssh/id_dsa
# SSH account into which files are uploaded
MASTERACCT=builder@wadham.daemonology.net
# Directory into which files are uploaded
MASTERDIR=update-master.freebsd.org
Parameters for consideration would be:
| This is the location where ISO images are downloaded from (by
the Customizations to the |
| The name of the build host. This information will be displayed on updated systems when issuing: % uname -v |
| The SSH key for uploading files to
the update server. A key pair can be created by
typing The ssh-keygen(1) manual page has more detailed information about SSH and the appropriate steps for creating and using one. |
| Account for uploading files to the update server. |
| Directory on the update server where files are uploaded to. |
The default build.conf file shipped with
the freebsd-update-server sources is
suitable for building i386 releases of FreeBSD. As an example of
building an update server for other architectures, the following steps
outline the configuration changes needed for amd64:
Create a build environment for amd64:
%mkdir -p /usr/local/freebsd-update-server/scripts/7.2-RELEASE/amd64Install a
build.conffile in the newly created build directory. The build configuration options for FreeBSD 7.2-RELEASE on amd64 should be similar to:# SHA256 hash of RELEASE disc1.iso image. export RELH=1ea1f6f652d7c5f5eab7ef9f8edbed50cb664b08ed761850f95f48e86cc71ef5
# Components of the world, source, and kernels
export WORLDPARTS="base catpages dict doc games info manpages proflibs lib32"
export SOURCEPARTS="base bin contrib crypto etc games gnu include krb5 \
lib libexec release rescue sbin secure share sys tools \
ubin usbin cddl"
export KERNELPARTS="generic"
# EOL date
export EOL=1275289200 The sha256(1) hash key for the desired release, is published within the respective release announcement.
To generate the "End of Life" number for
build.conf, refer to the "Estimated EOL" posted on the FreeBSD Security Website. The value ofEOLcan be derived from the date listed on the web site, using the date(1) utility, for example:%date -j -f '%Y%m%d-%H%M%S' '20090401-000000' '+%s'
The first step is to run scripts/make.sh.
This will build some binaries, create directories, and generate an RSA
signing key used for approving builds. In this step, a passphrase will
have to be supplied for the final creation of the signing key.
# sh scripts/make.sh
cc -O2 -fno-strict-aliasing -pipe findstamps.c -o findstamps
findstamps.c: In function 'usage':
findstamps.c:45: warning: incompatible implicit declaration of built-in function 'exit'
cc -O2 -fno-strict-aliasing -pipe unstamp.c -o unstamp
install findstamps ../bin
install unstamp ../bin
rm -f findstamps unstamp
Generating RSA private key, 4096 bit long modulus
................................................................................++
...................++
e is 65537 (0x10001)
Public key fingerprint:
27ef53e48dc869eea6c3136091cc6ab8589f967559824779e855d58a2294de9e
Encrypting signing key for root
enter aes-256-cbc encryption password:
Verifying - enter aes-256-cbc encryption password:Note:
Keep a note of the generated key fingerprint. This value
is required in /etc/freebsd-update.conf for
binary updates.
At this point, we are ready to stage a build.
# cd /usr/local/freebsd-update-server
# sh scripts/init.sh amd64 7.2-RELEASEWhat follows is a sample of an initial build run.
# sh scripts/init.sh amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 16:04:36 PDT 2009 Starting fetch for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
/usr/local/freebsd-update-server/work/7.2-RELE100% of 588 MB 359 kBps 00m00s
Mon Aug 24 16:32:38 PDT 2009 Verifying disc1 hash for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 16:32:44 PDT 2009 Extracting components for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 16:34:05 PDT 2009 Constructing world+src image for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 16:35:57 PDT 2009 Extracting world+src for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 23:36:24 UTC 2009 Building world for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Tue Aug 25 00:31:29 UTC 2009 Distributing world for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Tue Aug 25 00:32:36 UTC 2009 Building and distributing kernels for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Tue Aug 25 00:44:44 UTC 2009 Constructing world components for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Tue Aug 25 00:44:56 UTC 2009 Distributing source for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 17:46:18 PDT 2009 Moving components into staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 17:46:33 PDT 2009 Identifying extra documentation for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 17:47:13 PDT 2009 Extracting extra docs for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 17:47:18 PDT 2009 Indexing release for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Mon Aug 24 17:50:44 PDT 2009 Indexing world0 for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Files built but not released:
Files released but not built:
Files which differ by more than contents:
Files which differ between release and build:
kernel|generic|/GENERIC/hptrr.ko
kernel|generic|/GENERIC/kernel
src|sys|/sys/conf/newvers.sh
world|base|/boot/loader
world|base|/boot/pxeboot
world|base|/etc/mail/freebsd.cf
world|base|/etc/mail/freebsd.submit.cf
world|base|/etc/mail/sendmail.cf
world|base|/etc/mail/submit.cf
world|base|/lib/libcrypto.so.5
world|base|/usr/bin/ntpq
world|base|/usr/lib/libalias.a
world|base|/usr/lib/libalias_cuseeme.a
world|base|/usr/lib/libalias_dummy.a
world|base|/usr/lib/libalias_ftp.a
...Then the build of the world is performed again, with world
patches. A more detailed explanation may be found
in scripts/build.subr.
Warning:
During this second build cycle, the network time protocol
daemon, ntpd(8), is turned off. Per Colin Percival <cperciva@FreeBSD.org>,
Security Officer Emeritus of FreeBSD, "the freebsd-update-server
build code needs to identify timestamps which are stored in files so
that they can be ignored when comparing builds to determine which
files need to be updated. This timestamp-finding works by doing two
builds 400 days apart and comparing the results."
Finally, the build completes.
Approve the build if everything is correct. More information on
determining this can be found in the distributed source
file named USAGE. Execute
scripts/approve.sh, as directed. This will sign
the release, and move components into a staging area suitable for
uploading.
# cd /usr/local/freebsd-update-server
# sh scripts/mountkey.sh# sh -e scripts/approve.sh amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:06 PDT 2009 Signing build for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:06 PDT 2009 Copying files to patch source directories for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:06 PDT 2009 Copying files to upload staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:07 PDT 2009 Updating databases for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:07 PDT 2009 Cleaning staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.2-RELEASEAfter the approval process is complete, the upload procedure may be started.
# cd /usr/local/freebsd-update-server
# sh scripts/upload.sh amd64 7.2-RELEASENote:
In the event update code needs to be re-uploaded, this may be done by changing to the public distributions directory for the target release and updating attributes of the uploaded file.
# cd /usr/local/freebsd-update-server/pub/7.2-RELEASE/amd64
# touch -t 200801010101.01 uploadedThe uploaded files will need to be in the document root of the webserver in order for updates to be distributed. The exact configuration will vary depending on the web server used. For the Apache web server, please refer to the Configuration of Apache servers section in the Handbook.
Update client's KeyPrint and
ServerName in
/etc/freebsd-update.conf, and perform updates as
instructed in the FreeBSD
Update
section of the Handbook.
Important:
In order for FreeBSD Update Server to work properly, updates for both the current release and the release one wants to upgrade to need to be built. This is necessary for determining the differences of files between releases. For example, when upgrading a FreeBSD system from 7.1-RELEASE to 7.2-RELEASE, updates will need to be built and uploaded to your distribution server for both versions.
For reference, the entire run of init.sh is
attached.
Every time a security advisory or security notice is announced, a patch update can be built.
For this example, 7.1-RELEASE will be used.
A couple of assumptions are made for a different release build:
Setup the correct directory structure for the initial build.
Perform an initial build for 7.1-RELEASE.
Create the patch directory of the respective release
under /usr/local/freebsd-update-server/patches/.
% mkdir -p /usr/local/freebsd-update-server/patches/7.1-RELEASE/
% cd /usr/local/freebsd-update-server/patches/7.1-RELEASEAs an example, take the patch for named(8). Read the advisory, and grab the necessary file from FreeBSD Security Advisories. More information on interpreting the advisory, can be found in the FreeBSD Handbook.
In the security brief,
this advisory is called SA-09:12.bind. After
downloading the file, it is required to rename the file to an
appropriate patch level. It is suggested to keep this consistent with
official FreeBSD patch levels, but its name may be freely chosen.
For this build, let us follow the currently established practice of
FreeBSD and call this p7. Rename the file:
% cd /usr/local/freebsd-update-server/patches/7.1-RELEASE/; mv bind.patch 7-SA-09:12.bind Note:
When running a patch level build, it is assumed that previous patches are in place. When a patch build is run, it will run all patches contained in the patch directory.
There can be custom patches added to any build. Use the number zero, or any other number.
Warning:
It is up to the administrator of the FreeBSD Update Server to take appropriate measures to verify the authenticity of every patch.
At this point, a diff is ready to be built.
The software checks first to see if a
scripts/init.sh has been run on the respective
release prior to running the diff build.
# cd /usr/local/freebsd-update-server
# sh scripts/diff.sh amd64 7.1-RELEASE 7What follows is a sample of a differential build run.
# sh -e scripts/diff.sh amd64 7.1-RELEASE 7
Wed Aug 26 10:09:59 PDT 2009 Extracting world+src for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 17:10:25 UTC 2009 Building world for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 18:05:11 UTC 2009 Distributing world for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 18:06:16 UTC 2009 Building and distributing kernels for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 18:17:50 UTC 2009 Constructing world components for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 18:18:02 UTC 2009 Distributing source for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 11:19:23 PDT 2009 Moving components into staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 11:19:37 PDT 2009 Extracting extra docs for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 11:19:42 PDT 2009 Indexing world0 for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 11:23:02 PDT 2009 Extracting world+src for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Thu Sep 30 18:23:29 UTC 2010 Building world for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Thu Sep 30 19:18:15 UTC 2010 Distributing world for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Thu Sep 30 19:19:18 UTC 2010 Building and distributing kernels for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Thu Sep 30 19:30:52 UTC 2010 Constructing world components for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Thu Sep 30 19:31:03 UTC 2010 Distributing source for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Thu Sep 30 12:32:25 PDT 2010 Moving components into staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:32:39 PDT 2009 Extracting extra docs for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:32:43 PDT 2009 Indexing world1 for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:35:54 PDT 2009 Locating build stamps for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:36:58 PDT 2009 Reverting changes due to build stamps for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:37:14 PDT 2009 Cleaning staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:37:14 PDT 2009 Preparing to copy files into staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:37:15 PDT 2009 Copying data files into staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:43:23 PDT 2009 Copying metadata files into staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 12:43:25 PDT 2009 Constructing metadata index and tag for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE-p7
...
Files found which include build stamps:
kernel|generic|/GENERIC/hptrr.ko
kernel|generic|/GENERIC/kernel
world|base|/boot/loader
world|base|/boot/pxeboot
world|base|/etc/mail/freebsd.cf
world|base|/etc/mail/freebsd.submit.cf
world|base|/etc/mail/sendmail.cf
world|base|/etc/mail/submit.cf
world|base|/lib/libcrypto.so.5
world|base|/usr/bin/ntpq
world|base|/usr/include/osreldate.h
world|base|/usr/lib/libalias.a
world|base|/usr/lib/libalias_cuseeme.a
world|base|/usr/lib/libalias_dummy.a
world|base|/usr/lib/libalias_ftp.a
...
Values of build stamps, excluding library archive headers:
v1.2 (Aug 26 2009 18:13:46)
v1.2 (Aug 26 2009 18:11:44)
@(#)FreeBSD 7.1-RELEASE-p7 #0: Wed Aug 26 18:11:50 UTC 2009
FreeBSD 7.1-RELEASE-p7 #0: Wed Aug 26 18:11:50 UTC 2009
root@server.myhost.com:/usr/obj/usr/src/sys/GENERIC
7.1-RELEASE-p7
Wed Aug 26 17:29:15 UTC 2009
Wed Aug 26 17:29:15 UTC 2009
##### built by root@server.myhost.com on Wed Aug 26 17:49:58 UTC 2009
##### built by root@server.myhost.com on Wed Aug 26 17:49:58 UTC 2009
##### built by root@server.myhost.com on Wed Aug 26 17:49:58 UTC 2009
##### built by root@server.myhost.com on Wed Aug 26 17:49:58 UTC 2009
Wed Aug 26 17:20:39 UTC 2009
ntpq 4.2.4p5-a Wed Aug 26 17:29:42 UTC 2009 (1)
* Copyright (c) 1992-2009 The FreeBSD Project.
Wed Aug 26 17:20:39 UTC 2009
Wed Aug 26 17:29:30 UTC 2009
Aug 26 2009
ntpd 4.2.4p5-a Wed Aug 26 17:29:41 UTC 2009 (1)
ntpdate 4.2.4p5-a Wed Aug 26 17:29:42 UTC 2009 (1)
ntpdc 4.2.4p5-a Wed Aug 26 17:29:42 UTC 2009 (1)
Wed Aug 26 17:55:02 UTC 2009
Wed Aug 26 17:55:02 UTC 2009
Wed Aug 26 17:55:02 UTC 2009
Wed Aug 26 17:20:39 UTC 2009
...Updates are printed, and approval is requested.
Follow the same process as noted before for approving a build:
# sh -e scripts/approve.sh amd64 7.1-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:06 PDT 2009 Signing build for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:06 PDT 2009 Copying files to patch source directories for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:06 PDT 2009 Copying files to upload staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:07 PDT 2009 Updating databases for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE
Wed Aug 26 12:50:07 PDT 2009 Cleaning staging area for FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE
The FreeBSD/amd64 7.1-RELEASE update build has been signed and is
ready to be uploaded. Remember to run
# sh -e umountkey.sh
to unmount the decrypted key once you have finished signing all
the new builds.After approving the build, upload the software:
# cd /usr/local/freebsd-update-server
# sh scripts/upload.sh amd64 7.1-RELEASEFor reference, the entire run of
diff.sh is
attached.
If a custom release is built using the native
make releaseprocedure, freebsd-update-server code will work from your release. As an example, a release without ports or documentation can be built by clearing functionality pertaining to documentation subroutinesfindextradocs (),addextradocs ()and altering the download location infetchiso (), respectively, inscripts/build.subr. As a last step, change the sha256(1) hash inbuild.confunder your respective release and architecture and you are ready to build off your custom release.# Compare ${WORKDIR}/release and ${WORKDIR}/$1, identify which parts # of the world|doc subcomponent are missing from the latter, and # build a tarball out of them. findextradocs () { } # Add extra docs to ${WORKDIR}/$1 addextradocs () { }Adding
-jflags toNUMBERbuildworldandobjtargets in thescripts/build.subrscript may speed up processing depending on the hardware used, however it is not necessary. Using these flags in other targets is not recommended, as it may cause the build to become unreliable.# Build the world log "Building world" cd /usr/src && make -j 2 ${COMPATFLAGS} buildworld 2>&1 # Distribute the world log "Distributing world" cd /usr/src/release && make -j 2 obj && make ${COMPATFLAGS} release.1 release.2 2>&1Create an appropriate DNS SRV record for the update server, and put others behind it with variable weights. Using this facility will provide update mirrors, however this tip is not necessary unless you wish to provide a redundant service.
_http._tcp.update.myserver.com. IN SRV 0 2 80 host1.myserver.com. SRV 0 1 80 host2.myserver.com. SRV 0 0 80 host3.myserver.com.