Impossible to make a minized install with a full automatic install and the YAML user-data file

[Francois Lafont]

Hi,

In fact, I have 2 points.

1. I have made a full automatic install of Ubuntu 22.04 via the ISO ubuntu-22.04-live-server-amd64.iso (sha256 == 84aeaf7823c8c61baa0ae862d0a06b03409394800000b3235854a6b38eb4856f). I'm talking about the install via the YAML "user-data" file set in the boot command (with the arguments "autoinstall ds=nocloud-net;seedfrom=http://..." etc). If I'm not mistaken, by this way, it's just impossible to make a "minimized" install (no key available in user-data file to do this). Of course, it's possible via an _interactive_ install where I can choose the option "Ubuntu Server (minimized)".

Could you add a key in user-data file to be able to make a "minimized" install?

2. In my humble opinion, the "minimized" install of Ubuntu should be more minimal. For instance snapd is installed (personally not used at all in my VM servers), git (same remark) etc. Below, I show you my "purge-useless-packages" post-install script I use to create my VM templates. For an administrator, it's not a problem to install packages if required, _after_ the installation (for instance via Ansible etc).

Could you make the "minimized" install more minimal, or, better, add a kind of "minimal" install option ("minimal" < "minimized"), callable in the "user-data file" (cf previous point)?

Thx for your help.

PS: just for the example, here is my "purge-useless-packages" post-install script I use to create my VM templates (in vmware):

----------------------------------
#!/bin/sh

export PATH='/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin'
export LC_ALL='C'
set -ue

useless_packages='
alsa-topology-conf
alsa-ucm-conf
apparmor
apport
apport-symptoms
at
bc
bcache-tools
bolt
btrfs-progs
byobu
cloud-initramfs-copymods
cloud-initramfs-dyn-netconf
cryptsetup
cryptsetup-bin
cryptsetup-initramfs
cryptsetup-run
curl
dbus-user-session
dconf-gsettings-backend
dconf-service
dirmngr
eatmydata
ethtool
finalrd
fonts-ubuntu-console
fwupd
fwupd-signed
gawk
gdisk
gir1.2-packagekitglib-1.0
git
git-man
gnupg
gnupg-l10n
gnupg-utils
gpg
gpg-agent
gpgconf
gpgsm
gpg-wks-client
gpg-wks-server
gsettings-desktop-schemas
htop
kpartx
landscape-common
lxd-agent-loader
mdadm
motd-news-config
multipath-tools
open-iscsi
overlayroot
packagekit
packagekit-tools
pastebinit
patch
pinentry-curses
policykit-1
pollinate
python3-apport
python3-automat
python3-click
python3-colorama
python3-constantly
python3-debconf
python3-debian
python3-entrypoints
python3-hamcrest
python3-httplib2
python3-hyperlink
python3-incremental
python3-keyring
python3-launchpadlib
python3-lazr.restfulclient
python3-lazr.uri
python3-newt
python3-openssl
python3-pexpect
python3-problem-report
python3-ptyprocess
python3-pyasn1
python3-pyasn1-modules
python3-requests-unixsocket
python3-secretstorage
python3-service-identity
python3-simplejson
python3-software-properties
python3-systemd
python3-twisted
python3-wadllib
python3-zope.interface
run-one
sbsigntool
screen
secureboot-db
sg3-utils
sg3-utils-udev
snapd
software-properties-common
sosreport
sound-theme-freedesktop
squashfs-tools
thermald
thin-provisioning-tools
tmux
tpm-udev
udisks2
unattended-upgrades
update-notifier-common
upower
usbmuxd
vim
vim-runtime
xfsprogs
zerofree
'

export DEBIAN_FRONTEND="noninteractive"

apt-get update

# Number of Physical Volumes LVM.
n_pv=$(pvs | wc -l)

if [ "$n_pv" = 0 ]
then
    apt-get -y -q purge $(echo $useless_packages) "lvm2"
else
    apt-get -y -q purge $(echo $useless_packages)
fi

# After that, lot of lib* packages can be removed.
apt-get -y --purge autoremove

exit 0
----------------------------------

After the execution of this script I have 298 packages installed:

~# dpkg -l | grep -c ^ii
298

[Olivier Gayot (ogayot)]

https://github.com/canonical/subiquity/pull/1375