Frequently Asked Questions
Does Tinkerbell work outside of Equinix Metal's hosting service?
Yes, it will work outside of Equinix Metal. Our default setup script should work on any install of Ubuntu and CentOS.
Does using Tinkerbell rely on having a Equinix Metal account?
No, you can follow our local development guide to run Tinkerbell on your local machine.
Can Tinkerbell be used to install OSes without Internet access (where both the Provider and Worker hosts are in an isolated network)?
Yes, OS images are served from the NGINX running on the provisioner.
What operating systems is Tinkerbell able to install?
Any! Out of the box, we are working to provide installation workflows for deb and rpm-based systems, but it can be used for anything (as it includes a generic workflow engine).
Can Tinkerbell install operating systems using their original, unmodified ISO images?
Which server makes and models is Tinkerbell able to install operating systems on?
Tinkerbell currently works on any system with IPMI, and has special support for Dell’s (racadm). Host-side, our installation supports NICs such as Broadcom, Intel, Netronome, Mellanox, and a few others out of the box.
Is Tinkerbell able to operate remote server power settings (power on; power off)? How about resetting?
Does Tinkerbell use each operating system's native network installer program, or does it install using a different method?
It depends on the operating system, the installation environment supports non-NM and NM for rpm-based systems, and the standard deb-based network interfaces.