Installing Without Network Access

This guide explains how to install and maintain Lunar Linux when you don't have access to a fast network connection or any network at all. While more complex than a standard network-based installation, it's entirely feasible with proper planning.

Overview

The basic strategy involves:

Download all necessary files when you have network access
Transfer files to your target system via CD-ROM or USB
Install Lunar from the ISO normally
Install the pre-downloaded sources and moonbase
Build your system from the cached sources

Prerequisites

Before starting, you'll need access to a system with good internet connectivity to download:

The Lunar ISO
A moonbase tarball snapshot
The complete list of source URLs
All source packages listed in the URL file

Step 1: Download Required Files

When you have network access, download these files at the same time:

Lunar ISO: Get the latest installation ISO
Moonbase tarball: Download from http://lunar-linux.org/lunar/moonbase.tar.bz2
Source URL list: Download from http://download.lunar-linux.org/lunar/mirror-urls.txt

Important: Download the moonbase tarball and mirror-urls.txt at the same time to ensure they're synchronized. If these files are out of sync, some packages may fail to build.

Step 2: Download All Source Packages

After downloading the URL list, download all sources referenced in mirror-urls.txt. This will require approximately 5-8 CD-ROMs or a large USB drive.

Using wget to download all sources:

for URL in $(cat mirror-urls.txt); do
    wget -c $URL
done

The -c flag allows wget to resume interrupted downloads, which is helpful for large downloads.

Optional: Customize your selection

You can edit mirror-urls.txt to exclude packages you won't need (e.g., KDE if you're using a different desktop environment). This can significantly reduce download time and storage requirements.

Step 3: Burn to Media

Burn the source packages and moonbase tarball to CD-ROMs or copy them to USB drives. Organize them logically for easier retrieval during installation.

Step 4: Install Lunar from ISO

Boot from the Lunar ISO and perform a standard installation:

Boot the ISO
Follow the installation wizard
Configure partitions and filesystems
Install the base system
Configure your bootloader
Reboot into your new Lunar system

At this point, you'll have a minimal but bootable Lunar Linux installation.

Step 5: Copy Sources to Cache Directory

After booting into your new Lunar system, copy all downloaded sources to Lunar's cache directory:

# Mount your CD-ROM or USB drive
mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom

# Copy sources to Lunar's cache
cp /mnt/cdrom/* /var/spool/lunar

# Repeat for each CD or drive containing sources
umount /mnt/cdrom

The /var/spool/lunar directory is where Lunar looks for cached source files during package installation.

Step 6: Install the Moonbase

Extract the moonbase tarball, preserving your local module customizations (zlocal):

cd /var/lib/lunar

# Backup your local module directory (if it exists)
mv moonbase/zlocal .zlocal

# Remove old moonbase
rm -rf moonbase

# Extract new moonbase
tar xjf /var/spool/lunar/moonbase.tar.bz2

# Restore local modules
mv .zlocal moonbase/zlocal

Step 7: Initialize the Moonbase

Initialize the new moonbase to build the module index:

lsh
check_module_index

Modern Alternative (theedge 20041126 and newer)

On newer versions of Lunar, you can install the moonbase with a single command:

lget moonbase --url file:///path/to/moonbase.tar.bz2

This method automatically handles backup and restoration of local customizations.

Step 8: Install Packages

You can now install any module from the moonbase without needing a network connection:

lin module-name

Lunar will use the sources from /var/spool/lunar instead of downloading them.

Important Considerations

Incomplete or Outdated URL Lists

The mirror-urls.txt file may be incomplete or contain outdated URLs. Some files might:

Be missing from the list
No longer be available at the listed URLs
Have been updated since the list was generated

Be prepared to make multiple trips to update your source cache or have a backup method to download individual packages.

Modules That Always Download

Never install these modules without network access:

moonbase - Always attempts to download
lunar - Always attempts to download
theedge - Always attempts to download

These modules bypass the source cache and always try to fetch the latest version from the network. If you must update them offline, use the manual moonbase installation method described above.

Holding Packages

To prevent accidental updates of critical packages, use the lunar hold command:

lunar hold moonbase
lunar hold lunar
lunar hold theedge

This prevents these packages from being updated during system updates.

Updating Your System Offline

To keep your offline system updated:

Periodically download a fresh moonbase tarball and mirror-urls.txt
Download any new or updated sources
Transfer them to your offline system
Replace the moonbase using the method described above
Copy new sources to /var/spool/lunar

Tips for Success

Storage space: Ensure you have adequate disk space for sources (5-10 GB)
Organization: Label your media clearly to find packages quickly
Documentation: Keep a copy of this guide offline for reference
Testing: Verify critical packages compile successfully before disconnecting from the network
Prioritization: Install and test essential packages first

Troubleshooting

Missing Source Files

If a package fails to build due to missing sources:

# Check if the source is in the cache
ls /var/spool/lunar/package-name*

# If missing, download it when you have network access
# Then copy it to /var/spool/lunar

Checksum Mismatches

If checksums don't match, your moonbase and sources may be out of sync. Ensure you download both at the same time.

Build Failures

Build failures offline are the same as online. Check:

Build logs in /var/log/lunar/compile
Missing dependencies
Incorrect optimizations