The Fast Linux Deployment Toolkit
Developed by Penn Manor High School student Andrew Lobos and the Penn Manor IT Team for our 1:1 student laptop program, FLDT (Fast Linux Deployment Toolkit) uses a variety of open source tools to quickly image and configure either single machines or large batches of systems. Imaging is accomplished by using partclone to copy and restore only the used blocks from the file system. Images are able to be transferred to clients via NFS or multicasted via udpcast. FLDT also provides methods for running post-image scripts, such as machine-specific configurations like automatically setting hostnames and forcing password change on next boot. Additionally, the host database and imaging can be managed via a custom Node.js powered web panel.
References:
Partclone: http://partclone.org/ Udpcast: http://www.udpcast.linux.lu/
Information about the Penn Manor 1:1 student laptop program can be found here: http://www.pennmanor.net/techblog/?page_id=1561.