What is the difference between all those automation features? I found three of them so far:
- cloud-init
- kickstart
- preseeding
Is one of these methods outdated maybe?
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It seems like cloud-init is for post-installation configuration, in the cloud, whereas the others are for unattended installation from ISO/CD installation media, or PXE boot installation.
If there is something that you can only do easily during the installation phase, then you likely need kickstart or preseed.
This table is probably very incomplete, please anyone feel free to edit:
| System | Docs | Description | Distro | Stage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| cloud-init | https://cloudinit.readthedocs.io/en/latest/index.html | "multi-distribution method for cross-platform cloud instance initialisation" | multi | Post OS installation |
| kickstart | https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/installation_guide/chap-kickstart-installations#sect-kickstart-introduction | "Kickstart installations offer a means to automate the installation process, either partially or fully. Kickstart files contain answers to all questions normally asked by the installation program, such as what time zone you want the system to use, how the drives should be partitioned, or which packages should be installed." | Red Hat distros | During installation |
| preseed | https://wiki.debian.org/DebianInstaller/Preseed#Preseeding_d-i | "Preseeding provides a way to set answers to questions asked during the installation process, without having to manually enter the answers while the installation is running." | Debian (Ubuntu depreciated support) | During installation |
| autoinstall | https://canonical-subiquity.readthedocs-hosted.com/en/latest/intro-to-autoinstall.html | "Automatic installation lets you answer all configuration questions ahead of time with an autoinstall configuration and lets the installation process run without any interaction." | Ubuntu Server >=20.04 | During installation |
| Fully Automatic Installation | https://wiki.fai-project.org/ | "FAI is a tool for fully automatic installation of Debian and other Linux Distributions via network, custom install CD, or into a chroot environment. " | Linux variants | During installation |
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