Gaia Fast Deployment (Blink)

Solution

Table of Contents:

• Introduction
• Basic Usage
• Advanced Usage (Command Line)
  • Installation Instructions
  • answers.xml
    • File Description
    • The answers.xml - default file (XML v1.1)
    • The answers.xml - for old Blink Security Gateway images (XML v1.0)
• Downloads
• Limitations
• Revision History

Introduction

Fast Deployment (Blink) deployment flow and images let customers do a multi-step upgrade or clean install with one image.

Blink images already contain a specific base version (for example, R81.10), a designated role (for example, Security Gateway), and more hotfixes / Jumbo Hotfix Accumulators.

With this image, you can onboard new appliances/upgrade existing appliances with one package.

You can see and install Blink images in Gaia Portal or with Gaia Clish commands.

Basic Usage

Important Note: Fast Deployment (Blink) mechanism is intended only for Check Point appliances and Open Servers on which Check Point software has been installed.

• To deploy a new appliance through the First Time Wizard

1. Connect to the appliance with a web browser and log in.

The First Time Configuration Wizard opens:

2. Select the option Install from Check Point cloud:

3. After configuring the external interface, the installation table shows a list of supported images.

The latest images use Blink mechanism to install the version.

The selected Blink image is downloaded and deployed on the appliance:

• Using Blink with CPUSE (Clean Install / Upgrade)

Blink packages installation is equivalent to the Major version installation:

1. You see all the packages by categories and, by default, it shows the recommended packages only.

Note: Use the filter button near the help icon and select the packages you wish to see:

2. Find the related package in the Blink section in CPUSE packages list:

3. For offline packages, manually import the package to CPUSE by clicking on Import Package on the top-right corner of the page:

4. To download a package from the list, right-click on the related package that is Available for Download and click on Download.

5. After the download completes, right-click on the package and click on Clean Install or Upgrade(if available):

6. Installation/Upgrade starts, and you can follow the installation from CPUSE WebUI or CLI.

Advanced Usage (command line)

Installation Instructions

Important Note: If the appliance is not after a clean install (the First Time Configuration Wizard has been run already), the "--reimage" flag needs to be used (see the "answers.xml" section).

Fast Deployment (Blink) image contains:

1. The root partition of a pre-installed Check Point appliance
2. Simplified First Time Configuration Wizard (will be used in case of attended installation)
3. Installation logic

The main files in the Fast Deployment (Blink) image are:

answers.xml

• File Description:

This is an XML-based file (located in the "installation_logic" directory) that contains user's configuration for unattended installation.

• The answers.xml - default file (XML v1.1)

<properties xmlVersion="1.1">
    <installation>
        <reboot_delay>10</reboot_delay>
    </installation>
    <machine_configuration>
        <perform>false</perform>
        <hostname>GWOBJECT_NAME_FIELD</hostname>
        <password_hash>PASSWORD_HASH_FIELD</password_hash>
        <maintenance_hash>Maintenance_HASH_FIELD</maintenance_hash>
        <network>
            <ipv4addr>IPV4_FIELD</ipv4addr>
            <masklength>IPV4_MASKLENGTH_FIELD</masklength>
            <interface>IPV4_INTERFACE_FIELD</interface>
            <default_gw>DEFAULTGW_FIELD</default_gw>
            <ipv6addr>IPV6_FIELD</ipv6addr>
            <ipv6mask>IPV6_MASKLENGTH_FIELD</ipv6mask>
            <ipv6default_gw>IPV6_DEFAULTGW_FIELD</ipv6default_gw>
        </network>
        <role_configuration>
            <gateway>
                <!--  activation_key must be in base64 encoding -->
                <activation_key>SIC_BASED64_FIELD</activation_key>
                <cluster>false</cluster>
            </gateway>
            <management>
                <credentials>
                    <use_gaia_admin>true</use_gaia_admin>
                    <!--  Relevant only if use_gaia_admin is false -->
                    <admin_name>MGMT_ADMIN_FIELD</admin_name>
                    <!--  admin_password must be in base64 encoding -->
                    <admin_password>MGMT_PASS_BASED64_FIELD</admin_password>
                </credentials>
            </management>
        </role_configuration>
        <send_data_to_usercenter>true</send_data_to_usercenter>
        <enable_download_from_checkpoint>true</enable_download_from_checkpoint>
    </machine_configuration>
    <user_updates>
        <entry_point>install_content.sh</entry_point>
    </user_updates>
    <logging>
        <file_level>DEBUG</file_level>
        <screen_level>NORMAL</screen_level>
        <sys_log_level>NEVER</sys_log_level>
        <colors>true</colors>
    </logging>
</properties>

Downloads

Fast Deployment Image (Blink) Utility

Blink Utility - the main utility that extracts the Blink Image and other packages, and installs them. Starting from R80.20, Blink Utility is a part of release.

Fast Deployment Image (Blink) Images - the Gaia OS images

Security Management Fast Deployment Image GA Images

Limitations

Revision History