The Boot Screen

The boot screen displays a number of options for the installation procedure. Boot from Hard Disk boots the installed system and is selected by default, because the CD is often left in the drive. Select one of the other options with the arrow keys and press Enter to boot it. The relevant options are:

Installation: The normal installation mode. All modern hardware functions are enabled. In case the installation fails, see F5Kernel for boot options that disable potentially problematic functions.
Repair Installed System: Boots into the graphical repair system. More information on repairing an installed system is available in Section 9.7.4, “Recovering a Corrupted System”. This option is not available on LiveCDs.
Rescue System: Starts a minimal Linux system without a graphical user interface. For more information, see Section 9.7.4.2, “Using the Rescue System”. This option is not available on LiveCDs.
Check Installation Media: This option is only available when you install from media created from downloaded ISOs. In this case it is recommended to check the integrity of the installation medium. This option starts the installation system before automatically checking the media. In case the check was successful, the normal installation routine starts. If a corrupt media is detected, the installation routine aborts.
Firmware Test: Starts a BIOS checker that validates ACPI and other parts of your BIOS. This option is not available on the LiveCDs.
Memory Test: Tests your system RAM using repeated read and write cycles. Terminate the test by rebooting. For more information, see Section 9.2.5, “Fails to Boot”. This option is not available on the LiveCDs.

Figure 1.1. The Boot Screen

Use the function keys indicated in the bar at the bottom of the screen to change the language, screen resolution, installation source or to add an additional driver from your hardware vendor:

F1Help

Get context-sensitive help for the active element of the boot screen. Use the arrow keys to navigate, Enter to follow a link, and Esc to leave the help screen.

F2Language

Select the display language and a corresponding keyboard layout for the installation. The default language is English (US).

F3Video Mode

Select various graphical display modes for the installation. Select Text Mode if the graphical installation causes problems.

F4Source

Normally, the installation is performed from the inserted installation medium. Here, select other sources, like FTP or NFS servers. If the installation is deployed on a network with an SLP server, select an installation source available on the server with this option. Find information about SLP in Chapter SLP Services in the Network (↑Reference).

F5Kernel

If you encounter problems with the regular installation, this menu offers to disable a few potentially problematic functions. If your hardware does not support ACPI (advanced configuration and power interface) select No ACPI to install without ACPI support. No local APIC disables support for APIC (Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controllers) which may cause problems with some hardware. Safe Settings boots the system with the DMA mode (for CD/DVD-ROM drives) and power management functions disabled.

If you are not sure, try the following options first: Installation—ACPI Disabled or Installation—Safe Settings. Experts can also use the command line (Boot Options) to enter or change kernel parameters.

F6Driver

Press this key to notify the system that you have an optional driver update for openSUSE. With File or URL, load drivers directly before the installation starts. If you select Yes, you are prompted to insert the update disk at the appropriate point in the installation process.

F7Arch

If you install from an installation medium supporting 32bit and 64bit architectures and have a processor with 64-bit support, select whether to install a 64-bit or 32-bit system. By default, a 64-bit system is installed on a computer with 64-bit support. To install a 32-bit system, press F7 then select 32bit.

	Using IPv6 during the Installation
By default you can only assign IPv4 network addresses to your machine. To enable IPv6 during installation, enter one of the following parameters at the bootprompt: `ipv6=1` (accept IPv4 and IPv6) or `ipv6only=1` (accept IPv6 only).

After starting the installation, openSUSE loads and configures a minimal Linux system to run the installation procedure. To view the boot messages and copyright notices during this process, press Esc. On completion of this process, the YaST installation program starts and displays the graphical installer.

	Installation without a Mouse
If the installer does not detect your mouse correctly, use Tab for navigation, arrow keys to scroll, and Enter to confirm a selection. Various buttons or selection fields contain a letter with an underscore. Use Alt-Letter to select a button or a selection directly instead of navigating there with the Tab button.