PXE Network Boot is designed for relatively large networks, like a network in the data center of a big office (the size of the building floor). Before it can be used, three services - DHCP, TFTP, and NFS - must be installed and configured somewhere in the network (see below). Content of the directories shared via TFTP and NFS should be replaced when the new version of PXE Boot is released.
To use PXE Network Boot, you need a PXE-enabled network card. Most of the on-board network cards in modern computers support PXE out of the box. But if your computer is older, you may need to get a PCI network card that supports booting from the network. An example of such a PCI network card is Intel EtherExpress 100 Mbps.
You also need a working DHCP server, TFTP server, and NFS server. The next sections describe the configuration of DHCP and TFTP servers on Linux and Windows and NFS servers on Linux only. If you already have all three servers set up in your network, skip the next sections.
 | Note PXE Environment is usually already configured in data centers and sometimes in office networks. Therefore, the sections are written mostly for technical support engineers working in the data centers, and with administrative access to DHCP, TFTP, and NFS servers. |
- Configuring DHCP Server on Linux (ISC DHCPD)
- Configuring DHCP Server on Windows
- Configuring TFTP Server on Linux
Once you have a PXE-enabled network card, you can download PXE Network Boot software (Obtaining PXE Network Boot Agent, Obtaining PXE Network Boot Server) and install it (Installing PXE Network Boot).
| Note If you do not have administrative access to DHCP, TFTP, and NFS servers, ask the server administrator to install PXE Network Boot on the TFTP server and NFS server and configure the DHCP server to enable it. |