> The install process goes as expected and the virtual machine is running
> happily along... The thing is, when I create a second brand new virtual
> machine using the process described above and get to the 'select install
> media' step, it already has my local ftp server's name populated! As far as
> I can tell, the only thing in common between the two installation processes
> is the cd46.iso file.
>
> This isn't necessarily bad, I just can't explain why its happening. Two
> questions:
>
> 1) Is anyone else observing this behavior?
> 2) Can anyone explain why it is occurring?
the installer pulls the list of installation mirrors from
ftp.openbsd.org and defaults to one that is assumed to be closest to
you based on your ip address (using geolocation).
at the end of the installation, the mirror you chose (in your case,
your local ftp server) is sent back to ftp.openbsd.org so that it
will be given to you again the next time, assuming your ip is the
same.
from distrib/miniroot/install.sh:
# If we managed to talk to the ftplist server before, tell it what
# location we used... so it can perform magic next time
if [[ -s $SERVERLISTALL ]]; then
_i=
[[ -n $installedfrom ]] && _i="install=$installedfrom"
[[ -n $TZ ]] && _i="$_i&TZ=$TZ"
[[ -n $method ]] && _i="$_i&method=$method"
[[ -n $_i ]] && ftp $FTPOPTS -a -o - \
"http://129.128.5.191/cgi-bin/ftpinstall.cgi?$_i"; >/dev/null 2>&1 &
fi
because your vmware installations are presumably all coming from the
same ip address, you keep receiving your local ftp server as a
default.
