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When we download the RPi operating system (anyone of them) images, is there a way to preset the RPi unit so that it takes a certain IP address?

Right now, my router leases IP addresses via DHCP, and so when I copy the OS image to the SD card, I have to hook up a keyboard and monitor to each RPi to log in and manually set the IP to a static IP.

I am building a cluster of RPi's and as I keep adding nodes, I have to repeat this cumbersome task for each new node.

Also, any way to preset the host name is also helpful.

Is there some software that can administer a cluster of RPi's? Assume I have a closed network RPi cluster (all nodes linked by a simple switch), can I setup a "master" node that will automatically setup the newly added nodes?

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If you search this Forum you will find hundreds of posts about setting static IP including setting in /boot/cmdline.txt. I would recommend you don't do this, rather reserve in your router.

There is no easy way to preset host name, but it is stored in /etc/hostname, and you could set this if you mount the FS. I use a simple script to copy to this file.

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  • Thanks, I think that static IP will approach might work, this will be a closed network/cluster of RPi's. When you use a script to manipulate the hostname, how do you know the IP a priori? I assume you use something like scp to copy the file? – Jane Wayne Nov 15 '14 at 1:33
  • I only have a couple of Pi, so I run manually. I did think of writing an automatic based on MAC, but decided it wasn't worth the effort. I mount using ssh to run. – Milliways Nov 15 '14 at 1:35
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Yes there is. You might want to look at my project Nard SDK which has what you seek. Here is a link to the documentation explaining how to preset the SDcard static IP and host name with any standard Windows PC.

http://www.arbetsmyra.dyndns.org/nard/#devsettings

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