Ubuntu Server Daily Build for VMware Desktop Hypervisors

Automated Ubuntu Server virtual machine builder using Packer and VMware Fusion/Workstation. This project creates baseline Ubuntu Server virtual machines from the latest daily builds with automated provisioning using cloud-init.

Features

• Latest Ubuntu Server: Uses daily builds from Ubuntu's official repository.
• Automated Setup: Fully automated virtual machine creation with cloud-init
• Cross-Platform: Supports both VMware Fusion (macOS) and VMware Workstation (Windows/Linux)
• Architecture Support: Works with both AMD64 and ARM64 architectures.
• Secure Random Passwords: Cryptographically secure password generation.
• Override Support: Customize virtual machine settings without modifying core files.
• Force Build: Automatically overwrites existing VMs for clean builds.

Prerequisites

Required Software

• Packer (>= 1.0)
• VMware Fusion 13 (macOS) or VMware Workstation 17 (Windows/Linux)
• curl - for downloading ISO files
• openssl - for password encryption

Quick Start

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/tenthirtyam/packer-vmware-desktop-ubuntu-daily
   cd packer-vmware-desktop-ubuntu-daily

2. Run the build script

   ./ubuntu-daily.sh

3. Wait for completion The script will automatically:

   • Download the latest Ubuntu Server daily ISO
   • Validate checksums
   • Overwrite any existing VMs
   • Build the virtual machine using Packer
   • Create a snapshot
   • Clean up temporary files

Configuration

Default Settings

• VM Name: ubuntu-YYYYMMDD-{arch} (e.g., ubuntu-20250911-arm64)
• Username: ubuntu
• Password: Cryptographically secure random (12 characters)
• Memory: 4GB
• Disk: 20GB
• CPUs: 2 cores
• Locale: en_US.UTF-8
• Keyboard Layout: us
• Timezone: UTC

Customization Options

Usage Options

# Use auto-generated secure password.
./ubuntu-daily.sh

# Use custom password (prompts securely).
./ubuntu-daily.sh --password=<your_password>

# Show help.
./ubuntu-daily.sh --help

Password Security

• Auto-generated: Cryptographically secure (12 characters) using OpenSSL.
• Custom passwords: Prompted securely (no echo) with confirmation.
• No command-line exposure: Passwords never appear in shell history.
• Validation: Ensures passwords are not empty and match confirmation.

Fixed Directories

• ISO Files: ./iso/ (created automatically)
• Virtual Machine Output: ./output/ (created automatically)

Override Configuration

Create an overrides.pkrvars.hcl file to customize the settings without modifying the main configuration:

# Copy the example file.
cp overrides.pkrvars.hcl.example overrides.pkrvars.hcl

# Edit with your preferred settings.
vim overrides.pkrvars.hcl

Common Override Examples

# Hardware Settings
vm_cpu = 4
vm_memory = 12288
vm_disk_size = 102400

# Locale & Timezone Settings
locale = "en_GB"
keyboard_layout = "uk"
timezone = "Europe/London"

# Extended Timeout Settings
ssh_timeout = "30m"
shutdown_timeout = "20m"

The script automatically detects and uses overrides.pkrvars.hcl if present.

Build Process

The build process follows these steps:

1. Validation: Checks for required tools and dependencies
2. Password Generation: Creates cryptographically secure random password
3. ISO Download: Downloads the latest Ubuntu Server daily ISO
4. Checksum Verification: Validates ISO integrity
5. Packer Initialization: Initializes Packer plugins
6. Configuration Validation: Validates Packer configuration
7. VM Creation: Creates and configures the virtual machine
8. OS Installation: Automated Ubuntu installation via cloud-init
9. Post-Processing: Creates snapshot and cleans up files

Output

After successful completion, you'll find the virtual machine in output/.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit issues, feature requests, or pull requests.

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License

Copyright © 2025 Ryan Johnson

Licensed under the MIT License.