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Talos Linux can be deployed on bare metal servers using several boot methods. This guide covers PXE boot, ISO, and USB installation.

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Boot Methods

Talos supports three primary boot methods for bare metal:
  1. PXE Boot - Network boot for automated deployments
  2. ISO Boot - Boot from ISO image (CD/DVD or virtual media)
  3. USB Boot - Boot from USB drive

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Prerequisites

  • Physical server with:
    • x86-64 (amd64) or ARM64 (arm64) CPU
    • Minimum 2GB RAM (4GB+ recommended)
    • At least 10GB disk space
    • Network connectivity
  • Talos Linux boot media (ISO, USB, or PXE server)

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Method 1: ISO Installation

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Download ISO

Download the latest Talos ISO: 
curl -LO https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/releases/latest/download/metal-amd64.iso
# For ARM64:
curl -LO https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/releases/latest/download/metal-arm64.iso

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Boot from ISO

1

Prepare Boot Media

Burn the ISO to a CD/DVD or configure your BMC/IPMI for virtual media mount.
2

Boot the Server

Boot the server from the ISO. The system will load into Talos maintenance mode.
3

Generate Configuration

Generate machine configuration:
talosctl gen config my-cluster https://controlplane.example.com:6443
This creates:
  • controlplane.yaml - Control plane node configuration
  • worker.yaml - Worker node configuration
  • talosconfig - CLI configuration
4

Apply Configuration

Apply configuration to the node:
talosctl apply-config --insecure \
  --nodes 192.168.1.10 \
  --file controlplane.yaml
5

Install to Disk

The system will automatically install to disk and reboot.

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ISO with Embedded Configuration

You can create an ISO with embedded configuration: 
# Create ISO with embedded config
docker run --rm -i \
  -v $PWD/_out:/out \
  -v $PWD/controlplane.yaml:/controlplane.yaml:ro \
  ghcr.io/siderolabs/imager:latest \
  iso --arch amd64 --config /controlplane.yaml
The ISO will read configuration from the metal:iso label: 
# Referenced in kernel params as:
talos.config=metal:iso

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Method 2: USB Installation

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Create Bootable USB

Write the ISO to a USB drive: 
# On Linux/macOS (replace /dev/sdX with your USB device)
sudo dd if=metal-amd64.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress
sudo sync

# On Windows (using Rufus or similar tool)
# Or use dd for Windows
The dd command will erase all data on the target device. Verify the device path carefully.

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Boot from USB

Follow the same steps as ISO installation after booting from USB.

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Method 3: PXE Boot

PXE boot enables network-based installation for large-scale deployments.

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PXE Server Setup

1

Download PXE Assets

Download kernel and initramfs:
mkdir -p /var/lib/tftpboot/talos
cd /var/lib/tftpboot/talos

# Download kernel
curl -LO https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/releases/latest/download/vmlinuz-amd64

# Download initramfs
curl -LO https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/releases/latest/download/initramfs-amd64.xz
2

Configure DHCP

Configure your DHCP server to provide PXE boot options:
# dnsmasq example
dhcp-boot=pxelinux.0
enable-tftp
tftp-root=/var/lib/tftpboot
3

Configure PXE Boot Menu

Create PXE boot configuration:
/var/lib/tftpboot/pxelinux.cfg/default
DEFAULT talos

LABEL talos
  KERNEL talos/vmlinuz-amd64
  INITRD talos/initramfs-amd64.xz
  APPEND talos.platform=metal talos.config=http://192.168.1.1:8080/config.yaml
4

Host Configuration

Set up HTTP server to host machine configs:
# Serve configs on port 8080
python3 -m http.server 8080
5

Boot Nodes

Configure servers to boot via PXE (network boot) in BIOS/UEFI.

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PXE Configuration Server

For dynamic configuration, use URL templating: 
# Boot with UUID-based config URL
talos.config=http://config-server:8080/config?uuid=${uuid}&mac=${mac}
The Talos provisioner includes built-in DHCP and TFTP servers: 
// From pkg/provision/providers/vm/dhcpd.go
// Automatic DHCP server for PXE boot
type DHCPd struct {
    Listener *net.UDPConn
    TFTPServer string
    IPXEBootFilename string
}

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Platform-Specific Configuration

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Console Configuration

Bare metal uses different consoles based on architecture: 
machine:
  install:
    extraKernelArgs:
      - console=ttyS0  # Serial console
      - console=tty0   # VGA console

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Disk Configuration

Specify installation disk: 
machine:
  install:
    disk: /dev/sda
    image: ghcr.io/siderolabs/installer:latest
    wipe: false

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Network Configuration

Configure static networking: 
machine:
  network:
    hostname: node1
    interfaces:
      - interface: eth0
        addresses:
          - 192.168.1.10/24
        routes:
          - network: 0.0.0.0/0
            gateway: 192.168.1.1
    nameservers:
      - 8.8.8.8
      - 1.1.1.1

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Post-Installation

After installation completes:

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Bootstrap Kubernetes

On the first control plane node: 
talosctl bootstrap --nodes 192.168.1.10

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Retrieve kubeconfig

talosctl kubeconfig --nodes 192.168.1.10

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Verify Cluster

kubectl get nodes

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Advanced Options

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UEFI Boot

For UEFI systems, use UEFI-compatible boot: 
# UEFI PXE boot uses grub.cfg instead of pxelinux

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Secure Boot

Talos supports UEFI Secure Boot with signed kernels.

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Custom Image

Build custom installer images with additional drivers: 
docker run --rm -i \
  -v /dev:/dev --privileged \
  ghcr.io/siderolabs/imager:latest \
  iso --arch amd64 \
  --system-extension-image ghcr.io/siderolabs/amd-ucode:latest

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Troubleshooting

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Boot Issues

  • Verify BIOS/UEFI boot order
  • Check serial console connection
  • Review kernel parameters

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Network Issues

  • Verify network cable connection
  • Check DHCP server logs
  • Test PXE server connectivity

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Installation Failures

  • Check disk availability: talosctl disks --insecure --nodes <ip>
  • Review logs: talosctl logs --insecure --nodes <ip>
  • Verify configuration: talosctl validate --config controlplane.yaml

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Next Steps

Configuration

Learn about machine configuration

Networking

Configure advanced networking

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