chore: release 26.20-alpha

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01MScAinbyMdeNc7H2BZdnnG

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -7,6 +7,52 @@ This project uses calendar versioning: `YY.N-stage` (e.g. `26.0-alpha` = 2026, r
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+## [26.20-alpha] - 2026-08-25
+
+First release shaped by a real-hardware install (old laptop mainboard, BIOS boot,
+SSD with a previous Proxmox VE on it). All four fixes are things an empty
+Proxmox VM never shows.
+
+### Fixed
+
+- **First catalog sync no longer dies silently at boot.** On dual-stack
+  LANs `network-online.target` is satisfied by the IPv6 SLAAC address a
+  second before DHCPv4 lands, so `furtka-catalog-sync.service` ran into
+  `Network is unreachable`, exited, and the next attempt was the daily timer
+  — up to 6 h of jitter later. Meanwhile `catalog-state.json` stayed on
+  `checking` and the apps page showed "checking…" with nothing running
+  (first hardware bench, 2026-08-25). The service now retries on failure
+  (every 20 s, up to 8 times in 15 min), a failed sync is recorded as stage
+  `error` with the message, and the apps page shows "last sync failed: …"
+  instead of a fake in-progress state.
+- **Installer frees the target disk before partitioning.** The live ISO
+  auto-activates whatever an attached drive carries (LVM volume groups, md
+  arrays, swap) — the first hardware bench's SSD still had a Proxmox VE
+  `pve` VG on it — and archinstall then failed at 12 % with `unable to
+  inform the kernel of the change, probably because it/they are in use`.
+  `install_run` now runs `diskprep.release_disk()` first: swapoff/umount
+  leaves-first, `dmsetup remove` / `mdadm --stop` for every dm/md node
+  stacked on the disk, `wipefs -a` on partitions + disk, then
+  `blockdev --rereadpt`. Every step is written to the top of the install
+  log. The progress page also names this failure explicitly instead of a
+  bare "hit a snag" if it does still happen.
+- **Console banner always shows the IP fallback.** On both the live ISO and
+  the installed system the `/etc/issue` welcome was written once, after
+  `network-online.target`, and simply omitted the `http://<ip>` line when no
+  address existed yet — so on a slow-DHCP NIC (first hardware bench,
+  2026-08-24) the screen only ever offered `proksi.local`. The banner script
+  now runs from a timer (`furtka-issue.timer` on the ISO,
+  `furtka-welcome.timer` on the installed box, every 5 s) and always prints
+  a fallback line: every global IPv4 address once there is one, or a
+  "no IP address yet — check the cable / DHCP" hint until then. It only
+  rewrites `/etc/issue` and nudges agetty when the text changed, so the
+  login prompt doesn't flicker. The live ISO no longer auto-logs `root` in
+  on tty1 (releng default) — that handed the console to a shell before the
+  banner could update; tty1 now stays at the login prompt with a live
+  banner, and the banner tells you a shell is `root` + Enter away. Boxes
+  that self-update get the new timer linked + enabled automatically; the
+  refresh loop takes effect after their next reboot.
+
 ## [26.19-alpha] - 2026-08-23
 
 ### Fixed
@@ -515,7 +561,8 @@ First tagged snapshot. Pre-alpha — the installer does not yet boot, but the de
 - **Containers:** Docker + Compose
 - **License:** AGPL-3.0
 
-[Unreleased]: https://forgejo.sourcegate.online/daniel/furtka/compare/26.19-alpha...HEAD
+[Unreleased]: https://forgejo.sourcegate.online/daniel/furtka/compare/26.20-alpha...HEAD
+[26.20-alpha]: https://forgejo.sourcegate.online/daniel/furtka/releases/tag/26.20-alpha
 [26.19-alpha]: https://forgejo.sourcegate.online/daniel/furtka/releases/tag/26.19-alpha
 [26.18-alpha]: https://forgejo.sourcegate.online/daniel/furtka/releases/tag/26.18-alpha
 [26.17-alpha]: https://forgejo.sourcegate.online/daniel/furtka/releases/tag/26.17-alpha

assets/bin/furtka-welcome

@@ -1,22 +1,36 @@
 #!/bin/bash
 # Regenerates /etc/issue on the installed system so the console tells the
-# user which URL to open. Mirrors the live-ISO furtka-update-issue pattern.
+# user which URL to open. Mirrors the live-ISO furtka-update-issue pattern:
-set -e
+# runs at boot and every few seconds from furtka-welcome.timer, so the IP
+# fallback line is always on screen — with the address once DHCP handed one
+# out, or with a "no IP yet" hint before that / after the cable is pulled.
+# Only rewrites + nudges agetty when the text changed (no prompt flicker).
+set -u
 
-hostname=$(cat /etc/hostname)
+issue=/etc/issue
-ip=$(ip -4 -o addr show scope global 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $4}' | cut -d/ -f1 | head -1)
 
-{
+hostname=$(cat /etc/hostname 2>/dev/null || hostname)
+mapfile -t ips < <(ip -4 -o addr show scope global 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $4}' | cut -d/ -f1)
+
+new=$(
     echo
     echo "  Furtka is ready."
     echo
     echo "  Open in a browser on another device on your network:"
     echo
     echo "      http://${hostname}.local   (easy — try this first)"
-    if [ -n "$ip" ]; then
+    if ((${#ips[@]})); then
+        for ip in "${ips[@]}"; do
             echo "      http://${ip}   (fallback if the first doesn't work)"
+        done
+    else
+        echo "      (fallback: no IP address yet — waiting for the network."
+        echo "       Check the cable / DHCP. This line updates by itself.)"
     fi
     echo
-} > /etc/issue
+)
 
+if [ "$new" != "$(cat "$issue" 2>/dev/null)" ]; then
+    printf '%s\n' "$new" > "$issue"
     agetty --reload 2>/dev/null || true
+fi

assets/systemd/furtka-catalog-sync.service

@@ -2,11 +2,20 @@
 Description=Furtka apps catalog sync
 Requires=network-online.target
 After=network-online.target
+# network-online.target is satisfied by *any* routable address. On dual-stack
+# LANs that is usually the IPv6 SLAAC address, which lands a second or so
+# before DHCPv4 — and the first sync then dies with "Network is unreachable"
+# (first hardware bench, 2026-08-25). Retry a few times instead of waiting
+# for the daily timer.
+StartLimitIntervalSec=15min
+StartLimitBurst=8
 
 [Service]
 Type=oneshot
 ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/furtka catalog sync
 TimeoutStartSec=5min
+Restart=on-failure
+RestartSec=20s
 
 [Install]
 WantedBy=multi-user.target

assets/systemd/furtka-welcome.service

@@ -1,12 +1,12 @@
 [Unit]
 Description=Furtka console welcome banner
-After=network-online.target
+# No network-online dependency on purpose: paint the banner (with a
-Wants=network-online.target
+# "no IP yet" fallback) as early as possible; furtka-welcome.timer re-runs
+# it every few seconds so the address appears as soon as DHCP delivers.
 
 [Service]
 Type=oneshot
 ExecStart=/opt/furtka/current/assets/bin/furtka-welcome
-RemainAfterExit=yes
 
 [Install]
 WantedBy=multi-user.target

assets/systemd/furtka-welcome.timer

@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+[Unit]
+Description=Keep the Furtka console welcome (IP fallback) up to date
+
+[Timer]
+OnBootSec=3s
+OnUnitActiveSec=5s
+AccuracySec=1s
+
+[Install]
+WantedBy=timers.target

furtka/api.py

@@ -490,7 +490,11 @@ async function refreshCatalog() {
   const updatedAt = (status.state || {}).updated_at || '';
   document.getElementById('catalog-last-sync').textContent = updatedAt || 'never';
   const stageEl = document.getElementById('catalog-stage');
-  if (stage && stage !== 'done') {
+  if (stage === 'error') {
+    const err = (status.state || {}).error || 'unknown error';
+    stageEl.textContent = '· last sync failed: ' + err;
+    stageEl.classList.add('pending');
+  } else if (stage && stage !== 'done') {
     stageEl.textContent = '· ' + stage + '…';
     stageEl.classList.add('pending');
   } else {

furtka/catalog.py

@@ -204,8 +204,21 @@ def _atomic_swap(staging: Path) -> None:
 def sync_catalog() -> CatalogCheck:
     """End-to-end sync. Acquires the lock, writes state at each stage, and
     leaves the live catalog untouched on any failure before the rename step.
+
+    A failure lands as stage ``"error"`` (with the message) instead of leaving
+    the last in-flight stage behind: the first hardware bench sat on
+    ``"checking"`` for hours after a boot-time network failure, and the UI
+    showed "checking…" with nothing actually happening.
     """
     with acquire_lock():
+        try:
+            return _sync_locked()
+        except CatalogError as e:
+            write_state("error", error=str(e))
+            raise
+
+
+def _sync_locked() -> CatalogCheck:
     write_state("checking")
     check = check_catalog()
     if not check.update_available:

iso/README.md

@@ -27,13 +27,15 @@ The build starts from Arch's stock `releng` profile (the same one used to build
 | `overlay/airootfs/opt/furtka/`               | Directory where `webinstaller/` is copied at build time                          |
 | `overlay/airootfs/etc/hostname`              | Live-ISO hostname (`proksi`) so mDNS advertises the installer as `proksi.local`  |
 | `overlay/airootfs/etc/issue`                 | Welcome banner on the TTY pointing users at `http://proksi.local:5000`           |
-| `overlay/airootfs/usr/local/bin/furtka-update-issue` | Rewrites `/etc/issue` at runtime so the banner also shows the DHCP-assigned IP as a fallback URL |
+| `overlay/airootfs/usr/local/bin/furtka-update-issue` | Rewrites `/etc/issue` at runtime so the banner always carries a fallback line: the DHCP-assigned IP(s), or a "no IP yet — check cable / DHCP" hint until one arrives. Only touches the file (and `agetty --reload`s) when the text changed |
-| `overlay/airootfs/etc/systemd/system/`       | `furtka-webinstaller.service` (Flask on :5000) + `furtka-issue.service` (runs the banner-updater on network-online), each symlinked into `multi-user.target.wants/` to auto-start on boot |
+| `overlay/airootfs/etc/systemd/system/`       | `furtka-webinstaller.service` (Flask on :5000) + `furtka-issue.service` (banner-updater, first run at boot) in `multi-user.target.wants/`, and `furtka-issue.timer` (re-runs the updater every 5 s) in `timers.target.wants/` |
 
 The systemd service runs `flask --app app run --host 0.0.0.0 --port 5000` under `/opt/furtka`. The `0.0.0.0` binding is important — the Flask default is localhost-only, which wouldn't be reachable from another machine on the LAN.
 
 mDNS is wired: `avahi-daemon` + `nss-mdns` come from `packages.extra`, the live ISO's hostname is `proksi`, and as soon as `systemd-networkd-wait-online` fires the installer is reachable at `http://proksi.local:5000`. The raw IP still shows on the console for fallback — some Windows clients need the Bonjour service for `.local` to resolve at all.
 
+`build.sh` also deletes releng's `getty@tty1.service.d/autologin.conf`. With root auto-logged-in, tty1 belongs to a shell and `agetty --reload` can't redraw the banner, so the IP line was a snapshot of whatever DHCP had done by the time getty started. Without autologin tty1 sits at the login prompt showing the live banner; for a shell type `root` + Enter (releng's root has no password) — the banner says so.
+
 ## Test flow
 
 1. Build: `./iso/build.sh`

iso/build.sh

@@ -45,6 +45,15 @@ cat "$SCRIPT_DIR/overlay/profiledef.sh" >> "$PROFILE_WORK/profiledef.sh"
 
 cp -a "$SCRIPT_DIR/overlay/airootfs/." "$PROFILE_WORK/airootfs/"
 
+# releng auto-logs root in on tty1. That turns our /etc/issue banner into a
+# one-shot snapshot: once agetty has handed tty1 to a shell, `agetty --reload`
+# from furtka-update-issue has nothing left to redraw, so the IP fallback only
+# shows if DHCP happened to beat getty. Drop the drop-in: tty1 stays at the
+# login prompt with a live-refreshed banner (furtka-issue.timer), and a shell
+# is one `root` + Enter away (releng's root has no password) — the banner says
+# so.
+rm -rf "$PROFILE_WORK/airootfs/etc/systemd/system/getty@tty1.service.d"
+
 echo "==> Rebranding boot menu (GRUB + syslinux + systemd-boot)"
 # releng ships menu entries labelled "Arch Linux install medium" across three
 # bootloader configs (BIOS syslinux, GRUB, systemd-boot for UEFI). Rewrite to

iso/overlay/airootfs/etc/issue

@@ -2,5 +2,6 @@
   Furtka Live Installer starting…
 
   Once ready, open http://proksi.local:5000 on another device
-  on your network. The exact URL will appear below.
+  on your network. The exact URL (and an IP fallback) will
+  appear here in a few seconds.
 

iso/overlay/airootfs/etc/systemd/system/furtka-issue.service

@@ -1,12 +1,12 @@
 [Unit]
 Description=Write Furtka /etc/issue with current IP for the console welcome
-After=network-online.target
+# No network-online dependency on purpose: the first run should paint the
-Wants=network-online.target
+# banner (with a "no IP yet" fallback) as early as possible; the timer
+# re-runs it until an address shows up.
 
 [Service]
 Type=oneshot
 ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/furtka-update-issue
-RemainAfterExit=yes
 
 [Install]
 WantedBy=multi-user.target

iso/overlay/airootfs/etc/systemd/system/furtka-issue.timer

@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+[Unit]
+Description=Keep the Furtka console welcome (IP fallback) up to date
+
+[Timer]
+OnBootSec=3s
+OnUnitActiveSec=5s
+AccuracySec=1s
+
+[Install]
+WantedBy=timers.target

iso/overlay/airootfs/etc/systemd/system/timers.target.wants/furtka-issue.timer

@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+../furtka-issue.timer

iso/overlay/airootfs/usr/local/bin/furtka-update-issue

@@ -2,22 +2,40 @@
 # Regenerates /etc/issue so the live-ISO console tells the user which URL
 # to open in their browser. Shows proksi.local (via avahi/mDNS) as the
 # preferred URL and the raw IP as a fallback for networks where mDNS
-# doesn't work. Reload at the end nudges agetty to redraw.
+# doesn't work.
-set -e
+#
+# Runs at boot and then every few seconds from furtka-issue.timer, so the
+# fallback line is *always* on screen: with the address once DHCP has
+# handed one out, or with a "no IP yet" hint before that / when the cable
+# is unplugged. Only rewrites + nudges agetty when the text actually
+# changed, so the login prompt doesn't flicker on every tick.
+set -u
 
-ip=$(ip -4 -o addr show scope global 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $4}' | cut -d/ -f1 | head -1)
+issue=/etc/issue
 
-{
+mapfile -t ips < <(ip -4 -o addr show scope global 2>/dev/null | awk '{print $4}' | cut -d/ -f1)
+
+new=$(
     echo
     echo "  Open Furtka in a browser on another device on your network:"
     echo
     echo "      http://proksi.local:5000   (easy — try this first)"
-    if [ -n "$ip" ]; then
+    if ((${#ips[@]})); then
+        for ip in "${ips[@]}"; do
             echo "      http://${ip}:5000   (fallback if the first doesn't work)"
+        done
+    else
+        echo "      (fallback: no IP address yet — waiting for the network."
+        echo "       Check the cable / DHCP. This line updates by itself.)"
     fi
     echo
     echo "  Then follow the wizard to install Furtka on this machine."
     echo
-} > /etc/issue
+    echo "  Need a shell? Log in as root (no password)."
+    echo
+)
 
+if [ "$new" != "$(cat "$issue" 2>/dev/null)" ]; then
+    printf '%s\n' "$new" > "$issue"
     agetty --reload 2>/dev/null || true
+fi

pyproject.toml

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [project]
 name = "furtka"
-version = "26.19-alpha"
+version = "26.20-alpha"
 description = "Open-source home server OS — simple enough for everyone."
 requires-python = ">=3.11"
 readme = "README.md"

tests/test_app.py

@@ -195,3 +195,34 @@ def test_build_archinstall_creds_uses_archinstall_sentinel_keys():
             "groups": [],
         }
     ]
+
+
+def test_log_page_done_state_shows_usb_step_before_restart(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
+    """The 'pull the USB stick' step must be visible *before* the restart
+    button — after the click the box reboots within seconds (first hardware
+    bench booted the stick again)."""
+    import app as app_module
+
+    log_path = tmp_path / "install.log"
+    log_path.write_text("Installation completed without any errors.\n")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(app_module, "INSTALL_LOG", log_path)
+    app_module.settings["hostname"] = "bench"
+
+    html = app_module.app.test_client().get("/install/log").get_data(as_text=True)
+
+    assert '<ol class="next-steps">' in html
+    assert "http://bench.local" in html
+    assert "USB stick is out" in html
+    assert html.index("next-steps") < html.index("USB stick is out")
+
+
+def test_log_page_running_state_has_no_restart_button(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
+    import app as app_module
+
+    log_path = tmp_path / "install.log"
+    log_path.write_text("Creating partitions: /dev/sda\n")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(app_module, "INSTALL_LOG", log_path)
+
+    html = app_module.app.test_client().get("/install/log").get_data(as_text=True)
+    assert "next-steps" not in html
+    assert "install_reboot" not in html and "restart now" not in html

tests/test_catalog.py

@@ -331,3 +331,21 @@ def test_write_and_read_state_round_trip(catalog):
     assert s["stage"] == "downloading"
     assert s["latest"] == "26.6"
     assert "updated_at" in s
+
+
+def test_sync_catalog_failure_writes_error_state(catalog, monkeypatch):
+    """A boot-time network failure must not leave the state file on
+    'checking' forever — the UI would show 'checking…' with nothing running."""
+    from furtka import _release_common as _rc
+
+    def offline(host, repo, path, *, error_cls=RuntimeError):
+        raise error_cls("forgejo api https://x/releases: Network is unreachable")
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(_rc, "forgejo_api", offline)
+
+    with pytest.raises(catalog.CatalogError, match="Network is unreachable"):
+        catalog.sync_catalog()
+
+    state = catalog.read_state()
+    assert state["stage"] == "error"
+    assert "Network is unreachable" in state["error"]

tests/test_diskprep.py

@@ -0,0 +1,146 @@
+"""release_disk() against a recorded `lsblk -P` picture of the first
+hardware bench: an SSD with an old Proxmox VE `pve` volume group stacked on
+sda3 (swap, root, thin pool). Commands are captured through the injected
+runner — nothing touches real devices."""
+
+import subprocess
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import pytest
+from diskprep import release_disk
+
+# What the bench looked like before cleanup (lsblk -lnP -o NAME,TYPE,MOUNTPOINTS /dev/sda).
+BENCH_BEFORE = """NAME="sda" TYPE="disk" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="sda1" TYPE="part" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="sda3" TYPE="part" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="pve-swap" TYPE="lvm" MOUNTPOINTS="[SWAP]"
+NAME="pve-root" TYPE="lvm" MOUNTPOINTS="/mnt/old"
+NAME="pve-data_tmeta" TYPE="lvm" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="pve-data-tpool" TYPE="lvm" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="pve-data" TYPE="lvm" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="pve-data_tdata" TYPE="lvm" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="pve-data-tpool" TYPE="lvm" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="pve-data" TYPE="lvm" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+"""
+
+BENCH_CLEAN = """NAME="sda" TYPE="disk" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="sda1" TYPE="part" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+NAME="sda3" TYPE="part" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+"""
+
+EMPTY = """NAME="sda" TYPE="disk" MOUNTPOINTS=""
+"""
+
+
+class FakeRunner:
+    """Answers lsblk from a script of snapshots (one per call, last one
+    sticks) and records everything else."""
+
+    def __init__(self, lsblk_outputs):
+        self.lsblk_outputs = list(lsblk_outputs)
+        self.calls = []
+
+    def __call__(self, cmd, capture_output=True, text=True):
+        if cmd[0] == "lsblk":
+            if len(self.lsblk_outputs) > 1:
+                out = self.lsblk_outputs.pop(0)
+            else:
+                out = self.lsblk_outputs[0]
+            return subprocess.CompletedProcess(cmd, 0, out, "")
+        self.calls.append(cmd)
+        return subprocess.CompletedProcess(cmd, 0, "", "")
+
+
+def test_release_tears_down_lvm_stack_leaves_first():
+    # lsblk #1 (inventory) and #2 (first removal pass) see the full stack;
+    # everything after that is clean — the dm removals "worked".
+    runner = FakeRunner([BENCH_BEFORE, BENCH_BEFORE, BENCH_CLEAN])
+    lines = release_disk("/dev/sda", run=runner)
+    calls = runner.calls
+
+    assert ["swapoff", "/dev/pve-swap"] in calls
+    assert ["umount", "--all-targets", "/dev/pve-root"] in calls
+    removed = [c[2] for c in calls if c[:2] == ["dmsetup", "remove"]]
+    # Thin LV before its pool, pool before tmeta/tdata.
+    assert removed.index("pve-data") < removed.index("pve-data-tpool")
+    assert removed.index("pve-data-tpool") < removed.index("pve-data_tmeta")
+    assert set(removed) == {
+        "pve-swap",
+        "pve-root",
+        "pve-data_tmeta",
+        "pve-data-tpool",
+        "pve-data",
+        "pve-data_tdata",
+    }
+    assert ["wipefs", "-a", "/dev/sda3"] in calls
+    assert ["wipefs", "-a", "/dev/sda1"] in calls
+    assert ["wipefs", "-a", "/dev/sda"] in calls
+    assert calls[-1] == ["blockdev", "--rereadpt", "/dev/sda"]
+    assert not any("WARNING" in line for line in lines)
+    assert lines[0].startswith("Releasing /dev/sda")
+
+
+def test_release_warns_when_stack_survives():
+    runner = FakeRunner([BENCH_BEFORE])  # never becomes clean
+    lines = release_disk("/dev/sda", run=runner)
+    assert any("WARNING: still in use" in line for line in lines)
+    # Still tries to give archinstall a chance.
+    assert ["blockdev", "--rereadpt", "/dev/sda"] in runner.calls
+
+
+def test_release_empty_disk_only_wipes_and_rereads():
+    runner = FakeRunner([EMPTY])
+    lines = release_disk("sda", run=runner)  # bare name is accepted too
+    assert runner.calls == [["wipefs", "-a", "/dev/sda"], ["blockdev", "--rereadpt", "/dev/sda"]]
+    assert any("nothing stacked" in line for line in lines)
+
+
+def test_release_survives_missing_tools():
+    def runner(cmd, capture_output=True, text=True):
+        if cmd[0] == "lsblk":
+            return subprocess.CompletedProcess(cmd, 0, BENCH_BEFORE, "")
+        raise FileNotFoundError(cmd[0])
+
+    lines = release_disk("/dev/sda", run=runner)
+    assert any("command not found" in line for line in lines)
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def app_module(monkeypatch, tmp_path):
+    import app as app_module
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(app_module, "INSTALL_LOG", tmp_path / "install.log")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(app_module, "STATE_DIR", tmp_path / "state")
+    return app_module
+
+
+def test_install_run_releases_disk_before_spawning(app_module, monkeypatch):
+    order = []
+
+    def fake_release(disk):
+        order.append(("release", disk))
+        return ["Releasing X"]
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(app_module, "release_disk", fake_release)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(app_module, "spawn_archinstall", lambda *a: order.append(("spawn",)))
+    monkeypatch.setattr(app_module, "build_archinstall_config", lambda s: {})
+    monkeypatch.setattr(app_module, "build_archinstall_creds", lambda s: {})
+    monkeypatch.delenv("FURTKA_DRY_RUN", raising=False)
+    app_module.settings.update(boot_drive="/dev/sda", username="u", password="pw12345678")
+
+    client = app_module.app.test_client()
+    resp = client.post("/install/run")
+
+    assert resp.status_code == 302
+    assert order == [("release", "/dev/sda"), ("spawn",)]
+    assert Path(app_module.INSTALL_LOG).read_text().startswith("Releasing X")
+
+
+def test_progress_names_disk_in_use_failure(app_module):
+    log = (
+        "Traceback (most recent call last):\n"
+        "_ped.IOException: ... unable to inform the kernel of the change ..."
+    )
+    progress = app_module.parse_install_progress(log)
+    assert progress["status"] == "error"
+    assert "still in use" in progress["phase"]

tests/test_webinstaller_assets.py

@@ -227,6 +227,25 @@ def test_systemd_units_reference_current_paths():
         )
 
 
+def test_welcome_banner_is_timer_driven():
+    """The console banner must keep refreshing so the IP fallback is always
+    on screen. A oneshot with RemainAfterExit=yes never re-runs from a timer
+    (the unit stays 'active'), and a network-online dependency would delay the
+    first paint — both regressions the hardware bench hit in 26.19."""
+    timer = (ASSETS / "systemd" / "furtka-welcome.timer").read_text()
+    assert "OnUnitActiveSec=" in timer
+    assert "furtka-welcome.timer" in app._FURTKA_UNITS
+    service = (ASSETS / "systemd" / "furtka-welcome.service").read_text()
+    assert "RemainAfterExit" not in service
+    assert "network-online.target" not in service
+
+
+def test_welcome_banner_always_prints_fallback_line():
+    script = (ASSETS / "bin" / "furtka-welcome").read_text()
+    assert "no IP address yet" in script
+    assert "fallback" in script
+
+
 def test_read_asset_raises_for_missing_file():
     with pytest.raises(FileNotFoundError):
         app._read_asset("does/not/exist.html")
@@ -259,3 +278,12 @@ def test_post_install_writes_users_json_with_hashed_password(install_cmds):
     # Hash is a real werkzeug hash, not the plaintext password.
     assert parsed["admin"]["hash"] != "test-admin-pw"
     assert check_password_hash(parsed["admin"]["hash"], "test-admin-pw")
+
+
+def test_catalog_sync_service_retries_on_failure():
+    """First sync at boot can race DHCPv4 (IPv6 makes network-online fire
+    early); the unit must retry rather than wait for the daily timer."""
+    body = (ASSETS / "systemd" / "furtka-catalog-sync.service").read_text()
+    assert "Restart=on-failure" in body
+    assert "RestartSec=" in body
+    assert "StartLimitBurst=" in body

webinstaller/app.py

@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import sys
 from datetime import UTC
 from pathlib import Path
 
+from diskprep import release_disk
 from drives import list_scored_devices
 from flask import Flask, jsonify, redirect, render_template, request, url_for
 
@@ -96,6 +97,16 @@ PROGRESS_PHASES = [
 
 PROGRESS_ERROR_MARKERS = ("Traceback (most recent call last)", "archinstall: error:")
 
+# Known failure signatures → a phase label that tells the user what to do
+# instead of a bare "open Show details". Checked in order; first hit wins.
+PROGRESS_ERROR_HINTS = [
+    (
+        "unable to inform the kernel of the change",
+        "Installation failed — the disk was still in use (old LVM/RAID/swap "
+        "from a previous system). Reboot the installer and try again",
+    ),
+]
+
 
 def parse_install_progress(log):
     percent = 2
@@ -110,6 +121,10 @@ def parse_install_progress(log):
     elif any(m in log for m in PROGRESS_ERROR_MARKERS):
         status = "error"
         phase = "Installation failed — open Show details below"
+        for marker, hint in PROGRESS_ERROR_HINTS:
+            if marker in log:
+                phase = hint
+                break
     else:
         status = "running"
 
@@ -264,6 +279,9 @@ _FURTKA_UNITS = (
     "furtka-status.service",
     "furtka-status.timer",
     "furtka-welcome.service",
+    # Re-runs the welcome banner every few seconds so the console always
+    # shows the current IP fallback (or a "no IP yet" hint).
+    "furtka-welcome.timer",
     # Daily apps-catalog pull. Timer drives the service; the .service itself
     # is oneshot and also callable ad-hoc via `furtka catalog sync`.
     "furtka-catalog-sync.service",
@@ -478,7 +496,7 @@ def build_archinstall_config(s):
             "docker",
             # Base OS post-install services. Only packaged units go here —
             # archinstall runs `systemctl enable` on this list *before*
-            # custom_commands, so our own furtka-welcome + furtka-status.timer
+            # custom_commands, so our own furtka-welcome.timer + furtka-status.timer
             # units (written in custom_commands) are enabled there instead.
             "caddy",
             "avahi-daemon",
@@ -534,7 +552,9 @@ def write_install_files(s, state_dir):
 
 
 def spawn_archinstall(config_path, creds_path, log_path):
-    log_fh = open(log_path, "wb")
+    # Append: install_run() already truncated the log and may have written
+    # the disk-release lines we want to keep visible above archinstall's own.
+    log_fh = open(log_path, "ab")
     return subprocess.Popen(
         [
             "archinstall",
@@ -606,6 +626,11 @@ def install_run():
             f"--creds {creds_path} --silent\n"
         )
     else:
+        # Free the target disk first: udev auto-activates old LVM/RAID/swap
+        # on the live ISO, and archinstall can't re-read a partition table
+        # while those hold the partitions open (first hardware bench, 26.19).
+        with INSTALL_LOG.open("a") as fh:
+            fh.write("\n".join(release_disk(settings["boot_drive"])) + "\n\n")
         spawn_archinstall(config_path, creds_path, INSTALL_LOG)
     return redirect(url_for("install_log_view"))
 
@@ -617,6 +642,7 @@ def install_log_view():
         "install/log.html",
         log=log,
         progress=parse_install_progress(log),
+        hostname=settings["hostname"],
     )
 
 

webinstaller/diskprep.py

@@ -0,0 +1,125 @@
+"""Release a target disk before handing it to archinstall.
+
+The live ISO ships lvm2, mdadm, dmraid and cryptsetup (releng defaults), and
+udev happily auto-activates whatever it finds on attached disks at boot. A
+drive that used to live in another machine — the first hardware bench had an
+old Proxmox VE install on its SSD — therefore comes up with device-mapper
+volumes (or swap, or md arrays) stacked on top of its partitions. archinstall
+then writes the new partition table fine but `BLKRRPART` fails with
+
+    Partition(s) 2, 3 on /dev/sda have been written, but we have been unable
+    to inform the kernel of the change, probably because it/they are in use.
+
+and the install dies at 12 %. Nothing on a fresh VM ever triggers this,
+which is why it survived every smoke run.
+
+`release_disk()` tears that stack down leaves-first (swapoff, umount, dmsetup
+remove / mdadm --stop), wipes signatures and asks the kernel to re-read the
+partition table. Every step is logged so the install log shows what was
+done. All commands are best-effort: the point is to leave archinstall a
+disk the kernel can re-partition, not to be a full disk-management tool.
+"""
+
+import re
+import subprocess
+
+_PAIR_RE = re.compile(r'(\w+)="([^"]*)"')
+
+
+def _run(cmd, run):
+    try:
+        result = run(cmd, capture_output=True, text=True)
+    except FileNotFoundError:
+        return 127, f"{cmd[0]}: command not found"
+    out = ((result.stdout or "") + (result.stderr or "")).strip()
+    return result.returncode, out
+
+
+def _parse_pairs(output):
+    """Parse `lsblk -P` key="value" lines into dicts."""
+    rows = []
+    for line in output.splitlines():
+        row = {}
+        for match in _PAIR_RE.finditer(line):
+            row[match.group(1)] = match.group(2)
+        if row.get("NAME"):
+            rows.append(row)
+    return rows
+
+
+def _children(disk, run):
+    """Everything stacked on `disk`, in lsblk tree order, disk itself excluded."""
+    rc, out = _run(["lsblk", "-lnP", "-o", "NAME,TYPE,MOUNTPOINTS", disk], run)
+    if rc != 0:
+        return []
+    rows = _parse_pairs(out)
+    seen = set()
+    children = []
+    for row in rows:
+        if row.get("TYPE") == "disk" or row["NAME"] in seen:
+            continue
+        seen.add(row["NAME"])
+        children.append(row)
+    return children
+
+
+def release_disk(disk, run=subprocess.run):
+    """Free `disk` (e.g. "/dev/sda") of anything that would block a
+    partition-table reload. Returns the log lines describing what happened."""
+    if not disk.startswith("/dev/"):
+        disk = f"/dev/{disk}"
+    lines = [f"Releasing {disk} before install…"]
+
+    children = _children(disk, run)
+    if not children:
+        lines.append("  nothing stacked on the disk — good.")
+    else:
+        lines.append("  found: " + ", ".join(f"{c['NAME']} ({c['TYPE']})" for c in children))
+
+    # Leaves first: mountpoints and swap sit on the outermost devices.
+    for child in reversed(children):
+        dev = f"/dev/{child['NAME']}"
+        mounts = child.get("MOUNTPOINTS", "")
+        if "[SWAP]" in mounts:
+            rc, out = _run(["swapoff", dev], run)
+            lines.append(f"  swapoff {dev}: {'ok' if rc == 0 else out}")
+        elif mounts:
+            rc, out = _run(["umount", "--all-targets", dev], run)
+            lines.append(f"  umount {dev}: {'ok' if rc == 0 else out}")
+
+    # Device-mapper (LVM, thin pools, LUKS) and md stacks. Thin pools need
+    # their thin LVs gone before the pool goes, and lsblk lists shared nodes
+    # more than once, so go leaves-first and retry a couple of passes until
+    # nothing dm/md-shaped is left.
+    for _ in range(3):
+        stacked = [c for c in reversed(_children(disk, run)) if c["TYPE"] != "part"]
+        if not stacked:
+            break
+        for child in stacked:
+            name, typ = child["NAME"], child["TYPE"]
+            if typ.startswith("raid") or name.startswith("md"):
+                cmd = ["mdadm", "--stop", f"/dev/{name}"]
+            else:
+                cmd = ["dmsetup", "remove", name]
+            rc, out = _run(cmd, run)
+            lines.append(f"  {' '.join(cmd)}: {'ok' if rc == 0 else out}")
+
+    leftovers = [c["NAME"] for c in _children(disk, run) if c["TYPE"] != "part"]
+    if leftovers:
+        lines.append(
+            "  WARNING: still in use after cleanup: "
+            + ", ".join(leftovers)
+            + " — the install may fail to re-read the partition table."
+        )
+
+    # Old signatures (LVM PV headers, RAID superblocks) would otherwise be
+    # re-activated by udev the moment the kernel re-reads the table.
+    for child in reversed(_children(disk, run)):
+        if child["TYPE"] == "part":
+            rc, out = _run(["wipefs", "-a", f"/dev/{child['NAME']}"], run)
+            lines.append(f"  wipefs /dev/{child['NAME']}: {'ok' if rc == 0 else out}")
+    rc, out = _run(["wipefs", "-a", disk], run)
+    lines.append(f"  wipefs {disk}: {'ok' if rc == 0 else out}")
+    rc, out = _run(["blockdev", "--rereadpt", disk], run)
+    lines.append(f"  re-read partition table: {'ok' if rc == 0 else out}")
+    return lines

webinstaller/static/style.css

@@ -421,3 +421,11 @@ select:focus {
   outline-offset: 3px;
   border-radius: 2px;
 }
+
+/* "Furtka is ready" — the two steps before the restart button (log.html). */
+.next-steps {
+  margin: 1.5rem 0 1rem;
+  padding-left: 1.4rem;
+  line-height: 1.5;
+}
+.next-steps li { margin-bottom: 0.6rem; }

webinstaller/templates/install/log.html

@@ -17,16 +17,25 @@
 {% else %}Installing Furtka{% endif %}
 </h1>
 <p class="lede" id="install-lede">
-{% if progress.status == "done" %}Installation finished. <strong>Remove the installer USB / eject the ISO</strong>, then click Reboot.
+{% if progress.status == "done" %}Installation finished. Two more steps and Furtka is running from its own disk.
 {% elif progress.status == "error" %}Something went wrong. Open the details below and share them so we can help.
 {% else %}This takes a few minutes. Don't close this page or power off the machine.{% endif %}
 </p>
 
 {% if progress.status == "done" %}
+{# The USB-stick step has to be read *before* the click: the machine reboots
+   3 s after it, and most BIOSes boot the stick before the disk — so the
+   installer would just come back. Seen on the first hardware bench. #}
+<ol class="next-steps">
+    <li><strong>Pull out the USB stick</strong> (or eject the installer ISO in your VM).
+        If it stays in, the computer will start this installer again instead of Furtka.</li>
+    <li>Click the button below. The computer restarts and comes back as
+        <strong>http://{{ hostname }}.local</strong> in about a minute.</li>
+</ol>
 <form method="post" action="{{ url_for('install_reboot') }}"
-      onsubmit="return confirm('Have you removed the installer USB / ejected the ISO? Click OK to reboot.');">
+      onsubmit="return confirm('USB stick removed? Click OK to restart the computer.');">
     <div class="actions">
-        <button type="submit" class="btn btn-primary">Reboot now</button>
+        <button type="submit" class="btn btn-primary">USB stick is out — restart now</button>
     </div>
 </form>
 {% endif %}

website/content/_index.de.md

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 ---
 title: "Furtka"
 description: "Offenes Heimserver-Betriebssystem — einfach genug für alle."
-status: "<span class=\"mono\">26.19-alpha</span> — in Arbeit"
+status: "<span class=\"mono\">26.20-alpha</span> — in Arbeit"
 # features_today / features_next müssen index-parallel zu content/_index.md bleiben.
 intro: |
   **Furtka** ist ein offenes Heimserver-Betriebssystem.

website/content/_index.md

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 ---
 title: "Furtka"
 description: "Open-source home server OS — simple enough for everyone."
-status: "<span class=\"mono\">26.19-alpha</span> — work in progress"
+status: "<span class=\"mono\">26.20-alpha</span> — work in progress"
 # Keep features_today / features_next index-aligned with content/_index.de.md.
 intro: |
   **Furtka** is an open-source home server OS.

website/hugo.toml

@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ enableRobotsTXT = true
 
 [params]
   description = "Open-source home server OS — simple enough for everyone."
-  version = "26.19-alpha"
+  version = "26.20-alpha"
   contactEmail = "hallo@furtka.org"
 
 [markup.goldmark.renderer]