Someone please assist. I will buy you beer and/or soda should we ever meet, with possible cake options as well. I am increasingly frustrated and not above bribery.
I had a VMware admin carve out a VM for a test. I installed OEL6.4 (using the "Oracle Linux Release 6 Update 4 Media Pack v1 for x86_64 (64 bit)" installable DVD). The install was a breeze. Life was grand. The test ran its course and we decided to go with OEL as our new Oracle database OS.
Here's where it gets funky...
Since the first install was just experimentation, we deleted that VM and created a fresh one. I ran the exact same install again and when I get to the part of the install where it says "install boot loader on /dev/sda" and click the "next" button it gives me this error:
Unable to read package metadata. This may be due to a missing repodata directory. Please ensure that your install tree has been correctly generated.
Cannot retrieve repository metadata (repomd.xml) for repository:anaconda-UEK2. Please verify its path and try again.
At this point it gives me 3 options: Exit Installer, Edit, or Retry.
Exit Installer is self-explanatory.
Retry is self-explanatory as well and just as useless as Exit Installer.
Edit gives me the "Edit Repository" popup. The "Repository Name" is "UEK2 kernel repo", the "Repository Type" is "HTTP/FTP" and the "Repository URL" is "file:///mnt/source/UEK2/". I have the option of changing the "Repository Type" to "CD/DVD" or "NFS" or leaving it as "HTTP/FTP".
If I just hit OK (leaving it with the current "HTTP/FTP" info), it gives me the error: "Invalid Repository URL. You must provide an HTTP, HTTPS, or FTP URL to a repository."
If I change it to "CD/DVD" it gives me the error "No installation media was found. Please insert a disc into your drive and try again.". I try disconnecting and reconnecting the DVD drive to no avail.
For "NFS" I actually pulled the packages off the OEL64 DVD and built a local yum repo on our shared NFS server using a RHEL machine. I make sure the Network Card is properly configured during setup and at this point of the install I enter the server info and correct path. Hitting OK garners me several minutes of waiting before the inevitable error: "The following error occurred while setting up the repository: (9, None)". NOTE: this server is on a secure intranet so there is no internet connectivity (so no pointing to the Oracle Yum repo).
So here is where I continually try to reinstall. I try literally every install option available in the GUI, configure the partitions myself, the works. Still the same error.
I run the media checker at the beginning of the install and it checks out 100% every time. The MD5 checksums match between the Oracle site and the ISO I downloaded.
I finally had the VMware admin delete the VM and create a whole new VM on a different host and SAN. Exact same error.
Help me Obi-Wan(s), you're my only hope.