# Custom System Image

Source: https://forum.modalai.com/topic/3060/custom-system-image
Category: General Questions (https://forum.modalai.com/category/2/general-questions)
Posted: 2024-01-26 19:42:55 UTC by Rowan Dempster
Replies: 6 · Views: 1072

## Rowan Dempster · 2024-01-26 19:42:55 UTC

Re: [Cloning System Image](/topic/1191/cloning-system-image)

We would like to add a few custom apt packages to be baked into the system image (e.g. telnet). We cannot install the packages after the system image is installed because we do not have internet. Is it possible to "bake" our own system image that's the exact same as a specific version of modal's system image but with a few extra apt installs?

## Reply by tom (ModalAI staff) · 2024-01-26 19:44:16 UTC

@Rowan-Dempster Are you working with voxl1 or voxl2? I assume voxl2 since you mention apt

## Reply by Rowan Dempster · 2024-01-26 19:45:34 UTC (in reply to tom)

@tom Yes VOXL 2

Read some other posts 

https://forum.modalai.com/topic/1191/cloning-system-image

https://forum.modalai.com/topic/2356/how-to-build-a-system-image/8

Looks like modal does not support exactly what I want. Any other work arounds? The main issue is we don't have internet access at any point in our flashing process.

## Reply by tom (ModalAI staff) · 2024-01-26 19:58:28 UTC (in reply to Rowan Dempster)

@Rowan-Dempster Something I haven't tried personally but *should* be possible is downloading the apt packages as debians via. `apt-get download $PACKAGE_NAME` (on voxl2) and then pulling that debian into your custom voxl-suite packages

This would get around the need for a custom system image

## Reply by Rowan Dempster · 2024-01-26 20:02:38 UTC (in reply to tom)

@tom I tried to download ROS melodic that way and it was quite painful (so many dependencies). I agree it's a work around but I would like it to be more streamlined if possible. 

Also I don't know of a way to do the equivalent strategy for pip packages.

## Reply by Rowan Dempster · 2024-01-26 20:04:46 UTC (in reply to Rowan Dempster)

@tom If modal doesn't plan to support custom system image development in the near future I will continue to explore work arounds like offline-local-downloads, just wanted to check in with Modal first. If modal wants to explore custom system builds with a customers I'd be happy to work with modal on that.

## Reply by tom (ModalAI staff) · 2024-01-26 20:07:16 UTC (in reply to Rowan Dempster)

@Rowan-Dempster If the packages you're looking to include are small I can look into getting them into our default system image. Otherwise yeah we may have to discuss other avenues for supporting a custom system image (not a decision that I can make personally)

Also most python packages are available via. apt with something like `apt-get install python3-numpy`