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REVIEWS Live Distro Roundup

Highlights of the live landscape LINUX LIVE

Many fine live Linux distributions are waiting for you right now on the

Internet. The right choice depends on what you need.

BY FABRIZIO CIACCHI

Linux live distribution is a com- (such as a browser, mail client, and mes- time, for example, to set the language or plete that senger), and all the other tools you need activate the framebuffer. There is even a A starts and works exclusively to work in Linux. command for using braille hardware. from a CD or DVD. You can boot the live Although live systems are designed to If you simply press ENTER at the boot Linux system from any PC as long as the operate without touching the perma- screen, after few minutes, you are in system supports the hardware. Because nent configuration, many can also be KDE 3.4, with OpenOffice.org 2 beta, a live system runs from the CD or DVD installed on the hard disk like any other Mozilla , The Gimp, and other drive, live distros don’t alter the contents . Because live systems desktop apps familiar to the Linux faith- of the hard disk. tend to be smaller and simpler than ordi- ful. The new DVD version has an unbe- Windows users who are thinking of nary Linux systems, they are often an lievable amount of , including switching to Linux can use a live distro ideal solution for older computers with KDE-centric programs such as , to try Linux without disturbing their small hard disks and limited resources. , , KOffice, and , configuration. You can also use a live We tracked down a few of the most as well as Gnome-centric tools like Evo- distro to test whether a particular com- popular live distributions and tried them lution and . You’ll also find puter supports Linux or to recover a out. We’ll begin our tour with the most graphics tools like Blender, and damaged system. popular and influential of all the live dis- Sodipodi, multimedia tools such as To start a live system, simply put the tros, the famous . See the Linux Xmms and , and a collection of edu- CD or DVD in the drive and reboot. (If Magazine website [1] for more informa- cational programs. This dream of a fully- this doesn't work, see the box titled tion on permanently installing some of functional, CD-based desktop system is “Booting from your CD or DVD Drive.”) the distros described in this article. achieved through the hard work of The best live distros are not only for scripts that load the modules or pro- demo or recovery purposes. Many live Knoppix grams, and the whole system functions systems come with a graphical environ- Knoppix is generally considered THE with the precision of a Swiss clock. ment, an office suite, Internet programs Live Linux distribution. Knoppix was the Several other live distros are based on first live distro to support a GUI desktop. Knoppix. Some of these projects are only Fabrizio Ciacchi http:// fabrizio. Creator Klaus Knopper based Knoppix customizations, but others, such as ciacchi. it is an Italian student of on [2]. From its first release, , add valuable features. Klaus computer science at the University Knoppix has grown in size and also in Knopper often adopts these innovations of Pisa. He also works as a consul- functionality; for example, it is possible back into later versions of Knoppix. tant and writes articles on Linux. In to load all of Knoppix in RAM (if you his free time, he collaborates with have enough) and use the CD-Rom the Abiword project (www..

THEAUTHOR reader to read another CD. Knoppix also The main idea of the Slax project is to org). lets you pass a lot of commands at boot provide a set of several specialized

38 ISSUE 63 FEBRUARY 2006 WWW.LINUX - MAGAZINE.COM Live Distro Roundup REVIEWS

Figure 1: Knoppix 4 is a mature live distribution with a huge collec- Figure 2: Slax is a clean and fast live Linux system with a very small tion of applications. footprint. small Linux versions from the same that fits on a business card CD. (Other and kernel source, which will let the base system. At the moment, four ver- distributions, such as DamnSmall- user compile any software – including sions of Slax are available. (A total of Linux, provide a full working environ- the Linux kernel. seven are planned.) All the Slax versions ment in the same space.) Slax has some very interesting character- have a size smaller than 185 MB, which The other Slax versions under develop- istics, such as its module system, which means that Slax fits on a Mini CD. The ment are: makes it easy for the developers to cus- current versions of Slax include: • Server edition – The Slax Server edi- tomize the different versions from a • Standard edition – a fast and easy to tion, which will contain common common base. The Slax module system use Linux live CD. The boot process server programs such as DNS, DHCP, also lets users quickly and easily install take no more than one minute, and SMB, HTTP, FTP, MySQL, SMTP, software from the Slax homepage; if you the system is ready to use and easy to POP3, IMAP, and SSH, is near to its re- want to create your own Slax CD, just configure. The software is all KDE-cen- lease. add the modules you need to the tric: Konqueror, Juk as player, • Hacker edition – So far the Hacker /module directory. Or. if you want to KPlayer as Media Player, Kopete for in- edition is only a concept. This edition use a module on the fly, open a terminal stant messagging, and KOffice instead will be a Swiss Army knife for Linux window and write uselivemod module- of the more famous OpenOffice.org. hackers; it will contain all the known name.mo. • KillBill edition – is very similar to security-related tools, like network Unless you like working with vi, you the standard edition, but it has some sniffers, intrusion detection systems, may have some trouble booting Slax in emulation programs, like QEMU, and so on. graphical environments. In the Standard , and , to run Windows • Professional edition – The last edition and the KillBill edition, you may need vi programs or emulate hardware archi- of Slax will be a union of all the oth- to edit the xorg.conf file. vi is not even tectures. You can install Internet ers, and the hope will be to create this included with the Popcorn edition, Explorer using WINE, or you can union in a 1.4 GB (Mini DVD). This which could cause even more problems. test a CD ISO image using QEMU. version will also contain gcc, make, In spite of these complications, Slax is (You’ll find a very interesting article about QEMU in the Linux Magazine Booting from your CD or DVD Drive Archive [3].) To use a Linux live CD, you need to con- writer, be sure to select the CD reader, • Popcorn edition – The Popcorn edi- figure your computer to boot from the because, commonly, this option has bet- tion of Slax is like its parents: very CD drive. Many modern PCs boot from ter support for booting. Save the BIOS easy, very fast, and very clean. The the CD/ DVD drive by default. If your sys- setting, insert the Live CD in the drive, distinguishing feature of the Popcorn tem doesn’t boot automatically when a and reboot. edition is that KDE is replaced with CD or DVD is in the CD/ DVD drive, con- Remember that booting from a Linux , and this change causes other sult your vendor documentation or live distribution doesn’t touch your in- changes in the application lineup. watch the boot screen for instructions on stalled system; the only way to destroy You’ll find BMP instead of Juk, how to enter the BIOS configuration the data on your hard disk is if you Mplayer instead of Kplayer, and Abi- menu. (The instructions may vary de- “play” with the partitions, so if you’re pending on your motherboard manufac- worried about protecting your data, word instead of KOffice. turer.) Select as your first boot device don’t try any of the options that affect • Frodo edition – Text-based Frodo is your CD/ DVD drive; if you have options your hard disk unless you are sure of the “light” edition of Slax, intended for both a CD reader and a CD/ DVD what you are doing. only as a portable recovery system

WWW.LINUX - MAGAZINE.COM ISSUE 63 FEBRUARY 2006 39 REVIEWS Live Distro Roundup

Figure 3: The simple and practical Mepis distribution is based on Figure 4: Elive comes with the very fast and attractive Enlighten- KDE. ment 17 . one the most powerful live distributions; a reputation as a system that is simple Mepis edition is a Windows 98 user it is fast and easy to install, and the and uncomplicated for beginners to who wants an operating system that is range of editions cover a range of user install and use. modern and fast. This edition is a needs, with some small problems related Mepis has become one of the most good choice if you have a Pentium II to the distro’s young age. popular Linux distributions and now has with 128 of Ram. a life of its own. The installation is very • SoHoServer – The SoHo edition of Mepis easy, and the included software is appro- Mephis is missing much of the multi- Mepis may be the only Debian-based priately balanced. Mepis is a good solu- media, office, and graphic software live distribution that takes all of its soft- tion because of its solid base (Debian), but includes server programs such ware from the original Debian reposi- its eye-candy (KDE), and its easy config- as Apache2, PHP4, Perl, MySQL, tory. This Debian-centric is a big uration (with the Mepis OS Center). ProFTPd, Bind, DHCPd, Postfix, Dove- advantage for Mepis, because, in a way, Mepis comes in three versions: cot, Shorewall, Squid, DansGuardian, Mepis IS Debian. The disadvantage is • SimplyMepis – the standard edition, Webmin, and Usermin. that the software may not be as up-to- with the best available software for the Mepis is a very good option for users date as the software in other distribu- Linux user. SimplyMepis is fast, easy who are looking for simplicity. tions. to use, and easy to configure. It con- Unlike Knoppix, which offers the tains basic desktop applications like broadest possible range of software and OpenOffice, The Gimp, and so on; the Kurumin is one of the most exciting dis- options, Mepis concentrates on simplify- next version (planned to be released tributions based on Knoppix. First of all, ing the choices. You’ll find fewer options soon) will contain Xorg instead of Kurumin is very fast, and the KDE-based for boot and hardware detection, and, in Xfree and updates to the desktop ap- with Crystal icons is quite general, the Mepis philosophy is to offer plications (such as the OpenOffice.org attractive. a “best in category” application for each 2.0 beta). In only 420 MB, Kurumin has all the function, rather than providing an as- • MepisLite – This “lite” edition of programs you need, such as OpenOffice. sortment of programs that do the same Mepis in intended for older and less org (which is called KuruminOffice) thing. Consequently, Mephis has gained powerful PCs. The ideal user of this 1.1.2, GIMP 2.2.6, Mozilla Firefox and

Table 1: Live Distros Camparison Distribution Homepage Last Release ISO size Kernel Desktop Office Suite Knoppix http:// www. knoppix. net 4 700 MB (CD) 2.6.12 KDE 3.4.1 OpenOffice 2 beta 3.2 GB (DVD) Slax http:// slax. linux-live. org 5.0.6 47 MB (Business Card CD) 2.6.12 KDE 3.4.1 KOffice 1.4 185 MB (Mini CD) Mepis http:// www. . org 3.3.1 700 MB (CD) 2.6.12 KDE 3.3.2 OpenOffice.org 1.1.4 Kurumin http:// www. guiadohardware. 5.0 420 MB (CD) 2.6.11 KDE 3.3.2 OpenOffice.org 1.1.2 net/ kurumin Elive http:// www. elivecd. org 0.3 660 MB (CD) 2.6.11 Enlightenment OpenOffice.org 16 and 17 1.9.125 Zen http:// www. zenlinux. org 1.2.3 1.1 GB (Mini DVD) 2.6.11 0.9.12 OpenOffice.org 1.1.4 Gnoppix http:// www. gnoppix. org 1.0 650 MB (CD) 2.6.10 Gnome 2.10 OpenOffice.org 1.1.3 Kanotix http:// kanotix. com 2005-03 700 MB (CD) 2.6.11 KDE 3.4.1 OpenOffice 2 beta

40 ISSUE 63 FEBRUARY 2006 WWW.LINUX - MAGAZINE.COM Live Distro Roundup REVIEWS

Figure 5: Zen Linux comes with the Fluxbox window manager and the Figure 6: The Gnome-based Gnoppix distribution includes tools like ROX . AbiWord.

Thunderbird, Gaim, Skype, aMSN, K3B, of its truly innovative graphical environ- lot of software. Unfortunately, they do Kaffeine, and Xmms. ment. As a word of advice, if you decide not fully realize this goal. It is true that Kurumin has many useful tools for to install, prepare to upgrade immedi- they have a lot of software (for example, configuring the appropriate hardware or ately after you install, because some of The Gimp, OpenOffice, and many other setting up a particular program. You’ll the components that work from the live standard applications); however, the also find an intuitive control panel that CD do not work from the hard disk. user interface is not very intuitive. lets you configure the hardware. The default system includes the Flux- One problem with Kurumin is that the Zen Linux box window manager, plus the ROX file live boot appears to be localized only for The goal of Zen is to provide a good manager, with a blue metal graphic Brazilian Portuguese, so you might need Linux Live CD that is very fast and has a (with a blue mouse cursor); this choice to know some Portuguese to use it on- is not so bad, but when we opted for an the-fly. If you install Kurumin to your Burning an ISO Image alternative like Xfce (which is included), hard disk, you can localize to any lan- The most common way to obtain a live it was not configured at all, and this guage. CD is to download the ISO image and seemed like a symptom of underlying burn the image to a CD disk. Some pop- problems. Zen, however, is the only dis- Elive ular tools for burning an ISO image in- tribution that comes in a Mini DVD for- Enlightenment is an experimental, clude Easy CD Creator (for Windows), mat and with a software collection on graphical environment that focuses on Nero (for Windows/ Linux), or K3B (for the scale of Knoppix. speed and flexibility. From the first re- Linux). If you want to install Zen on your hard lease to the 16th Enlightenment has pro- Linux also includes tools for burning an disk, be careful. By default, the installer vided a very impressive graphical dis- ISO image from the console. The exact tries to install automatically by erasing play, sacrificing, in some cases, the us- commands may depend on your hard- partitions; if you select a custom instal- ability of the system. The last release, ware configuration and your Linux. To lation, be sure you know what you are E17, has maintained the impressive burn a CD image, for example, you doing. could enter something like: graphics but with more usability and a cleaner appearance. $ cdrecord dev=/dev/hdc U Gnoppix When you boot the Elive live distro, /path/image.iso Gnoppix started as a Knoppix clone that you can choose either E16 or E17. Where hdc (or hdd) is your CD writer de- comes with Gnome instead of KDE. The The older Enlightenment 16 may look vice, and image.iso is the ISO file name Gnoppix system has since grown into a strange to someone who uses KDE or (with the eventually path). good, clean alternative to Knoppix, but GNOME. Enlightenment 17 is definitely To burn a DVD, you could try: with the explosion of changes to the the more advanced GUI option. You’ll Knoppix distro, Gnoppix has since fallen $ growisofs -Z U find a toolbar very similar to the Mac OS behind. X bar that launches the programs and /dev/scd0=/path/image.iso 's rise to fame has given Gnop- highlights the icons; also there is a set of Where scd0 is your DVD writer and pix a new lease of life. The Gnoppix dis- applets, referred to as modules, that image.iso is the ISO file name (with tribution is now part of the Ubuntu proj- check parameters such as the tempera- path). ect. This new role is sort of a limitation; ture and frequency of the CPU. The burning process can take from 15 to Gnoppix is very closely related to Elive is one of my favorite live distros 40 minutes, depending on your hard- Ubuntu and doesn’t seem to add any- from the group I tested, only for the fact ware and your system performance. thing new (in the way that Knoppix adds

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Figure 7: Like Knoppix, Kanotix comes with lots of vintage games. features to Debian). Gnoppix distribution that includes a is primarily a live version of new and revolutionary desk- Ubuntu Linux, but at least top environment based on that makes it a good tool for FVWM. testing whether your system supports Ubuntu. Conclusions Live distros give Linux users Kanotix a tool for emergency situa- Kanotix is a Knoppix deriva- tions and also provide a tive that was created to pro- means for non-Linux users to vide some features that try Linux before they install. Knoppix didn’t offer. For in- Your choice of the perfect stance, Kanotix was released live Linux system depends on with a 2.6 kernel, at a time what you need. If you’re when Knoppix was still using looking for a lean, simple sys- 2.4. With the latest release of tem that is easy to install and Knoppix, the gap between has a good selection of “best the distros has narrowed, but in category” applications, Kanotix still offers some ad- Mepis wins. Knoppix, on the vantages. other hand, is the parent of One of the most interesting all live distributions, and it is Kanotix features (which is a good alternative if you want copied by several other Linux lots of software and lots of distributions) is the kernel configuration options. For configuration. In fact, a lot of some beginning Linux users, Knoppix-based distributions Knoppix might have too use the Kanotix kernel be- many options. cause it permits better hard- Slax is another promising ware detection. live distro with the “less is One promising project more” philosophy, but it still based on Kanotix is Sym- has some minor problems phonyOS [4], a live Linux due to its young age. ■

INFO [1] Permanent installation tips: http:// www. linux-magazine.com/ Magazine/Downloads/63/LiveDistros [2] Debian official site: http:// www. debian. org [3] “Virtual Benefits: System Emulation with QEMU” http:// www. linux-magazine. com/issue/ 52/ QEMU_System_Emulation. pdf [4] SymphonyOS: http:// www. symphonyos. com