Archive for the ‘Tutorials/Tips’ Category
As a desktop distribution built atop FreeBSD, PC-BSD makes available to the desktop user all the cool technologies inside FreeBSD. One of those cool technologies is ZFS, the Zettabyte File System, a file system developed by Sun Microsystems (acquired by Oracle Corporation) for the Solaris operating system. ZFS has no parallel in the Linux/BSD world. It packs features that no other file system in the Linux kernel has (btrfs is a potential answer for ZFS in the Linux kernel, but it is still a work in progress).
This post presents a step by step guide on how to install PC-BSD 8.1, the latest version of PC-BSD, on a single-disk, encrypted ZFS file system. While using ZFS on a single disk system does not take full advantage of the powerful features of ZFS, this configuration allows a user who might not have access to a multiple disk machine to play with some of the basic features of ZFS.
Performing a distribution upgrade is one task I have never attempted on Mandriva Linux. And that is because Mandriva Linux 2010 is the first Mandriva version that I have used on any of my personal computer until the next update was released. So here was an opportunity to test how well the upgrade feature worked.
For this article, I show how a default installation of Mandriva One 2010 and a custom installation of Mandriva Free 2010 was upgraded to Mandriva One 2010 Spring and Mandriva Free 2010 Spring respectively (read a detailed review of Mandriva 2010 Spring). In a default of Mandriva One 2010, the install creates just one non-LVM partition where everything in installed under /, the root filesystem. In my custom installation of Mandriva Free 2010, I used an LVM-based partitioning scheme, with separate Logical Volumes for the major filesystem directories (/usr, /tmp, /var, /, /home and /opt).
The first part of this article presents how the Mandriva One 2010 installation was upgraded.
In the last article about btrfs on Fedora, we showed how to pass the btrfs option to Anaconda, the Fedora system installation program, on Fedora 13. This article presents a step by step guide on how to actually partition a disk and install Fedora 13 on a btrfs-formatted root filesystem. Basically, this is a continuation of how to enable the btrfs Anaconda option on Fedora 13.
After you have passed the btrfs option to Anaconda either via the bfo method or the DVD installation method, the installer will present the step shown in the image below. This marks the start of the main leg of the first installation phase. Next to continue.
Fedora 13 is one of a handful of Linux distributions with support for btrfs, the B-tree File System, one of the newest file systems in the Linux kernel. Btrfs is destined to be the default Linux file system. Expect to see it as the default on Fedora by the time Fedora 17 comes along. For now, however, it is still an experimental file system, If you installed Fedora using any of the live installation media, btrfs will not be available as an option in the File System Type menu. To play with btrfs on Fedora, you will have to use the boot.fedoraproject.org (bfo) installation media or the DVD installation media, which is not a live media.
This tutorial will show how to enable the btrfs option using both methods of installation. Let’s begin the bfo method.
Thanks to its use of Anaconda, the Fedora installer, Sabayon 5.3, the latest release of the Gentoo-based distribution, is one of the first Linux distributions with support for the btrfs file system. Btrfs is one of the newest filesystems in the Linux kernel. It is similar to Oracle’s ZFS, but lacks ZFS’ more advanced features. It is also still in the developmental stage, not completely ready for prime time.
But it is good enough for us to play with, to get to know it better before it’s deemed ready for production. If this is completely new to you, btrfs, B-tree File System (pronounced Butter Tree F S), “is a new copy on write filesystem for Linux aimed at implementing advanced features while focusing on fault tolerance, repair and easy administration.” In many respects, btrfs is similar to LVM’s Volume Group. Imagine LVM on steroids (benefits of LVM) and you get a pretty good idea what btrfs brings to the table.
One of the most useful features of any operating system is an application or package update notifier, a simple utility which notifies you when there are package updates available for the system. Most Linux distributions have such a tool installed and running out of the box, and Mandriva is one of them.
On Mandriva 2010 Spring, the latest release, the updates notifier is configured to check for updates every three hours. While this seems ok, you do not have to accept the default. You can modify it so that it checks for updates less frequently. For those new to Linux and to Mandriva, this simple tutorial shows how to make the modification.
Mandriva Linux is one of the distributions with built-in support for the Linux Logical Volume Manager (LVM) in the installer. As a disk partitioning and management system, LVM brings a level of flexibility to disk management in a manner that is not possible with the traditional disk management scheme. There is no downside to using it. So if your distribution has support for it, it is highly recommended that you use it.
This tutorial gives step by step guidance, with more than 22 screenshots, on how to configure encrypted LVM on Mandriva Linux 2010 Spring, the latest release of the distribution. While plain LVM provides disk management flexibility, encrypted LVM offers an added bonus – increased physical security of the computer. Disk encryption is one of the methods you can employ to boost the physical security rating of your computer.
Spotify is a popular streaming music service developed by Spotify AB of Sweden. Like music streaming services, it enables you to enjoy and share the songs you love anytime,anywhere. Well, not exactly anywhere – Spotify is currently only available in a few western European countries – Finland, France, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
Spotify requires the use of desktop clients. At this time, clients are only available for Windows and Mac OS X. A Linux client is still in development. A preview version for Debian Squeeze and Ubuntu 10.04 of the development branch was released on July 12, 2010. This post shows to install the Linux client on both distributions, and then to take it for a spin in countries where the Spotify service is available. Keep in mind that you can also install Spotify on any other distribution derived from Ubuntu or Debian.
Nanny is a graphical parental control tool developed for Guadalinex, a Linux desktop distribution derived from Ubuntu and developed and maintained by the regional government of Andalucía, Spain. Linux Mint has a graphical parental control called mintNanny, but compared to Nanny, it is very primitive. The only distribution I am aware that has an advanced, graphical parental control tool is Mandriva. Ubuntu does not have a (graphical) parental control tool.
If you need an advanced parental control on Ubuntu, Debian or any other Linux distribution derived from them, Nanny is, therefore, your best option. Since it is a custom administrative tool developed for Gaudalinex, you won’t find it in the default repository of any other distribution that does not share the same application base with it. So how do you install it on Ubuntu, Mint, Debian, etc?
One of the most important features introduced in Sabayon 5.3, the latest release of the Gentoo-based Linux distribution, is Anaconda, the best installation program you will find on any Linux or BSD distribution. It’s not perfect, but no other installation program offers the same enterprise-grade features that comes with it. It is the same installation program you’ll find on Fedora 13.
Basically, what the Sabayon team did is dump the old Sabayon installation program in favor of the Fedora 13 installer, the Anaconda. A very good decision because Sabayon users can now configure disk encryption a lot simpler than they were used to.
Dual-booting refers to the concept of installing two operating systems on the same computer, and having the option to choose which one to boot into when the computer is rebooting. Dual-booting is actually a special case of multi-booting, or installing more than one operating on a computer.
This is a very common practice in the Linux and BSD communities. If you are coming from the Windows world and want to install a Linux or BSD distribution while maintaining your Windows installation, dual-booting is one means of accomplishing that.
Pardus is a desktop-oriented Linux distribution sponsored and developed by the Scientific & Technological Research Council of Turkey. Pardus 2009.2, the latest release, reviewed here, leaves plenty of room to customize the desktop’s features. If you are new to Linux and to Pardus, this simple tutorial will help you learn the different ways you can customize your desktop.
Note that because Pardus uses KDE as the default desktop environment, most of the tips presented in this guide may be used to customize any other KDE-based distribution. Most of the administrative tools used in this guide can be found in the control center, or more correctly, the System Settings. You can access the System Settings from Menu > System Settings.
Pardus is a desktop-oriented Linux distribution sponsored and developed by the Scientific & Technological Research Council of Turkey. It’s not a perfect Linux distribution, but it works – out of the box. A light-weight distribution, it is similar in many respects to Linux Mint. Unlike Linux Mint, however, it is not based on any other distribution, and the default desktop environment is KDE, not GNOME.
It has several custom-coded graphical management tools that new users will find very intuitive to use. Some of those tools were mentioned in Pardus 2009.1 review, which was a review of the last prior release.
Come let’s explore why I think that Geronticus eremita, the code name for Pardus 2009.2, is worth your time and disk space.
One of the best features introduced in Sabayon 5.3, the latest upgrade to the Gentoo-based, multi-purpose Linux distribution is the installer. The old installer was dumped in favor of Anaconda, the Fedora 13 installation program. Aside from bringing enterprise-class storage features to Sabayon, Anaconda boots a lot faster than Sabayon’s old installer, which had the unenviable reputation of being very slow and resource-intensive.
With the new installation program, the old installation guides are of no use to new adopters. Hence the need for this guide which presents a very detailed description of the important steps involved. You’ll find in this guide detailed explanations of the importance of disk encryption, bootloader password protection, and LVM disk space allocation.
