Flasdrive Linux

[stinkoman]

I was wondering what would work well as a linux for a flash drive (up to 10 gb's) that i could carry with me all the time. of course i would run into problems such as bios incompatibility, right? mainly, i want to be able to access my files even if a linux computer isnt available. any suggestions?

[SkittleLinux18]

I was wondering what would work well as a linux for a flash drive (up to 10 gb's) that i could carry with me all the time. of course i would run into problems such as bios incompatibility, right? mainly, i want to be able to access my files even if a linux computer isnt available. any suggestions?

I have done it and can talk you through it. But here is the thing. It's very difficult to get a working OS on a flash drive. Almost always, you have to settle for a liveUSB. You won't be able to write to it at all. So that is something you ought to consider. Additionally, there are things you can do to make your liveUSB a little more functionable.

Just think it over with yourself.

[ibexslam]

Almost always, you have to settle for a liveUSB.

Not at all! I've got a fully functional OS packed with software on a 4GB usb flash drive that remembers everything from one session to the next. I use it on my desktop computer all the time. I'm using it on my Eee notebook too, but the ethernet isn't connecting with that right now -- otherwise it's AOK.

Here's what I did.
Get the PCLinuxOS Gnome live CD.
Install it to the USB drive (there's a USB option in the installer). (This step took over an hour for the computer to complete.)
Change "sdb" to "sda" in three files: device.map, menu.lst and fstab. (I have no idea if you'll have to do this or not.)
Get GPartEd on a live CD.
Use that to enlarge the main system partition on the flash drive to about 3.5 GB so there's room for more software. (This step also tied up the computer for a very long time.)

You can then easily use Synaptic to remove software you don't want and download anything you want. Watch out for Open Office -- it's huge.

I.

[SkittleLinux18]

Not at all! I've got a fully functional OS packed with software on a 4GB usb flash drive that remembers everything from one session to the next.

HAHAHAHA where were you two months ago when I posted a thread asking people how to do it? No one ever replied so I was left with just online tutorials on how to do it. lol

I have PCLOS MiniMe and would prefer to use that because It's smaller and does not come with anything I don't want. I love OpenOffice, but I would just use AbiWord for my flash drive.

When I tried to do that in the past, what you did, I gave up after 15 minutes. I had no idea that it would take that long. No wonder I wasn't successful. I wasn't patient enough. And all the tutorials I found on line were just for liveCD's. Perhaps I should try to install MiniMe or BackTrack. I prefer BackTrack because it has a lot of network tools that might come in handy if I am on a locked down network.

Hmmm..... maybe it's time to get to work...

[ibexslam]

Where were you two months ago when I posted a thread asking people how to do it?

I was right in the middle of trying to figure the darn thing out. I KNEW it could be done, but couldn't find documentation anywhere. (That pendrivelinux site drove me nuts!)

MiniMe will work fine...I tried that one when I had trouble fitting the normal-sized one on the drive. TinyMe is a newer version...I think?

I had no idea that it would take that long.

It's really only a few minutes of work once you know what to do (though the computer devotes quite a bit more time to it). The research though...yes, that took months. Good thing I wasn't in a hurry. I'd still be scratching my head if not for a couple of gurus who helped me out a little.

I've never heard of BackTrack. [googles...] Ah. You're on your own there. Good luck!

I.

[SkittleLinux18]

I was right in the middle of trying to figure the darn thing out. I KNEW it could be done, but couldn't find documentation anywhere. (That pendrivelinux site drove me nuts!)

MiniMe will work fine...I tried that one when I had trouble fitting the normal-sized one on the drive. TinyMe is a newer version...I think?



It's really only a few minutes of work once you know what to do (though the computer devotes quite a bit more time to it). The research though...yes, that took months. Good thing I wasn't in a hurry. I'd still be scratching my head if not for a couple of gurus who helped me out a little.

I've never heard of BackTrack. [googles...] Ah. You're on your own there. Good luck!

I.

MiniMe 2008 is newer. But TinyME is newer than MiniMe 0.93. BackTrack is cool, it's got all kinds of wireless tools. I don't know, maybe I'll just stick with that. I have it setup to do everything I would need if I needed to rape a public computer and get whatever access I needed. So I think I'll leave it alone for now.

There needs to be a package for Linux that cracks BIOS passwords.

[MikeTbob]

There needs to be a package for Linux that cracks BIOS passwords.

You mean the "Remove the BIOS battery package"? hehe

[stinkoman]

don't i have to worry about pc's not being able to boot from usb?