extreme bare bones

[driechers]

does any body know if there is a distro that is just the kernel , a shell, the fs, and a few device drivers. i don't want any packages or any other crap.

[HROAdmin26]

No - a "distro" is a build of Linux + all the stuff that makes it unique and a "distro."

There is a guide for stripped down installs - Linux from Scratch

[driechers]

i guess that i worded it poorly.
is there a premade say harddrive image that has just the bare bones, not a distro but enough to call it linux without lying

[HROAdmin26]

My own preference for a *very* small install is Debian.

A base Debian install is ~300MB HDD and ~16-20MB RAM at bootup.

A few packages are installed, but they're really only what's needed for *basic* OS usage.

[oz]

You can find a few mini linux distros here:

Mini Linux - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hope you are able to find one that suits your needs.

[jayd512]

As bare as I can really think would be either CRUX, a minimal Debian install, or Tiny Core.

[darkrose0510]

Try tomsrtbt it's basically a kernel and a shell, and some basic tools. The entire thing fits on one floppy.

[Dapper Dan]

As bare as I can really think would be either CRUX, a minimal Debian install, or Tiny Core.

jay512 is right about CRUX fitting the bill. You get a bare minimum live cd with just enough to get you going after install. You then have to compile what you want in the kernel, get Internet connectivity going, then build your system through CRUX ports from there.

[jayd512]

Yep... nothing's going on that box that you don't specifically ask for!

And let me tell ya... it's faster than greased lightning even on older kit!

[reed9]

Crux, Gentoo, Arch Linux, Slackware, Debian net install, Ubuntu Minimal.

The minimal Debian and Ubuntu still tend to have a lot more optional dependencies built into their packages, than some of the others, so you'll pull more packages when installing anything.

What are you looking for? Are you looking to keep it minimal with just a console and a basic system, or are you looking to build up something of your own with a GUI and and all that? What do you need it to do?