Knoppix Linux

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February 25th, 2003, 06:01 AM
cgkanchi

Knoppix Linux

OK, I officially have a new favourite Linux for newbies. My advice to all newbies from now on would be to get Knoppix Live, burn it to a CD and use it from there. It's one of the most impressive distros I've seen in a long time. It's fast (it boots faster from cd than a default install of slackware does from my hard disk), full featured and has excellent plug and play support. It even got my internet connection going without any setup at all. Surprisingly, I didn't even have to enter my (static) IP address or gateway. Just click on Konqueror and bam! I'm browsing. Even Windows XP couldn't do that! My only gripe with this is that it requires a few kernel parameters to set up properly. The default keyboard layout is german and it chokes if you don't have any scsi devices unless you explicitly specify that you have none. Here's the boot line that I use, it should be ok for most people (type this at the boot prompt):

Quote:

knoppix lang=us noscsi screen=800x600

Cheers,
cgkanchi

Edit: Oops, I forgot to post the link! :p
ftp://uiarchive.uiuc.edu/mirrors/ftp...3-01-20-EN.iso
February 25th, 2003, 06:07 AM
Madseel

o-k, umm. where do you get it?
February 25th, 2003, 06:13 AM
Sun

Yah, its nice and fast to use. Its available along with a magazine (i think) Linux for U. try it out.. its a great stuff.
February 25th, 2003, 06:14 AM
g00n

http://www.knopper.net/knoppix/

I actually use this at work to hide my internet usage, since i can boot my box, cipe to my home box, and do as i like with only my encrypted tunnel being visible... and if anyone pops in, just hit the power button and it's all gone.
February 25th, 2003, 06:21 AM
phishphreek

Quote:

I actually use this at work to hide my internet usage, since i can boot my box, cipe to my home box, and do as i like with only my encrypted tunnel being visible... and if anyone pops in, just hit the power button and it's all gone.

Heh... good idea. Perfect example of why admins should disable booting from CD or Floppy... ;)

I just do my personal surfing at home and school... but I have no restrictions on what I can visit at work via the web. Just on installing software... they don't like me to install w/o authorization. Gotta love policies.
February 25th, 2003, 10:52 AM
instronics

Indeed knoppix is a fine piece of software. There are some security issues though that im not satisfied with yet. I have knoppix version 1.3

Im amazed by its speed and capabitlities. Although there are some weird things going on in there when it comes to user access. Its like root and user knoppix are 2 in 1. su is not possible, since the root account has been uhm....not disabled, but you cant switch to root, since the password is unkown. Depending on which application you launch, it will automatically launch the application using the user assigned to it. That means, anyone sitting on that machine has root access. You could save settings to a floppy, but then is the question, how much information and personal settings can you fit on a floppy. You could use your harddrive, but then, any linux would do. Knoppix is nice, cause its all on 1 cd live. Im still looking into it, because im sure that it can be configured exactly how i want it to be, but by default its not so secure. The uses for this software are many, depending on how much access you want to give the users using it. Its perfect for webcafes, small simple offices, home users who want to let their kids use the paretns computers to go online, etc... But the issue of being able to launch applications as root are still open. I will inform you all how it goes, as i progress with knoppix.

Cheers.
February 25th, 2003, 03:57 PM
neel

It doesn't have to be secure. It's a live cd ment to check it out and look how it looks and works. It's not a server os... the live version isn't even a desktop os. People use it like that though... to watch a video or if yer harddisk crashed or as a sort of emergency disk. The system is secure enough for that matter, if you want all features and security, you shouldn't run yer os from a iso9660 filesystem to start with. If you like the looks and features, you should just install it on yer harddrive and whoop it is as secure as you make it. For newbies this is great stuff, because it "just works". It even loads faster from cd then win xp from my harddisk.
February 25th, 2003, 05:03 PM
shtychkn

I find it's really great for doing demos for clients. That way if they are thinking about switching and would like to see but you don't feel like lugging a box around you just take the cd. Plus you can show them how well it'll work on their existing hardware..
February 28th, 2003, 05:40 AM
Madseel

Wow. this is awesome. Now i have a question. what is the root password for it? i want to try somethings out but i cant cuz i dont have root access to it.
February 28th, 2003, 05:53 AM
cgkanchi

Madseel, there is no root password for it. However, you can type Ctrl+Alt+F2 and get a root console. You can also use that console to change the root password (I think). Howerver, the changed password (if possible) will only last until the next reboot.
Cheers,
cgkanchi

Edit: Yes, you can change the password. And, yes it only changes upto the next boot.
February 28th, 2003, 06:51 AM
Stormcr0w

I would have to say that Knoppix is definitely a step in the right direction. I have used Knoppix, as well as Vitual Linux (another Linux CD based distro) to introduce freinds and co-workers to Linux.

I find that people that are unfamiliar with Linux are blown away by the fact that it is running right off of a CD. I have even impressed some doubtful co-workers by running it on a computer with no hard drive.

Not only is it quite usefull for recovery purposes, but it is also one of the best way to introduce people to Linux in general. Kudos to Klaus Knopper.