Downloading the sidux-CD
Download-Links and Mirrors are found dummy link
Downloading with Bittorent
Bittorent is a protocol for filesharing, it is on the sidux-CD. This enables you to download files from the internet and upload at the same time. All you have to do is issue e.g. the command:
# btdownloadcurses --max_upload_rate 12 ftp://dummy/sibux/sidux-200xxxxx/sidux-200xxxxx.iso.torrent
In a konsole, soon after your download should start. Be sure that there is enough free space for the ISO-File in the directory that you issue the command from, (ca. 700 MB). After your download is finished, please keep the program running so that you share the file for other users. This will decrease the overall load on the servers, and the files get spread faster. A good tutorial can be found on Brians BitTorent FAQ and Guide
Don't forget to md5-checksum and validate the download.
If anybody has a fast FTP-Server with sufficient traffic at their command, please inform the sidux team. Alternatively go to sidux Forums or IRC-Channel on oftc.net
MD5-checksumum and Validation
This is a checksum for a file and is used to check the integrity of files. The current MD5-Sum of the file is compared with a known checksum. This way you can validate if a file has been changed or damaged; this is advisible for files downloaded from the internet.
If the md5-sum of the downloaded file corresponds to the one in the md5-file, you can be sure that the file was downloaded correctly. Under Linux you get the checksum with:(it takes a moment to calculate)
$ md5sum file_to_check
The sum will be written in the konsole.
With md5summer (486 kb) the md5-sum can also be validated in Windows.
The ISO-Images of sidux are always offered with a md5-checksum file and should always be validated before burning. This guarantees that if problems occur, they are not to be sought in the downloaded files, and this keeps the forum free of problems that can't be pinned down because the ISO-file was damaged in the first place. You should do this in a konsole. Change to the directory with the Iso-File and the MD5-Sum and issue the command to have the md5-sum checked. e.g:
$ md5sum -c sidux.iso.md5
If they don't match, you will get an error:
"sidux.iso: Error md5sum: Warning: calculated checksum does not match!"
If the downloaded file is correct, the program ends without a message.
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT: sidux, as a Linux LIVE-CD, is based on high compression technology, (initially pioneered by Knoppix however its not the same as Knoppix) and because of that, special care is needed when burning the ISO image. Only use high quality CD-media [or DVD+RW] and burn in DAO-mode (disk-at-once) and not faster than x8.
ALWAYS BACK-UP YOUR DATA!
How Do I Burn The CD With Windows?
Naturally, you can burn the CD with Windows, too. The downloaded file must be burned as an ISO-file. If Winrar (or any other archiving tool) is linked with an .ISO-file, it may irritate because one would take it for an archive. From the ISO-file you must burn a CD. Do not burn the ISO-File as a data-disk!! It is neccessary to burn the ISO-File as Disk-At-Once
You have several good options to burn in Windows.
Open Source burners for Windows
cdrtfe :compatable for Windows 9x/ME/2000/XP (tested with Win95, Win98SE, Win2000, WinXP) only for Win9x/ME: working ASPI Layer (e.g. Adaptec ASPI 4.60)
Closed Source and Proprietary burners for Windows
- Nero (not nero express!)
- CDR-WIN which you can find as a test version on the net. CDR-WIN burns with reduced speed as a test version, but should be sufficient for the job. The right point in the menu is "Burn a ISO 9660 Image File to CD".
- Another good freeware tool is CD/DVD Burner XP pro
- Burncdcc from terabyteunlimited it can only burn ISOs..
Burning The CD With Linux
If you already run Linux on your machine you should burn the CD either by using the shell or with any of your installed burning programs.
With sidux and other Linux distributions K3b comes as default cd-burning tool. Open it, select "Extras" -> "burn CD-Image..." and select the ISO-File to burn (e.a. sidux.iso).
K3B initially calculates the MD5-sum for the ISO-file (this takes a moment). If the shown checksum is similar to the checksum in the MD5-file (i.e. sidux.iso.md5), your download was successful and you can burn the file by simply hitting "Start".
You can burn it directly from the shell with:
$ wodim dev=0,0,0 driveropts=burnfree -dao -overburn -v sidux.iso
If you prefer to put it onto a CD-RW, you should empty the disk before, using
$ wodim dev=x,y,z blank=fast
The values for dev=x,x,x (in our example x,y,z) can be obtained with
$ wodim --scanbus
or for ATAPI-CD-Rom with
$ wodim --scanbus dev=ATAPI
Creating a sidux-CD using XDELTA-Patch
xdelta is a program that makes a new ISO-image out of an initial ISO-image and some modified files, among other things. It is also made to allow small bug-fixes without incurring high download costs.
The modified files from PATCH-RC1-RC2.XDELTA is, for example, only 5.4 MB in size, whereas the ISO-image itself is 553 MB.
Lets assume you have:
- An ISO-Image on a hard disk, for instance sidux.iso
- A modified file, for example PATCH-RC1-RC2.XDELTA
In a terminal/konsole as user:
$ cd /path/to/iso/and/patch $ xdelta patch PATCH-RC1-RC2.XDELTA
The program will extract the needed filenames from the patch. It will also do the md5sum check. Mind: it will not check for enough free space on hd.
Here is a link, for xdelta.exe for Windows, to patch your sidux- LiveCD in Windows. Information and execution for xdelta with Windows