Damn Small Linux

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Still_Learning
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Damn Small Linux

Post by Still_Learning »

ok, I recently "found" a 900mhz AMD w/ 128 RAM and 20 GB drive, i want to run a linux server on it. I found Damn Small Linux with only requires 4mbs or ram, and 50 megs of drive space, it runs really quick on my ancient machine. The only thing is it wont install it keeps giving me Grub error 15 while booting. It works great with the Live CD though, and can even load it all to ram if it wants. But i want to install it to drive so i can addon stuff to it like emacs and other cool linux programs. I am going to try and run it off the monkey server which is included in the distro.

I just got the Linux bible 2006 from the library today (may just keep it, i wonder how they will charge me for it if i lose it?)

The install i did was with the grub loader and Debian reg install from Damn Small Linux. This is part of the process im trying to do to get my Bluesocket gateway working, but i need for this box to load linux from the harddrive instead of the CD so i can save setting and stuff.

I formatted the drive as hda1 and am confused from there because when i goto the root and type ls i can see files and directorys like its install but does not boot to DSL.

Is there maybe an easier linux OS that requires very few resources for a first time user? Ubuntu, openSUSE, ect.. all those require atleast 256 memory and they all run very slow. I want just toe basic linux stuff, i heard slackware but the newest version that will work fast how i want is slackware version 10.1, i cant seem to find it anywhere because its old i can only find 12 which my ancient system wont work well wth.

( I am used to the windows file system, i think i read something about i may have to /mount the damn small linux to my hda1 or something or have one partition to use to boot, and another for mt DSL OS) help!! lol

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uid0
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Post by uid0 »

I don't catch exactly how do you install DSL, I mean, "the install was with the grub loader and debian reg"?

Anyway, as far as I remember from DSL, you boot the liveCD, open a terminal, create at least two partitions (one swap and another for the / system) using cfdisk, activate the swap partition and then issue the dsl-hdinstall command, is pretty easy to follow from what I remember.

Is this what you did?

If so, you should have seen a question asking if you wanted to install grub or lilo as your bootloader, did you get any problem at this part?

Edit: This is what I recall when I tried dsl:

http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/wiki/inde ... _Hard_Disk

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Post by Still_Learning »

Yes, I followed the sites directions and I got to the part where it asked Lilo or Grub, I tried to even install with both, it is not working , something with the partition or how i formatted i think or it not being mounted corrected. I got it to load and everything with the live cd but think I am going with Debian now, that book i got from the library "Linux bible" had a cd disc with it that installed debian in a "wizard" type of way i guess where i could understand it. Now i just have a linux command prompt.. no GUI, i have an idea of how to look around on stuff like ls, cd, cd .., vi , ect.. but this is all way still foriegn

how can i see the variables of the help file and what they do (ms-dos is /?) or what is the command to view http pages in text? $> telenet google.com?
$> http google.com? thanks

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Post by uid0 »

The equivalent of "/?" in linux is typing:

Code: Select all

command --help
or the abbreviated:

Code: Select all

command -h
Since you're with debian now then there's no point to go trobleshooting dsl, but if you have problems (with dsl or anyother), add information about the errors you're getting. I mean, you say that it seems the error with dsl was about partitions problems, it would be good to know what the error was like because it's easy to provide a more accurate answer ^^

Anyway, have fun with setting up debian ;)

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Post by Still_Learning »

uid0 wrote:The equivalent of "/?" in linux is typing:

Code: Select all

command --help
or the abbreviated:

Code: Select all

command -h
Since you're with debian now then there's no point to go trobleshooting dsl, but if you have problems (with dsl or anyother), add information about the errors you're getting. I mean, you say that it seems the error with dsl was about partitions problems, it would be good to know what the error was like because it's easy to provide a more accurate answer ^^

Anyway, have fun with setting up debian ;)
ok i found out why apt-get install kde , ect.. was not working...

is because i dont have it. I have to use wget.

So i "wgot" fluxbox for a GUI for my new demian linux, said it was installed but dont see how i am suppose to activate it and login gui style.
startx dont work, i have an old version, i have to install everything manually. i tried typing "man fluxbox" amd "man fluxbox --help" and many other things but it is not showing me how to load the gui

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Post by computathug »

Which version of debian are you installing?

Here is a good tut for getting your kde working. :wink:

http://www.debianadmin.com/install-kde- ... -etch.html

have fun on your new box :)

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Post by Still_Learning »

computathug wrote:Which version of debian are you installing?

Here is a good tut for getting your kde working. :wink:

http://www.debianadmin.com/install-kde- ... -etch.html

have fun on your new box :)
thanks for the tut! i beleive it is version 3

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the debian plunge

Post by computathug »

As this is an old version you might want to try downloading the net install cd.

There is also a way bad_brain found which is the easy way if running a windows system and that is to go here and install online.

http://goodbye-microsoft.com/

This was my first way of any experience with linux but now just use the disk but its a great way to get started.

Let us know what you think of it when you get it installed :wink:

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Still_Learning
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Re: the debian plunge

Post by Still_Learning »

computathug wrote:As this is an old version you might want to try downloading the net install cd.

There is also a way bad_brain found which is the easy way if running a windows system and that is to go here and install online.

http://goodbye-microsoft.com/

This was my first way of any experience with linux but now just use the disk but its a great way to get started.

Let us know what you think of it when you get it installed :wink:
I installed the old version because the box i am running it on is only a 900mhz 128ram 20 gig pc. It runs really quick with the older version. I figure i can stomp my linux box into the ground and do whatever on it to practice and learn linux at the same time.

My first impression of it is it is like a unix login system, all command line everything, my ancient pc running demain 3 is faster then alot of newer pcs running windows. I really need to learn how to install programs though, i havent had a chance to read everything in that link yet because i am celebrateing 4tf of july , grilling some steaks and hanging out with the family. i notice wget does something but it gives me some kind of php link, and i cant lynx to work or it must not be installed. or do i have to goto a certain directory to use lynx? how is it used to connect to a site simply lynx <thewebsite.com>? i can telnet though, i know i can connect to the net on the linux box, i like useing the command lines but since im new to linux i would like a gui and heard fluxbox is the best. i try'ed apt-get install fluxbox, and it didnt work, wget install fluxbox seemed to do something but didnt show me the option on reboot to load it .

Could this have something to do with damn small linux being installed still? i notice at boot it gives me that grub error 15 from the previous instal of DSL, then loads to demian. thanks!

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Post by computathug »

yeah you might want to format the disk properly before installing but really you should find the difference between apt-get and wget. A quick read here will help you with these :wink:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wget

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Packaging_Tool

any more problems just post back here ;)

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Post by bad_brain »

just as an addition to thuggy's last post:
the man(ual) pages in Linux are a great resource to check what a command is for and how it is used, here an excerpt for wget:

Code: Select all

serv:~# man wget
Reformatting wget(1), please wait...
WGET(1)                                                                            GNU Wget                                                                           WGET(1)

NAME
       Wget - The non-interactive network downloader.

SYNOPSIS
       wget [option]... [URL]...

DESCRIPTION
       GNU Wget is a free utility for non-interactive download of files from the Web.  It supports HTTP, HTTPS, and FTP protocols, as well as retrieval through HTTP proxies.

       Wget is non-interactive, meaning that it can work in the background, while the user is not logged on.  This allows you to start a retrieval and disconnect from the
       system, letting Wget finish the work.  By contrast, most of the Web browsers require constant user's presence, which can be a great hindrance when transferring a lot
       of data.

       Wget can follow links in HTML and XHTML pages and create local versions of remote web sites, fully recreating the directory structure of the original site.  This is
       sometimes referred to as ``recursive downloading.''  While doing that, Wget respects the Robot Exclusion Standard (/robots.txt).  Wget can be instructed to convert
       the links in downloaded HTML files to the local files for offline viewing.

       Wget has been designed for robustness over slow or unstable network connections; if a download fails due to a network problem, it will keep retrying until the whole
       file has been retrieved.  If the server supports regetting, it will instruct the server to continue the download from where it left off.

OPTIONS
       Basic Startup Options

       -V
       --version
           Display the version of Wget.

       -h
       --help
           Print a help message describing all of Wget's command-line options.
the formatting is of course better in the original, it's a little messed up here...this works for almost any command/application... :wink:

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Post by Still_Learning »

Thanks, I had to boot and nuke the drive then reinstalled with debian 3.5, before i think i had the 3.0 which had no GUI, 3.5 runs allright on the 128 megs ram, but i have another 1 gig of SD ram on the way soon. 900mhz will be the same thoiugh with no USB :(

Demain 3.5 is working nicely though so far, easy wizard set up, thanks thug! and B_B i will check out command prompt stuff in a little bit, i just now am getting a gui linux box set up properlly
, allthough i know linux kernel commands are very import to learn.. i am on iceweasel browser now! lol

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