= antiX-FAQ
:getting-page:

[[top]]
== Getting antiX

.Introduction

   The antiX Linux LiveCD or LiveUSB boots your computer without
   accessing the hard disk. It copies a virtual filesystem into RAM that
   acts as the centre of a temporary operating system for the computer.
   When you end your Live session, everything about your computer is
   back to the way it was, unchanged.

   This provides a number of benefits:
     * It enables you to run antiX Linux on your computer without
       installing it.
     * It allows you to determine whether antiX Linux is compatible with
       your hardware.
     * It helps you to get a feel for how antiX Linux works and to explore
       some of its features.
     * You can decide whether antiX Linux is what you want without
       permanently affecting your current system.
     * Installing and removing software is possible in antiX
       Linux.

   Running LiveCD also has some disadvantages:
     * Because the entire system is operating from a combination of RAM
       and the CD, antiX Linux will require more RAM and run more slowly
       in a LiveCD session than if it were installed on the hard drive.
     * Some unusual hardware that requires specialized drivers or custom
       configuration may not work in a LiveCD session where permanent
       files can't be installed.
     

.How to get a antiX LiveCD

   If you don't have a copy of antiX Linux on a CD already, here are
   the ways to obtain a copy.


Free Download

   You can download any testing or final release versions of antiX Linux
   for free from one of the public mirror sites listed on the page linked
   below. Sometimes the mirrors are a bit behind the antiX
   download site, and some mirrors get out-of-date from time to time. If
   you can't find a particular version at one site, it may be available at
   one of the other sites. Downloading the current antiX ISO via
   BitTorrent is also an option.

   The LiveCD you download is actually an ISO: a disk image file in the
   ISO 9660 file system format. Before trying to turn it into an antiX
   LiveCD, please consult Section 2.2.

   Download antiX: [12]http://www.mepis.org/mirrors
   antiX torrents: [13]http://www.mepiscommunity.org/en/node/54


== Obtaining & verifying the ISO
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.Introduction

   This page provides guidance if you intend to download an ISO and
   burn your own CD.

.Downloading antiX Linux

   Here are a few considerations to keep in mind:
     * The first day or two after a new ISO is released, a particular
       mirror (a web site that is an exact copy of another site) may not
       have it. Check other mirrors until you find the version you are
       looking for, then click the filename to download it. These files
       are usually very large, so plan to wait for some time (depending on
       your machine, connection and web traffic).
     * Sometimes an ISO may be incomplete. This is caused by the mirror
       attempting to grab the ISO before it has completely uploaded to
       their source site. If this happens, the ISO may be unusually small
       or it may give [16]cloop errors when a CD is booted.
     * If different mirrors offer ISOs of different sizes, the larger ISO
       is probably correct. If a mirror site has a bad ISO file, it will
       probably be replaced during the next automatic update at that site,
       usually done once per day.
     * Make sure to download the md5sum file (see below) from the same
       directory as the ISO file. It will have the same filename but the
       extension will be .md5sum. Make certain that you put the [17]md5sum
       file in the same directory as the ISO file.
     * If the md5sum does not match, you could try one of the following
       options:
          + Copy the ISO with a bad checksum to a download folder used by
            a BitTorrent program (see Section 8.1), then restart the
            download using a BitTorrent client program. Most BitTorrent
            clients will find the file already on your hard disk and patch
            it by downloading only the missing or damaged portions.
          + Try a different mirror site.
          + Download the ISO again.

.Downloading antiX Linux via BitTorrent

   BitTorrent file sharing provides an
   internet protocol for efficient mass transfer of data. It decentralizes
   the transfer in such a way as to utilize good bandwidth connections and
   to minimize strain on low-bandwith connections. An added benefit is
   that most, if not all, BitTorrent clients perform error checking during
   the download process, so there is no need to do a separate md5sum check
   after your download is complete. It has already been done!

   The antiX Torrent Team also maintains a seeded BitTorrent swarm of the
   latest antiX Linux ISO, registered at LinuxTracker.org within 24 hours
   of its official release. Bit-torrent downloads may be somewhat slow
   following a major release. See link below.

.Verifying the md5sum

   After you have downloaded an ISO, the next step is to check its
   md5sum against the official one. The md5sum is the result of a
   complex calculation on the contents of a file: the outcome is a unique
   string. It will be identical to the official md5sum if your copy is
   authentic. The following steps will let you verify the integrity of the
   downloaded ISO on any OS platform:

md5sum: Windows

   Windows users should download a tool called md5summer (link below):
    1. Download the self-extracting .exe file. Double-click it to put 2
       files in the current directory: md5summer.exe and md5summer.md5
    2. Run md5summer.exe, respond “yes” to associate extension .md5 with
       md5summer program.
    3. Now you can either double-click on the .md5 file and the program
       will check the md5 sum automatically, or from inside the md5summer
       program you can select the location of the .ISO and .md5 files, and
       then click “verify sums” and select the .md5 file you want to
       check.

md5sum: Linux

   Method 1. Check when running the burned iso.

   Method 2. Open up a console/terminal and type:
cd /directoryname

   where directoryname indicates the location of the ISO and md5sum files.
   Then type:
md5sum filename.iso

   Be sure to replace filename with the actual filename (type in the first
   couple of letters then hit Tab and it will be filled in automatically).

   Compare the number obtained by this calculation with the md5sum file
   downloaded from official site. If they are identical, your copy is
   identical to the official release.

md5sum: Mac

   Mac users need to open up a console/terminal and change into the
   directory with the ISO and md5sum files. Then issue this command:
md5 -c filename.md5sum

   Be sure to replace filename with the actual filename (type in the first
   couple of letters then hit Tab and it will be filled in automatically).


== Creating a bootable medium
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.Introduction

   Once you have successfully downloaded an ISO and verified its
   integrity, you are ready to create a bootable medium. For many users,
   this will be a LiveCD, but others may need or want a Live USB.
     * [27]Burning a LiveCD
     * [28]Creating a Live USB

.Burning a LiveCD

General tips

    1. Most important: do not burn the ISO onto a blank CD as if it were
       a data file! An ISO is a formatted image of an entire CD. You
       need to choose Burn disk image or Burn ISO in the menu of your
       CD/CD burning program. If you just drag and drop it into a file
       list and burn it as a regular file, you will not get a bootable
       LiveCD.
    2. Use a good quality writable CD with a .7 GB capacity.

.Burning the ISO

Linux

   The following method describes burning with K3b, the default
   application in antiX Linux, but you can use any burner or the command
   line just as well.
    1. Right-click the ISO and select Open with >K3b
    2. Wait until the md5sum is calculated, then compare it with the one
       that you downloaded with the ISO. If the md5sum does match, it
       means you have a corrupted file.
    3. Check verify written data. After the CD is written, K3b will read
       it and compare the result with the MD5 sum of the ISO.

Windows

   If you already have a CD burning program installed on your computer
   such as Nero or EasyCD Creator (Roxio), go directly to Step 2.
    1. Download and install a CD Burner such as Cheetah (follow link
       below).
    2. Put a blank medium in your drive. Start the burner, and click Start
       and choose Burn ISO File (other wording may be used). In Nero and
       Roxio there is a similar command to Burn a Disk Image or ISO.

   NOTE: the program names here are used as examples only, and no
   endorsement or guarantee is intended.

Mac

   You probably already have Toast (Roxio) or a similar CD/CD burning
   program installed. Just follow Step 2 above.

.Verify the integrity

   It is a good idea to verify the integrity of the burn, just as you did
   of the ISO. If you didn't burn your new antiX
   Linux LiveCD/CD with a program that can verify the data after the
   burn, you can check its integrity another way.

Linux

   In terminal type:
md5sum devicelocation

   If you burned a CD, the typical device location ("mount point") is
   /dev/cdrom. Other devices can be hdc or scd0. Navigate with the file
   manager Dolphin to /etc/fstab to check the device names on your system.

   Wait for the MD5 sum to be calculated, and compare it with the sum
   obtained from the download site: they should be the same.

Windows

    1. Get the free version of the Windows application IsoBuster from the
       link below.
    2. Insert CD in drive.
    3. Run IsoBuster as Administrator.
    4. In registration dialog, select “Free funct. only”.
    5. In left pane, right-click on CD (top line) to get context menu,
       and select: MD5 Checksum file > Create MD5 Checksum > For image
       file with 2048 bytes/block.
    6. Compare the MD5 in the .tao line of the output with that of the
       downloaded ISO.

   NOTE: the Windows program cited here is used as an example only, no
   endorsement or guarantee is intended.

Mac

   When you select to verify the data in Toast or another burner, a
   byte-for-byte comparison with the ISO file will be carried out to check
   the CD's integrity.

.Troubleshooting

   If you verified the md5sum of the ISO before you burned, but the CD
   you burned is no good:
     * Try burning again at a slower speed.
     * Try another blank disk.

.Creating a Live USB

   Netbooks typically lack a CD/CD drive, so a Live USB is required for
   temporary use and installation. Other users may also want a Live USB
   for improved portability or speed. Once you have obtained the ISO,
   whether by purchase or download, you can easily create a bootable USB
   that works on most systems.
     * If you have an existing installtion of antiX, or can boot the
       LiveCD on a different computer, then a antiX application is
       available to you that makes the process easy.

     * Plug in your USB device. It needs to remain unmounted, so ignore
       the Device Notifier screen that pops up.
     * Click Start Menu > Settings > antiX System Assistant, then click on
       the antiX USB Key tab.
     * Make the appropriate selections for the USB key, key type and ISO
       source.
     * Click Apply, wait until the process is finished, then reboot or
       exit for later use.
     * See Section 5.4 for details

     If you need or want to create the Live USB from the netbook itself,
   you should use an alternative method:
     * Download and install the Unetbootin Windows package from the
       Unetbootin home page listed below.
     * Plug in the USB stick you are going to use and reformat it to
       FAT32. On Windows, use the My Computer screen, right-click your USB
       device in the menu and select Format, then FAT 32.
     * Start Unetbootin, and use the GUI to locate your antiX ISO file (or
       to download it) and the USB device (usually already identified for
       you)
     * Create the files necessary (it will take some time) on the USB
       device

   Whichever method you used to create the Live USB, you will probably
   need to take a few steps to get your computer to boot correctly using
   the USB.
     * To boot with the USB Drive, many computers have special keys you
       can press during booting which allow you to choose that device.
       Typical Boot Device Menu keys are Esc, F8, F9, F10 or F12.
     * Alternatively, You may have to go into the BIOS to change the boot
       device order:
          + Boot the computer, and hit the required key (e.g., F2, F10 or
            Esc) at the beginning to get into the BIOS
          + Click on (or arrow over to) the Boot tab
          + Identify and highlight your USB device (usually, "USB HDD"),
            then move it to the top of the list. Save and exit
          + If unsure or uncomfortable about changing the BIOS, ask for
            assistance in the Forums.
     * On older computers without USB support in the BIOS, you can use the
       Plop Linux LiveCD that will load USB drivers and present you with a
       menu. See the website linked below for details.

   Once your system is set to recognize the USB Drive during the boot
   process, just plug in the Drive and reboot the machine.
