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Super UserBuilding a custom Linux LiveCD
[+3] [5] hmp
[2009-08-18 12:31:14]
[ linux linux-distributions livecd ]
[ https://superuser.com/questions/24278/building-a-custom-linux-livecd ]

I need to create a small custom live system (for teaching a programming class). What would be the best way to do it?

[+3] [2009-08-18 12:38:16] sudesh

If you want to build your own distribution, Try Linux From Scratch (LFS). It is a project that provides you with step-by-step instructions for building your own custom Linux system, entirely from source code. http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/

There are a lot of lightweight linux distributions available. Most of these can boot from LiveCD. http://lightlinux.blogspot.com/2008/06/top-10-of-lightweight-linux_24.html


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[+2] [2009-08-18 12:56:08] Gren [ACCEPTED]

You can use Remastersys [1] to build an Ubuntu or Debian distro of your own. For a fast live cd, I would install XUbuntu [2] into a virtualbox vm and install the necessary programs and set it up to your liking. Then you can run remastersys backup and burn the resulting ISO to CDs for your students.

[1] http://www.geekconnection.org/remastersys/remastersystool.html
[2] http://www.xubuntu.org/

Wouldn't Xubuntu with additional software be too big to fit on a CD? - hmp
Basic xubuntu ~617 megs cd-r ~700 megs. Besides an IDE and compilers I'm not sure how much more one would need for a programming class. Live DVD may be necessary. - Gren
What applications do you need? - Gren
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[+1] [2009-08-18 13:44:44] gaudette.michael

http://www.livecdlist.com/frontpage?order=value_1&sort=desc [1]

This website is a list of all the Live CD distros with a ranking given by the users

I suggest you go with XUbuntu for programming purposes

If you are looking to use it for server tests try open SUSE

[1] http://www.livecdlist.com/frontpage?order=value_1&sort=desc

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[0] [2009-08-21 07:38:11] Robert Brook

How about Morphix? http://www.morphix.org/ - includes a page on "Building a new LiveCD in two commands"!


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[0] [2010-03-01 15:17:25] Alon Swartz

You might want to take a look at TKLPatch [1], a simple (but powerful) appliance customization mechanism.

Documentation: http://www.turnkeylinux.org/docs/tklpatch
Source code: http://github.com/turnkeylinux/tklpatch

[1] http://www.turnkeylinux.org/docs/tklpatch

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