Archives for November 2011

November 28, 2011

Backup Linux Using Clonezilla Live

There are many ways to backup Linux. There are different tools in the arsenal that you could use, such as tar, rcopy or some backup software. One tool I recently started using is called Clonezilla, a cloning software similar to the popular Norton Ghost for Windows systems.

Clonezilla allows you to backup and restore file systems by cloning file systems or devices as image files. Clonezilla comes in two versions: Clonezilla Live and Clonezilla SE (Server Edition). Clonezilla Live is suitable for single machine backup and restore.

While Clonezilla SE is for massive deployment, it can clone many (40 plus!) computers simultaneously. Clonezilla saves and restores only used blocks in the hard disk. I’m using Clonezilla Live since I don’t need to backup and restore multiple computers.

To get started, you will need to download the Clonezilla Live iso file. Create a bootable CD from the iso file. Once the boot CD is created, you need to boot up from the Clonezilla Live CD on the desktop you want to perform a backup.

I recommend using a secondary USB drive for storing the backup image files. It will serve as a repository for your backup images as well as a restore point for later on. For further instructions, follow these instructions for using Clonezilla Live.

November 28, 2011

40 Linux CDs And Counting

I recently found a stack of CDs that contain nothing but Linux distros. The total number of CDs in my stash have reached 40. The oldest distros that I own is a copy of the Smoothwall firewall dating back to September 2003. The oldest Fedora distro I have is Fedora 10, and the oldest Ubuntu distro is Ubuntu 7.04.

But, I remember vaguely using Ubuntu 5.04 Hoary Hedgehog back in 2005. I switched back to Fedora shortly after because I didn’t like it that much. I tried Ubuntu a couple more times before finally settling with Ubuntu 7.04.

Also in my stash are copies of Fedora 10, 11, 12, 15 and the latest Fedora 16. I also have copies of: gos3, Open Solaris 2008.05, Linux Mint 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11, Puppy Linux 5.25, Debian 6.0.2.1, Centos 6, Xubuntu 9.04, and OpenSuse, to name just a few.

I also have some odd ones like Clonezilla, Gparted 0.9.11, and the GParted Live CD.

In addition to the list mentioned, I also have an assortment of Ubuntu distros in varying architectures and processors starting with 32 bit, 64 bit, Intel and AMD processors.

It was very nostalgic to go through my stash of Linux CDs. I’ll keep them for old times sake.

November 27, 2011

Ubuntu Is Losing Steam

If you’ve visited Distrowatch.com lately, you probably noticed Ubuntu has slipped down to number 2 in terms of number of page hits on Distrowatch’s website. Linux Mint now holds the distinction of being number 1.

It wasn’t long ago, that Ubuntu held that prestigious position for months, perhaps years. What happened exactly to Ubuntu? Was it Unity, the new desktop environment that was introduced a couple of releases ago?

I think, a large part of the slide is indeed Unity, but it’s not solely the reason for the loss of its popularity. There are other issues. Ubuntu was already losing steam before Unity was first introduced.

You got to hand it to Linux Mint developers. They have done a great job of making Mint a solid distro that simply works out of the box with no fuss.

In the meantime, I went back to the two year old release, Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, or Long Term Support. It’s still supported until 2015. It runs the stable Gnome 2.3.