Downloading the repository

[Atle]

Dear Forum...

I am leaving for Africa, and would like to give out Tiny Core for thoose who does not have internet acsess.

But how can I download the whole repo as one zip file or to be clear...  Download it all in one download.

Anyone got some tips?

I need to do it within 4 days

Best regards

Atle

[Kingdomcome]

There are a couple of scripts in the Programming and Scripting section of the forum to download the entire repo.  I have posted the one I use here

[Atle]

Hmmm... Ok... I am not that good at this:-)

Is there any way to make this a bit easy?

some simple command to copy paste?  like wget or what what?

I read you link and did not undersstand anything:-)

[maro]

Hmm, I wonder why people are not using rsync to create (and maintain) local mirrors of the extension repository. FWIW here is the command I'm using to sync my private mirror:

rsync -tuvz --progress --stats --no-motd distro.ibiblio.org::distros/tinycorelinux/2.x/tcz/* tcz

The options mean:
    -t           preserves modification times,
    -u           skips files that are newer on the receiver,
    -z           compresses file data during the transfer,
    -v           increases verbosity, together with --progress --stats provides more stats,
    --no-motd    suppresses the MOTD from ibiblio.org

By using .../tcz/* tcz I can ensure that only files are copied to my local tcz directory (ignoring links or directories). But that is just what I do. Feel free to find the options that work best for yourself.

[Kingdomcome]

You can cd to the dir you want the repo in and run

Code: [Select]

wget -m -nd -nv ftp://distro.ibiblio.org/pub/linux/distributions/tinycorelinux/2.x/tczYou will need gnu wget for this to work, install it from appbrowser.

Hmm, I wonder why people are not using rsync to create (and maintain) local mirrors of the extension repository.

wget works fine for me and is probably more familiar to the casual user.  And with the -m switch it only downloads new and updated files as well.

[maro]

@Kingdomcome: I admit to have started off creating my local mirror with the help of WGET. I should further add that I only later discovered the qualities of RSYNC with regards to keeping a mirror in sync. It uses a more sophisticated protocol between client and server and will only transmit a minimal set of changes if an older version of a file already exists on the mirror.

So for the initial cloning WGET and RSYNC are probably equally good, but for staying in sync I highly recommend RSYNC (in particular if you have a data cap for your internet connection like most users do have here in NZ).

[Atle]

Okey... I shall try that Wget tomorrow. My aim is to provide a taste of light Linux versions that can enable older machines again, as Windows is a part of the hardware ratrace mafia. You can read a bit more about my project at http://www. schoolux.org

What Slitaz has done, is that they have made a system, wheras one can download the whole repo as a 2 gig .iso file, that you can run in virtualbox etc. this gives a naive newbee as me a chance to set up a wired or wireless network, whereas people can download a OS and then get acesses to the repo offline.

The experience I have from Africa is that:

There is no such thing as free, fast or stable internet(its very expensive)
Linux can not grow there without files being present locally
The western world has dumped a whole lot off secondary hardware in Africa, falsified as "aid", and there is the resource I would like to use.

My crasy dream is to develope a minibank(ATM) looking kind off device, wheras you can insert a USB memostick and load up a Linux Distro with the programs you like. and then go home and boot:-)

Just as one pulls money out a ATM, I want Africa to be able to pull out a ready configured USB memostick whereas the an example is described here:

A young man owns a 2 gig USB memostick and has acsess to a 128 mb ram computer.

He puts his device into the USB minibank, chooses what operating system he wants, if its a lowram or normal installation, chooses some programs and whooosh... The 2 gig (if low ram is choosen), is configured with a 256mb Swap drive(that are recognized by the operating system and maybe a 768mb off space for the OS and the rest as a NTFS/FAT partition:-)

This would be a really serious revolution as Africa in general is running illegal copys of Windows and have more virus problems than anyone else in the world.

Anyhow... as far as today, this is a dream, but one day there will be a website to organize this project, and if anyone got a seriously good name for that "Linux ATM", I would be very happy to be notified:-)

Best regards

atle

[beerstein]

Hi:
I am also looking for something like an ISO file which contains all current TC 2 extensions.
I would like to have these extebsions allways available (airplane, car, hotel) wherever no
net connection is available.

I saw the Slitaz ISO.

If such an ISO is not available for TC, can I compile one for my self?

I think a script could grab all the extensions from the server and dump it to my HD and then I could make that ISO.?

Has anybody a clou how to do that - in detail?

Have a goode one

[Guy]

If such an ISO is not available for TC, can I compile one for my self?

Yes

Create a directory for your iso. You could make it tmp/newiso

Copy Tiny Core (boot and its contents) to the directory.

Create /tce/optional directories.

Copy extensions to the /tce/optional directory.

cd /tmp
mkisofs -l -J -V TC-custom \ -no-emul-boot -boot-load-size 4 -boot-info-table \ -b boot/isolinux isolinux.bin -c boot/isolinux/boot.cat \ -o TC-remastered.iso newiso

http://wiki.tinycorelinux.com/tiki-index.php?page=Integrating+Extensions


Some suggestions.

If you install Tiny Core on a usb drive or computer (instead of making an iso) you can update it from time to time.

If you want to give people copies of the iso, and you understand how to make an iso, and have Tiny Core installed on a usb drive or computer, you can update the iso from time to time.

You may not want to install all extensions, but be selective.

[newbody]

thanks indeed Guy,

RobertS made a comment that this works on linux partitions like Fat32 and Ext and so on but not supported to work on NTFS installations.

Does what you describe here work on NTFS?

If you install Tiny Core on a usb drive or computer (instead of making an iso) you can update it from time to time.

 I have this frugal install of TC on my NTFS

menu.lst says

title tinycore
kernel /tinycore/bzImage
initrd /tinycore/tinycore.gz
boot
 

and in the tinycore directory I have

bzImage
tinycore.gz
tinycore_2.8.1.iso
tinycore_2.8.iso
tinycore-current.iso

I guess the boot only make use of bzImage
tinycore.gz and ignore all the iso files?

while if I had had them on a fat32 usb memory that booted like it it was a live CD image then it would make use of the iso file me specified as the live one ?

One would have to rewrite syslinux or isolinux or grub or whatever boot loader one have to be ntfs compatible or something for this to work on NTFS?

[Guy]

Does what you describe here work on NTFS?

No.  It would only work properly on a Linux partition (Ext2 or Ext3). Don't even try making a Tiny Core iso on FAT32.

I have this frugal install of TC on my NTFS

Does it work? There have been people who have made Tiny Core work on ntfs, but it is not straightforward. It is discussed in the forum. Get it to work on an Ext3 partition before trying it on ntfs.

ISO files are not accessed when running an installed version of Tiny Core, only when running from the cd. There is no point in having them there.

Be aware that tinycore-current.iso is the same as whichever one was current at the time you downloaded it.

[newbody]

Does it work?

Embarrassingly I don't remember. I installed on one 4GB USB with fat32, one 7GB old HDD external, one 20GB external in Fat32 and also on the NTFS to test frugal install.

One or two or three or all four worked. I don't remember but I log out and test now and if it works I write from it.

Take 5 minutes at most I hope.

Yes it works, I had to wget firefox and that took some time. I barely remembered how on does it.

I wonder how one could save this change on the HDD so one don\t have to download online from the repository but from the HDD or from an usb whatever is best for the beginner.

But I guess most people want to use the full install. I like the idea of doing frugal or poor man install.

But maybe we derail the main theme

what would work in Africa, Repository on a CD/DVD? That ius cheapest way to do things?

I guess they want two kinds of Tiny Core. One for the beginners with many things already installed and also a tiny core as it is now so they learn how to do things by themselves and not rely on others.

But for to be able to read here they at least want FF installed from start or a very step for step on how to get it. But as the OP says. To have internet access is very expensive unless your lucky to live close to somebody with free wifi hotspot.

How do I save this now on my HDD so I don\t have to be online to start it up?

[Guy]

How do I save this now on my HDD so I don\t have to be online to start it up?

http://www.tinycorelinux.com/install.html
http://wiki.tinycorelinux.com/tiki-index.php?page=Installing+TC+-+Alternate+Offline+Guide
http://wiki.tinycorelinux.com/tiki-index.php?page=Installing+Applications


To install on a usb drive:

Run from the cd

Connect to the internet

Install dosfstools and syslinux

Run USB Install from the Control Panel or menu.

Restart the computer from the USB drive.

Connect to the internet

Install programs you want on the USB drive.


It is actually quite easy if you take the time to learn.