General Linux Chat and Small Questions v. Year of the Linux Desktop!

[Angus725]

[QUOTE=Samiam22;48798755]Why does Steam have i386 dependencies, anyway? Even if there are still some people on 32-bit computers, is it not possible to just make a standalone 64-bit version?[/QUOTE]

I'd imagine it's preemptively requiring some common 32bit libs used by older games.

[lavacano]

[QUOTE=mastersrp;48797196]Let's be fair here, closed source applications and libraries have always been a pain to package, due to partly the lack of inspection into issues that may arrise during the packaging process.[/QUOTE]

I'm not talking about packaging errors. A bunch of proprietary software comes from the author in the form of a really shitty installer, and I fully understand if apt/yum/pacman/cat has problems with unpacking the software.

I don't know what josm was referring to specifically but when I posted that, I was thinking about actual honest-to-God bugs in the program being marked invalid because it was reported by a guy using nvidia drivers (and occasionally having comments added later like "NVidia gets mad about this but fuck them").

[Zaex]

The extent of my Linux knowledge is limited to navigating the terminal and vim. I am curious if starting off with Arch is too deep of waters for me or if should I stick with a simple distro like Ubuntu. I have been currently messing around with Kali on my laptop, however I have no interest in security penetration it was just an ISO I had available with no internet. If I go with Ubuntu I plan on going Arch at some point when I know a bit more.

[supervoltage]

Apparently there's a [URL="http://www.pcworld.com/article/2987580/security/a-linux-botnet-is-launching-crippling-ddos-attacks-at-more-than-150gbps.html"]massive Linux botnet going on[/URL] which is capable of delivering attacks of up to 150 Gbps. Some quick details about it:

It relies on SSH to insert the virus by brute-forcing the SSH password;
It's hidden with common rootkits;
Can hide in embedded systems as well;
Based on [URL="http://www.pcworld.com/article/2881152/ddos-malware-for-linux-systems-comes-with-sophisticated-custombuilt-rootkit.html"]XOR DDoS[/URL];
Delivers up to 20 attacks a day;
Most attacks happen in Asia.

Jesus I just summarised the entire article.

Better scan our Linux distros with ClamAV for the first time in our lives.

[lavacano]

I should install fail2ban

[editline]1st October 2015[/editline]

or make my outbound SSH private key only, since it works by brute forcing the password

[shodan]

beep

[Samiam]

[QUOTE=Zaex;48801592]The extent of my Linux knowledge is limited to navigating the terminal and vim. I am curious if starting off with Arch is too deep of waters for me or if should I stick with a simple distro like Ubuntu. I have been currently messing around with Kali on my laptop, however I have no interest in security penetration it was just an ISO I had available with no internet. If I go with Ubuntu I plan on going Arch at some point when I know a bit more.[/QUOTE]

You can indeed go Arch first if you have some computer knowledge and are able to follow instructions. The Arch beginner's manual is decent enough, though Arch as a whole is a different environment than most (with the philosophy that cutting edge, rolling release style of updates is the best choice), so if you want to try Arch with a graphical installer, try Archbang, Antergos, or Manjaro.

[benbb]

[QUOTE=Samiam22;48804644]You can indeed go Arch first if you have some computer knowledge and are able to follow instructions. The Arch beginner's manual is decent enough, though Arch as a whole is a different environment than most (with the philosophy that cutting edge, rolling release style of updates is the best choice), so if you want to try Arch with a graphical installer, try Archbang, Antergos, or Manjaro.[/QUOTE]

Sure, you'll get a decent understanding of the system.

But as you're a Linux newbie I highly recommend any of the more basic distros like Ubuntu/Mint to get you started. You'll then start a phase of distro switching constantly until you'll finally end up back at Ubuntu.

[supervoltage]

The very first distro you use will always feel like home. I used Arch first, started like two or three years ago, and I just can't compare it with other distros.

[Lyoko2]

[QUOTE=Zaex;48801592]The extent of my Linux knowledge is limited to navigating the terminal and vim. I am curious if starting off with Arch is too deep of waters for me or if should I stick with a simple distro like Ubuntu. I have been currently messing around with Kali on my laptop, however I have no interest in security penetration it was just an ISO I had available with no internet. If I go with Ubuntu I plan on going Arch at some point when I know a bit more.[/QUOTE]

try arch install cd with this interactive script: (on vm)
[URL]https://github.com/helmuthdu/aui[/URL]

Fastest Desktop install time EVER.

about steam with linux... they really should stop shipping that ancient runtime..

[SocMinarch]

[QUOTE=lavacano;48802784]or make my outbound SSH private key only, since it works by brute forcing the password[/QUOTE]

Now you've reminded me to delete all the passwords on my VM

[editline]2nd October 2015[/editline]

Is there any point in installing some kind of Mandatory Access Control system?

[Darkwater]

[QUOTE=supervoltage;48807864]The very first distro you use will always feel like home. I used Arch first, started like two or three years ago, and I just can't compare it with other distros.[/QUOTE]

I started out with Ubuntu about three years ago and slowly moved through distros to Arch which I've used for about one and a half years now. Don't think I'm going anywhere else soon.

[Samiam]

Personally, I distrohop to see which one has the best logo in screenfetch.

[Comfy]

[QUOTE=Samiam22;48808661]Personally, I distrohop to see which one has the best logo in screenfetch.[/QUOTE]

you know you can actually just open up screenfetch and see the logos right?

[mastersrp]

[QUOTE=supervoltage;48807864]The very first distro you use will always feel like home. I used Arch first, started like two or three years ago, and I just can't compare it with other distros.[/QUOTE]

Started out with Ubuntu. Used almost everything else ever since (not true, I haven't used >500 distros, but the more prominent ones I have), and now settled on Void Linux for desktops, and Gentoo or Ubuntu for servers.

[Levelog]

[QUOTE=kaukassus;48808761]you know you can actually just open up screenfetch and see the logos right?[/QUOTE]

That ruins the fun.

[Lordofdafood]

So I need to run a VM of a VPN appliance for my FYP at uni and I need a Linux box

I need something that is super small that I can take with (Think backpack / carrier bag size) while keeping the cost down

Requirements for the box are:
3-4gb ram (2GB is needed for the VM)
A dual core processor (1 core for the VM and one for the host - thinking like a Celeron or AMD equivalent)
40GB of storage (The VM needs a 20gb disk - the remainder is for the distro)
2 Ethernet ports (I can work with 1 port providing i can get a USB adapter for a second one)

Any ideas?

[Levelog]

[QUOTE=lordofdafood;48809248]So I need to run a VM of a VPN appliance for my FYP at uni and I need a Linux box

I need something that is super small that I can take with (Think backpack / carrier bag size) while keeping the cost down

Requirements for the box are:
3-4gb ram (2GB is needed for the VM)
A dual core processor (1 core for the VM and one for the host - thinking like a Celeron or AMD equivalent)
40GB of storage (The VM needs a 20gb disk - the remainder is for the distro)
2 Ethernet ports (I can work with 1 port providing i can get a USB adapter for a second one)

Any ideas?[/QUOTE]

Budget? I mean you can build up a gigabyte brix with a Celeron, 4gb RAM, and a 64gb SSD for just over 200 bucks. And they're tiny as hell. You'd have to use a USB to ethernet adapter for the second port though, but they've got USB 3.0.

[Lordofdafood]

[QUOTE=Levelog;48809543]Budget? I mean you can build up a gigabyte brix with a Celeron, 4gb RAM, and a 64gb SSD for just over 200 bucks. And they're tiny as hell. You'd have to use a USB to ethernet adapter for the second port though, but they've got USB 3.0.[/QUOTE]

Around £150 - I have been looking at the brix range can put one together for around that price, sounds like the best option im guessing, for what I need it for a laptop would be overkill

[Levelog]

You could also look for a used uSFF enterprise tower. They're pretty small, and the ones with a strong core2duo are pretty cheap.

[Lyoko2]

what prevents my kernel modules from auto loading?
everything works, kernel is running, manual loading modules with modprobe works too. but it's not automatically as I wish it would.
It's Archlinux. kernel modules I installed are in: /usr/lib/modules .

[Angus725]

You could probably black list them in grub.

[mastersrp]

[QUOTE=Angus725;48811007]You could probably black list them in grub.[/QUOTE]

How would that aid loading them? And why would you blacklist them in grub, as opposed to in the system itself?

[lavacano]

Last week, I was thinking "what if I could execute commands remotely by just typing 'command@host'". This week, now I can do that.

function accept-line-with-ssh () {
	firstword=${BUFFER[(w)1]}
	# Rough translation: "if @ is in firstword"
	if [[ ${firstword[(i)@]} -le ${#firstword} ]]; then # Lit: "if the index of '@' within firstword is less than the length of firstword"
		origbuffer=$BUFFER

		cmd=${firstword%@*} # set cmd to everything BEFORE the @
		host=${firstword#*@} # set host to everything AFTER the @
		args=${origbuffer#${firstword} } # set args to everything AFTER the first word
		[[ $args == $firstword ]] && args="" # Prevent "command command@host" from running a command with no args

		BUFFER="ssh -t $host \"$cmd ${args}\""
	fi
	zle .accept-line
}

zle -N accept-line accept-line-with-ssh

[vid]http://www.netswim.net/sharex/commandathost.webm[/vid]

I have no idea why the WebM looks like ass, so if you can't make out what's happening: If I type, say, "zsh@shuttlecraft", the command automatically expands to:

ssh -t shuttlecraft "zsh "

But wait, suppose I want to specify args for the command. Well that's no problem, I can do something like "echo@shuttlecraft Args work too\!", and it expands to:

ssh -t shuttlecraft "echo Args work too\!"

If the @ is [b]not[/b] in the first word in the line (maybe it's elsewhere, or doesn't exist), then the line is run as-is.

[Lordofdafood]

[QUOTE=Levelog;48810276]You could also look for a used uSFF enterprise tower. They're pretty small, and the ones with a strong core2duo are pretty cheap.[/QUOTE]

Think ill go for the nuc - Next thing on my list is some USB to Ethernet adapters what ones would work on Linux and are cheap?

UK Amazon prefered

Oh and what is the most stripped down version of linux? I literally need it to run Virtualbox, a USB Ethernet adapter and a VNC client so i can remote in if something breaks

[Dilbert]

[QUOTE=benbb;48804976]Sure, you'll get a decent understanding of the system.

But as you're a Linux newbie I highly recommend any of the more basic distros like Ubuntu/Mint to get you started. You'll then start a phase of distro switching constantly until you'll finally end up back at Ubuntu.[/QUOTE]

I started with Mint, went through distro-switching hell, then ended up with Arch. It stays out of my way, and the documentation is fantastic.

[Levelog]

[QUOTE=elevate;48813699]I started with Mint, went through distro-switching hell, then ended up with Arch. It stays out of my way, and the documentation is fantastic.[/QUOTE]

Yeah I started with Ubuntu 10, switched between Mint and that for a while, messed around in Debian, Arch, and some various flavors, then settled on RHEL based ones.

[formatme]

what should i host on my linux server has 2tb ssd's

[Angus725]

[QUOTE=mastersrp;48811186]How would that aid loading them? And why would you blacklist them in grub, as opposed to in the system itself?[/QUOTE]

It's a little easier to turn back on.

I think this is the tutorial you're looking for though:

[url]https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Kernel_modules[/url]

[josm]

[QUOTE=formatme;48813909]what should i host on my linux server has 2tb ssd's[/QUOTE]

use it as backup?