On Saturday 07 August 2010 06:43:22 Bavithra R wrote:
> hi friends
>
> I have an idea of doing "Linux distro" as my final year project.
> Will it be better if i start with any already installed linux OS or by
> using the LFS(Linux From Scratch) live cd directly?
> If i use any linux OS which would do better for creating distro?
Bavithra,
Technically, all existing GNU/Linux systems (Debian, RedHat, Fedora, et alia)
are already distros; even LFS is one in a manner of speaking. If your project
is to create a GNU/Linux distribution, it would be more instructional and
educational to start with LFS and go from there.
Glossing over many details, the many tasks involved in 'rolling yor own'
include:
- Deciding which functionality you want your distro to provide (such as
print media publishing, A/V media preparation and presentation,
Web/Email/IM distro for 'computer illiterates').
- Choosing the default locale (language, timezone) for your distro.
- Choosing a suitable name for your distro.
- Creating some artwork that uniquely identifies your distro.
- Choosing a means of managing add-on software packages (automatic or
manual) if you want one. Making users download and build any add-ons
they want is valid, too.
- Building LFS, boot LFS, then build it on itself.
- Including additional software packages to achieve your chosen
functionality.
- Packaging it onto an installable CD/DVD.
- Applying your graphics to the CD/DVD label and jevel box or envelope.
- Writing clear, simple, lucid prose (up to three paragraphs)
that states why your distro is the best.
- Writing a press release and emailing it to news media outlets of your
choosing.
- Selling copies of the CD/DVD on ebay.
Congratulations! You will have now built, packaged and marketed your own,
custom GNU/Linux distribution.
Your project won't be easy. It could take more than a year. There's a LOT to
learn.
(Here's a shameless plug for LFS.) I've been in the software business for 30
years, and it still took me a year to update the open source Smoothwall
firewall. The major changes included upgrading:
Linux: 2.6.16 -> 2.6.26 -> 2.6.32
IPTables: 1.3.7 -> 1.4.2 -> 1.4.8
GCC 3.3.5 -> 4.3.2 -> 4.4.3
integrating udev and initramfs, greatly enhancing the build system, and
updating the 100 or so packages so that they would compile and work. I did it
in two stages; the first stage took nine months and the second 2-3 months.
Half of the time was spent figuring out why the existing bits wouldn't build
with or work with the upgraded bits. I would not have been successful without
LFS as a solid reference and certainly would have failed with the WWW to
learn about arcane C/C++ syntax changes and other bugs resulting from 'long
step' upgrades.
So if you choose to build a custom distro as your final student project, start
with LFS. You'll learn what's needed to build a GNU/Linux system starting
from source code,and you'll find friendly, useful assistance here in the LFS
supprt list. That'll be half of the battle won. Finishing the distro will be
the other half of the battle. And the third half will entail everything else
you didn't know and weren't warned about in advance. Plan wisely. :)
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