Creation of an operating system based on the Linux kernel. From scratch. Do-it-yourself Windows XP. Creating a Windows distribution for burning iso to a flash drive

All Linux users, starting to get acquainted with this operating system, sooner or later begin to look for a distribution that would suit them to a greater extent. Some people don’t like the package manager, some people have limited settings, some people want pre-installed packages to be only those that the user needs, and not those that the distribution developers have chosen, others want a ready-made Live image or a distribution kit for quick deployment on a fleet of vehicles. Sooner or later, everyone thinks about it - since Linux is so open. Should I try to create the distribution of my dreams myself?

Below I will talk about 8 utilities that will help and facilitate the work of creating your own distribution.

1. Linux Respin

Linux Respin is a fork of the no longer supported Remastersys. A year ago, Remastersys was the most popular tool for creating your own Linux distribution and/or backing up your operating system. Linux Respin doesn't have the same capabilities as Remastersys, but it's still great if you're using one of the distributions it supports. Linux Respin is only available for Debian, Mint and Trisquel, which of course limits its popularity. Another big minus in this tool is the almost complete lack of documentation.

2. Linux Live Kit

Linux Live Kit is another tool that you can use to create your own distribution or create an OS backup. Prefers Debian, but fortunately it works great on other distributions if they provide support for kernel modules and squashfs. Linux Live Kit is a very short and convenient wizard for creating a distribution - just follow the instructions step by step and you will be ready.

3. Ubuntu Imager

Ubuntu Imager is a good tool for creating your own distribution based on Ubuntu. This is not the only such application for Ubuntu, but since it is good, it was impossible not to mention it. I will not dwell in detail on its operation, since there is a FAQ for it with instructions for installation and operation.

4. Linux from Scratch

If you want absolute control over what's included in your distribution and have a lot of time on your hands, you might want to take a look at the Linux from Scratch project. LFS has very extensive documentation and is an excellent educational resource about Linux in general, not just how to create your own distribution. Linux from Scratch allows you to create your own Linux system from source code. LFS isn't quite a tool like the others on this list, but you can still use it for the same purpose - creating your own Linux distribution (and learning a lot about Linux in general).

5. Slax Modules Tool

If you're looking for an easy-to-use tool and you like the lightweight Slax distribution - which is based on Slackware - then you're in luck! Because Slax has an online tool that you can use to select modules that you would like to include in your distribution. I have used this tool many times in the past when I wanted to create a lightweight live system for my friends and it works amazingly. Browse software categories and select the applications you want. Add them to the build. Don't worry if you miss something, as you can always add more applications once the distribution is up and running.

6. Live Magic

Live Magic is another Debian utility for creating a distribution. It can create CD, USB, and network images. It's much easier to use than some of the other apps on this list, such as Remastersys, but it doesn't use your running system as a basis for image creation. Instead, follow the wizard and select your configuration options. The program will pull packages from your repositories and add them to your image.

7. Instalinux

The highlight of Instalinux is that it allows you to create ISO images online. On the site you can choose which distribution yours will be based on (these are CentOS, Debian, Fedora, Mint, OpenSUSE, Scientific, and Ubuntu), which version of the distribution to use and which packages. Instalinux creates a small bootable ISO (average 30mb) which, once downloaded, will begin installation and fetch all other necessary packages from the Internet. This is the most versatile tool on the list, and the web interface is easy to use. However, it will not provide you with a live image with a ready-made desktop environment and desktop.

8. SUSE Studio

For SUSE users, the best choice is SUSE Studio. A bit like Instalinux, SUSE studio allows you to create your own SUSE-based distribution using a web interface. Available to create images for CD, DVD, USB, hard drives, VMware, VirtualBox, and Xen. Before use you will need to create an account - it's easy as it uses Single Sign On and you can quickly register using your Google, Facebook, etc. account. You can choose which version of SUSE will be used as a base, server edition or not, and which desktop environment will be included in the build.

In custody.

I hope these tools for creating your own Linux distribution will help you. Their level of sophistication (and power) varies, but I've tried to include both easy-to-use apps and apps that give you more options. In addition to these applications, many distros have their own tools that have been mentioned here, so if you're using another distro, it's best to first check what tools are available for that distro in particular, and then if you're not happy with what you find, give it a try universal.

During the life of a computer, the user faces many problems. In addition to a virus attack, there may be various system errors and then, in order to eliminate them, you have to reinstall Windows. This is not always easy, since many users do not have a special Windows 7 installation disk. Latest versions of PCs very often do not have optical disc readers. In such cases, the Windows 7 distribution installed on a flash drive can help.

Creating a Windows 7 boot disk

When you turn on your computer for the first time (Windows 7, Windows 8/8.1), the user is prompted to create a CD/DVD to backup the Windows installation, but many simply do not pay attention to this message. Once the moment has passed, creating bootable Windows media can be done using the appropriate software. AOMEI PE Builder is one such third-party tool, it supports not only Windows 7 but also 8/8.1 versions and can make the drive look like Windows PE without installing AIK/ADK. Before downloading the standalone version of AOMEI PE Builder, you must first disable the antivirus on your PC. Steps to create a windows 7 distribution:

1. Download the program from the Internet.
2. Download, install and run.
3. Click the yellow “Next” button to move to the next step.
4. Select the second option: USB Boot Device.
5. Then click “Next”, a prompt window will appear notifying you that the disk will be formatted.
6. Click “OK” to close the message and “Next”.
7. AOMEI PE Builder will begin creating the image.

ISO distribution format

An ISO file is a virtual copy of sector data with the same file structure, like a perfect copy of a photograph that has the colors, shadows and absolutely all the nuances of the original. That's why ISO copies are also called "images". The acronym ISO comes from the name of the organization that created this industry standard. An ISO disk is used to send a copy from one computer to another.

It is a perfect duplicate as it loses nothing when copied or compressed. You can create and mount ISO files for free using special tools, and devices on a flash drive or CD can be bootable instead of a hard drive.

ISO images are often used to distribute large programs over the Internet due to the fact that all of the program's files can be neatly written as a single file.

One example can be seen in the free password recovery tool Ophcrack, which contains an entire operating system and several software products, with all components of the program written into a single file.

Ophcrack is of course not the only program for using an ISO file, so many types of programs are distributed. For example, most bootable antivirus programs use ISOs.

In all of these examples and thousands of others, every single file needed for any tool to run is included in a single ISO image, making the tool very easy to download, burn to disk, or other device.

Windows 10 and earlier versions of Windows 8 and Windows 7 can be purchased directly from Microsoft in ISO format, ready to be extracted to a device or mounted in a virtual machine.

Getting an image from Windows

The creation process will depend on which version of the OS is being installed - 7, 8.1 or 10. Microsoft has them all, including a utility for obtaining bootable media. Before you start the process, you need to have a Windows product key. If the user is not sure of his key, he can obtain a branded Windows product key with the original Windows 7 distribution or by email from Microsoft upon purchase, or recover his key using special software.

There are enough applications on the Internet that will help you find serial keys, however, experts suggest using the free version of KeyFinder Magical Jellybean. Once the installation is complete, it will immediately show the product serial key in the form of text strings or files. It is better to keep this 25-character key labeled CD key in a safe place, because the user will need it again and again. Armed with your product key, you need to go to the software recovery page and follow the instructions. You can get a Windows 7 distribution from the Microsoft e-commerce provider TechRiver:

• 32-bit Ultimate x86.
• 64-bit Ultimate x64.
• 32-bit professional x86.
• 64-bit Professional x64. 3
• 2-bit Home Premium x86.
• 64-bit Home Premium X64.

You can also get images in other languages ​​on Softpedia. The download time will depend on the Internet speed; it can take from several minutes to two hours.

Bootable USB drive

Microsoft offers a free tool for Windows USB / DVD Download Tool for integrating usb 3 0 into the Windows 7 distribution. Image creation algorithm:

1. Open Windows USB/DVD and then “Load”.
2. Open the downloaded executable file Download-Tool-Installer-ru-US.exe and click “Install”.
3. Wait for the installation to complete and confirm “Done”.
4. Download Windows ISO file. It can be obtained from the Microsoft Store, MSDN, or other trusted sources. It works with any OS, since the Windows installation structure has not changed since Windows 7. A shortcut to the program will appear on the desktop to launch.
5. Click "Yes".
6. Click "Browse".
7. Browse your computer, select the ".iso" file and "Open".
8. After selecting the file, confirm “Next”.
9. Select media type.
10. Connect the media type and select it in the download tool.
11. After selecting the media type, confirm “Start Copying”.
12. Clean the disk, if there is information on it, confirm the operation.
13. Windows installation files are now copied to the selected drive.
14. Wait for the integration of usb drivers into the Windows 7 distribution to complete. You will receive a message that the boot device was created successfully.
15. Close the download program and remove the disc from the PC.

Rufus Image Program

There are several useful programs that make bootable USBs. The most popular and simplest is Rufus, which operates in the Russian-language segment. It requires the user to have administrator rights on the PC. Creation order:

1. Before integrating drivers into the Windows 7 distribution, you need to select the run as administrator option.
2. Select a specific USB in the “Device” field that has at least 4 GB.
3. The following four areas will automatically sort the selected ISO file.
4. Make sure the Quick Format or Create with Shortcut Extensions box is checked.
5. Next to the “Create” label, use the drop-down list to select an image.
6. To get started, click “Start”.
7. The process of creating a Windows 7 distribution on USB will take some time, which depends on the power of the PC.

Rufus not only makes a bootable flash drive, but also writes several gigabytes of data to a USB drive. Depending on various hardware factors, this will take about 10 minutes. Once the process is completed, the user will have a bootable USB.

Disk Utility Loader

You can choose from a wide range of third-party software solutions to help make the job of creating a bootable disk easier. One of the programs mentioned above is Disk Utility. This utility cannot function properly unless it is provided with a supported USB drive and Internet connection.

The process of creating a wWndows 7 distribution:

1. Choose File > Blank Image.
2. Enter a name, tags and select a location, which will be determined on the PC after opening.
3. In the “Size” tab, fill in the required value.
4. Select "Format". For use with Windows or Mac with a capacity not exceeding 32 GB, choose MS-DOS, for larger ones - ExFAT.
5. Click the “Encryption” pop-up tab and select an option.
6. Click "Sections" and select a layout.
7. Click “Format” and select the required option.
8. The wizard will change it to 178 MB Using .cdr.
9. Click “Save” and “Finish”.

Creating a safe disk image

You can use CDBurnerXP to burn your bootable DVD. When you open it, you will see several options in the first window. Each parameter works as a setup wizard.

Algorithm for creating a Windows 7 (64) distribution:

• Select the required task and the program itself will guide you through all stages of formation.
• Select Burn ISO Image, then click OK.
• Make sure the DVD is installed on your computer. Select the DVD burner will burn the ISO file. There is likely only one, so it will be pre-selected.
• If you have more than one CD/DVD burner installed on your computer, apply the "Target Device" drop-down menu, select which one to use, and then the program may make minor adjustments depending on the CD/DVD burner you select.
• Click the "Browse" button and navigate to the ISO file. When it is found, double click on it.
• Click the "Burn Disc" button, a progress window will appear, once completed a message will appear indicating how long the burn took and the average bit rate.

Free Windows Installation Tools

Advanced users always have several free tools available in their software arsenal to customize Windows 7, from installation to User Account Control (UAC). Integration into the Windows 7 distribution is carried out using free tools. They allow you to create a silent installation, add/remove your own Windows programs, integrate drivers, customize the registry, attach new themes and much more.

This collection offers five free tools for setting up and installing the Windows 7 professional distribution. To run these tools, you must install the Windows Automated Installation Kit:

• VLite, although it was designed for Windows Vista, you can use it for Windows 7. The tool allows you to create a silent installation of Windows 7, integrate patch, language packs and drivers, customize Windows settings and create a bootable ISO.
• RT Seven Lite is a tool specially designed for integration into Windows 7 distribution. This tool contains more features compared to other tools. The Customize tab has several sections that allow you to add new themes, gadgets, screensavers, desktop backgrounds, icons, OEM logos, and more.
• 7 Customizer is a simple tool for customizing and creating a silent installation of Windows 7.
• Se7en Unattended – The program is capable of disabling services, enabling add-ons, adding third-party applications, adding Windows updates, integrating drivers and adding other settings to create a custom ISO 7 Windows.
• Win Integrator - This tool is almost similar to vLite. In addition to the above, you can enable or disable one or more Windows features. Overall, a good tool with a simple user interface.

Installing updates on the media

Slipstreaming is a method used to include various Windows 7 update distributions in the installation media, and it also works with other operating systems. Typically, after a clean installation of Windows on a computer, one of the first things a user does is install updates known as Windows Updates. To do this, your computer must be connected to the Internet, check for updates, download, install, and perform the necessary reboots. This process will take a long time, especially if you have an earlier version of Windows installed.

This is where a useful procedure is needed - slipstreaming, which is not very well known to most users. It allows you to integrate all updates into a Windows ISO image that will be used for the installation process. All updates are downloaded only once and during the installation of the operating system, they will be automatically installed on the system and no time will be wasted in downloading updates to any computer.

Luckily, there are a number of third-party applications designed to make slipstreaming easier for anyone without using the command line. In fact, with such an application, the ISO is customized by choice, adding all new updates, as well as drivers to the Windows 7 distribution, programs and operating system settings, or removing elements that are not needed. This can be done simply and effortlessly using a free application such as NTLite.

Slipstream drivers

The slide drives (slipstream) included with Windows installation make it easy. Most modern SATA and RAID controllers require certain Windows drivers to see and use the hard drive, and most newer computers that don't have a floppy drive are unable to use a connected USB port. Therefore, this method leaves the only option for the user to add the correct driver using slipstream technology.

NTLite is designed to make life easier by allowing you to slipstream for free using a very simple and user-friendly interface. Although the basic version of the program is free, there are several paid versions with additional features. The main advantage of NTLite over similar applications of this kind is its compatibility with all new versions of Windows. It is constantly updated to support even Insider versions of Windows 10. Of course, it is not suitable for older OS versions such as XP or Vista.

In order to start the installation, you need to go to the download page on the official website. There are two versions: stable and beta. It is recommended to download the stable version. Once the download is complete, launch the program and follow the instructions.

The installation process is quite simple:

1. When you first launch the program, you will be asked to select the license type to use.
2. Select "Free" (restricted, non-commercial) and click "OK". To load an ISO into NTLite, click the "Add" button located on the toolbar and select the appropriate folder containing the previously extracted files, or simply drag it into the program.
3. Immediately after downloading the ISO, the Image History section will list all the Windows that can be installed by that ISO.
4. Select the edition you want to apply to your custom installation, click the Download button, and click OK in the pop-up window that opens.
5. The download process will begin.

You can check its status next to the selected version of Windows. This may take a couple of minutes. Once the download is complete, several options will appear on the left side of the window. From there you can configure everything for your custom ISO. Next, perform Windows updates. After OS updates are downloaded:

1. Go to the “Updates” tab, click “Add” and select “Folder” and “Folders with subfolders”.
2. Find the folder where updates are stored.
3. Integration of drivers into the Windows 7 distribution is performed on the “Drivers” tab. They must be downloaded first.
4. Add them to one folder, click the "Add" button on the NTLite toolbar and find that folder.
5. Perform a silent installation without supervision; this feature is disabled by default.
6. Go to the "Automatic" navigation menu and check the box located in the upper left corner.
7. Add a local account by clicking the corresponding button on the toolbar, and in the window that appears, enter your data and click “OK”.
8. In the same way, you can enter data for your local network by clicking the “Join network” button.
9. Add third-party applications, go to “Post-installation”, click “Add” and find the .exe file of your choice.
10. Create a new Windows ISO, go to the “Apply” tab.
11. Check the “Create ISO” button.
12. A dialog box will then appear asking you to select the destination directory where you want to save the ISO file, its file name, and the ISO label.
13. Click the “Process” button on the toolbar. From this point on, the process becomes automatic, so you need to wait a few minutes to complete the integration of the drivers into the Windows 7 distribution, depending on the changes made, after which the ISO will be ready for use.

That's all. Walked through the process from getting the ISO version of Windows, purchasing software to create a bootable USB flash drive and how to use it, and using one particular utility to create a bootable DVD from Windows ISO.

Before making your assembly, you must determine the purpose and objectives of your creation. Otherwise, the assembly may not receive its purpose in this world and remain little known. So, the goals and objectives are defined and you decide to build your system.
To begin, you must either install an operating system in Virtualbox (or another virtual machine) or on your computer with all the settings, with all the programs that you consider necessary to have in your build.
Now that everything is configured and installed, we will create our own assembly. To do this, we first need free space on the partition with the folder /home at least 6 GB.
There are several tools available to create an assembly. We will talk about Remastersys, which allows even a not very advanced user to create a complete assembly.
All steps below are described for Ubuntu, but are suitable for all Debian compatible distributions.

1. INSTALLATION

To install Remastersys you need to download and install manually, for example, through the gdebi program, 2 packages: remastersys_3.0.x-2_all.deb And remastersys-gtk_3.0.x-2_all.deb
For Ubuntu 10.04 - 14.04 download from here
For Ubuntu 16.04 - 17.04 download from here
For Ubuntu 17.10 download from here
For Ubuntu 18.04 download from here

2. FIRST STEPS

Launch System ⇒ Administration ⇒ Remastersys (I use Mate 1.6. The location may differ with other desktops). We see this window:

Briefly about the main buttons:
Backup- a complete backup of the installed system, including user data and settings. All files are saved in the home directories of system users.
Dist- a backup copy of the installed system only, WITHOUT user data. The best option for creating a system assembly. The boot disk structure and disk image (iso) are created.
Distcdfs- the same as Dist, but the structure of the boot disk is created without creating a disk image (iso).
Distiso- creates a disk image (iso), provided the structure of the boot disk is ready. Applies only after Dist or Distcdfs.
Clear- clear the temporary program folder. Used to clean out a folder before creating a new image.

Go to the Settings tab:


Here we see the parameters of our future assembly. Let's look at the essentials.
Username- default username when logging into LiveCD.
CD Label- disc label. The title is displayed when the disc is loaded into the CD drive. Limit 32 characters, including spaces.
Filename- file name of the created image.
We won't touch the rest for now.
So let's ask:
- The username in the Username line, let's say alex;
- Let’s come up with a name for our assembly and write it in the CD Label, for example, AlexBuntu;
- In the Filename line, write the name of the assembly file, AlexBuntu-12.04-x32.iso.
It should look like this:


Check mark in the line Show install icon on Backup mode desktop creates an installation icon for your system on the desktop. The option works on all major desktops.

Now go to the Actions tab:

Press the Dist button. A window will appear:


Click OK. A window will appear:


That’s it, now you can calmly and slowly drink tea or coffee. After 15 - 60 minutes (it all depends on the power of the PC) a message will appear:


Congratulations on your first build!
The build file is located at and has the name that you gave to your assembly. In my case this is the file AlexBuntu-12.04-x32.iso. In the same folder there is also a text file of the image checksum with the md5 extension, in my case the file AlexBuntu-12.04-x32.iso.md5.
Now you can burn your assembly to disk and enjoy your creation. You may have to enter the username that was selected when creating the image when logging in from the LiveCD, in my case it was alex. Leave the password blank.

3. ADVANCED FEATURES

Many will be satisfied with the chapters described above. If you're still reading, then you really want to learn the ins and outs of creating a near-professional build.
First of all, let's touch on the tab Settings and consider the remaining required lines.
Working directory- working folder of the program. You can reassign it to any place and to any section.
Well, the most important line of settings Squashfs options.
Remastersys uses the capabilities of SquashFS to create the distribution. To understand the full meaning of this line, I offer you a Russian-language blog, which perfectly describes the whole meaning of this powerful tool.
After studying all the possibilities, we will add to our line Squashfs options the following options: -comp xz.
The line should look like:

This option sets the compression algorithm xz instead of gzip by default, which will compress our assembly about 20-25% better. This option is available from version squashfs 4.2 and, for example, in Ubuntu 10.04 it is not available. Ubuntu 12.04 has the required version 4.2 of squashfs installed.
To check if this option is available, type in a terminal mksquashfs. If you see something similar to the following:

mksquashfs
SYNTAX:mksquashfs source1 source2 … dest [-e list of exclude dirs/files]

Filesystem build options:
-comp select compression
Compressors available:
gzip (default)
lzo
xz

then everything is ok and use the option -comp xz you can safely.

From version 3.06 enable compression xz instead of gzip replaced by on/off. checkbox

4. BOOT MENU

By default, Remastersys creates a boot build menu that is quite boring and monotonous. The only good thing is that the menu is quite functional. I've been looking for a long time for a simple way to include my menu without rebuilding the entire image. All further actions were not intended by the authors of Remastersys and are kind of my tricks and workarounds that I have been working towards for several months through various experiments. Therefore, this section does not claim to be the correct instructions for Remastersys.
So. This is the boot menu we have in the standard installation:


This is the menu you can get after some manipulations:


This boot menu is used in one of my builds. As you can see, the picture has been changed and the menu has been Russified. Among other things, I removed the distribution name from the menu and wrote it in GIMPe in bright colors. Now we will start replacing the picture and Russifying the menu. To do this, we will need to pay attention to the contents of the files in the folder /home/remastersys/remastersys:


Here we are interested in the ISOTMP folder. This folder stores temporary files for the Remastersys program. This is what we will use. Let's go to this folder:


The structure of this folder is very similar to the structure of the disk image. The only thing missing is the .disk folder. The isolinux folder stores the boot menu files. Let's go into it:


Let's look at the boot menu files:
splash.png- background image. Image size 640x480 dpi.
isolinux.cfg- boot menu configuration file.
vesamenu.c32, isolinux.bin- system files.
Feel free to change the background of the boot menu to your own. The file type and name should remain the same. The image size must be 640x480 dpi.
Next, I posted a listing of the edited configuration file isolinux.cfg. The standard Remastersys configuration file is used as a basis. I tried to write comments to the lines as clearly as possible. Almost all the information on the Internet is in English and very brief, so I spent a lot of time experimenting to find out what works and how.

Default vesamenu.c32 prompt 0 timeout 100 font cyr_a8x16.psf # Boot menu background menu background splash.png # The color has the first two transparency registers value from 0 (transparent) to 255 (opaque) in HEX. # The remaining 6 digits are the color in HEX mode (the color code can be taken from GIMPA). First, write the color of the letters, then the background, then 3 shadow modes (none, std, all) # Title color menu color title * #ff00923F #00000000 none # Color of the menu border (border) menu color border * #00000000 #00000000 none # Color of the selected one menu lines menu color sel * #7ffffff #00000000 none # Color of the unselected menu line menu color unsel * #ffC4613B #00000000 none # Color of the inactive line (disabled but displayed on the screen) menu color disabled * #ffC4613B #00000000 none # Color of the tabmsg line located under the menu (labeled Press ENTER to load or TAB to edit the menu) menu color tabmsg * #ffCC623E #00000000 none # Line color timeout (labeled Automatic loading will begin in) menu color timeout_msg * #ffCC623E #00000000 none #Indent from the top, lines menu vshift 1 #Number of menu lines menu rows 6 # Row position tabmsg menu tabmsgrow 11 # Row position timeout menu timeoutrow 12 menu AUTOBOOT Automatic loading will start in # sec menu tabmsg Press ENTER to load or TAB to edit menu menu cmdlinerow 11 #Menu width , number of characters menu width 80 #Indentation of characters to the left of the edge (like tabs) menu margin 12 #menu title Ubuntu 12.04 Desktop Mate 1.6 label live # menu label live - boot the Live System menu label Boot the system from the LiveDVD disk kernel /casper/vmlinuz append file=/cdrom/preseed/custom.seed boot=casper initrd=/casper/initrd.gz quiet splash -- label install menu label Install Ubuntu 12.04 LTS Mate 1.6 kernel /casper/vmlinuz append file=/cdrom/preseed/custom .seed boot=casper only-ubiquity initrd=/casper/initrd.gz quiet splash -- # Make the menu bar inactive # menu disable label check menu label Check the disk for errors kernel /casper/vmlinuz append boot=casper integrity-check initrd =/casper/initrd.gz quiet splash -- label memtest menu label Test kernel memory /install/memtest append - label hd menu label Boot from first hard drive\\ localboot 0x80

File encoding isolinux.cfg must be CP 866. Can be saved and edited in Cooledit (Midnight Commandera text editor), in OpenOffice, etc. Take my edited file isolinux.cfg Can .
In addition, you need to put fonts that support Russian in the isolinux folder. You can get it from here.
The folder should look like this:


Check file permissions should be the following for all 5 files:


Now all preparations are completed. Launch Remastersys:

Press the button Distiso. The process of rebuilding the image will go much faster, only 1 - 5 minutes, because the main system files will not be rebuilt. The output will be the same image and checksum files, but with your unique beautiful menu.

5. CLEANING THE ASSEMBLY FROM "EXTRA"

First of all, let me clarify that we are not talking about deleting applications from the assembly, but about deleting temporary files from the cache, of which there are a great many of hundreds of megabytes.
Before cleaning the system, install the package ubiquity-frontend-gtk.
First of all, we will use standard system cleaning tools. Open a terminal and write:

Sudo apt-get autoremove sudo apt-get clean

The first command will automatically remove all unused packages.
The second command will delete the downloaded package files in the archive.

Now let's use the program Synaptic and remove all unnecessary settings left after the deleted packages. Open Synaptic. In the window that opens, select the “State” filter group at the bottom.
Select the filter “Not installed (settings files remain)”, select all packages included in this filter. Right-click on the selected one, select “mark for complete deletion” in the menu and click “Apply”.


Here in this group of filters, remove packages under the “Installed (auto-deleted)” filter
If the “Not installed (settings files left)” and “Installed (auto deleted)” filters are missing, then the system has already been cleaned and nothing falls under these filters.

The next cleaning tool is the program BleachBit from the standard repository. The program interface is in Russian, very easy to understand what you will do. There is also a Preview button before cleaning, which will show you what will be deleted and allow you to make changes before deleting. The program very effectively cleans the system of unnecessary files, and also knows how to delete unused language files. In my build, the program deleted about 300 MB.

After deleting the language files, I recommend reinstalling the package locales, otherwise there will be problems when installing language packs in the assembly. Reinstallation will return only locale settings with the ability to install other languages. No language packs will be downloaded.

The next step is to clear the program cache. There is a folder in the root of the system /var. In it, programs leave their temporary files that are needed for the time being. Next I will list folders in which you can delete all files without causing harm to the system, and thereby reduce the size of the assembly.

From version 3.06 and above temporary files are deleted automatically

/var/backups
/var/cache/apt/- do not delete the archives folder
/var/cache/apt/archives
/var/cache/apt-xapian-index
/var/cache/flashplugin-installer
/var/crash
/var/lib/apt/lists- do not delete the partial folder and the lock file
/var/lib/update-notifer/- do not delete the package-data-downloads and user.d folders
/var/lib/update-notifer/package-data-downloads- do not delete the partial folder and the lock file
/var/lib/update-notifer/user.d - It is necessary to delete all files, otherwise it displays an error window
/var/tmp

At the beginning of installation, Remastersys copies the contents of the /var folder to its temporary folder , from where it then includes files in the assembly. Considering that after copying Remastersys still carries out preparatory operations, we have about 5 minutes to remove unnecessary things from the folder /home/remastersys/remastersys/dummysys/var. Moreover, even if we deleted from the folder /var/cache/apt files, they are still created and copied to the folder /home/remastersys/remastersys/dummysys/var/cache/apt, making the assembly heavier.
In these same 5 minutes you have the opportunity to clean the folder /root. Leave in it only those files that are in the folder /etc/skel and the Desktop folder.

New user settings are stored in the folder /etc/skel. If you want all users to have some identical settings other than the default (default), then copy the necessary files from your folder /home/[your login username] to this folder, not forgetting to change the rights from yours to root rights. There is no need to copy everything there; this can lead to certain conflicts. Usually for each program there are 2-3 settings files. Remember, the less you copy there, the more professional the assembly will be and the fewer problems users will have.

Launchers for all users can be edited, added, deleted better in the folder /etc/xdg/autostart without clogging up the folder /etc/skel

If you want to make an assembly with a desktop different from that available in the distribution, then it is better to use a minimal assembly without a graphical environment, which includes the kernel and the bare minimum of packages, which allows you to run the system in console mode. And on top of this system, install the necessary packages and make the necessary settings. This method has fewer errors than if you take a ready-made complete assembly and try to cut out unnecessary things from it.
Here are all possible mini.iso for Ubuntu from release 12.04 to 16.04 https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Installation/MinimalCD

Good luck! And let the world know your creations!

If you decide to start distributing your programs, then you cannot do without an installation distribution. Nowadays, almost all programs have an installer, usually called Setup.exe. In this article we will look at an example of how to build an installer for an Access application and look at some features that you need to know.

As mentioned earlier, Access does not allow you to make an executable file that can run without Access. But at the same time, Microsoft suggests using the package to solve the problem Microsoft Office Developer, which includes a license to distribute the program Microsoft Access runtime. I will dwell on this in more detail.

Microsoft Access runtime is a version of Access that allows users to run, but not modify, an Access application. It only makes sense to install Microsoft Access runtime instead of the full version if you need licensing integrity, and the client running your database does not have an Access license. In this case you will have to buy ODE (Office Developer Edition). Then, along with its purchase, you receive some additional tools and most importantly RIGHT install for clients, along with the database you developed, also the Run-time version of Access. In this case, there will be no claims against the client regarding illegal use of Access. Otherwise, each client needs to buy an MS AAccess license.

The ODE package includes a "distribution creator" that includes your MDB and Run-time version in the distribution. All the libraries necessary for creating Run-time are already included in the full version of Access (even without ODE). But there is one BUT (this is for those who are concerned about licensing “cheat”):

If you do not buy it officially, then clients will still not have the right to use even the Run-time version.

The following thought may arise: What if you find out what files Access needs to work and include them in the installation distribution? It is possible, but this does not solve the problem with the license. In addition, you will have to create a rather complex installation program with checking the existing components and installing/registering the missing ones. Moreover, in the latter case, it is possible to even destroy the system if performed ineptly.

In general, if we consider real situations with the sale of applications on Access, then only a few developers (we are talking about Russia) actually buy license packages. As a rule, these are those for whom “at a certain level of business development, the question of whether to buy or not to buy loses its relevance” - or, more simply, who can afford to buy a license package for $600 - $1000. It’s interesting to then listen to them swear on forums about the operation of such programs. As far as I understand, there are the same “jambs” as in the pirated versions. Therefore, I will not urge you to use only free or pirated versions of Office for your programs, but I would not recommend using a licensed one either (see above).

Interestingly, the full version of Access can be launched in runtime mode by specifying the /runtime switch on the command line. For example, create a shortcut on the desktop, right-click on it, in the dialog box that appears in the object field, write something like this: (this is for Office 2000 - XP, but for 2003 you will need to fix it instead of Office10 - Office11)

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office10\MSACCESS.EXE" "D:\Bases\My Database.mdb"/runtime

and in the “Working folder” field:

Now let's launch the application through this shortcut. The Access project window will open, but the Access shortcut and standard toolbars will no longer be there. This is runtime mode.

For first-time developers, distributing Access applications through the Microsoft Office Developer suite may not be an option. After all, it costs money, and not little. We'll look at another method, using a free installer Inno Setup. Of course, there are others that are paid, for example InstallShield, and free installers. They differ in ease of use and the size of the distribution kit created.

Inno Setup- a freely distributed installer for Windows programs. English versions appeared back in 1997, now Inno Setup is translated into several languages, and installers can be created in more than 20 languages. Inno Setup is superior to many commercial installers in terms of features, stability, and size of the files it creates.

Main characteristics:

• the program can compare file version information
• move used files
• register DLL/OCX/FNT/TLB and standard libraries
• install fonts
• checks whether certain programs are active
• creating shortcuts for quick access (for example, through the start menu or on the desktop)
• writing to ini files
• built-in machine for writing scripts in Pascal language
• supports multilingual installation
• installation and uninstallation by default
• all code is available (Borland Delphi 2.0-5.0)
• password protection for setup
• in case of cancellation during execution, all actions will be returned to their original state
• supports all 32-bit versions of Windows (95, 98, 2000, 2003, XP, Me, NT 4.0)
• creates the creation of one exe file, which greatly simplifies the installation process of your program
• standard Windows 2000/XP interface
• user-centric (e.g. full, minimal, custom)
• all uninstallation tools
• file installation: built-in support for "deflate", bzip2, 7-zip LZMA compression files

Also, starting from version 2.0.6, Inno Setup includes full support for MBCS. Earlier versions do not include this last property. But it does not support Web installation.

The peculiarity of creating an installer in Inno Setup is that installers are created using scripts - simple ASCII text files reminiscent of .INI files. Scripts are easier to edit than, for example, working with the Installshield interface. Scripts have the extension ".iss" (inno setup script). It specifies all the installer parameters, and during installation, the program associates itself with these files. The script is divided into sections, the names of which are written in square brackets. Within sections there are keywords and instructions that the compiler can read and execute.

Comments begin with a semicolon at the beginning of a line and can be placed anywhere in the script. Comments in a block are not possible, as is placing a comment in the middle of a line. The latter is allowed by the compiler, but subsequently, when executed, leads to an error.

; -- Sample1.iss --
; Demonstrates copying 3 files and creating an icon.

The order of the sections does not matter. All of them (except ) are arbitrary. A keyword is assigned a value using an equal sign (=).

Hints consist of one or more parameters and their options, as well as flags flags. The parameter, in turn, consists of a name followed by a colon : and meanings. Parameters, options and flags are separated from each other by semicolons ;

Let's briefly look at the main sections:

Inno Setup works inside a script with various predefined constants, which usually contain paths. Writing method: (Name). Some constants such as (app) and (group) can/should be predefined by the user. Anyone who wants to define the constants themselves should turn to Alex Yackimoff's preprocessor.

Here are the main Inno Setup constants:

So, let's look at the problems that need to be solved (we'll define only the minimal ones). Our installer should do the following:

Unzip files to required locations
Create a folder in the program directory (folder “Cop” - for storing database backups)
Create an application launch menu in Start - All Programs, as well as an icon on the desktop

This is the required minimum. But, of course, this is not all the possibilities of Inno Setup. It’s not for nothing that many developers use it. But in this article I will limit myself to only this; those who want to study the program’s capabilities in more depth can refer to the help system. There are many links on the Internet both to the program and to translations of the help. For example, Inno Setup 5.1.6. and the help for it you can download here... English website of the program http://www.innosetup.com

First, try experimenting by creating an installer using the wizard, and then studying the structure of the resulting script. In principle, I think there is no need to describe in detail what to press where. Inno Setup is so easy to learn that it can be learned without any problems, which is called the “scientific poking method”. Here, for example, is an installer script that performs previously defined tasks (all distribution files are located in the D:\Setup directory.)

AppName=My program
AppVerName=My program. Version 1.0.
AppPublisher=MyProgram, Inc.
AppPublisherURL=http://MyMySoft.ru/
AppSupportURL=http://MyMySoft.ru/
AppUpdatesURL=http://MyMySoft.ru/
DefaultDirName=(pf)\MyProgram
DisableDirPage=no
DefaultGroupName=My program
DisableProgramGroupPage=yes
LicenseFile=D:\Setup\license.txt
InfoAfterFile=D:\Setup\readme.txt
AlwaysCreateUninstallIcon=yes

Name: "desktopicon"; Description: "Create a shortcut on &Desktop"; GroupDescription: "More shortcuts:"

Source: "D:\Setup\Server.mdb"; DestDir: "(app)"; DestName: "Server.mdb";
Source: "D:\Setup\license.txt"; DestDir: "(app)";
Source: "D:\Setup\readme.txt"; DestDir: "(app)";
Source: "D:\Setup\Log.JPG"; DestDir: "(app)";
Source: "D:\Setup\Log.ico"; DestDir: "(app)";
Source: "D:\Setup\Base.mdb"; DestDir: "(app)";

Filename: "(app)\MyProg.url"; Section: "InternetShortcut"; Key: "URL"; String: "http://MyMySoft.ru/"

Name: "(app)\Cop"

Name: "(group)\My program"; Filename: "(app)\Base.mdb" ;WorkingDir: "(app)";IconFilename:(app)\Log.ico
Name: "(group)\Program website"; Filename: "(app)\MyProg.url"
Name: "(userdesktop)\My program"; Filename: "(app)\Base.mdb" ;WorkingDir: "(app)"; IconFilename:(app)\Log.ico;Tasks: desktopicon

You can download an example of how it all works below.

• Contact "Interface" for additional information/on purchasing products

Downloads

For those who have mastered the first part - assembling the main part of the operating system - there is a second part called Beyond Linux From Scratch (BLFS). Among the disadvantages of this method, one can note, perhaps, only the amount of time it takes.

simple-cdd

A much less severe means of building your own distribution based on Debian. Allows you to quickly assemble your installation image, which includes the necessary set of packages. There is an official page on the Debian wiki, but it seems to be quite old and has not been updated for a long time. This is one of the easiest and fastest ways to build your distribution image, but you will have to first read the official How-To and look at the manuals page.

SUSE Studio

One of the easiest ways to build your own operating system based on the Linux kernel and free software. To be more precise, this is an opportunity to build your own descendant of OpenSUSE or SUSE Linux Enterprise. To build your own distribution, you just need to register on the website http://susestudio.com. 15 gigabytes are provided for storing images. Briefly, building your distribution looks like this:

• Register on the website http://susestudio.com
• Select the initial operating system configuration
• Modify it
• If necessary, download the necessary packages with your applications
• Create an image

I won’t go into more detail; everything on the website is very simple and clear. SUSE Studio allows you to create the following types of images:

• Image for USB flash drive
• Live CD
• Installation ISO image
• Virtual machine disk image in .vmdk format
• A virtual machine image in OVF format that is imported into the hypervisor
• Guest image for Xen (.img)
• Disk image for Hyper-V (.vhd)
• Image for SUSE Cloud / OpenStack / KVM (.qcow2)

In addition, the site has a gallery of ready-made operating systems, where you can select a ready-made configuration and change it.

Ubuntu Builder

A program for building a distribution based on Ubuntu. Actually, you will get a regular Ubuntu with the required configuration. The project closed on March 10, 2014, so it is difficult to recommend it for use. If you want to get acquainted with it, you can do so. There is also a command for connecting a repository from which you can install the ubuntu-builder package. If you didn't notice, here it is:

Add-apt-repository ppa:f-muriana/ubuntu-builder

In general, this was a fairly well-known project at the time. It's a shame it closed.

Novo Builder

Another program for building a distribution that needs to be installed. It is installed using a script that you can take. The script itself will add the repository and install the packages. This is perhaps the best program currently for building a Ubuntu-based distribution in terms of ease of use. And there’s not much more to tell, just put it on and watch. Everything is intuitive.

In general, if you want to put together your own special distribution, there are enough resources, you need to try, see what suits you best and what is more interesting. If you know another way to build your operating system, share it in the comments