Re: [Xen-users] Alpine Linux Xen Dom0 LiveCD

Joseph Glanville
Wed, 23 May 2012 19:25:43 -0000

On 18 May 2012 20:33, Roger Pau Monne <roger.pau@citrix.com>
wrote:
> Hello,
>
> Alpine Linux has just released a Xen Dom0 LiveCD that contains a Linux
> Kernel 3.3.6 with PaX and grsec patches and Xen 4.1.2 with the CVE fixes.
> This LiveCD doesn''t include any kind of X11 desktop, as it is
intended for
> server use only.
>
> The LiveCD is part of the Alpine Linux distribution, and will be updated
> every time there is an Alpine Linux release, ensuring that the users always
> get the latest versions of the software.
>
> For those of you that don''t know what Alpine Linux has to offer,
here''s a
> little extract from the Alpine Linux webpage:
>
> Alpine Linux was designed with security in mind. It has proactive security
> features, such as PaX and SSP, that prevent security holes from being
> exploited.
>
> Alpine Linux uses the uClibc C library and all of the base tools from
> BusyBox. These are normally found on embedded systems and are smaller than
> the tools found on GNU/Linux systems.
>
> The traditional GNU/Linux base system is over 100MB in size (excluding the
> kernel), while the base system in Alpine Linux is only 4-5MB in size
> (excluding the kernel).
>
> It''s great for experimenting: Since the system configuration can
be backed
> up to a single file, you will be able to test configurations before
> deploying them to production systems.
>
> (You can find much more information on the Alpine Linux web page:
> http://alpinelinux.org/about)
>
> Also, Alpine Linux has the option to run from RAM, even when installed to a
> HDD or USB, allowing the user to save it''s changes on a USB,
floppy or other
> medium which then gets read at boot to leave the system as it was before
the
> reboot. This is specially interesting for Xen Dom0, since it allows to have
> the whole system on RAM, which is immune to HDD crashes (you could have
> access to your Dom0 even after and HDD crash) and doesn''t consume
I/O
> resources.
>
> This is still the first and experimental release of this LiveCD, so I would
> like to encourage Xen users to test it, and report back with the results.
>
> The LiveCD can be found at: http://alpinelinux.org/downloads
>
> Regards, Roger.
>
> _______________________________________________
> Xen-users mailing list
> Xen-users@lists.xen.org
> http://lists.xen.org/xen-users

Awesome! Alpine Linux is great for lightweight systems. :)

I am in the final stages of preparing a Ubuntu Linux based Dom0 LiveCD/USB.
I should have it ready sometime this week hopefully, $dayjob has been
getting in the way.

Joseph.

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