Getting OpenBSD
Hello,
I went to the OpenBSD site, and to my surprise there is no single ISO available to download. All there are are individual packages and such. I have looked at the documentation, but I have only managed to determine that is required is one like cdemu.iso (or another boot disk like that) - but at best that is only 2-4 MB, obviously not the whole system - only enough to boot the system. What else do I need? Why do they not provide a complete ISO system? Is OpenBSD worth the effort? |
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They give you more than enough on the ftp sites to build your own ISO if you want one. But there really is no need. Installation is so easy that burning a CD is often a waste.
The "ease" of a CD install is mostly relevant if you have a very slow connection. |
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I think it is unfair having to pay for trying OpenBSD, it may well not recognise all your hardware or not be what you need, and the only way of knowing is testing it, and if you order the CD's and then you only use one day it does not really seem fair to me.
You can download the latest OpenBSD iso here: http://ftp.giga.net.tw/#openbsd The isos have been slightly modified so that they do not infringe the OpenBSD developer copyright on the layout. Now if you use the system and like it, you can always make a donation. |
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Quite right, unfortunately everyone who has internet access 24/7 assumes that others have it too and that dial up does not exist anymore.
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You know, the world isn't being fair to OpenBSD either. Plenty of companies use their work (such as OpenSSH) and don't pay a cent. I can understand that they want to have some kind of income for their excellent work. And with so many excellent things being free, such as FreeBSD which you seem to be using, I don't think you really have a reason to complain.
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Hello,
I tried getting OpenBSD through EDK2 and after a long download, I burned it to disc and booted up my system and it just wouldn't boot. I also have never had to much luck trying to install via FTP. So the best way to obtain it seems to be to buy the CD/DVD from the project themselves. But for those who really like OpenBSD and need its features, I don't think that fifty dollars is alot to pay for the fine work these developers do. Remember, they have families to feed to. This is fine, but I have FreeBSD and NetBSD up and running - and I don't really have any free partitions and no free primary partitions, so I guess I won't be using OpenBSD for the time being. |
Or you could just download the files and make your own bootable iso. It's pretty simple to make and they provide all the bits you need. And most CD burning programs have support to take a tree and make it a bootable iso (just point to the image that is bootable in it).
Just grab all the sets and the install stuff. Here we go... a complete transcript to making a bootable CD on *nix for it. Code:
# cd /tmp Edit: I assume /tmp is large enough to hold this. If not, you may do it anywhere that is. Edit#2: Naturally, grab more stuff if you want it and get the architecture you want. Windows is capable of this as well but I don't know the utilities at all, let alone well enough to suggest a methodology. |
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I withdraw my complain, I now believe it is absolutly fair to charge people $50 for testing OpenBSD. Sorry about that. |
The whole point of OpenBSD is that you're getting a reliable OS. Downloading prepared ISOs from unofficial sites means you have no idea what you're getting. Why would anyone do that?
Frob gave all the info you need to burn a complete bootable CD. > Is OpenBSD worth the effort? There's so little effort required it's hard to understand the question. :p Once you get past the disklabel step (which is necessary for all BSD variants) the OpenBSD is one of the simplest installs you will ever see. Certainly much simpler than FreeBSD's installation. btw you don't need an ISO except for the kernel and installer (actually you don't need even that, you can PXE boot). Like some of the guys said you can do an ftp install (great if you have a fast connection) or you can even download all the installation packages to a USB stick and mount it from the shell during the installation (I've done that a few times) or burn another CD with the packages on it or use an NFS share with the packages on it. Choices, choices, choices! Ain't life grand? |
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I agree with rocket's appraisal of OpenBSD as a desktop. Things work, it's a very nice and lean/clean system. If you want current packages or a lot of variety it's not for you, but if you want something trustworthy it can be a usable desktop.
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