Hi, this is my first post on this forum. I want to know that what's the difference between DVD and Live CD version of Fedora aside from bigger size and ability to select programs to install? If I use DVD image to install Fedora, do I have to also download large amount of updates after the installation like the live CD installation? Thanks.

That's pretty much it. The CD is an image-based install - which means it basically copies itself as a whole, hence the lack of customization options - and the DVD is a traditional installer that provides more packages on disc and lets you play with them. Personally, I always prefer the DVD.

You'll have to download updates either way, as the ISOs aren't rebuilt with every package upgrade. That would be thousands of hours of work, not to mention very silly.

Not exactly karamarisan, the live CD will boot up into a fully functional system complete with a bunch of apps without doing anything to your hard drive. If you like it, you can then install from that CD, but only a few of the packages are on it due to size constraints. If you want other packages, you can install them later quite easily. The install DVD has all of the available packages on it. However, it isn't going to boot into a functioning system, it is going to boot into an installer that will install Fedora on your hard drive.

Both the live CD and the DVD will need to be updated after your install as they came with the software versions available at the time they were created and bugs have been fixed since then. If you just want to install, you probably want the DVD. If you want to test things out and see if you like it first, you want the live CD.

HTH

Forrest

Um, I know. I assumed he understood the 'live' distinction since he has clearly used at least the live CD and probably both, given his post.

I don't think so. Try booting the install DVD and selecting Fedora and Updates in addition to the DVD repo - you get a ton more package groups to work with, IIRC.

Incidentally, OP, doing that may allow you to avoid the massive post-install upgrade.

Sorry, I was going with the assumption that he hadn't downloaded anything yet and was asking which he should get. Now, see what happens when we assume .

Forrest

Thanks everyone for the answers. Actually, I'm already running Fedora on my main laptop, although I use Live CD to install it. I also used Live CD to install Fedora on my laptop three times because of different issues for the driver. My big concern is that every time I reinstall the system, I had to spent large amount of time to update my system. I thought that DVD version can skip this process. So what are the benefits of using DVD to install Fedora? Thanks again.

The number of packages available is larger. It also has the ability to upgrade a prior release to 11.

Forrest

Thanks for the reply, Forrest. So I can upgrade to Fedora 12 and above in the future if I install using DVD?

It can also use any and all network repos (and comes configured to use Fedora and Updates, if you ask it to), and picking your packages before install is a major feature.

Do you get why the install media doesn't come with updated packages? It takes a ton of man-hours to do enough testing to assert that the install disk will just work for a large number of people. They haven't got the resources to update it for every package update or even every once in a while - the Fedora people were working on F12 the day after F11 came out.

And forrestt, that's what the distro icons are for - no worries. Fedora party!

You can install 11 any way you wish, and then in the future download the DVD and upgrade w/ that. You can also just upgrade over the net from an installed system since I think 10 (i.e. 10 could be upgraded to 11 via the net).

Forrest

Thanks for the reply, karamarisan. I will download DVD image and reinstall system using it when my system become unstable next time mainly because included network repositories that you said. And I'm sorry for the update issue. I will keeping in mind that I find other things to do while doing the update. Thanks forrestt and karamarisan for the help.

Yes, but you can't try fedora from the DVD. I like the LiveCD because I know how all my systems are configured.