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Using Crunchbang 

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Using Crunchbang #!

Overview

From the old Crunchbang [http://crunchbang.org/]:

"CrunchBang uses the Openbox window manager. Openbox is lightweight and speedy, and as a result, CrunchBang is fast. Also, whilst CrunchBang is not primarily designed for older systems, it has been reported to operate very well where system resources are limited. Once installed, CrunchBang should boot-up and operate faster than a regular Debian GNOME/KDE installation."

Old website now redirects to: https://www.bunsenlabs.org/

Crunchbang, a full Debian distribution outfitted with the lightweight window manager Openbox, is well suited to the higher end thin client hardware. Crunchbang utilises not only a lightweight desktop, but the standard installation creates a compact Debian system requiring less than 2GB of space. Installed to a Compact Flash card, it can transform a thin client into an inexpensive silent fanless desktop system. This article describes installing Crunchbang to a thin client based on an x86 processor and outfitted with a Compact Flash card.

Limitations

The Crunchbang 10 (Statler) 32-bit version does not work with all x86 processors. The National Semiconductor/AMD Geode GX processors, and VIA C3 and Eden processors with Samuel and Ezra cores are not supported. However, AMD Geode NX processors, VIA C3 and Eden processors with Nehemiah cores, and all VIA C7 processors (Esther cores) are compatible. Technically speaking, Crunchbang utilises a non-PAE i686 kernel. A "non-PAE" kernel is compatible with all x86 processors. However an "i686" kernel utilises a specific processor instruction (cmov) not implemented on NS/AMD Geode GX processors, or VIA Samuel and Ezra cores.

256MB or more of RAM memory is required; 512MB is recommended. Processors clocked under 800 MHz can work but may be unusable for some tasks.

Crunchbang has been tested to install and operate on:

  • HP t5720 (AMD Geode 1GHz, 512MB)
  • Neoware CA-21 (VIA Esther 800MHz, 512MB)

On these systems, Crunchbang provides a functional desktop with acceptable performance for web browsing, email, word processing, image editing, audio playback, file browsing and printing. It is not suited to video playback; video does play but the output can be choppy, especially when running full screen. Web pages with complex scripting can feel sluggish with 800MHz processors.

Prerequisites

You will need:

  • A thin client with a compatible processor, 800MHz or faster, that can boot from a USB flash drive
  • A compact flash card, 4GB or larger - faster is better
  • An IDE cable and CF/IDE adapter appropriate for your thin client if not socketed for Compact Flash
  • A USB flash drive large enough to hold an installation ISO image
  • Access to the Internet and capability to download an ISO file

Install the Compact Flash card in place of the existing flash memory of your thin client. This will require an appropriate cable and adapter unless your thin client is socketed for Compact Flash. While the stated minimum size card for a standard installation is 4GB (3.7GiB), it is possible to install to a 2GB (1.8GiB) card with some customisation. Use the section Small Installation for installing to a 2GB device.

Download the ISO installation image of the 32-bit stable version of Crunchbang 10 (Statler). Use the downloaded image to create a bootable USB flash drive according to directions at the Crunchbang website. Crunchbang 11 (Waldorf) is available for testing, but these instructions are specific to Crunchbang 10 (Statler). If you use them to install Waldorf, you may have to improvise. The Waldorf non-PAE installer "for older PCs" is suitable for any thin client and required for VIA processors with Nehemiah cores.

The following instructions are also suitable for installing Crunchbang to a 2.5" (laptop) IDE hard drive installed in a thin client.

Installation

crunchbang boot menu

This procedure creates a standard Crunchbang installation to an ext4 filesystem with a swap partition. The ext4 filesystem provides the best performance on Compact Flash devices of all linux filesystems (ext2, ext3, ext4). No special accommodations are made for write minimisation. The CF device should last more than a decade before the write capacity is exceeded. That said, Compact Flash devices are NOT as reliable as hard disk drives or solid-state drives. You are advised to implement and use a backup strategy for your installation.

Boot the thin client from the USB flash drive. It may be necessary to alter the BIOS setup to boot USB devices. (Try the DEL key with Neoware devices or the F10 key with HP devices to enter BIOS setup.) Once booted, follow these instructions:

  1. Select "Graphical Install" (although "Text Install" is nearly identical)
  2. Select your language
  3. Select your location
  4. Configure your keyboard

Wait as the installer components are loaded.

  1. Configure the network hostname (the default "crunchbang" is acceptable)
  2. Set up user (full name)
  3. Set up username for account
  4. Assign a password
  5. Select your timezone
  6. At "Partitioning Method:", select "Guided - use entire disk"
  7. At "Select disk to partition:", select your Compact Flash card
  8. At "Partitioning scheme:", select "All files in one partition"
  9. From the "Partition Disks" screen, select "Finish partitioning and write changes to disk"
  10. At "Write changes to disks?", answer "Yes"

Wait as the disk is formatted and files copied.

  1. At "Install the GRUB boot loader to the master record?", answer "Yes"
  2. At "Installation complete", select "Continue"
  3. Remove USB flash drive as system boots your newly installed drive

Small Installation

To create a small installation on a 2GB (1.8GiB) CF card, Crunchbang must be installed to a single partition occupying the entire device without a swap partition or file. To install to a single partition:

  1. Select "Graphical Install" (although "Text Install" is nearly identical)
  2. Select your language
  3. Select your location
  4. Configure your keyboard

Wait as the installer components are loaded.

  1. Configure the network hostname (the default "crunchbang" is acceptable)
  2. Set up user (full name)
  3. Set up username for account
  4. Assign a password
  5. Select your timezone

In the next sequence, you will manually partition your drive with a single ext4 partition using all the space WITHOUT any space devoted to a swap partition.

  1. At "Partition Disks", select "Manual"
  2. From the list, select device name with "(sda)"
  3. At "Create new empty partition table on this device?", answer "Yes"
  4. From list, select "FREE SPACE"
  5. At "How to use this free space", select "Create new partition"
  6. At "New partition size", enter "max" (important)
  7. At "Type for the new partition", select "Primary"
  8. From the list, select "Use as"
  9. From the list, select "Ext4 journaling file system" (important)
  10. From the list, select "Done setting up partition"
  11. From the list, select "Finish partitioning and write changes..."
  12. At "Do you want to return to the partitioning menu?", answer "No" (important)
  13. At "Write changes to disks?", answer "Yes"

Wait as the disk is formatted and files copied.

  1. At "Install the GRUB boot loader to the master record?", answer "Yes"
  2. At "Installation complete", select "Continue"
  3. Remove USB flash drive as system boots your newly installed drive

Crunchbang barely fits on a 2GB device; there is not enough space to complete an update and upgrade. Unneeded packages should be removed to create work space before attempting to update and upgrade. Suggested packages to remove: 

reiser4progs reiserfsprogs gnome-bluetooth libgnome-bluetooth7 bluez libbluetooth3
xcompmgr cairo-compmgr cairo-compmgr-core cairo-compmgr-plugins vlc gimp xfburn
crunchbang-extra-themes tango-icon-theme human-icon-theme

If you manually configure your Ethernet connection, you can remove the wifi tools, wifi firmware, and Network Manager as well. The package ifplugd makes a good replacement for automating Ethernet connections.

Clearing (aka cleaning) the apt cache will also free up additional space. Clear the apt cache by executing the following command as root: apt-get clean

Without swap space, the system can potentially run out of memory. However, Crunchbang starts up in only 80MB of memory, and the installed applications can be utilized without running out of memory if used in moderation. Occasionally, open programs may need to be shut down to run others. It is an acceptable compromise for a small device.

Tweaks

IDE Interface

With some thin clients, the IDE interface often defaults to UDMA/33 speeds because the kernel drivers cannot detect an "80 conductor cable". (See here for more detail on this).

If the Compact Flash card you are using is rated higher than 200x or 30MBps should see some benefit by logging in as root and then:

  1. Open the configuration file /etc/default/grub with your favourite text editor.
  2. Find the configuration parameter GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT, similar to:
    GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet"
  3. Add the text "libata.force=short40c" at the end of the line AND before the final quote mark, similar to:
    GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet libata.force=short40c"
  4. Save your changes and close the file.
  5. Apply the changes to the bootloader (grub) with the following command:
    update-grub
  6. Reboot for the parameter to take effect.

Acknowledgement

This article was contributed by Craig Oakes

 

Any comments? email me.    Last update December 2012