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isorespin.sh

Linuxium's script to respin an Ubuntu, Ubuntu flavour, Linux Mint, neon, elementary, BackBox or Peppermint ISO and optionally add/remove functionality like kernels/packages/files, etc.

In other words, it allows Ubuntu ISO to be respun and customized ("remastered") to create a new ISO.

History

This script was initially based on the information documented on the following sites:

Before you start

It is a given that most people only read the manual page or documentation for a command either when they can't work out how to use it or somethings goes wrong after using it. And it is also much easier to post a question than read the documentation or understand an error message. However try and get through the following quick start guide first as it is designed to help.

Dependencies

Although it is expected to run the script on a Linux machine typically running 64-bit Ubuntu or a 64-bit Ubuntu based OS it also works on a Linux virtual machine on Windows (see below for further details). You will need certain packages like squashfs-tools and xorriso installed (use sudo apt-get install -y squashfs-tools xorriso to install them) plus zenity if you want to use the GUI. As different Linux distros have different packages installed by default the script will first check and notify you if any other packages are required. You will also need at least 10 GB of free space but this can be on external storage (e.g. a USB) as it can be specified as a location different to where the script is run from. For some options (such as updating the kernel) you will need a working internet connection as the script needs to download software. Also the script needs to be executable which can be achieved using the chmod command (sudo chmod 755 isorespin.sh). As the script runs some commands (e.g. mount/umount) which require root access using the sudo command you will initially be prompted for your password and must already have sudo privileges. Finally some restrictions: you cannot respin an ISO that is EOL (End Of Life); you cannot respin an ISO on an OS that doesn't support systemd when using the --apollo or the -b Linuxium options; you also cannot respin an ISO if the ISO doesn't support 'systemd' when using the --atom, --apollo or -b Linuxium options.

Usage

Running the script is really quite simple even though there are quite a lot of features or options making it look rather complex.

It can be run using either the shell CLI (command line interface) in a the terminal or using its GUI (graphical user interface). Not only will it generate a new ISO but it will also produce a log file which includes the options used when respinning the ISO and serves to document the respun ISO.

The script can either be run as a local script or it can be installed by copying the script to /usr/local/bin where it will be accessible for all users after the script has been made executable using the 'chmod' command (sudo chmod 755 isorespin.sh). Depending on the options and their complexity the respinning will take quite a few minutes and the script provides updates on its progress whilst running. The respun ISO is created with a new name derived from the original ISO name and includes indicators of the options used like 'persistence' or the kernel version for example with full details being written to the log file.

Usage: ./isorespin.sh [ -h | -v | --check | --rolling-list ]
       ./isorespin.sh -i <ISO> [ [ -u | -k <kernel> ] | -r "<repo> ... " | -p "<pkg> ... " | -l "<pkg.deb> ... " | -f "<file> | <directory> ... " | [ -s <size>MB | GB ] | [ -b GRUB | rEFInd | Linuxium ] | ...
       ./isorespin.sh ... -w <directory> | -d "<pkg> ... " | -e "<pkg> ... " | -c "<cmd> ... " | -o "<file> | <directory> ... " | -g "" | "<kernel boot parameter> ... " | ...
       ./isorespin.sh ... --apollo | --atom | ...
       ./isorespin.sh ... --rolling-release | --rolling-release-hwe | --rolling-release-hwe-edge | --rolling-proposed | --rolling-proposed-hwe | --rolling-proposed-hwe-edge | ...
       ./isorespin.sh ... --rolling-testing | --rolling-testing-hwe | --rolling-testing-hwe-edge | --rolling-unstable | --rolling-unstable-hwe | --rolling-unstable-hwe-edge | ...
       ./isorespin.sh ... --upgrade | --key  "<repo> ... " ]

For example:

  • The script's help is displayed using the command: isorespin.sh -h
  • The version of the script can either be displayed by entering: isorespin.sh -v

Once the ISO has been respun it can be written to a USB using the standard dd command.

Quick start

  1. Clone this repo.

  2. Install required dependencies, e.g.

      sudo apt-get install genisoimage dosfstools squashfs-tools xorriso p7zip-full bc curl klibc-utils iproute2 rsync unzip wget findutils

  3. Download ISO you want to respin (see: Ubuntu Releases).

  4. Either run the script with GUI, or run in a terminal session, for example:

  5. Add a bootloader using one of the following options:

- Add a 32-bit bootloader:

        isorespin.sh -i ubuntu-16.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso

- Respin the ISO suitable for booting on Intel Atom devices

        isorespin.sh -i ubuntu-16.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso --atom

- Respin the ISO suitable for booting on Intel Apollo Lake devices

        isorespin.sh -i ubuntu-16.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso --apollo

- Update the ISO with the latest mainline kernel

        isorespin.sh -i ubuntu-16.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso -u

- Update the ISO with a specific kernel version

        isorespin.sh -i ubuntu-16.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso -k v4.15-rc2

  1. A new ISO prefixed with linuxium as a minimum will be created. For example this command creates the ISO:

       isorespin.sh -i ubuntu-16.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso -k v4.15-rc2 --apollo

  2. Insert a USB and make a note of which device it is (use df, blkid or lsblk to confirm).

  3. Unmount any files systems auto mounted from the USB:

       sudo umount /dev/<USB device>*

  4. Write the respun ISO to USB:

       sudo dd if=<respun ISO> of=/dev/<USB device> bs=4M

    e.g.

       sudo dd if=linuxium-apollo-v4.15-rc2-ubuntu-16.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso of=/dev/sdx bs=4M

  5. Boot the USB on your target device e.g. your mini PC.

Changelog

  • Version 1: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License.
  • Version 2.01.050417: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.
  • Version 3.01.120417: This work is licensed under GNU GPL version 3 under one-way compatibility with CC BY-SA 4.0.
  • Version 3.02.130417, 4.06.220417 to 4.09.280417, 5.01.020517, 6.01.120517, 6.02.0 to 6.03.3, 7.1.0 to 7.3.5.1, 7.3.6 and 8.0.0 to 8.1.5: This work is licensed under GNU GPL version 3.
  • Version 8.1.6: This work is licensed under GNU GPL version 3.