Although KNOPPIX, the most popular bootable Linux, has already been covered in this book, the
following sections describe interesting bootable Linux distributions, categorized by the type of
content they contain.
Security and Rescue Bootables
Rescuing broken systems and diagnosing network problems are among the most popular uses of
bootable Linuxes. If you find yourself with a seemingly inaccessible hard disk, bootable rescue
CDs or DVDs can literally save damaged or infected computers. Some rescue CDs are touted as
complete security toolkits, offering a wide range of tools for monitoring Linux or Windows systems,
scanning for viruses, debugging networks, and doing forensics.
Most bootable Linux systems will boot up on your network if a DHCP server is on the line. (If there
isn??™t one, many include the netcardconfig utility to let you set up a wired Ethernet card manually.)
So, with your computer booted and connected to a network with a bootable Linux, you could proceed
to check, fix, back up, and otherwise control the local computer as well as other computers
on your network.
Some security live CD projects note that the tools their live CDs include were chosen, in
part, from the Insecure.org ???Top 100 Network Security Tools??? list (http://sectools
.
Pages:
939
940
941
942
943
944
945
946
947
948
949
950
951
952
953
954
955
956
957
958
959
960
961
962
963