Bonum Certa Men Certa

BSD (for Tiny Core Users)

Article by figosdev

A lifeboat



Summary: "You wouldn't call a lifeboat a "step backwards" if knew you needed one. Stay on the ship, if you prefer it."

You can still use this introduction, even if you don't use Tiny Core. I am using Tiny Core lately, because it is one of the better distros for avoiding systemd.



As I've said in the book that was just run here, GNU/Linux is dead. I still use it, I can certainly understand if you do, I would ideally like the GNU Project to be salvaged. Its mission is very important.

"Very recently, I was told that BSD is a step backward for freedom. I do not agree. We have a setback, this is true -- but nobody is going to salvage or save the Linux kernel."On the subject of copyleft, this article is more about kernels than licenses. I have defended the value of copyleft on many occasions, as well as HyperbolaBSD.

Very recently, I was told that BSD is a step backward for freedom. I do not agree. We have a setback, this is true -- but nobody is going to salvage or save the Linux kernel. Torvalds won't. GKH certainly won't, he's part of the problem. The Linux Foundation won't, IBM won't, Alex Oliva won't. But before you blame Alex Oliva, I don't think anybody will save it -- that's what I mean when I say GNU/Linux is dead.

What about Hurd? You go ahead. Maybe this will be a renaissance for the Hurd kernel. I never talk about that, because I seriously doubt it. But it's a cool kernel, the lead developer is a backstabber and personally, there's no interest in Hurd here. People will continue developing it of course, just like they keep working on ReactOS.

"RMS said that if it isn't actively maintained, the FSF can't endorse it."The difference between a "step backward" and a "setback" is the starting point. If not for setbacks that have already happened, BSD (in general) would be a step backward in some way, from where we WERE 5 years ago. Until this week, "5 years ago" was also the last time I tried BSD. I've spent 5 years looking at our odds of salvaging or forking Linux. I don't think they exist, but maybe they do.

BSD may be a step backward from where we were, but they're not (IMO) a step backward from where we are. Ultimately I think BSD is all we've got for the future of the GNU Project. I'm far from alone in this -- in many ways I'm behind on this.

I personally talked to rms about the options for a Free-as-in-freedom version of BSD a year or two ago. I asked if he knew of any such option -- he did not. It was then that I found LibreBSD -- but it's based on GitHub, and receives few updates. It frequently looks abandoned.

"Eventually Hyperbola -- the only FSF-approved distro to take modern threats to software freedom seriously -- would switch to BSD. To me this alone speaks volumes."RMS said that if it isn't actively maintained, the FSF can't endorse it. Eventually Hyperbola -- the only FSF-approved distro to take modern threats to software freedom seriously -- would switch to BSD. To me this alone speaks volumes. It isn't the basis for my argument, though it makes me feel we are on the right track. The Hyperbola team is serious about your freedom. Trisquel gives you systemd, and Trisquel fans / users quote lies from systemd's own creator to justify its inclusion.

As was said on another Free software blog, most of the people who hate systemd do not use free kernels or fully-free distros. But they are crapping on those who used free kernels and/or fully-free distros until systemd showed up. They're not giving you the whole picture.

A number of those people (myself included) have retreated to options that give users more control over adding and removing components, but which sadly lack fully-free kernels.

"Alpine is not fully-free, Tiny Core is not fully-free, but Trisquel is Free In License Only."This isn't because fully-free kernels are no longer important -- it's because lots of things are important, and a distro with a fully-free kernel that is controlled by Microsoft (GitHub) and IBM is still controlled by Microsoft and IBM -- and that's NOT free. We've made this point a thousand times, but people ignore it. On our side of the argument are fully-free FSF-approved distro devs like Denis Roio (DYNE:bolic) and Hyperbola.

You guys should listen up.

Alpine is not fully-free, Tiny Core is not fully-free, but Trisquel is Free In License Only.

Meanwhile, the Linux kernel is getting things like DRM and corporate sabotage, not to mention it's the battleground for a fight against copyleft -- using copyleft.

Given the concerns about Copyleft being used by corporations against freedom (this shouldn't be considered impossible, when the point of Copyleft was the exact opposite -- using a monopoly against itself -- so you're going to argue that it's impossible to use something that uses a monopoly against itself -- AGAINST ITSELF? This is basic recursion, you should know better...)

"Meanwhile, the Linux kernel is getting things like DRM and corporate sabotage, not to mention it's the battleground for a fight against copyleft -- using copyleft."I'm not against copyleft, but CopyleftConf being co-opted should make us think about why this is happening. In my opinion, we should have a Free Software taskforce to watchdog and comment on the future of copyleft as a solution -- and/or threat. I have no horse in that race -- I've defended copyleft as a political solution, but if it fails and becomes a problem, I would simply not use it then.

If we can continue the trend of using copyleft as a working solution as the GNU Project has in the past, we probably should. But it may take some effort.

My interest in BSD is the same interest that GNU had in Linux -- we need a kernel. I realise that BSD has its own permissively-licensed tools, but the first version of BSD I ever used was GNU/KfreeBSD -- a hybrid solution if anything, with the GNU userland.

Maybe instead of bending over for Debian, someone should have done more to defend things like GNU/KfreeBSD instead of defending a weapon like systemd used against it and everything like it. It's too late now, but go ahead.

You'll never be free again with the Linux kernel, so what are YOU going to use?

"...linux-libre isn't (and won't be) a fork, so a fully-free linux kernel that will become less and less free over time isn't a solution as far as I'm concerned."Again, I have no problem with temporary solutions like Alpine and Tiny Core. I asked rms and Alex Oliva for a libre kernel for Tiny Core on numerous occasions. I know it doesn't work that way -- but it would have helped, they could have listened. Oliva used to (as far as I could tell) promote linux-libre by creating it for certain distros, he really should have added Tiny Core to the list. It's not like Arch was fully free, but there was still a linux-libre for it. (I've used Parabola before. Also ConnochaetOS).

But linux-libre isn't (and won't be) a fork, so a fully-free linux kernel that will become less and less free over time isn't a solution as far as I'm concerned. It's just a holdover. Feel free! But I'm looking for solutions.

I routinely promote Hyperbola as an ideal, but my first GNU/Linux distro wasn't fully free, however it WAS a huge step forward from Windows.

"When people see you say no, even once, you may inspire them to follow your example. To give help consistently, you can make this refusal a firm practice, but refusing occasionally is still help." --Richard Stallman

"I could just sit here and fiddle with Tiny Core, but the reason I'm running Tiny Core is to say "no" to systemd and GitHub, as much as possible."Is it better to be fully-free? OF COURSE it is. I didn't switch to Debian until they had removed the non-free software from their kernel. That was a giant leap forward. I barely ever used non-free wifi either (I barely ever use wifi at all for that matter). The person who told me BSD is a step backwards, neither uses a fully-free/FSF-approved distro, plus he sometimes uses non-free wifi. I mean, this is ridiculous -- I was (and lean towards being) more of a free software purist than he is now.

I am STILL advocating we say "no" to all of this non-free stuff.

The difference is, I know where we are right now -- and BSD is likely a step forward from where we are, not from where we were. If you have a time machine, great -- get in and enjoy GNU/Linux. Maybe from somewhere in the past, you can fix its future (according to some authors, you'll only create an alternative timeline. But hey, it's a timeline where free software sucks less than in this one. Enjoy!)

I'm using BSD to get closer to HyperbolaBSD. I could just sit here and fiddle with Tiny Core, but the reason I'm running Tiny Core is to say "no" to systemd and GitHub, as much as possible. I'd love to say no to MUCH MUCH more -- that's going to take time and effort. And more people realising what HyperbolaBSD already has.

I thought about Fury and Nomad (these are other BSD flavours), but both are developed on GitHub. I just stopped using a GNU/Linux distro for that, I'm not interested.

I'm interested in OpenBSD, because that's what LibreBSD and (I think) Hyperbola are based on, but I downloaded it a while ago and haven't managed to get it installed yet. I'm also interested in NetBSD. DragonflyBSD is 64-bit only, I'm not interested in that (This is also why I haven't tried PCLinuxOS).

I was avoiding FreeBSD for various reasons, above all their ridiculous Code of Conduct. They switched to a slightly less ridiculous one recently -- okay, so it's not my first choice. But Tom is in love with some aspects of it, so I'll compromise a little and try it if it installs more easily than OpenBSD (which I've retained the same amount of interest in.)

Bingo!

So at freebsd.org you'll find docs plus an FAQ--

So far, I'm leaning on the EXTENSIVE FAQ, mostly.

Under "Get FreeBSD" I find numerous options fo the i386 platform -- Installer Images (nope) and Virtual Machine Images (yes!)

I will explain why I made this choice in a moment.

So I click back and then forward, to 11.4-RELEASE -- click on the raw.xz and download about .24 GB, which I then copy to my Tiny Core server. I figure its specs are most likely to work on the first try. I have trouble booting this thing from anything except CD or DVD, I don't want to spend the media (the easiest to find media here is also the crappiest) and I don't want to swap drives out today.

So I boot Tiny Core to ram, no extensions -- copy the raw.xz to ram and write it to the drive (again, this is from ram) using unxz -c FreeBSD-11.4-RELEASE-i386.raw.xz | dd of=/dev/sda ... if I'd followed some relevant instructions I would have paid attention to details like sector size.

I read basically zero instructions, and simply worked out my own way to install this -- with a single command, once the file was on the system in ram. I know this image is for VM users, it's exactly what I was looking for and doing it this way converted my server partition scheme from DOS to GPT. Which is not quite what I'd hoped for, but is pretty cool if you think about it.

I rebooted and hoped for the best -- and it's running FreeBSD.

Fewer things worked immediately than I wanted, but more things worked than I expected -- the USB keyboard works, the screen works, it actually boots!

Because I've used BSD a little, plus I've never been interested in Linux developers' attempts to deprecate things for whatever hipster douchebag garbage Lennart and Co. are pushing, it wasn't all unfamiliar. As with Tiny Core, ifconfig still works. It's friendly and simple, I like it. I didn't have to look up how to check if there was a DHCP lease.

Based on my experience I tried Single-user mode first. I don't think Multi-user worked yet; I don't know if I got the DHCP lease in Single-user mode or not -- I know Multi-user does.

The eth0 interface (I know, systemd has its own BS) is sk0 on FreeBSD. You won't need to, but if you want to run the DHCP client for some reason it's "dhclient sk0".

I didn't get it working until today, but to mount /dev/sdb2 on /mnt/usb with an ext2 partition it's mount -t ext2fs /dev/da0s2 /mnt/usb.

Single-user mounts / as read-only, to fix this "mount -o rw /" works. I used addser to create a user-privileged user, passwd to set the root password. I bet bsgconfig (very nice setup tool) would have let me do this as well, but I didn't find it until later.

Once you have a password or user account, you can login to it from Multi-user mode. It's a menu option when you first start up. From there (as root) I mounted a usb with an ext2 partition -- it should also work with ext3 (you still use -t ext2fs) but I haven't tried it. EXT3 Journaling is not supported.

Multi-user mounts / as rw ("soft-updates" -- up to 30 seconds before a write syncs) and the sync command is available, but I don't know if it works the same as in GNU/Linux.

The reset and clear commands work. You will find you have sh instead of bash -- it is more minimal. The userland differs a bit from FreeBSD to OpenBSD to GNU -- ls is in all of them, while BSD is closer to POSIX-only; GNU extends options.

In theory, bsdconfig lets you install more packages. I haven't managed yet. I think it's OpenBSD that lets you run Linux (ELF) binaries, but only 32-bit ones -- I don't know if FreeBSD does (let alone without installing extra things). I'd really like to have GNU Wget back.

Running bsdconfig, I saw an option to install PyPy. I'd love to. The clock is set now (old server, dead battery) so maybe it will install now. I recommend reading the FAQ at least. I'm on part 8.

I'm amused and pleased that uname -a works. I guess it's from Unix (maybe that's the "u" in "uname") but I know Unix is what gave us things like ls and sed, it's these commands I'm not sure whether they're Linux-specific (most "Linux" commands are GNU commands or originally Unix commands, of course) that I find most interesting at the moment.

I want to learn BSD, so I will be more ready to use HyperbolaBSD when I get it running. So instead of just talking about BSD as an option for the future of Free software, I can actually have greater familiarity with the topic.

This is research. But if you think this is a step backwards -- particularly one I'm making, rather than trying to move forward after a setback -- that's your opinion. You're welcome to it. I'm still trying to be more free. Guess what? We don't have the options we used to have.

GNU/Linux isn't a real option anymore. But go ahead; some of us who do care a great deal about freedom are looking into other options, with very good reason. Some of us talk about GNU/BSD now; but GNU/BSD isn't going to happen without a kernel. Or without BSD.

I said more than a year ago that we needed lifeboats. That's what this is, you know. BSD is (now, thanks to Microsoft, GitHub and IBM) a lifeboat for the GNU Project, while the FSF supports Microsoft, GitHub and systemd. You wouldn't call a lifeboat a "step backwards" if knew you needed one. Stay on the ship, if you prefer it. The rest of us hope to rebuild, but at least will try.

Some of the points of this article may prove due to misunderstanding what was said. That's okay, no harm done -- but I don't think running FreeBSD right now is frivolous or silly, or I wouldn't do it.

Long Live rms, and happy hacking.

Licence: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Recent Techrights' Posts

We Could Dual-Boot Back in the 1990s, Why Has This Become So Difficult?
And prone to breakage
Slopwatch: Google News is Still Promoting Many Fake Articles About "Linux", in Effect Rewarding Misinformation and Plagiarism
things continue to deteriorate
They Say That People Are Afraid of or Worried About "Hey Hi", But the Worriers Should be the Fools Who Invested in It
At the end of the day nobody should worry more than those who invested their money in this bubble
 
The World's Richest Ponzi Scheme (Faking Value Using Net Waste)
The higher they go the harder they fall
Longtime Red Hat Staff: Maybe Just Disable 'Secure Boot'
A refreshing take from Adam Williamson
Being Conditioned to Accept Unreliable Computer Systems That Fail With Black Screen of Death (BSoD)
Welcome to 2025
New Series: The Coup Against GNU/Linux Has Begun
today, this year in particular, we shall also focus on Secure Boot, which is sold based on a lie and tortures many computer user
New Paper on "BYOVD, but in firmware. Signed UEFI shells, vulnerable modules offer new paths for Secure Boot bypasses."
One might say digital "security theatre"
Links 11/09/2025: Oracle Layoffs, Drunk Pilots in Japan Airlines, US-Korea Tensions Grow
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, September 10, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, September 10, 2025
Xubuntu Site Compromised
Let's hope it is not a security breach
Links 10/09/2025: Retaliation at Facebook and Microsoft Reveals Almost 100 Security Holes
Links for the day
Gemini Links 10/09/2025: Annihilation of Self, The Future Eaters, and Leaving Academia
Links for the day
Harassment evidence: franceinfo's Clara Lainé report on Ubisoft prosecution
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 10/09/2025: Microsoft Layoffs in "RTO" Clothing and Windows TCO, GitHub TCO
Links for the day
Blaming Everything on China
TikTok works for China. GAFAM works for fascists.
People Get Tired of "Hey Hi" (AI), Unlike the Subservient Money-Obsessed Media That Gets Paid to Pretend This Bubble Still Matters
"crash will be way bigger than dot.com burst in 90s. and that was Internet, actually transformative technology, not this expensive AI toy with direct dependency on the energy input which is not scalable"
Brett Wilson LLP Accepts That the Serial Strangler From Microsoft Filed a Case That Also Implicates My Wife (Everything is Connected)
They used to pretend that there were two separate cases
10 Reasons to Disable (or Enable) UEFI Secure Boot
Tomorrow the "trusted corporation" Microsoft will see a certificate expire
Gemini Links 10/09/2025: Hospital and Large Feeds
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, September 09, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, September 09, 2025
The Bluewashing of Red Hat is Being Completed, Many Staff Understand They'll be Made Redundant
Jim AllowHurst (Whitehurst) is meanwhile promoting Microsoft's agenda from within other companies
Throwing Away "Old" Computers (Mozilla and Other Climate Deniers)
Mozilla is not leftist
statCounter Sees GNU/Linux Exceeding 10% in Bulgaria This Month
What can Microsoft still do to stop GNU/Linux?
Dark Patterns
Microsoft saying "security" is like a Convicted Felon in the White House saying "law and order".
It's Almost Fall (Autumn)
To "Facebook prison" you are bound
Bruce Schneier About "Secure Boot"
Bruce Schneier isn't a fan of "Secure Boot"
Links 09/09/2025: Microsoft Mass Layoffs Again and "RTO" (Timed Like It Serves as a Distraction From the Mass Layoffs)
Links for the day
RMS Told Microsoft to Stop 'Secure Boot' (He Even Went There to Say That), But They Didn't Listen
Dr. Stallman (RMS) assumed that speaking to sociopaths would work
What Richard Stallman Told Me About 'Secure' Boot in 2012
"if the user doesn't control the keys, then it's a kind of shackle"
Those Who Helped Microsoft Weaponise "Secure Boot" Against GNU/Linux and BSDs Are Fleeing
Microsofters doing what they do best: they evade accountability
Simple is Better, Simplicity is Power
That is "the advantage of having commodity GNU/Linux systems," an associate notes
Much Ado About Nonsense
Microsoft Lunduke is still all dramatisation and sensationalism
Current Events in France
It needs to dump Microsoft and other GAFAM (US) giants, move to Free software
Further Media Cut-downs
media reporting about the media being cut
Links 09/09/2025: US-Korea Tensions and Meta Whistleblowers
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/09/2025: Moon Eclipse and ROOPHLOCH Reports
Links for the day
Links 09/09/2025: “Torrents of Hate” and Political Crisis in France
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/09/2025: "Dedigitizing" and Forgejo on FreeBSD
Links for the day
Google News (Not Just Google Search) Lets Itself by Gamed by One Slopfarm - to the Point Almost Half of "Linux" News is Bot-Produced Plagiarism (LLM Slop With Slop Images)
That says a lot about what Google thinks of quality, even in Google News
Bill Gates-Funded Media Inadvertently Refutes the Microsoft Lie That in 2025 Microsoft Had Just Two Waves of Layoffs
There were about 12 rounds of layoffs so far in 2025
Official SUSE Blog Still Uses LLM Slop (Bots) to Make Fake Articles (Marketing)
The company is all about sound bites
Companies Realise That Slop Doesn't Work as Advertised, Accordingly Dump It
"Hype dims as a country-wide survey of US corporations shows a sudden drop-off in AI use among firms with more than 250 employees."
Microsoft-Funded Lawsuits Against Critics of UEFI 'Secure Boot'
Remember that no company (or law firm) ever survives collaborations with Microsoft
From theregister.co.uk to theregister.com (US) to The Register MS (Run by Microsoft Operatives) and theregister.ai
The best way to break this racket (or cycle of hype and harm) is to break the chains of funding
Open Source Initiative (OSI) Culture of Censorship Necessitates More Speech
The OSI bans dissent or people who merely point out that the OSI is abusive
How to Reach Us Discreetly (Other Than Encrypted E-mail)
We're still managing to maintain a 100% source protection record. We soon turn 19.
LLMs Are Vastly Worse Than a Waste of Energy and the Externalities Are Huge
Worse than just higher power bills for everybody
LLMs Versus Search (Not Replacing Search But Engaging in DDoS Attacks Against Web Sites That Permit Searching)
The state of the Web isn't just bad; it's utterly terrible
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, September 08, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, September 08, 2025
It's Only the Second Week of September and Already Two Waves of Layoffs at Microsoft, Slopfarms and Microsoft-Funded Sites Spin It as "AI Investments" Rather Than Commercial Failure
A very large third one expected next week
The UEFI 9/11 - Part IX - Shunning Old Computers (in 2023 the Certificate Was Updated/Overridden, Underlying Aim May Be Herding/Forcing People to Get TPM and Other 'Novel' Restrictions)
the "upgrade treadmill"