Linux Tutorial

There are many ways to ruin an operating system.

Linux has a reputation for toughness but there are still many ways to damage a computer system fully functional.

We want to illustrate some of the ways you can wreak havoc on Linux, so as not to avoid making the same mistakes.

Fill a file system

If the filesystem containing /var is full, you can not write its log messages and all types of system processes and this can cause a stall.

Reinstall Windows

No, this is not typical of a Linux user anti-Microsoft – the Windows installer does not accept other operating systems or their bootloader, so if you reinstall Windows, this will overwrite the bootloader. No need to reinstall Linux, though: the installation CD usually has the ability to solve problems of the bootloader, or you can run grub-install from a live CD.

Out of memory

4GB of memory may seem like a lot, to do something stupid like start gimp *.jpg files in a directory full of pictures at 12 megapixels. The swap space will help, but will do so slowly as to make you believe that the system has frozen.

Follow the instructions on the web

The Web forums are full of useful hints, tips and commands, but there are also some that you can do serious damage. The difficulty lies in distinguishing between them, the advice can be dangerous were provided with the best intentions, some good advice or be misspelled. Pay particular attention to everything that makes use of the operators “on” or “sudo“.

Install multiple Linux systems

This is a bit ‘as the situation when you reinstall Windows. While the installer distros have a great recognition of Windows by creating a dual boot, some still do not notice other Linux distributions on your disk, this could lead to the condition that the distros will disappear from the existing bootloader, even if the distributions are still there .

Rarely update

Let a system intact for many months and then install more than 300 upgrades in one shot, do not necessarily result in corruption of the system, but if it happens to be very lucky to know who was the culprit. Little and often is the surest way to keep a system updated.

Upgrade to the blind

Do not check the list of packages to install with an upgrade of the system could do to not have any idea what went wrong if it should happen. Alternatively, use the package manager to produce a list of installed software, so you can see what has changed when things go wrong – or check the log file of the package manager.

Run Software too new

Yes, everyone likes to try new material, but be aware of the risks. The new software has had less testing. So do not you upgrade to the latest alpha version, when you really need the computer to continue working.

Delete the /home

This does not corrupt Linux, but you lose any personal settings and files stored there. That’s why it’s a good idea to keep/home on a separate partition, so you can install and upgrade without messing up the settings and data.

Losing a password

Losing the user password will not let you do anything, unless you have automatic login set. Losing your root password means that you can use your computer, but you can not install or update software or make other changes to the system. Losing the password to an encrypted file system means that you may have to go back to pen and paper.

Install a new kernel

This seems strange at first, a new kernel would be better and safer. But some devices are based on modules which are not supplied with the kernel, in particular the graphics cards and wireless networking. Some distributions will automatically reinstall, otherwise you must use a wired network, or restart with the old kernel and reinstall the drivers for what is not working.

Try using pulseaudio

If you have never been bitten by the complexity of Linux sound systems, you’ll know exactly what that means. Otherwise, do not worry. Your audio system will continue to operate until it stops mysteriously. Do not use other ones that have multiple layers of an onion.

Install the packages from another distro

Sometimes your distro does not have the package you want, but another has it. Do not be groped to install a “foreigner”, this is the beginning of a road to madness. It can be done with the use of Debian packages on Ubuntu, but sooner or later we will get hurt.

Run a fork bomb

A fork bomb is a small shell script that quickly creates many processes as long as they can, until the computer freezes and the only solution is to turn it off. Some distributions are configured to prevent its effects, limiting the number of processes a single user, even root. If you want to try it, here is the code

#! /bin/sh
: () {: |: &};:

Reinstall

The “solution” of choice for many Windows problems, is to reinstall the operating system. Doing this on Linux and it means the loss of custom settings and configuration, and every opportunity to discover the cause of – and solution – to the problem. Reinstall individual software packages rarely helps, since such action does not touch the settings in your home directory, where there is most often the source of your problems.

Disable swap

You would think that with a minimum of 2-4GB of RAM typically mounted in today’s laptops, the swap is an anachronism, but some processes have come to expect that some part of your code is managed by the swap. Although I do not think you need it, you may inadvertently used a lot of memory, so having some exchange available is always a good idea after all, disk space is more abundant than RAM.

Installing from source

If you want the latest version of some obscure (or just new) program, aimed at installing from source is the only option. Although this usually goes well, you could end up with different versions of the same library in /usr/lib and /usr/local/lib, with effects that are best described as “interesting”.

Lose

Linux is often incorporated into devices that are increasingly smaller, cheaper, more powerful and easier to lose. Although it is tempting to store all the details of your life on a netbook, or even a smartphone, considered the consequences of a loss (or loss “assisted”) of this device. This event will not cause breakage of the device, but its new “owner” will have full access to it and to the data, so be careful.

Treat it like Windows

Linux and Windows, even if supply desktop operating systems, with a superficial similarity, are completely different. Treating a Linux system like Windows is one of the most common causes of embarrassment and discomfort for new users. If you are new to Linux, no matter how much experience you have with Windows, do not be ashamed to ask for advice.

Pour the coffee spill on it

It ‘truly regrettable that a system so suited to hackers and programmers can still be rendered useless when it comes into contact with liquids. The mouse and the pizza does not get along, even if the hard core Linux users probably do not want to give up the mouse as much as the pizza.