Question About Making Bootable CD/ DVD

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Norbert Dentressangle
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Question About Making Bootable CD/ DVD

#1 Post by Norbert Dentressangle »

Sorry, this is not specific to a Linux Puppy installation as I'm planning to install Linux Mint right now but I figured the answer will be applicable to all distros.

I'm currently using Windows XP. Can I just use Windows (drag, drop, burn) to make my bootable CD/DVD or will I need a specific type of software?

Windows will make a CD/DVD by dragging in Explorer to the CD drive but will this do the same job as a fancy application and make the disk bootable?

Thanks.

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OscarTalks
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#2 Post by OscarTalks »

I could be wrong but I believe that if it is just purely the Windows XP operating system on its own it does not have the facility to burn Live CD's from downloaded .iso distro files.

All you need is burner software (along with the hardware, obviously) which will burn the .iso as an image rather than burning a copy.

Most computers are/were sold with some additional burner software included along with Windows XP, but otherwise just download and install one of the small and simple burner programs that will do the job. There are lots of these available and people will have their own suggestions and favourites. I found that InfraRecorder worked perfectly for me.
http://infrarecorder.org
Oscar in England
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Norbert Dentressangle
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#3 Post by Norbert Dentressangle »

Thank you, Oscar. I wonder if you could clarify...
OscarTalks wrote: All you need is burner software (along with the hardware, obviously) which will burn the .iso as an image rather than burning a copy.
... the difference?

Also are there any special instructions I should be aware of when doing this? I don't want to go and mess it up because of some small thing I've overlooked.

Thank you again.

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Ol'Duffer
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"Burn" a Bootable Disc in Windows XP

#4 Post by Ol'Duffer »

I'm currently using Windows XP. Can I just use Windows (drag, drop, burn) to make my bootable CD/DVD or will I need a specific type of software?

Windows will make a CD/DVD by dragging in Explorer to the CD drive but will this do the same job as a fancy application and make the disk bootable?
No, Windows drag-and-drop would "burn" a "data" disc that contains files, but it wouldn't be boot-able.

One point to note is that an ISO file is a file-system unto itself, the "spitting image" of the bits on a plastic disc - whether bootable or not - which is stored in a format unique to discs, different from the FAT32 or NTFS file-systems.

The Keep-It-Short-&-Simple-est tool I've seen for doing this is Terabyte's BurnCDCC; it's free to use, and to share for free.
It's strictly for "burning" a disc image to a plastic disc in an appropriate disc drive - not for editing.

Verifying file integrity with a checksum before "burning" is highly recommended, of course.

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OscarTalks
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#5 Post by OscarTalks »

Norbert Dentressangle wrote:... the difference?
"Burn Image" or something similar is usually just a different button or option within the burner software program.

I don't fully understand the inner workings of it, but the Linux distro is originally a bundle of files. This is converted into an .iso for distribution. The .iso is a single file which I was once told to think of as a photographic negative of that bundle. When you burn the .iso as an image it is a bit like making a negative of a negative. This means that what is created on the disc is the original bundle of files, which is what is needed to create a bootable disc.

After you have done the burn, an easy check is to view the files on the disc. If it is a bundle of files you have probably burned it correctly. If you just see the one .iso file on the disc you have burned a copy which is wrong and will not boot.

If you use a re-writable disc the worst that can happen is that you have have to erase it and do it the right way the second time.
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Norbert Dentressangle
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#6 Post by Norbert Dentressangle »

Thank you very much guys! That answers my questions perfectly. Now I understand.

cthisbear
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#7 Post by cthisbear »

Use BurnCDCC"

My reply and link here.

Best Windows program to burn Puppy onto a CD? Burncdcc.

http://murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=92403

Chris.

infromthepound
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#8 Post by infromthepound »

I used to use CDburnerXP untill it refused to work on the new laptop - it's very simple.
Now I use immageburn. It's more complex and takes longer but is very good.
You can get both from Filehippo (Along with other free software)
JB

Norbert Dentressangle
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#9 Post by Norbert Dentressangle »

I tried InfraRecorder but it won't work. The OK button and most of the options are greyed out. Can't even get past the first screen.

I have an external USB CD drive but I can't configure my computer to boot from it because I cannot get into my BIOS, since it is password protected. I've opened up the machine to try and find the battery and J7 jumper but can't find that, either.

Now it's looking increasingly as though I need professional help to get this working.

Norbert Dentressangle
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#10 Post by Norbert Dentressangle »

ImgBurn program wants to install toolbars.
Last edited by Norbert Dentressangle on Sat 12 Apr 2014, 11:34, edited 1 time in total.

Norbert Dentressangle
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#11 Post by Norbert Dentressangle »

I can't get this to work. My CD drive just isn't being recognised.

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OscarTalks
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#12 Post by OscarTalks »

Are you trying to burn a CD or a DVD?
Some older drives won't burn DVD's
Are you still trying to burn a Linux Mint disc?
Will it even fit on a CD?

So you have an internal drive and an external USB CD/DVD drive available as well?

Greyed out options and buttons probably indicates the hardware or drivers do not have the capability or are missing or something.

Burning the Live CD comes before booting it.
Even if you can't boot from the external drive you may be able to use it for burning if the internal drive doesn't work for some reason, but you would probably have to configure the burner software options to use the external drive.

Otherwise do you not have access to a newer computer which you can use to burn the disc initially?
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Edi
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#13 Post by Edi »

Easiest way to make a bootable installation media that I have found:

In Windows:
  • Download the ISO file for your Linux distro
  • Use ImgBurn (free software for personal use) to burn the PLOP boot manager to a blank CD.
  • Use Unetbootin to make a bootable LiveUSB-stick of whatever distro you need.
  • Boot the targeted computer with the PLOP CD
  • Insert USB, select USB as boot media from PLOP menu and hit enter
It will boot the Linux from the USB even if the BIOS of the computer is so ancient it does not recognize USB as a bootable media, because the PLOP boot manager contains all the drivers needed for a USB boot and loads them into memory.

So you only need that one boot CD and can use a USB stick to load whatever distro you want. Saves a colossal amount of headache with burning many different distro variants to permanent media.

That's the way I installed the latest Puppy on a 10 year old machine that does not have any idea natively of how to boot from USB.

cthisbear
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#14 Post by cthisbear »

As per my post....

in which you would find my upload of imgburn....

My upload >>> no install.. don't update
imgburn standalone from a Hiren's boot cd...

But remember no saving back to cd.
On any other OS >> ISO file....it is brilliant.

>>> UNTICK...
Use our download manager and get recommended downloads

http://www.datafilehost.com/d/fe571dfa

Chris.

as77
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#15 Post by as77 »

Any comments on Kanotix German forum moderator's claim that ISO images are to be burned at lowest speed possible?

cthisbear
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#16 Post by cthisbear »

I burn at 32 speed >>> tops.

For really old hardware 16.

For dvds...half the rated speed.

!6 speed dvds....burn at 8 x times....etc.

Chris.

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dk60902
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#17 Post by dk60902 »

Imgburn has never failed me It is a great program to burn .iso's.
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