View source for Software:Porteus (operating system)

{{Short description|Portable operating system based on the Linux distribution Slackware}}
{{Infobox OS
| name                   = Porteus
| logo                   = PorteusLinuxLogo.png
| screenshot             = File:Kde4porteus.jpg
| caption                = Porteus with KDE 4
| developer              = Team Porteus<ref name="Softpedia" />
| family                 = [[Software:Linux|Linux]] ([[Unix-like]])
| working_state          = Current
| source_model           = [[Open-source software|Open source]]
| released               = 
| latest release version = {{wikidata|property|preferred|edit|Q743909|P348}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://forum.porteus.org/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=10183 |title=Porteus-v5.0 is released|date=3 Jul 2022|access-date=3 July 2022}}</ref>
| latest release date = {{Start date and age|{{wikidata|qualifier|preferred|single|Q743909|P348|P577}}}}
| latest_preview_version = 
| latest_preview_date    = 
| frequently_updated     = 6 month cycle
| marketing_target       = 
| language               = All
| prog_language          =
| updatemodel            = 
| package_manager        = USM
| supported_platforms    = 
| kernel_type            = [[Monolithic kernel|Monolithic]]
| userland               = Slackware-current
| ui                     = 
| license                = [[GPL]] and various licenses
| preceded_by            = 
| succeeded_by           = 
| website                = {{URL|www.porteus.org}}
}}

'''Porteus''' (formerly '''Slax Remix''') is a portable [[Operating system|operating system]] based on [[Software:Slackware|Slackware]]. It does not require installation and can be run from fixed and removable media, such as a [[Engineering:USB flash drive|USB flash drive]] or [[Engineering:Compact disc|compact disc]].<ref name="Softpedia">{{Cite web|url = http://linux.softpedia.com/get/System/Operating-Systems/Linux-Distributions/Porteus-64578.shtml|title = A portable linux operating system which is able to be installed on a portable USB device|access-date = 31 January 2011|last = Softpedia|year = 2011}}</ref><ref name="CodingStudio">{{Cite web|url = http://www.thecodingstudio.com/opensource/linux/screenshots/index.php?linux_distribution_sm=Porteus%20v09|title = Porteus v09 Screenshots|access-date = 25 February 2011|last = The Coding Studio|year = 2010|url-status = dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120307044743/http://www.thecodingstudio.com/opensource/linux/screenshots/index.php?linux_distribution_sm=Porteus%20v09|archive-date = 7 March 2012}}</ref><ref name="DW">{{Cite web|url = http://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=Porteus|title = Porteus|access-date = 28 December 2011|last = DistroWatch|author-link = DistroWatch|date = 22 November 2011}}</ref><ref name="Brockmeier29Jun11">{{Cite news|url = https://lwn.net/Articles/449658/|title = Porteus 1.0: A portable distribution for old-school KDE users|access-date = 28 December 2011|last = Brockmeier|first = Joe "Zonker"|date = 29 June 2011| work = LWN}}</ref>

Porteus is available in 32-bit and 64-bit version.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://porteus.org/component/content/article/37-installing/67-download-porteus.html|title=How do I download Porteus?|website=porteus.org|access-date=3 September 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717142715/http://porteus.org/component/content/article/37-installing/67-download-porteus.html|archive-date=17 July 2011}}</ref>

==Development==
The Porteus project started out as "Slax Remix" at the beginning of 2010 and was started as a community project using the Zen kernel<ref>{{cite web|url=http://zen-kernel.org/|title=Zen kernel}}</ref> to improve and update the [[Software:Slax|Slax]] OS.

The community agreed on the new name of the project, Porteus, which was named after '[[Software portability|Portability]]' and 'Proteus'. Proteus is a "Greek god of the sea, capable of changing his form at will", according to the naming announcement on the Porteus forum. The project leader commented on the name, "I find this name as a kind of synonym of 'flexibility'. We have portable (small) and flexible (modular) features included in one name: Porteus."<ref name="Porteus naming">{{Cite web|url = http://porteus.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=117|title = Porteus name|access-date = 23 June 2011|last = Porteus Forum Announcements|year = 2011}}</ref>

Porteus 4.0 is available in seven desktop variants: [[Software:Cinnamon|Cinnamon]], [[Software:KDE Plasma 5|KDE Plasma 5]], [[Software:LXDE|LXDE]], [[Software:LXQt|LXQt]], [[Software:MATE|MATE]], [[Software:Openbox|Openbox]] and [[Software:Xfce|Xfce]].<ref name="Porteus 4.0">{{Cite web|url=https://forum.porteus.org/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=7742|title = Porteus-v4.0 is released!|access-date = 29 April 2018}}</ref>

==Features==
Porteus is based on a substantially modified and optimized version of the Linux Live Scripts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://porteus.org/faq.html#1|title=Porteus faq1}}</ref> It can be run from a disk or USB stick (with changes saved onto the portable device) or installed on a hard drive. Porteus can even be installed within another system without the need to create a new partition.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Official Porteus Installation Guide|url=http://www.porteus.org/component/content/article/8-informations/114-official-porteus-installation-guide-v-10.html|access-date=2020-12-26|website=www.porteus.org}}</ref>

Porteus is preloaded with a variety of software that the user selects before installing. The system is downloaded only after selecting various options from a menu including one of four windows management systems, a browser and other features. Porteus uses a package manager utilizing slackware.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Unified Slackware Package Manager (USM)|url=http://www.porteus.org/component/content/article/9-tutorials/modules/149-usm.html|access-date=2020-12-26|website=www.porteus.org}}</ref>

==Porteus Kiosk==
{{Infobox OS
| name                   = Porteus Kiosk
| logo                   = <!-- Commented out: [[File:PorteusLinuxLogo.png]] -->
| developer              = Porteus Solutions
| family                 = [[Software:Linux|Linux]]
| source_model           = [[Open-source software|Open source]]
| working_state          = Current
| released               = 2012
| latest_release_version = 5.5.0<ref>[https://porteus-kiosk.org/news.html#230327 Porteus Kiosk 5.5.0 is Live]</ref><ref>[https://porteus-kiosk.org/changelog-releases.html#5.5.0 Changelog for full releases]</ref>
| latest_release_date    = {{Start date and age|2023|03|27}}
| language               = English
| userland               = [[Software:Gentoo Linux|Gentoo Linux]] stable branch
| genre                   = [[Kiosk software]]
| license                = [[GPL]] and various licenses
| website                = [http://porteus-kiosk.org/ porteus-kiosk.org]
}}

Porteus Kiosk is a specialized edition of the Porteus operating system,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://forum.porteus.org/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=3185#p22534|title=Porteus - View topic - Porteus 3.0 final and Porteus Kiosk Edition 3.0 are out!}}</ref> a minimalist Linux distribution for web-only terminals with Firefox (or Google Chrome, Chromium or Opera, set upon installation<ref>{{cite web|url=http://porteus-kiosk.org/builds.html|title= Kiosk Wizard utility (porteus-kiosk.org/builds.html)|author=porteus-kiosk.org}}</ref>) as the sole application.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://distrowatch.com/?newsid=07751|title=Distribution Release: Porteus 2.0 "Kiosk" (DistroWatch.com News)|author=DistroWatch}}</ref> Porteus Kiosk provides users with a locked down computing environment, designed to be deployed in schools, offices, public libraries, internet cafés or any other business establishment that provides Internet access to their clients.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://linux.softpedia.com/get/System/Operating-Systems/Linux-Distributions/Porteus-Kiosk-Edition-93100.shtml|title=Download Porteus Kiosk Edition 3.1.2 for Linux|author=Marius Nestor|work=softpedia|date=16 September 2019}}</ref>

Porteus Kiosk can be installed to CD/DVD, USB flash drive, hard drive, or any other bootable storage media such as Compact Flash or SD/MMC memory cards. Prior to installation the system can be customized through the ''kiosk wizard'' utility which allows system and browser related tweaks.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QALmZ9R5rew|title=Porteus Kiosk - Kiosk Wizard 3.1 overview|work=YouTube}}</ref>

The Porteus Kiosk system is open source and available free-of-charge, although a number of commercial services such as custom builds, automatic updates and software upgrades are available.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://frikiorgulloso.blogspot.com/2014/06/montando-un-pc-kiosk.html|title=Montando un PC Kiosk}}</ref>
Until version 3.7.0 Porteus Kiosk was able to run on both 32-bit (i486 or greater) and 64-bit (x86_64) machines. As Google Chrome doesn't support 32-bit machines anymore, the developers of the distribution decided to follow that path. Hence with release 4.0.0 Porteus Kiosk supports only the x86_64 architecture.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://porteus-kiosk.org/news.html|title=Porteus Kiosk 4.0.0 has been released!|author=Tomasz Jokiel|date=May 30, 2016|access-date=May 31, 2016}}</ref> The system is lightweight in terms of size and resources used. The default image is about 80 MB while the size of the custom kiosk ISO will depend on the choice of added extra components such as [[Software:Adobe Flash|Adobe Flash]], [[Java (programming language)|Java]], additional fonts and other factors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://porteus-kiosk.org/#requirements|title=Porteus Kiosk|author=fanthom}}</ref>

==Reception==
In reviewing Porteus 1.0 in June 2011, Joe "Zonker" Brockmeier wrote, "Users who've missed KDE 3.5.x are in for a treat with Porteus, a portable Linux distribution that offers a 32-bit release with the Trinity fork of KDE 3.5.x, and a 64-bit release that offers KDE 4.6.4. While not a distribution that will appeal to everyone, it might be of interest to enthusiasts of live CD distributions and old-school KDE fans." He concluded "...Porteus looks like a nice portable Linux distribution, aimed at expert or at least experienced Linux users. It's not something that will appeal to the majority of Linux users, particularly users who prefer a slightly larger depth of available packages. But, for users who are nursing older hardware or prefer a portable distribution, Porteus is an interesting project."<ref name="Brockmeier29Jun11" />

About the custom Live CD ISO creation, Linux magazine wrote in Issue 160/2014: "Build Your Own Portable Linux Distro with Porteus Building a customized Linux distribution can be a daunting proposition – unless you use Porteus Wizard. This clever and simple service lets you create a custom Live CD distro that fits a USB stick and loads in RAM."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.linux-magazine.com/Issues/2014/160/Linux-News|title=News » Linux Magazine|website=Linux Magazine|access-date=3 September 2017}}</ref>

== See also ==
* Lightweight Linux distribution
* List of Linux distributions that run from RAM
* [[Software:List of live CDs|List of live CDs]]
* [[Kiosk software]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
* {{DistroWatch|Porteus|NAME=Porteus}}
;'''Reviews:'''
* [https://distrowatch.com/weekly.php?issue=20130805#feature DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 519, 5 August 2013]
* [https://distrowatch.com/weekly.php?issue=20140908#feature DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 575, 8 September 2014]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20180807220342/http://www.everydaylinuxuser.com/2016/09/a-not-for-everyday-linux-user-review-of.html A Not For The Everyday Linux User Review Of Porteus 3.1], ''Everyday Linux User''
* [https://www.linuxinsider.com/story/78550.html With Porteus in Your Pocket, You're Good to Go | Reviews | LinuxInsider]
* [http://www.trustedreviews.com/guide/best-linux-distro-linux-for-old-laptops-privacy-and-usb-sticks Best Linux Distro: Linux for old laptops, privacy and USB sticks | Trusted Reviews]
* [http://www.tuxmachines.org/node/53387 Review: Porteus 1.0 | Tux Machines]
* [https://news.softpedia.com/news/slackware-based-porteus-linux-4-0-officially-released-with-seven-desktop-flavors-520914.shtml Slackware-Based Porteus Linux 4.0 Officially Released with Seven Desktop Flavors], ''Softpedia News''
* [https://www.techradar.com/news/best-lightweight-linux-distro Best lightweight Linux distro of 2018 | TechRadar]
* [https://dasublogbyprashanth.blogspot.com/2011/06/review-porteus-10.html Das U-Blog by Prashanth: Review: Porteus 1.0]
{{Linux}}
{{Linux distributions}}

[[Category:Light-weight Linux distributions]]
[[Category:Linux distributions]]
[[Category:Live USB]]

{{Sourceattribution|Porteus (operating system)}}