Put MCNLive on a USB Drive using the CD

Create a MCNLive Flash Drive using the Live CD. MCNLive is a live CD based purely on Mandriva Linux. It was designed for use with most common desktop and notebook computers. Like Mandriva, this distro comes with almost every essential tool including networking utilities, internet tools, multimedia software, graphical tools and office applications.

Just about everything the average Linux computer user might need can be found in this distribution. Another great feature is the included easy-to-use graphical installer that allows a user to install it to a USB device. There is even an installer to install to an internal hard disk.

Distribution Home Page: Archived mcnlive.org
Minimum Flash Drive Capacity: 512MB
Persistent Feature: Yes

Creating a Portable USB MCNLive

  1. Download MCNLive ISO file
  2. Burn the ISO to a CD and reboot from the Live CD
  3. Open a terminal and select Session -> New Root Shell from the terminal window:
    Select New Root Shell from Terminal
  4. Type the following command to list disks, making note of which device is your USB flash drive:
    fdisk -l
  5. From the Start Menu, navigate to MCNLive -> Create Live USB
    Navigate to MCNLive -> Create Live USB
  6. Now simply follow the onscreen instructions to create your Live USB.
  7. Once the process has finished:
    1. Reboot your computer.
    2. During system post, use the BIOS hotkey to enter UEFI, BIOS, or Boot Menu.
    3. Set the first boot device option to your removable flash device.
    4. Save your changes, and proceed to boot from your USB drive.

Using DD to Make a Bootable MCNLive USB

If you prefer using the command line or want to create a bootable MCNLive USB directly without using the graphical installer, you can use the dd command. Follow these steps:

  1. Open a terminal window.
  2. Identify your USB device using the following command:
    lsblk
  3. Once you identify the correct device (e.g., /dev/sdX, where X is the letter of your USB drive), use the following command to create a bootable USB:
    sudo dd if=/path/to/MCNLive-Delft.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress

    Replace /path/to/MCNLive-Delft.iso with the actual path to your downloaded ISO file and /dev/sdX with your USB device identifier.

  4. Wait for the process to complete. This may take a few minutes, depending on the speed of your USB drive.
  5. Once done, you can safely eject the USB drive:
    sudo eject /dev/sdX

Now you can proceed to reboot your computer and set the USB drive as the first boot device, as described in the previous steps.

Using YUMI to Create a Bootable MCNLive USB

Another convenient method for creating a bootable MCNLive USB drive is by using YUMI (Your Universal Multiboot Installer). YUMI supports the exFAT file system, allowing for greater compatibility and larger file sizes. Here's how to do it:

  1. Download YUMI.
  2. Launch YUMI and select your USB drive from the drop down menu.
  3. Select to prepare the drive.
  4. Click on Browse to locate the MCNLive ISO file you downloaded earlier.
  5. Check the box for Create a bootable disk using: and select ISO.
  6. Click on Next and follow the prompts to begin the installation process. YUMI will format your USB drive, so ensure you have backed up any important data.
  7. Once the process is complete, you will see a confirmation message. You can now close YUMI.
  8. Reboot your computer and set the USB drive as the first boot device, as described in previous sections.

Using YUMI is a user-friendly way to create a bootable MCNLive USB while supporting multiple operating systems on the same drive.