Knoppix • Hacker News Board

Re: Knoppix

#41

Post by throwaway2016a » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:13 PM UTC

Fun to see this on the front page. I'm curious if ops intent was to share something cool is trigger a bunch of nostalgia because they definitely did the latter.

I remember using this when it first came out. It was a game changer for doing forensics back before full disk encryption was a common thing.

Re: Knoppix

#42

Post by ivanmontillam » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:14 PM UTC

jpfromlondon wrote: post #34

StackBPoppin wrote: post #3

Isn't this what eventually became Kali linux? I remember Knoppix and Whoppix then I didn't really check on the projects for a while then Kali came along

There was a Knoppix STD (security tools distro), I remember using that in the mid/early 00s.

That's such an unfortunate name for a good, reputable distro.

Re: Knoppix

#43

Post by ivanmontillam » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:16 PM UTC

rs_rs_rs_rs_rs wrote: post #4

StackBPoppin wrote: post #3

Isn't this what eventually became Kali linux? I remember Knoppix and Whoppix then I didn't really check on the projects for a while then Kali came along

Kali was Backtrack before which was built on Whax which was based on Slackware.

I fondly remember Backtrack 2, running as a Live distro. I remember going to university labs where a teacher taught us a couple of techniques or so. Great days.

Re: Knoppix

#44

Post by Curiositry » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:17 PM UTC

This was the first Linux I used (mainly, to play Nibbles for Knoppix). The live-boot CD was a treasured belonging. Good times!

Re: Knoppix

#45

Post by dec0dedab0de » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:22 PM UTC

There was a time that this was the easiest way to install Debian.

Re: Knoppix

#46

Post by fasterik » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:23 PM UTC

When I was a kid I got obsessed with Linux, but my family only had one PC in the living room. After an attempt to set up Windows/Linux dual boot where I messed up the partition table, my parents banned me from tinkering with it. Luckily I discovered Knoppix and other live distros, which allowed me to boot into a safe environment to play around in.

Re: Knoppix

#47

Post by jonwinstanley » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:27 PM UTC

throwaway2016a wrote: post #41

Fun to see this on the front page. I'm curious if ops intent was to share something cool is trigger a bunch of nostalgia because they definitely did the latter. I remember using this when it first came out. It was a game changer for doing forensics back before full disk encryption was a common thing.

Very nostalgic! I remember using this a few times around maybe 2005 when a Windows system got corrupted. Knoppix would boot from the CD and let you recover files from your HD. Loved it

Re: Knoppix

#48

Post by [deleted] » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:30 PM UTC

teddyh wrote: post #35

Wait, I thought the official web page for Knoppix was https://knoppix.net/ >? What is this knopper.net?

[deleted]

Re: Knoppix

#49

Post by SoftTalker » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:35 PM UTC

Knoppix was useful when a linux box got hosed and would not boot for some reason. Boot into Knoppix, you have an easy root shell and almost all the tools you'd need to fix a broken system.

Haven't used it in many years however, since most distro installers now boot a "live" linux so I just use that.

Re: Knoppix

#50

Post by progmetaldev » Tue, Jun 30, 2026, 4:37 PM UTC

I fixed a lot of Windows machines, especially partition issues, with Knoppix up until around 2014. I used to also use the wireless tools to detect rogue access points in hotels where my employer was providing internet access. Those were some good times, and helped me learn quite a bit about networking and security in general.