UNetbootin
UNetbootin ("Universal Netboot Installer") is a cross-platform utility that can create live USB systems and can load a variety of system utilities or install various Linux distributions and other operating systems without a CD.
 | |
 UNetbootin version 702 on Void Linux | |
| Original author(s) | Geza Kovacs |
|---|---|
| Initial release | April 2007 |
| Stable release | Release 702[1]
/ February 4, 2021 |
| Repository | |
| Written in | C++ (Qt 4/5) |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Type | Live USB |
| License | GNU GPL version 2 or later[2] |
| Website | unetbootin |
Modes
USB install
This installation mode creates bootable USB flash drives and bootable USB Hard Disk Drives; it is a Live USB creator.[3]
- Cross-platform (available for Windows, Linux and Mac OS X)[3]
- Non-destructive install (does not format the device) using Syslinux.
- Supports mainstream Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE, CentOS, Gentoo, Linux Mint, Arch Linux, Mandriva, MEPIS, Slackware as well as FreeDOS, FreeBSD and NetBSD.[3]
- Can load a variety of system utilities, such as Ophcrack, BackTrack.[3]
- Other operating systems can be loaded via pre-downloaded ISO image or floppy/hard drive disk image files.[3]
- Automatically detects all removable devices.[3]
- Supports LiveUSB persistence (preserving files across reboots; this feature is for Ubuntu only)
Multiple installs on the same device are not supported.
Hard drive install
This installation mode performs a network installation or "frugal install" without a CD, similar to that performed by the Win32-Loader.[4]
UNetbootin's distinguishing features are its support for a great variety of Linux distributions, its portability, its ability to load custom disk image (including ISO image) files, and its support for both Windows and Linux.[5] Unlike Wubi, and similar to the Win32-Loader, when installing to hard disk, UNetbootin installs to a partition, not a disk image, thus creating a dual-boot setup between Linux and Windows.[4][6]
Reception
A review in Full Circle in February 2021 stated, "despite the rather dated-looking interface, UNetbootin works perfectly, allowing the writing of almost any Linux or BSD distribution to a USB stick for testing or installation. It is a great example of the Unix philosophy: an application that does one thing and does it well."[7]
References
- Kovacs, Geza. "UNetbootin Releases". GitHub. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
- UNetbootin License and Credits
- Kovacs, Geza. "UNetbootin". GitHub. Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
- "UNetbootin". Softpedia. 9 November 2020. Archived from the original on 6 October 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
- Geza Kovacs (tuxcantfly). "Install Ubuntu Without a CD". Ubuntu. Retrieved 2007-10-10.
- "UNetbootin". Yep!. 10 November 2020. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
- Hunt, Adam (26 February 2021). "Review - UNetbootin" (PDF). Full Circle magazine. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 February 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
