Database Info

Installing Debian on the G1

This was already mentioned by alansj here, but I though it was important enough to have it's own thread
Saurik has created a Debian image you can install onto your sd card. Once installed, you have the full power of debian on your phone. No more puny little busybox
Instructions and such are here.
Thanks Saurik!

I was actually looking into this earlier... let me know how it runs

cant download a few things
can not open ext2.ko......when i type insmod $kit/ext2.ko ...i get "insmod: can't open ' /sdcard/kit/ext2.ko'...some one please help me out

What graphical interface does this install, or is there one?

cbrunner said:
What graphical interface does this install, or is there one?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was my question when I heard about this... I just went for it though because when I read through the instructions, I realized that everything is stored in the MicroSD card and in RAM (which is reset when the phone is rebooted)
It turns out that there is no GUI - just a good old text-based Debian install! I'm sure that someone will get one working... or maybe just port the entire BSD Subsystem along with apt so we can just forget the Market...

amgupt01 said:
That was my question when I heard about this... I just went for it though because when I read through the instructions, I realized that everything is stored in the MicroSD card and in RAM (which is reset when the phone is rebooted)
It turns out that there is no GUI - just a good old text-based Debian install! I'm sure that someone will get one working... or maybe just port the entire BSD Subsystem along with apt so we can just forget the Market...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This awesome article has answered tons of my questions and also seems to imply otherwise:
"This does not replace Android. This also gives you access to the full plethora of programs available in Debian and let's you continue using your phone as it was intended to be: as an Android device with all the capabilities thereof."​
In addition, this IRC channel is where the author of that article idles.

cbrunner said:
This awesome article has answered tons of my questions and also seems to imply otherwise:
"This does not replace Android. This also gives you access to the full plethora of programs available in Debian and let's you continue using your phone as it was intended to be: as an Android device with all the capabilities thereof."​
In addition, this IRC channel is where the author of that article idles.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right. No gui, but you have a full working linux distro on your phone. You can apt-get just about any of the normal stuff.. You could probably even get a x-windows installation to working, although you would have to connect to it remotely - it would probably be "difficult" to get it to display a gui on the phone itself (although that would be sweet).
I've installed Saurik's image on my phone, it works great. Although if you do the "unionfs.sh" step, the wifi settings don't quite work right anymore. It won't let you enable or disable wifi.
But I was able to get an ssh server (with real user and password management) and even a samba server running on my phone quite easily with this . I've also got gcc installed, and will start playing around with developing directly on the phone (instead of having to cross compile).

Sorry for not being hip to the game, but what the heck is Debian?

donutman said:
Sorry for not being hip to the game, but what the heck is Debian?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Arguably the most influential distribution of Linux ever. Its package management system, apt, is awesome, and it is what Ubuntu and tons of other distros were started from.
Why would you not use Google before asking here?

can anyone help with my above mentioned problem
i want this baby to run

Is your phone connected to your computer? You lose access to the storage card when it is, I think (you can't cd to it when it's plugged in) and unplugging my phone allowed me to install the module.
/a

Installing Debian errors?
Here is what I get:
insmod $kit/ext2.ko
insmod: init_module '/sdcard/kit/ext2.ko' failed (Operation not permitted)

i've been through this, i'm not gonna explain what happens and why, but imo, the only way to get a real root is the following:
-Install telnet client to your device (from android market).
-Reboot your phone to be sure no telnet-daemons/shells are running.
-When you are on the desktop, just type "enter", "telnetd", "enter". (If you do it from the terminal app it will run under the uid of the terminal app which is not root).
-Then run the telnet client app, and connect to local host. (Or skip this step + the first one if you wanna connect from another pc)
I know it's weird, but when you run something from the terminal app it runs under the terminal app's uid, even if you run a new shell, you still are eg. "app_33", not root. and btw you will have to set the environment variables all from the same shell, that means you can't have a script cause it will run under another shell, with another uid. I'm so confused... maybe I'm wrong but android is not the most friendly environment.

aggtrfrad said:
i've been through this, i'm not gonna explain what happens and why, but imo, the only way to get a real root is the following:
-Install telnet client to your device (from android market).
-Reboot your phone to be sure no telnet-daemons/shells are running.
-When you are on the desktop, just type "enter", "telnetd", "enter". (If you do it from the terminal app it will run under the uid of the terminal app which is not root).
-Then run the telnet client app, and connect to local host. (Or skip this step + the first one if you wanna connect from another pc)
I know it's weird, but when you run something from the terminal app it runs under the terminal app's uid, even if you run a new shell, you still are eg. "app_33", not root. and btw you will have to set the environment variables all from the same shell, that means you can't have a script cause it will run under another shell, with another uid. I'm so confused... maybe I'm wrong but android is not the most friendly environment.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haha I feel you. Now the thing is when I am at the home screen on my G1 i push "Enter" on the keyboard and then type "telnetd" and then push enter again it doesnt do anything. When I open up telnet client on my PC it wont connect with wifi on.
So I then go to Telnet client on myG1 and go to connect to "localhost:23" and it says "Error while connecting to server: localhost/127.0.0.1:23 - Connection refused" the thing is that my local host for my wifi is not 127.0.0.1:23
And when I "netstat" from inside Terminal Emulator there is no address with port "23"

ballaholyk84 said:
Haha I feel you. Now the thing is when I am at the home screen on my G1 i push "Enter" on the keyboard and then type "telnetd" and then push enter again it doesnt do anything. When I open up telnet client on my PC it wont connect with wifi on.
So I then go to Telnet client on myG1 and go to connect to "localhost:23" and it says "Error while connecting to server: localhost/127.0.0.1:23 - Connection refused" the thing is that my local host for my wifi is not 127.0.0.1:23
And when I "netstat" from inside Terminal Emulator there is no address with port "23"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you already running RC30?

SplasPood said:
Are you already running RC30?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I am running the Modified RC30 posted by JesusFreke

cbrunner said:
Why would you not use Google before asking here?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because I wanted you to tell me baby. That is what a wife is suppose to do.

JesusFreke said:
Right. No gui, but you have a full working linux distro on your phone. You can apt-get just about any of the normal stuff.. You could probably even get a x-windows installation to working, although you would have to connect to it remotely - it would probably be "difficult" to get it to display a gui on the phone itself (although that would be sweet).
I've installed Saurik's image on my phone, it works great. Although if you do the "unionfs.sh" step, the wifi settings don't quite work right anymore. It won't let you enable or disable wifi.
But I was able to get an ssh server (with real user and password management) and even a samba server running on my phone quite easily with this . I've also got gcc installed, and will start playing around with developing directly on the phone (instead of having to cross compile).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What command did you use to get the SSH to install? Every time I do the one in the tut by saurik it errors and wont install all the way. I get an error after x11-common and it wont finish.

ballaholyk84 said:
So I then go to Telnet client on myG1 and go to connect to "localhost:23" and it says "Error while connecting to server: localhost/127.0.0.1:23 - Connection refused" the thing is that my local host for my wifi is not 127.0.0.1:23
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
localhost usually refers to the loopback interface which on most devices will be 127.0.0.1.

I'm getting the same thing here... I think there's something wrong with apt-get having to write to /tmp which does not exist (and is mounted read-only).

x11 via Xvfb and x11vnc

I'm trying to get a window manager running under Debian. I'm using Xvfb and x11vnc. So far I've gotten the server up and running but I get a socket error on my vnc viewer after negotiating protocol. Anyone want to help?

Well, the clean way to display a X client on the phone would be IMHO to implement an x server in a windows. kind of like xming or xephyr. Too bad I don't know java
Anyway, using vnc looks like a smart idea. I worry about the performance, though.
I'll give it a try once I have re-installed debian on my ADP1 (trying to install it in a dedicated partition on the sd)

jusplainmike said:
I'm trying to get a window manager running under Debian. I'm using Xvfb and x11vnc. So far I've gotten the server up and running but I get a socket error on my vnc viewer after negotiating protocol. Anyone want to help?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use X over SSH. Man I'll just write up a post.

I think he's trying to achieve X display on the phone, not on his computer.

Yes, I'm trying to get the display on the phone, not having to really on tunneling x11 over ssh.

I'm running a similar setup on my phone, in order to run X apps like xpdf. Works fine. Here's what you need:
In your debian chroot, apt-get install tightvncserver, and run it.
On the android side, run the android VNC viewer and connect to localhost:1 (or whatever display tightvncserver started). You'll get X on your screen.
You can apt-get and run a small window manager like twm if you need one. I generally use it without a window manager, with apps running in full-screen mode. For example, "xpdf -g 1024x768+0+0 some-file.pdf" to view a PDF. (at least until there's a decent PDF viewer for android).
Don't bother trying OpenOffice on it though. Too heavy - I actually tried it.

mod1 said:
I'm running a similar setup on my phone, in order to run X apps like xpdf. Works fine. Here's what you need:
In your debian chroot, apt-get install tightvncserver, and run it.
On the android side, run the android VNC viewer and connect to localhost:1 (or whatever display tightvncserver started). You'll get X on your screen.
You can apt-get and run a small window manager like twm if you need one. I generally use it without a window manager, with apps running in full-screen mode. For example, "xpdf -g 1024x768+0+0 some-file.pdf" to view a PDF. (at least until there's a decent PDF viewer for android).
Don't bother trying OpenOffice on it though. Too heavy - I actually tried it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you telling me you got to run x app on the phone?

Yep, that's what I wrote. It was one of the first things I installed on the phone when I bought it. And performance is not as bad as I expected, as long as you don't try to run animation. Reasonable for reading a pdf.

Has anyone else tried this?
I cannot connect with android vnc viewer from my phone and tightvnc server running on debian showing "localhost:/#".
I am not using a password. I am trying to log in on vnc-viewer at 127.0.0.1 and have tried several ports including the default and 23.

mod1 said:
Yep, that's what I wrote. It was one of the first things I installed on the phone when I bought it. And performance is not as bad as I expected, as long as you don't try to run animation. Reasonable for reading a pdf.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will i be abkle to run pidgin?

when i try to run vncserver it tells me that the USER envirioment variable i snot set

For the user variable error.Type su Again by itself before you start vnc. It has to do with now having set user in the enviroment set. I have an image that give you 2 gigs more of free space (uses up storage card) the current one only has 300megs free which limits you drastically and also a fixed script that you won't have to go into su again....

For the guys that can't get vnc working type localhost in the server field only and as for port use 5901... Use a password upon initial setup of vnc. Sorry about spekking errors but I'm half drunk and typing on g1

Okay I set up the password and stuff but when I go to the vnc viewer on the phone it does nto conect and the crash

When I go to vnc-viewer, I can log in but the window I get says--
Xsession:unable to start x session ---- no "/root/.xsession" ...no session managers,

Can someone please help me get this runing, my messenger is [email protected]
Okay I finally got it to run and get a grey screen, when i go t back to termina it is on android terminal not debian so I log back.
Now how to I run pidgin after I install it? just type pidgin?

I finally got pidgin runing!!!!

Rafase282 said:
I finally got pidgin runing!!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now *that* would be a good reason to do this

JesusFreke said:
Now *that* would be a good reason to do this
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I warn you it will be slow and still cant use the sub functions of the buttons form the keyboard to at least I don't know how. I'm trying to take a screenshot with the program from the windows manager, and i use twm

Okay I have tried with twm, vtwm, and icewm
So far I like icewm the most but still have vtwm for back up. It runs fine not as slow as before with twm. I have pidgin runing but still cant figure out how to run the screenshot program that comes with debian.
Can anyone tell me a way to get a screenshot in command line so I can show you the screen and prove that it works?

[Ubuntu Image] 1st really working simple to install Ubuntu on your phone

This is easier than making a cup of coffee.
Pictures below as attachment couldnt figure how to put the pic here edit figured it out now im just lazy.
you dont have to do it the hard way
Everyone (edit: i thought so at the time)will want this "Fully" (note below) funtioning Ubuntu system
or you can make your own here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=913622
I will be maintaning and updating as time permits
Phone has to be rooted: http://forum.xda-developers.com/wiki/index.php?title=HTC_Supersonic/Guides_&_Tutorials
NEW IMAGE 3.5 gigibyte
Lucid base image (only added: lxde and tightvncserver): Zip http://www.megaupload.com/?d=GLMYVCMN User: "dad" Passwd:ffffffff
Remove app2sd and settings- applications- manage applications- sdcard "move all apps to phone" or it will not work!
I suggest you install gnome-panel
I use it and i find no speed differance!
trying to get :upstart services" to work im looking into compiling a kernel with "CONFIG_TMPFS enabled, to initiate a workaround, because "upstart" services wont work in a chroot.
Stock Maverick : http://www.megaupload.com/?d=56AT71WD
Karmic Sucks programs stop opening after some short time, so i gave up.
Tested with: CM7 http://mirror.teamdouche.net/get/supersonic/update-cm-7.0.0-RC1-Supersonic-signed.zip
CM6: http://mirror.teamdouche.net/get/supersonic/update-cm-6.1.2-Supersonic-signed.zip
myn-WarmTwoPointTwo-11-05-2010-RLS-3
Unzip
Copy the "ubuntu" folder to your sd card
Go to market download "Terminal" and android VNC Viewer
Open terminal and type: (without the quotes), "su" then "cd /sdcard/ubuntu"
then "sh ./ubuntu.sh"
then "bootubuntu"
then "vncserver :0 -geometry 1024x800"
Thats it, go to android VNC Viewer and use dad for nickname, "ffffffff" for the password, "localhost", for address, 5900 for the port, Use 24bit veiwing settings, then go.
to shutdown you will have to power off phone and power back on.
Enter in your :"Initial Command",in the settings of Android Terminal:
su
cd /sdcard/ubuntu
sh ./ubuntu.sh
bootubuntu
So everytime you want to start ubuntu just open terminal
to start VNC SERVER automaticly you will have to add to the bottom of your /home/.bashrc file this:
cd /
rm -r -f /tmp
mkdir /tmp
vncserver :0 -geometry 1024x800
Thats it, your off ENJOY
Notes: Its as fully funtioning for myself, cant speak for everyone
This is in Beta stages I am an old Visual Basic dabbler as a hobby, and am not very fluent in the lenux operating system. However this "ubuntu on mobile device" has rekindled a lost desire to program.
I will update changes as i get the time
If anyone would like to contribute their lenux expertese to iron out the bugs, i and so many others would appreciate it
Issues to work on:
:no sound
NOTE: A big kernel level problem is the lack of sound. Most of the kernels we use as a base for our ports are designed for Google Android. Android doesn't use the standard Linux sound System ALSA. An ALSA wrapper for the EVO DSP kernel system must be written.
:Setting up users and groups (used kusers but seemed to slow system a bit, needs kde-common) But is very tolorable, I actually use dolphin. (cant get nautilus to create folders or files (destination read only? u got me)).
:hacked /root/.bashrc for easy login help (when using terminal runs .bashrc. dont know anotherway to start hamachi on login and also vncserver tries to restart)
:keyboard mapping (mapping arrow keys to the abc keyboard it has arrow keys, esc,etc...)
: No way to exit or turn off ubuntu. You have to turn off phone, to turn off ubuntu.
nce in a while the programs refuse to open, it has somthing to do with ?. you have to restart ubuntu again.
I suppose a fluent ubuntu/lenux person could help change usernames and such, using the terminal,set proper permissions and such
Im using CyanogenMod Rom its the only one that works with Hamachi
your rom will most likely work, however networking wont!
Tips:
ownload VNC for your computer and modify your ubuntu desktop on your computer screen (that way i dont need my glasses) (use "ifconfig" to find ip address)
:You can even use VNC to view the build while in qemu emulation, after installing lxde and tightvncserver in the emulation. (watch out for seg faults)
:In terminal, preferances-initial command, enter the "cd /sdcard/ubuntu ...etc ," that way its a one click to login .
:Get "abc keyboard" from market it has the esc, arrow keys etc... ( extra keys only good outside chroot, the "terminal", on your android desktop)
:If your not familiar with ubuntu, you use synaptic package manager to install programs
:When u share over himachi or start smbd, programs will stop opening.
.
Trust me everything i want it use it for seems to be pretty zippy, but just give a little xtra time for programs to load the first time. (Firefox may take 90 sec. to load the first time. After that its a snap)

I Would like to check into this
The no sound issue is getting to me, I may wait for that as that is an essential to my all in one device.
THANKS FOR THE HARD WORK. I LOVE UBUNTU

you really have to try it and tell everyone about it cant believe its not one of the hottest topics

I Would like to check into this
any way to delete this post....didn't mean to submit, came back to send like i didn't send it but ending up sending twice
apologies

Sounds pretty cool, I will defiantly have to give this a try. Question though, is this installing over top of the rom I am currently using. Example I am using the MIUI 1.22, if I install this is this like dual booting or will it just uninstall every time I reboot the phone??

Is it still uploading? I really want to try this!

corybucher said:
Sounds pretty cool, I will defiantly have to give this a try. Question though, is this installing over top of the rom I am currently using. Example I am using the MIUI 1.22, if I install this is this like dual booting or will it just uninstall every time I reboot the phone??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This will sit on your sdcard and ride side by side with your android system (you can use your phone at the same time)
IT DOES NOT EFFECT YOUR PHONE IN ANY WAY
wasnt shouting just wanted everyone to see

ioos said:
Is it still uploading? I really want to try this!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Download away!

This is awesome! I can't wait to get home and give it a try.
This is gonna be a great weekend. Between this and the flashable ROMs that are starting to roll out for my nook color, I might be sprouting antennae by Monday.

So wep cracking soon...? That's about the only thing I want/need Linux for.
Sent from the void...

wuclan48 said:
So wep cracking soon...? That's about the only thing I want/need Linux for.
Sent from the void...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How would one go about this "wep cracking thing"
please explain further

Almost* all WEP and some** WPA wireless passwords can be cracked. IMHO its easiest to do this on a Linux machine (please take note I love all OSs equally!)
*I forget how accurate this is but some WEP keys(like crazy long ones) can cause problems l in cracking, thus being protected (though not by design)
**most wpa specifications are not crackable yet and those that are often have a very stringent set of requirements (off the top of my head: most require someone to be legitimately connected to the access point and very simple passwords with low encryption.
On topic, though, this is sweet. Hope I can get something like this on my galaxy tab too!
EDIT: If you really need to know this (please only for testing... not to mooch people's internet) Google "wep cracking on backtrack"
The short simple answer is you sniff packets that the wireless access points send out and manipulate them to decrypt the key.
EDIT 2: I just realized you are also the guy who made this. Let me answer a few questions.
1) For audio you probably need to find a way to register the hardware with a Linux Audio Mixer. I'm guessing Ubuntu uses ALSA? I'd have to look that up
2) For users, kusers is part of the KDE desktop system. Ubuntu uses GNOME. People generally only use one or the other (unless they're trying to show off). That's probably why it either a) won't work or b) not work well and take up lots of extra space
3) It's Linux, not Lenux (but that's fine I can sense English isn't your first language... it's not mine either, but that's fine ^^)

the download has a "zipx" extension.
I did a little googling and it looks like that is winzips new default compression method, and the only way to open the archive is with winzip, bitzipper, pkzip, or a couple of others. none of the compression utilities I typically use (7zip on Windows, unarchiver on mac) seem to support it.
Edit: sorry if I sound unappreciative, I just think its funny to use a proprietary closed format for distribution of software that is all about open software and formats. I'm currently trying to find something that will open this on the mac without being a scummy trial, or ill just do it on a pc.

Sorry i just used the wizard and made a zip file with winzip 12.1

Quote"Almost* all WEP and some** WPA wireless passwords can be cracked. IMHO its easiest to do this on a Linux machine (please take note I love all OSs equally!)
*I forget how accurate this is but some WEP keys(like crazy long ones) can cause problems l in cracking, thus being protected (though not by design)"
Thanks for the info

laydros said:
the download has a "zipx" extension.
I did a little googling and it looks like that is winzips new default compression method, and the only way to open the archive is with winzip, bitzipper, pkzip, or a couple of others. none of the compression utilities I typically use (7zip on Windows, unarchiver on mac) seem to support it.
Edit: sorry if I sound unappreciative, I just think its funny to use a proprietary closed format for distribution of software that is all about open software and formats. I'm currently trying to find something that will open this on the mac without being a scummy trial, or ill just do it on a pc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
shame on me .
Your right im a noob and really know too much about it yet i just like having ubuntu on my phone.
Ill do better next time

People talking about cracking WEP and stuff, this probably doesn't have a driver to put the wireless card to put the card in monitor mode.

laydros said:
the download has a "zipx" extension.
I did a little googling and it looks like that is winzips new default compression method, and the only way to open the archive is with winzip, bitzipper, pkzip, or a couple of others. none of the compression utilities I typically use (7zip on Windows, unarchiver on mac) seem to support it.
Edit: sorry if I sound unappreciative, I just think its funny to use a proprietary closed format for distribution of software that is all about open software and formats. I'm currently trying to find something that will open this on the mac without being a scummy trial, or ill just do it on a pc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have the same problems, did you happen to find anything to open it with? I searched a little on google myself but all I find is software that needs to be purchased.

Homefix said:
Quote"Almost* all WEP and some** WPA wireless passwords can be cracked. IMHO its easiest to do this on a Linux machine (please take note I love all OSs equally!)
*I forget how accurate this is but some WEP keys(like crazy long ones) can cause problems l in cracking, thus being protected (though not by design)"
Thanks for the info
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AFAIK, WEP can be easily cracked. WPA or WPA2 though, will require bruteforcing, there is no way around it.

corybucher said:
Have the same problems, did you happen to find anything to open it with? I searched a little on google myself but all I find is software that needs to be purchased.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will repackage it, but it might take 3-4 hrs to upload, sorry.
ill get right on it

Wishnu: Debian on android one-click launcher and more (now with TV!)

*YO! New version can connect to a TV via HDMI. If you have a USB-host, you can also connect a keyboard and a mouse!*
Hi. I want to introduce you Wishnu. The essence of our project is the launch of computer OS Linux Debian inside an Android mobile device. Then this device connects to a computer by means of the USB-cable. Actually that allows transforming any Android device into a real computer. You can connect the phone to different computers at home, at work and on a visit and use the phone’s own screen and input equipment on the journey.
We have taken "running chrooted debian/ubuntu on android" idea as the base and created something interesting with it.
First, we have created Android application which starts Debian on android mobile device with one click (no need to type any commands in the terminal etc).
Second, we have written desktop client application which shows Debian desktop running on mobile phone on the PC or laptop with wide screen, mouse and keyboard, so this actually turns the solution to the docking station like Motorola Lapdock or devices such as Pocket Desktop, but much better, cause you don't need to buy additional docking station device and you will immediately receive tons of common desktop applications available from Debian MIPS/ARM repositories (even pdf document viewers, image editors, office with spreadsheets and presentations editors etc).
Also device SD card available inside chrooted system in /media/sharedSD dir.
Watch the video in action
And this one (sorry for the quality, I used my matreshka as a camera).
Screenshots
Currently Wishnu uses Debian 5.0 ARM image taken from this thread. We are planning to add more customized and fresh Debian and Ubuntu OS images.
System requirements
PC client
- OS Windows XP, Vista, 7 (x86) or Linux (x86, x64)
- Java Runtime Environment must be pre-installed.
- Device ADB driver on Windows (on linux no adb driver needed, but adb server should be started as root in most cases)
Android device
- MIPS or ARM
- Mobile processor 500 MHz, 256 mb RAM (Recommended: processor 1 GHz and >512 mb RAM)
- Android OS 1.5 or higher.
- The device must be rooted.
Download and install instructions
Or download on Android Market

This one is much easier to start with than existing LinuxInstaller - no need to type any commands in terminal or adb shell - just download image file and press start. Also desktop client is great idea.
Needs more options for system control though and also Ubuntu image for desktop instead of old debian.

yo, we need some response, please download our awesome application! or at least tell us why you won't do it (maybe Wishnu is useless or smb is better). Thank you!

How does it do with running heavier weight applications such as thunderbird?

agoodm said:
How does it do with running heavier weight applications such as thunderbird?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually it depends on your phone's performance. We use Sony Ericsson Xperia arc for testing and have no problems running such applications. You better try it and inform us about results)

Are you using the armel or armhf Debian distribution?

nicktastique said:
Are you using the armel or armhf Debian distribution?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Currently we have images of debian squeezy for armel and mipsel.

A bit busy with the holidays and all, but I will give it a look. I definitely recommend checking out armhf. I've been testing it on my Droid 3 and cursory benchmarks show it to be something like 850% faster than armel. armel is basically useless in comparison.
Debian's armhf Icweasel 9.0 was actually faster than the native Firefox Mobile 9.0 app on the SunSpider benchmark (by 80ms, but still).
Thanks for your work, looking forward to checking it out.
lokosokol said:
Currently we have images of debian squeezy for armel and mipsel.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Very interesting idea, and I'd love to give it a go. Unfortunately, it doesn't work for me. I get an error, "Can't connect to OS image".
The checks run okay, so everything appears to be okay.
I'm using a Samsung GS2, on 2.3.5 (stock ROM), so hardware and OS are more than adequate.
Edit: Okay, so it was the stock ROM that was the problem. I assume it doesn't support loop devices (whatever that actually means!) I've got a custom ROM on there now and it gets a lot further, but I still have an issue.
It gets to the "Starting System" stage and I get the error message "OS start failed (bad program identificator)".
So, any advice?

Thank you for your advice, guys!

nicktastique said:
A bit busy with the holidays and all, but I will give it a look. I definitely recommend checking out armhf. I've been testing it on my Droid 3 and cursory benchmarks show it to be something like 850% faster than armel. armel is basically useless in comparison.
Debian's armhf Icweasel 9.0 was actually faster than the native Firefox Mobile 9.0 app on the SunSpider benchmark (by 80ms, but still).
Thanks for your work, looking forward to checking it out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much for this hint — we are working on preparing better system images and will definitely give this option a try.

Archer said:
Very interesting idea, and I'd love to give it a go. Unfortunately, it doesn't work for me. I get an error, "Can't connect to OS image".
The checks run okay, so everything appears to be okay.
I'm using a Samsung GS2, on 2.3.5 (stock ROM), so hardware and OS are more than adequate.
Edit: Okay, so it was the stock ROM that was the problem. I assume it doesn't support loop devices (whatever that actually means!) I've got a custom ROM on there now and it gets a lot further, but I still have an issue.
It gets to the "Starting System" stage and I get the error message "OS start failed (bad program identificator)".
So, any advice?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could you give us a log file of that failed launch? It should be in "/path_to_application_data/log" folder.

I tried it out and I get "Error:OS start failed (timeout expired)
Here is the log:
Code:
############Preparing Base System############
############Preparing Base System Check############
***Checking Ext2 exists/not exists***
true
***Checking system loop device file '/dev/block/wishnuloop' exists***
true
############Preparing Base System Check Finishes############
############Preparing Base System Ends############
############Mounting System Image############
############Mounting System Check############
**Checking /dev/block/wishnuloop mounted/not mounted**
#busybox losetup /dev/block/wishnuloop
/dev/block/wishnuloop: 0 /mnt/sdcard/wishnu/system.img
Return code: 0
**Check /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system mounted/not mounted**
#busybox mountpoint /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system
Return code: 0
############All Correct############
############Mounting System Image Ends############
############Preparing System############
############Preparing System Check############
**Check /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/dev/pts mounted/not mounted**
#busybox mountpoint /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/dev/pts
Return code: 0
**Check /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/proc mounted/not mounted**
#busybox mountpoint /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/proc
Return code: 0
**Check /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/sys mounted/not mounted**
#busybox mountpoint /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/sys
Return code: 0
**Check /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/media/sharedSD mounted/not mounted**
#busybox mountpoint /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/media/sharedSD
Return code: 0
############All Correct############
############Preparing System Ends############
############Starting System############
############Starting System Check############
############start from ip_forward############
#busybox sysctl -w net.ipv4.ip_forward=1
net.ipv4.ip_forward = 1
Return code: 0
#busybox chroot /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system /bin/bash -l
su: applet not found
#busybox fuser -k /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system
Return code: 1
#rm /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/root/.vnc/localhost:1.pid
rm failed for /data/data/edu.phystech.wishnu/system/root/.vnc/localhost:1.pid, No such file or directory
Return code: 255
############Start Failed############

According to the log your busybox is a bit "incomplete" - it doesn't include a chroot applet (which is really strange). I think reinstalling it should solve the problem (in this case busybox installer or BusyBox from android market should help).

I have tried several versions of busybox (1.19.3, 1.18.4, etc) and they all give the same error. It seems that it tries to run "busybox su" when it does not exist..

Ok, this means that we also have some problems with log printing.
Using "busybox su" seemed to be a bit safe command (it worked on all devices we have for testing). Now it turned out that it doesn't work on every device.
By the way I think I should introduce myself - I'm one of the Wishnu developers, so with any problems you can write to me.

The website claims the app on android can run by itself without using a computer. Does this mean the Debian environment is self-contained and can be run as such? The app seems to start linux, but a computer is then required to view the desktop, correct? How does one view the linux desktop from the phone itself?
The app runs fine on my phone. The image file needs to be place on the internal memory, rather than the SD card itself for it to run properly.
Droid 3 running Steel Droid 3 with root.

GoTeamScotch said:
The app seems to start linux, but a computer is then required to view the desktop, correct? How does one view the linux desktop from the phone itself?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can use any VNC client from the android market to get the picture from the linux desktop on your phone.
There connection address is "localhost", port 5901 and password is "android".
You can check gallery on our site to see how it works (photo with phone connected to the TV).
e334 said:
It seems that it tries to run "busybox su" when it does not exist..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Checked the source code of the app - version that should be on the android market and the site shouldn't run any "busybox su" command (however it is always possible that we made a mistake).
So first of all I want to make sure that your busybox has chroot applet.
Please, could you perform "busybox chroot " command from the adb shell (or in the terminal emulator in your phone) and post here a result of this command?
If it works I'll attach the launching script (nearly the same we have in the app) and I hope we will find out what's wrong with the launching procedure.

Awesome, thank you very much for the tip! I downloaded a free VNC viewer app from the market and entered the info you gave and it worked! The desktop is a little sluggish but that's sort of to be expected, even with a dual-core phone.
This is very cool software! I didn't realize running Linux on a Droid 3 was possible as of yet because of loopback support. I've been looking into ways of installing Linux since I got the phone, but couldn't find a way around my kernel's lack of loopback. How does your software overcome this obstacle? Are there any plans of improving speed in future releases?
By the way, if your group would like a graphics designer for UI elements or website images I am available! I work for a company in Olympia, Washington making graphics (in-store signs, exterior posters, skins, icons, etc...). This seems like a cool project and I'd be willing to help out for a cup of coffee or something.

Great project.
Do you have more info on building Debian for Android? Also, how much of the "native" Debian UI apps are transferable (and usable) from the phone?

[GUIDE][HOWTO] Setup 2way-sync over WiFi using Unison

There are a lot of howtos about pulling/pushing content over wifi around. Taking adb or AirDroid may be reliable for common use, but i was looking for a real two-way-sync without utilizing a cloud, also i wanted not too much 3rd Party-Software involved, neither on my box nor at my phone.
Although Unison is platform-independant and can be run from Windows, i'm focussing on the Linux part (coz i've got no Windows box to test). I won't go deeper into things like howto install the required applications on your box. You won't have to compile anything, precompiled binaries should be available for your distro. Guess pacman, yum and apt-get will do their job, but if in doubt, Google will lead the way.
Requirements
A rooted device
SSHDroid installed on your Android
OpenSSH, SSHFS and Unison properly installed on your Box
SSH
After ensured the requirements above, you should be able to ssh to your android device. It's ip is shown by SSHDroid.
Code:
ssh [email protected]<yourdeviceip>
First connect will take some time, coz ssh will handshake your device and save the fingerprint. After the connect succeeded, you will be easily able to connect your device anytime over wifi.
SSHFS
SSHFS allows us to mount the whole android device to a mountpoint on your box. Compare it like a external harddisk you plug into your box usb.
First we'll create a directory in our home and then mount the device into it.
Code:
mkdir wifidroid && sshfs [email protected]<your device ip>:/sdcard/ ~/wifidroid/
SSHFS will ask for your root password anytime you try to connect. If not configured different within SSHDroid, it will be admin. You're ought to change it for safety reasons. After above steps, your device is mounted into wifidroid. You can easily browse the contents using your preferred linux filemanager (like dolphin or nautilus). To unmount device, use fusermount -u ~/wifidroid/ later.
UNISON
Unison will handle the syncing between your box and your device. It comes with an cli and even with a gui. Whatever you will use is up to your personal preference.
First of all we're going to create the unison profile directory and a basic example profile for syncing pictures.
Code:
mkdir ~/.unison && touch pictures.prf
Open pictures.prf with your preferred editor (nano, vi, kate, gedit, orwutevah) and write down some config stuff.
Code:
root=/home/<username>/Pictures
root=/home/<username>/wifidroid/Pictures
path=Friends
path=Landscape
path=Misc Stuff
perms=0
ignore=Name .*~
ignore=Name *~
ignore=Name .*
The first root=/home/<username>/Pictures points to your local pictures directory, whereas the second one, root=/home/<username>/wifidroid/Pictures points to the pictures-folder at your mounted android device. Unison syncs recursevly, so it would simply sync anything beneath the directory Pictures. If you want to sync only some Subfolders, use path=Friends i. e. to include Pictures/Friends. You may edit this to your own convince. We don't want unison to set permissions on synced files, so we set perms=0. Rest should be self explanatory.
Okay, now just fire up unison with unison pictures for cli-version, or unison-gtk pictures for the gui-version and syncing should begin.
Keep in mind that, depending on your wifi speed, it will take a huge amount of time to sync a whole mp3/picture library for the first time. After first sync things should be butter smooth
Above example is just a basic profile. You can easily use unison to backup your whole device, or, as i do, make regular backups of your Camera-Roll, WhatsApp and Threema Backups. If you wanna go deeper into this, you should take a look at the Unison Reference Guide.

Genericxx said:
There are a lot of howtos about pulling/pushing content over wifi around. Taking adb or AirDroid may be reliable for common use, but i was looking for a real two-way-sync without utilizing a cloud, also i wanted not too much 3rd Party-Software involved, neither on my box nor at my phone.
Although Unison is platform-independant and can be run from Windows, i'm focussing on the Linux part (coz i've got no Windows box to test). I won't go deeper into things like howto install the required applications on your box. You won't have to compile anything, precompiled binaries should be available for your distro. Guess pacman, yum and apt-get will do their job, but if in doubt, Google will lead the way.
Requirements
A rooted device
SSHDroid installed on your Android
OpenSSH, SSHFS and Unison properly installed on your Box
SSH
After ensured the requirements above, you should be able to ssh to your android device. It's ip is shown by SSHDroid.
Code:
ssh [email protected]<yourdeviceip>
First connect will take some time, coz ssh will handshake your device and save the fingerprint. After the connect succeeded, you will be easily able to connect your device anytime over wifi.
SSHFS
SSHFS allows us to mount the whole android device to a mountpoint on your box. Compare it like a external harddisk you plug into your box usb.
First we'll create a directory in our home and then mount the device into it.
Code:
mkdir wifidroid && sshfs [email protected]<your device ip>:/sdcard/ ~/wifidroid/
SSHFS will ask for your root password anytime you try to connect. If not configured different within SSHDroid, it will be admin. You're ought to change it for safety reasons. After above steps, your device is mounted into wifidroid. You can easily browse the contents using your preferred linux filemanager (like dolphin or nautilus). To unmount device, use fusermount -u ~/wifidroid/ later.
UNISON
Unison will handle the syncing between your box and your device. It comes with an cli and even with a gui. Whatever you will use is up to your personal preference.
First of all we're going to create the unison profile directory and a basic example profile for syncing pictures.
Code:
mkdir ~/.unison && touch pictures.prf
Open pictures.prf with your preferred editor (nano, vi, kate, gedit, orwutevah) and write down some config stuff.
Code:
root=/home/<username>/Pictures
root=/home/<username>/wifidroid/Pictures
path=Friends
path=Landscape
path=Misc Stuff
perms=0
ignore=Name .*~
ignore=Name *~
ignore=Name .*
The first root=/home/<username>/Pictures points to your local pictures directory, whereas the second one, root=/home/<username>/wifidroid/Pictures points to the pictures-folder at your mounted android device. Unison syncs recursevly, so it would simply sync anything beneath the directory Pictures. If you want to sync only some Subfolders, use path=Friends i. e. to include Pictures/Friends. You may edit this to your own convince. We don't want unison to set permissions on synced files, so we set perms=0. Rest should be self explanatory.
Okay, now just fire up unison with unison pictures for cli-version, or unison-gtk pictures for the gui-version and syncing should begin.
Keep in mind that, depending on your wifi speed, it will take a huge amount of time to sync a whole mp3/picture library for the first time. After first sync things should be butter smooth
Above example is just a basic profile. You can easily use unison to backup your whole device, or, as i do, make regular backups of your Camera-Roll, WhatsApp and Threema Backups. If you wanna go deeper into this, you should take a look at the Unison Reference Guide.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks will try

Nice job mate. I will try it.

Thanks @Genericxx, it looks complicated at first, but after reading a while it makes complete sense,
For anyone who wants an easier way for syncing between PC windows and Android, i'd recommend ES File Explorer and Goodsync (on windows PC)
First enable FTP Remote manager in ES through a WiFi same with ur PC windows. Then open Goodsync and setup a sync wizard and choose FTP and then the ip address from ES on the Right (destination)sync folder.

It works great on the Note 2 and it is awesome app! 5 star on market and thanks here.

No need to be root
Great guide, thanks a lot!
I have two things to add.
1. You do not need to root your Android device to use SSHDroid.
2. As the user of a non-rooted device, I ran into the problem of permissions when using unison. The solution:
Apart from having the
perms = 0
line in your .prf file, also add
dontchmod = true
So, my file looks like this:
Code:
perms=0
dontchmod = true
root=/home/<username>/Pictures
root=/home/<username>/wifidroid/Pictures
ignore=Name .*~
ignore=Name *~
ignore=Name .*
Placing "perms=0" and "dontchmod = true" at the beginning of the file may be important (I read it somewhere), but maybe it is not.
And it works nicely with my non-rooted device. Thanks again!

Check also UnisonSync:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.danielroggen.unisonsync
It's a Unison client for Android with GUI.
The advantage of unison client (rather than server) on the answer Android device is that you can connect to your server even if your shoe Android device is on a different subnet or behind a firewall (as long as your server is accessible of course).
Cheers,
D.