Replace Windows Vista with Kali Linux?

[Hexa Fox]

Hey guys,

I am currently attending courses in Information Systems Security. I have an older PC that is running Windows Vista right now and am interested in replacing it with Kali Linux. I am not very familiar with the Linux platform in the first place, so figure it would be a great opportunity. I just wanted some basic feedback from you guys as I have never completely replaced an operating system like this before.

For instance, do I just download Kali Linux to a USB drive and then designate the BIOS to boot from it? I saw a lot of other people are just running it from a USB drive permanently. Is this because the interface is limited? For instance, can I download a browser to it and still freely browse the web still? Personally, I would like the operating system to reside permanently on the HDD after everything is said and done. I am open to any advice and suggestions. I appreciate any feedback I can get!

 

[Paul NZ]

Get the ISO get Rufus

This will extract the ISO contents to a flash drive. So it's bootable.. Then you boot from the flash drive to install it.

I dont know if you can use Kali as a live cd like other distros. But then you should be able to install it on a hdd

 

[skittle]

Hey guys,

I am currently attending courses in Information Systems Security. I have an older PC that is running Windows Vista right now and am interested in replacing it with Kali Linux. I am not very familiar with the Linux platform in the first place, so figure it would be a great opportunity. I just wanted some basic feedback from you guys as I have never completely replaced an operating system like this before.

For instance, do I just download Kali Linux to a USB drive and then designate the BIOS to boot from it? I saw a lot of other people are just running it from a USB drive permanently. Is this because the interface is limited? For instance, can I download a browser to it and still freely browse the web still? Personally, I would like the operating system to reside permanently on the HDD after everything is said and done. I am open to any advice and suggestions. I appreciate any feedback I can get!

Kali is designed for professional users only, it is not meant to be installed and used as a daily driver OS. Too many other reasons to list here why you should not replace Vista with Kali.

My advice if you have never used a Linux dsitrobution is to stick with a mainstream distro like Ubuntu or Mint.

 

[Hexa Fox]

Kali is designed for professional users only, it is not meant to be installed and used as a daily driver OS. Too many other reasons to list here why you should not replace Vista with Kali.

My advice if you have never used a Linux dsitrobution is to stick with a mainstream distro like Ubuntu or Mint.

Okay thanks for letting me know, it is why I made the post. I would like to replace Windows Vista with something. It has always been a terrible operating system and worse now that it is no longer supported. I would guess that I should avoid BackBox Linux for the same reasons? Anyway I remember being recommended Mint once before.

So is it the same process? For instance, download Linux Mint to a flash drive and force it to boot from the BIOS?

 

[Paul NZ]

You can use rufus to extract it to a flash drive as above. Then boot from the flash drive

You dont have to force it to boot. Just change the bootdisk to the flash drive

 

[Rocky Bennett]

Kali is designed for professional users only, it is not meant to be installed and used as a daily driver OS. Too many other reasons to list here why you should not replace Vista with Kali.

My advice if you have never used a Linux dsitrobution is to stick with a mainstream distro like Ubuntu or Mint.

Okay thanks for letting me know, it is why I made the post. I would like to replace Windows Vista with something. It has always been a terrible operating system and worse now that it is no longer supported. I would guess that I should avoid BackBox Linux for the same reasons? Anyway I remember being recommended Mint once before.

So is it the same process? For instance, download Linux Mint to a flash drive and force it to boot from the BIOS?

Like has already been said, Kali Linux is not meant to be installed. Kali Linux is very specific and is only meant to run on a live USB stick. Linux Mint uses a lot of resources that your old computer might not have. I would recommend Puppy Linux because it should be able to run on that old computer. If Puppy Linux can't run on that system, then that system needs to go into the trash.

http://puppylinux.org/main/Overview%20and%20Getting%20Started.htm

 

[Rocky Bennett]

Kali is designed for professional users only, it is not meant to be installed and used as a daily driver OS. Too many other reasons to list here why you should not replace Vista with Kali.

My advice if you have never used a Linux dsitrobution is to stick with a mainstream distro like Ubuntu or Mint.

Okay thanks for letting me know, it is why I made the post. I would like to replace Windows Vista with something. It has always been a terrible operating system and worse now that it is no longer supported. I would guess that I should avoid BackBox Linux for the same reasons? Anyway I remember being recommended Mint once before.

So is it the same process? For instance, download Linux Mint to a flash drive and force it to boot from the BIOS?

Read what Paul wrote. You need to download the ISO to a hard drive then create a bootable USB stick using Rufus.

 

[skittle]

Kali is designed for professional users only, it is not meant to be installed and used as a daily driver OS. Too many other reasons to list here why you should not replace Vista with Kali.

My advice if you have never used a Linux dsitrobution is to stick with a mainstream distro like Ubuntu or Mint.

Okay thanks for letting me know, it is why I made the post. I would like to replace Windows Vista with something. It has always been a terrible operating system and worse now that it is no longer supported. I would guess that I should avoid BackBox Linux for the same reasons? Anyway I remember being recommended Mint once before.

So is it the same process? For instance, download Linux Mint to a flash drive and force it to boot from the BIOS?

Like has already been said, Kali Linux is not meant to be installed. Kali Linux is very specific and is only meant to run on a live USB stick. Linux Mint uses a lot of resources that your old computer might not have. I would recommend Puppy Linux because it should be able to run on that old computer. If Puppy Linux can't run on that system, then that system needs to go into the trash.

http://puppylinux.org/main/Overview%20and%20Getting%20Started.htm

Puppy Linux is great but it is too bare bones for someone new to Linux. Limited amount of packages and getting certain things to work is a real paint. If PC resources are a concern Xubuntu is a great choice.

 

[The Paladin]

try Zorin OS its a Linux Distro run gnome and looks like windows. should help

 

[Hexa Fox]

try Zorin OS its a Linux Distro run gnome and looks like windows. should help

Hmm, I just did a little research. It would seem that people who are mostly familiar with Windows and starting with Linux would better starting with Zorin. Which is basically what you just said. However, I read that it uses less system resources as well, which could be beneficial to my older system.

 

[Hexa Fox]

Get the ISO get Rufus

This will extract the ISO contents to a flash drive. So it's bootable.. Then you boot from the flash drive to install it.

I dont know if you can use Kali as a live cd like other distros. But then you should be able to install it on a hdd

Okay so I found Rufus on Portable Apps and guess that will function properly?

 

[Hexa Fox]

Linux Zorin:
Personally, this is the worst experience I have ever had with an operating system. It was not functional with my system, constantly crashed, and unbarably slow. This was just my personal experience though.

Linux Mint (Cinnamon):
I had almost lost hope after Zorin. I did not expect there to be such a significant difference between Mint and Zorin. I was also thinking that Mate would have been better suited to this computer. I have only been using it a couple of hours now and so far I am very surprised on how smooth and functional this system is. I am actually here right now typing on this system. It is very responsive and think I could comfortably use it everyday.

Thank you guys for all the help. Can anyone point me to anything interesting with this operating system? So far I have been able to figure everything out. It is very easy to navigate overall. I heard that people frequently use the terminal to modify the system to their liking and for fun/education. However, I am probably completely ignorant to it. I am used to command prompts and Power Shell with Windows. I could even use a little more education there.

So I guess the first person that recommended Linux Mint should get the solution to this?