Ubuntu is a Linux distribution with an emphasis on ease of use and installation. Note that http://askubuntu.com is specifically dedicated to Ubuntu questions.
44
votes
7answers
7k views
What is the Linux equivalent to C:\Program Files?
I understand that in Windows as well as Linux and Unix, a program|application|software can be installed in any directory. Also if packages are installed using the distribution's packaging system, ...
28
votes
11answers
20k views
How can I get distribution name and version number in a simple shell script?
I'm working on a simple bash script that should be able to run on Ubuntu and CentOS distributions (support for Debian and Fedora/RHEL would be a plus) and I need to know the name and version of the ...
23
votes
1answer
6k views
What is $debian_chroot in .bashrc?
What is the debian_chroot variable in my bashrc file? and what is it doing here?
PS1='${debian_chroot:+($debian_chroot)}\u@\h:\w\$ '
18
votes
6answers
10k views
How to copy text from vim to an external program?
I'm trying to copy-paste some text from vim. I'm doing v to enter visual mode, then y once I selected my block.
It appears to copy the text into vim's clipboard, because p will paste it.
But in ...
17
votes
4answers
857 views
What doesn't need defragmentation? Linux or the ext2 ext3 FS?
Why don't you have to defrag a Linux system? Because it's using the ext2/ext3 file system or because it's Linux?
That's relevant, because a have a double boot system (W7 / Ubuntu) and a common ...
17
votes
6answers
3k views
Force directory to always be in cache
I've been testing out different methods to improve the time it takes to compile my entire c++ project. Currently it takes ~5 minutes. I experimented with distcc, ccache, and others. Recently, I ...
17
votes
2answers
6k views
How do I run 32-bit programs on a 64-bit Ubuntu?
I have a 64-bit (amd64 a.k.a. x86_64) Debian or Ubuntu installation. I need to run 32-bit (i386/i686) programs occasionally, or to compile programs for a 32-bit system. How can I do this with a ...
16
votes
7answers
9k views
Differences between Debian and Ubuntu
I'm getting sick of Ubuntu's seemingly random changes. I'm thinking of switching to Debian permanently. Does anyone know if there's a list of changes between the two distros somewhere? I want to know ...
14
votes
6answers
1k views
13
votes
6answers
11k views
Create services in Linux (Start up in linux)
I need one process run before log in to system. how to run it like services?(how do I make services in Linux?)
in Ubuntu and Fedora ?
the service is customized tomcat
13
votes
3answers
1k views
How can I de-fragment a drive using Ubuntu?
Is it necessary to defrag drives in Ubuntu? If so, how do I do it and how often should it be done?
13
votes
4answers
1k views
What makes CentOS “enterprisey” compared to “generic” distributions like Ubuntu?
What makes CentOS "enterprisey" compared to "generic" distributions like Ubuntu?
When I say "enterprisey" I actually mean "better for server deployments". Just a general question, because I was ...
12
votes
2answers
426 views
(SSH) Is it dangerous to close terminal without “exit”?
This happened many times.
While the SSH active, I'm so tired and just close the terminal without exit
Is it dangerous to doing like that?
12
votes
4answers
6k views
How can I play a sound when script execution is ready?
I am executing every now and then some python scripts which take quite long to execute.
I execute them like this:
$ time python MyScript.py
How can I play a sound as soon as the execution of the ...
12
votes
2answers
5k views
What is the proper way to manage multiple python versions?
I have a machine with Python 2.6 installed as the default Python. Then, I installed Python 2.7, and manually created /usr/bin/python as a symlink to the new installation.
Then, I was running into ...
12
votes
1answer
3k views
Run script on screen lock/unlock
I'd like to run a screen if the Gnome session is locked and unlocked. Is there a way that I can intercept this and perform certain actions when the desktop is locked or unlocked?
12
votes
3answers
3k views
bulk rename (or correctly display) files with special characters
I have a bunch of directories and subdirectories that contain files with special characters, like this file:
robbie@phil:~$ ls test�sktest.txt
test?sktest.txt
Find reveals an escape sequence:
...
12
votes
3answers
2k views
Are multiple @daily crontab entries processed in order, serially?
I want two jobs to run sometime every day, serially, in exactly the order I specify. Will this crontab reliably do what I want?
@daily job1
@daily job2
I'm assuming they run one after the other, ...
12
votes
3answers
12k views
How to record Skype video calls on Linux?
I'd like to conduct recorded video interviews with Skype and am looking for a reliable tool to accomplish that.
Is there anything out there that's not slow or buggy?
I'm running (K)Ubuntu.
11
votes
6answers
1k views
Is there a root password on OS X and Ubuntu?
When you setup a new Ubuntu or OS X installation a user is generally created for you. On OS X it is whatever username you pick. On Ubuntu (the server version) usually the ubuntu user is created.
The ...
11
votes
3answers
280 views
What specific vulnerabilities am I creating by disabling the sudo password?
Here are some instructions on how to disable your sudo password. These carry the following warning
If you disable the sudo password for your account, you will seriously compromise the security of ...
11
votes
5answers
12k views
How do I set up dual monitor wallpaper (Ubuntu/NVIDIA)?
On Ubuntu 10.4 with NVIDIA drivers I have dual monitors setup with TwinView. How do I configure a single wallpaper to span both monitors? Right now the same wallpaper is replicated on both monitors.
...
11
votes
1answer
383 views
How to prevent shutdown when an SSH user is logged in?
I'm administrating a networked environment and I had an interesting situation arise yesterday. When a host is required to shutdown by a regular user, it refuses to do so if other users are logged in ...
10
votes
4answers
864 views
Accidentally executed sudo rm /* on a remote server
I accidentally executed rm /* while logged in as root in a remote Ubuntu Server and deleted pretty much all bash commands and currently I can neither log in via ssh or ftp to restore the files (and ...
10
votes
1answer
697 views
Meaning of colours in htop
Given the option:
[ ] Detailed CPU time (System/IO-Wait/Hard-IRQ/Soft-IRQ/Steal/Guest)
In htop (Version 1.0.1) what are the meanings of the colours?
In the following image, I'm seeing rather a lot ...
10
votes
2answers
584 views
Driver is sometimes loaded, sometimes not
I was assigned an Ubuntu desktop with some stuff already on it. I did not reformat it, but attached a mini-PCI wireless card over a PCI to mini-PCI adapter. I manually built the madwifi driver and ...
9
votes
6answers
3k views
Ubuntu list explicitly installed packages
In Gentoo there is the file /var/lib/portage/world that contains packages that I explicitly installed. By explicit I mean, packages that I choose, not including anything installed by default, or ...
9
votes
5answers
530 views
What should I expect if I switch from Ubuntu to openSuse
As probably most of you I have been long using Ubuntu. I'm not an expert, but I have been using different distros until I settled with Ubuntu.
I started using SuSE 5.x, Conectiva (that later became ...
9
votes
3answers
1k views
Why don't my arrow keys work in sh?
I recently installed Ubuntu and when I run sh on the Terminal my arrow keys don't work so I can't go through my call history or edit whatever I'm typing. It just comes out as weird characters like ...
9
votes
2answers
805 views
Is it possible to simulate installation of Debian packages, still marking them installed?
Here's what I would like. Start with a virtual system with no installed packages. Then I invoke a tool similar to apt-get to ask it to compute the dependencies and mark all the packages that would be ...
9
votes
1answer
910 views
What happens in each step of the Linux kernel-building process?
I've read many tutorials about how to build custom kernels and boot Ubuntu using those kernels, and successfully followed the guides and booted custom kernels, but I have no understanding about what ...
9
votes
2answers
4k views
iptables --set-mark - Route diferent ports through different interfaces
Short story,
3 interfaces, eth0 (LAN), eth1(ADSL), eth2(4G).
eth0 -> eth1: Works
(ports 80, 443, 4070) eth0 -> eth2: Doesn't happen
This is a graphical representation of the idea:
Port 80 & ...
9
votes
2answers
4k views
How do I prevent GRUB from using/starting any graphical UI?
I have a problem with an older Laptop (Fujitsu Siemens LifeBook S6010, to be precise) and an Ubuntu (10.10, Xubuntu desktop) installation (fresh install).
During installation the graphics hardware ...
8
votes
5answers
2k views
What is the difference between ls and l?
I accidentally typed l instead of ls today and found that the command still printed a list of the files in my current directory. Trying l --help brings up the help file for ls suggesting that l is ...
8
votes
2answers
504 views
How do I log into my Linux laptop if I have forgotten both the login and password?
How do I log into my Linux laptop if I have forgotten both the username and password?
8
votes
4answers
638 views
A small challenge to familiarize myself with Linux
I would like to learn more about Linux. I briefly went through a few books and quite a few articles online, but the only way to learn something is to actually start using it.
I would like to jump in ...
8
votes
4answers
1k views
'mv' equivalent of drag and drop with replace?
In a GUI environment, a drag-and-drop with replace will replace files and entire directories (including contents) with whatever is being copied in. Is there a way to accomplish this same intuitive ...
8
votes
2answers
636 views
View Script Over SSH?
A friend, using a remote machine, SSHed to my machine and ran the following python script:
while (1):
....print "hello world"
(this script simply prints 'hello world' continuously).
I am now ...
8
votes
3answers
5k views
Linux, disable /dev/fd0 (floppy)
Is it possible to make Linux kernel completely ignore the floppy disk controller? I do not have the drive but obviously my motherboard does contain the controller. I would like to disable the /dev/fd0 ...
8
votes
1answer
2k views
How do I set a user's default .bashrc file?
On Ubuntu 10.4 I have edited the /etc/bash.bashrc file to set some variables like the command history size (HISTSIZE=5000), however if I create a new users Ubuntu by default gives them a .bashrc file ...
8
votes
2answers
467 views
Removing abstraction from Ubuntu boot process
I have been using Linux after almost 5 years and observed that boot process has been almost abstracted. I mean, not much is visible to the user what is going on behind the scenes (Due to splash ...
8
votes
4answers
2k views
Migrating from Ubuntu to Debian
I'm a long term Ubuntu user who is considering migrating from Ubuntu to Debian (mainly because of Unity and the fact that my school has a Debian mirror). I haven't installed Debian on a system before. ...
8
votes
2answers
482 views
CPU stuck at 99% for a few hours. Really need help figuring out logs
extract from syslog:
CRON[pid]: (user) CMD ( [ -x /usr/lib/php5/maxlifetime ] && [ -d /var/lib/php5 ] && find /var/lib/php5/ -depth -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -type f -cmin ...
8
votes
3answers
3k views
Screen turns on automatically (xset dpms force off)
I am using xset dpms force off to manually turn my screen off to save power.
However, it turns back on after some time (20 - 40 seconds).
Distro: Ubuntu-Lucid
Graphics: Intel 4500 MHD
...
8
votes
2answers
8k views
Mouse clicks stop working after random time, using Awesome WM + Gnome
I'm using the Awesome Window Manager together with Gnome in Linux Mint. I experience the following problem several times a day:
Suddenly the mouse partially stops working, which means that I'm still ...
8
votes
2answers
603 views
Kernel Panic because of RAM stick?
one of my RAM sticks causes a Kernel Panic on my Ubuntu 10.10 (something like "not syncing" with a lot of memory adresses shown on screen). It's definitely this one RAM stick and not its socket ...
7
votes
3answers
761 views
How to truely install a tar.gz file on Linux - how to manage manually-installed (or standalone) applications?
I see all these links explaining packages and .debs... I know that... and there are many kludges to get tar.gz files working (eg: update-alternatives for Java or manually dropping the file in ...
7
votes
5answers
2k views
Ubuntu12.04: How to disable a daemon process at startup
I normally use service start/stop or initctl start/stop to start or stop a daemon process but now what I am looking for is to disable a daemon process from starting at startup example mysqld.
...
7
votes
2answers
710 views
How do I find the process generating a lot of network traffic?
My machine is generating a lot of network traffic, all from the same source port, with many different destinations (found this out by running iftop -P, and from my router's logs).
How do I find the ...
7
votes
3answers
2k views
How do I make my disk unmap pending unreadable sectors
I have a disk with some pending unreadable sectors, according to smartd. What would be the easiest way to make the disk remap them and stop smartd from complaining?
Today, I get two of these every ...
