X-DSL (Damb Small Linux)

[Chopstick]

X-DSL is a small (currently about 40mb) but fully functional Linux distribution for the XBOX http://www.damnsmalllinux.org .
X-DSL can be run as a live CD on a modded Xbox or installed to the Xbox hard drive. It will automatically boot into X Windows where you can use your Xbox controller to control the mouse pointer and a virtual keyboard to enter text.
X-DSL has fluxbox based desktop, with applications for a number of common tasks including

• Mozilla Firefox web browser
• AxY GTK+ graphical FTP Client
• Sylpheed graphical email client
• Naim console based AIM, ICQ, IRC
• VNC and Remote Desktop clients
• FLWriter word processor
• Siag spreadsheet
• Graphics editing and viewing using Xpaint and xzgv
• Viewers for PDF, Word and Postscript files
• emelFM file manager
• XMMS audio player
• Monkey web server
• FTP server
• SSH client/server

X-DSL can be customised using myDSL extensions with over 200 extensions currently available from the Damn Small Linux repository.
Here is a download link DOWNLOAD
And heres a brief tut:
Preparing the Xbox

A standard Xbox will only run code authorized by Microsoft, i.e. all executables must be signed with Microsoft's private key. To run X-DSL it is necessay to "mod" your Xbox to circumvent this restriction. There are two types of modification available.

• Hardware modification - You can flash Cromwell, a free and legal BIOS replacement, to your Xbox's TSOP or to a modchip. Cromwell is capable of loading Linux from the Xbox's Hard Disk or from the DVD drive. More infomation is available in the Hardware Method HOWTO.

• Software modification - By exploiting bugs in the Xbox dashboard and/or the save routines in some Xbox games it is possible to run Linux without making any hardware alterations. Any software modification which allows the running of unsigned Xbox executables should let you run X-DSL. X-DSL is not compatible with the Mechinstaller save game package since it's bootloader has not been signed with the Mechinstaller private key.

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Download

XDSL is available to download from the xbox-linux sourceforge page (http://sourceforge.net/project/showf...kage_id=151661)
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Burning the CD

Write the image to reliable recordable media which you know works in your Xbox DVD-ROM drive without any problems. Failure to do this will result in weird I/O errors and flaky installation problems, or you may not be able to boot XDSL livecd at all. See the boot CD HOWTO for details.
you are not supposed to burn an .iso image as a single file on the CD. Instead, there should be a separate option in your CD authoring application that is specifically designed for burning CD images and not regular files. Use it. When burning is done, you should see several files on the disc - not just a single file.
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Usage

Pop the XDSL CD you've just made into your Xbox and allow it to boot. You should be presented a choice of video modes (640x480, 800x600, 480p, 720p). 480p and 720p require your Xbox to be connected with component cables to a HDTV. Once you have choosen a video mode XDSL will boot and you'll automatically be logged into X as the user 'dsl'.
You can interact with XDSL by using a Xbox controller to move the mouse pointer. To launch programs right click on the desktop (B on the controller) to bring up the fluxbox menu. If you need to enter any text a virtual keyboard is available from the fluxbox menu under Apps. Alternatively you can use a USB Keyboard/Mouse with a USB adapter.
The default passwords in XDSL are as follows:
user:dsl password:dsl
user:root password:xbox
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Installation

If you are happy running XDSL from a livecd you can skip this section. However if you want XDSL to run from your hard drive you have three options:

• Frugal install - The XDSL compressed filesystem is copied to E:\KNOPPIX\KNOPPIX. This takes up the least diskspace (50Mbs). Since the filesystem is heavily compressed it is mounted read-only so this is just like running the livecd, except all the files reside on your hard disk
• Loopback install - The XDSL filesystem is installed onto a loopback file (either E:\xdslfs or F:\xdslfs). This requires a loopback file of at least 200MBs (you can choose a size upto 2GBs).
• Native install - XDSL will be installed onto a linux partion in the extra space on the Xbox HDD for those with hard disks bigger that 8GBs. This will keep the standard Xbox partitions (C,E,X,Y,Z) intact but will wipe all data on the F partition if it exists.

To perform one of these installations open the fluxbox menu and select the appropriate option under Apps, Tools. You will then be guided through the install process.
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myDSL extensions

If you are running from the livecd or a frugal install you can load addition programs using myDSL extensions. XDSL should be fully compatible with extensions made for Damn Small Linux. Extensions are available from http://distro.ibiblio.org/pub/linux/...mnsmall/mydsl/ or via the myDSL icon on the desktop. They should be copied to E:\ to load them when XDSL boots or E:\optional\ to give you the option of loading them via the fluxbox menu. Since each extension is loaded into the ramdisk it is recommend that you use E:\optional\ if possible to save on memory usage.
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Backing up your settings

When using the frugal install/booting from a livecd it is not possible to write any changes to the XDSL filesystem. To get around this your settings can be saved in a seperate file called backup.tar.gz. Go to System, Backup/Restore in the desktop menu, type in hda50 and hit backup if you wish to make this file on your E drive. Once made your settings will be automatically saved on shutdown and restored on boot. To change what files are saved edit /home/dsl/.filetool.lst (was /home/dsl/.filetool.lst prior to X-DSL v0.3). None of this is necessary with Native/Loopback install methods since the root filesystem can be written to.
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Enabling apt

If you are running from a loopback or native install you'll probably want to re-enable the debian package utility apt to allow you to install a huge range of programs from the debian repository. It is also recommended you restore the GNU Core Utilities. Both of these tasks can be done from the Desktop menu.
Once this is complete you can then install programs via the command apt-get install myprogram. You may wish to edit your /etc/apt/sources.list beforehand to point it to the debian testing repositary (comment out the existing lines with # and uncomment the testing lines). apt-get update updates the list of available programs and apt-cache search myprogram searches for a 'myprogram' in the debian repository. For more infomation on apt take a look at the apt howto (http://www.debian.org/doc/manuals/apt-howto/)
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FTP Install

If you don't wish burn XDSL onto a cd and have the ability to ftp to you Xbox, it is possible to simply copy across the required files. Create a directory E:\KNOPPIX on your Xbox. Extract linux24, minirt24.gz and the KNOPPIX file (found in the KNOPPIX subdirectory) from the iso and copy them into this directory. You should be left with the following files:
E:\KNOPPIX\KNOPPIXE:\KNOPPIX\linux24E:\KNOPPIX\min irt24.gzThere should be no subdirectories in E:\KNOPPIX. The filenames are case sensitive.
Now create a file E:\linuxboot.cfg with the following content:
title XDSLkernel KNOPPIX/linux24initrd KNOPPIX/minirt24.gzappend root=/dev/ram0 init=/etc/init rw video=xbox:640x480 frugal quiet kbd-resetFinally if you are not using the Cromwell BIOS copy default.xbe somewhere where you can run it from your Xbox. Then run Cromwell/default.xbe to boot XDSL. If you then want to peform a loopback/native install simply select your desired option in the Apps, Tools menu.

[ll V1oLeNT ll]

Nice

[UndeadGhoul]

sounds cool,i might try it sometime.

[Smart_Guy]

If you download this and put it on a cd, do you need a special program to covert it so the Xbox can read it?

[Chopstick]

There i edited it with the proper download link and a brief tut but its allot easier running it from the disk (DVD or CD-RW)

[Smart_Guy]

Thank you, I think that I am going to try it. It looks pretty cool.

[Chopstick]

This is a small tutorial for people who wish to play Windows games on their xbox, but don't know anything about Linux or WINE (such as myself).

Here's how I got Half-Life running on my xbox (appart from the fact that I still don't know how to set the screen to 16-bit color).
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INSTALLING X-DSL
1. First download X-dsl (Damn Small Linux for Xbox) here: http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/xbox-li...21.zip?download.
2. Extract "xdsl-0.21.iso" from the zip-file, and burn it to cd. (Use Nero or whatever burnprogram you're used to burn iso's with)
3. Put the cd in your xbox and start up. Select the cd in the blue screen that'll appear, next choose 640x480. X-dsl will startup.

PERFORMING A LOOPBACK INSTALL
4. Now rightclick (press B on your xbox-controller) and scroll to 'Apps', 'Tools', and select 'Loopback Install'. A blue window will appear. Press 'Return' on the virtual keyboard to continue, press 'Return' again in the next window. Now you're allowed to select how many mb's of hd-space you'll allow X-dsl to take up. It says 200 by default. Use 'Backspace' on the virtual keyboard and fill in a bigger number so you have room to install games to (maximum is 2000). I entered 1000 here myself. Press 'Return' when you've entered a number. After a couple of seconds, it'll tell you about standard & enhanced installations, press 'Return'. Next press 's' or 'e' on the virtual keyboard, depending on wether you have your xbox hooked up to the internet or not ('s' if you don't, 'e' if you do). Confirm with 'Return', and work through the following screens by pressing 'Return' untill it will perform the Loopback Install.

GETTING WINE ON YOUR XBOX
5. Reboot the xbox (without the X-dsl cd in it, which you won't need anymore now the Loopback Install's been done), and send Keo-Keo's 'xwine.dsl' (found here: http://project2k.net/xwine.dsl this ones dead use theis http://www.x-dsl.org/downloads/xwine.dsl) over to your Xbox E: drive. I use a program called FlashFXP for this myself. If you don't know how to transfer files from your PC to your Xbox, find out how to do it first, as this step is required as far as I can see.
6. Now startup X-dsl (by using the file-explorer in your DashBoard, open 'default.xbe' in the 'KNOPPIX' folder found on E: ). In the rectangular console-thing over to the right (the Slit) click on either of the little white buttons with arrows on them till it says 'hda50' in the grey box below it, that is your xbox E: drive. Then click on the little white button with what looks like a picture of nail on it to MOUNT the E: drive.
7. Then doublick 'Emelfm' on the desktop, and doubleclick 'mnt' in the list that appears, then 'hda50'. You'll see the contents of your xbox E: drive. Doubleclick 'xwine.dsl'.

INSTALLING A WINDOWS GAME
8. After you've done the above steps, take the Windows game cd of your choice and, if you don't know allready, check where the install executable is located on the cd and what it's called by exploring it's content with your pc. Usually it's called 'SETUP.EXE' or 'INSTALL.EXE'. Then pop the cd in your xbox, and mount the cdrom drive like you mounted the E: drive (using those little white buttons in the console-thingy on the right, select 'cdrom' then MOUNT it by clicking on the button with a picture of a nail on it). Notice that you can't eject the cd out of your xbox while it's mounted.
9. Then rightclick on the desktop, scroll to 'Xshells', and select 'RootAccess'. Then type in "wine /cdrom/SETUP.EXE" (unless the install executable on the game cd is found/called otherwise) and confirm with 'Return'. This should startup the game installation as if you were installing it on a pc. The rest ought to direct itself, choose where to install the game (likely the Z: drive), and complete the installation as you normally would.

PLAYING THE GAME
10. When you've installed the game, rightclick on the desktop, scroll to 'Xshells', and select 'RootAccess' again. There, type in "wine" followed by path to the game and game executable name, for example "wine /Sierra/Half-Life/HL.EXE" and hit 'Return'. This ought to boot up the game.
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GOOD LUCK!

[Smart_Guy]

If you have this, can you still play games on Xbox live without getting band?

[Chopstick]

Not 100% sure but it shouldnt affect ur xbox live game play as long as u dont sign on ? well not sure?

[VoOdOo]

wow im am so ****ing glad i got back in 2 modding awesome (well aleast it sounds awesome i still have to install)

[r3voluti0n]

i just isntalled, its a must get, very easy to get, and so much on it, if u can do this, do it im serious

[CommonSenseless]

Sorry for such a dumb noob question, but on the SID 4 Unleash dashboard, how or where do I install this and any other apps? Should I use the Evox dash instead? PLEASE HELP!

[Chopstick]

Well if u can ftp just folloe the ftp guide if u cant find a tutorial on ftping theres one somewhere here use the search

[VoOdOo]

ha ha ha holy **** im on it typing this message

[CommonSenseless]

no, i can ftp just fine but i dont know where to put the files so that SID4 will recognize them

[hazymods]

I made a folder called KNOPPIX in apps and I put default.xbe , linuxboot.cfg , KNOPPIX , linux24 and it ran this weird thing with lots of writing and it had a picture of a disc and a computer, and I tryed clicking both but it dosn't do anything usefull. So can anyone help me with that?
Also I burned the iso to a dvd+r and a cd-r and it didn't run it on evoX.. Do I need a application that can read it on my modded xbox? And oh yeah I have a thompson drive if that means anything..