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Introduction of firewallA firewall is a collection of rules. When a data packet moves into or from a protected network area, its contents (specifically, data regarding its source, goal, and the protocol that it intends to utilize) are analyzed from the firewall rules to find out whether it ought to be allowed through. Here’s a simple example:
Basic of LinuxTo play an important role in Linux system administrator, ensuring the security of the Linux systems or network infrastructure plays an important role. For build sound security management, you have to use certain rules in Linux firewall. This Linux firewall rules control and manage incoming and outgoing network traffic and only permit legitimate connection between internal and external network.
Linux is bassically associated as being an operating system for coders and programmers.
Linux distros will frequently arrive with a basic firewall bundled with that. Frequently this will not be active by default will have to get activated.
Additionally this will probably be the normal Iptables provided, although less experienced users might struggle with this. UFW – Uncomplicated Firewall can also be bundled with some distros, and intends to make the process easier.
But there are distros and applications out there which may cater to the more better user and also the experienced one, which makes it simpler to set up and configure a firewall which is appropriate for your requirements.
Some, such as ClearOS build it into the operating system as part of its protection attention, but many other choices are applications that would like to block rogue IPs, monitor ports, and stop otherwise stop bad packets from interfering with your machine.
Related: – How to Secure and Speed Up Your Linux OS PC
Top 6 Linux Firewall SoftwareClearOS is the best Linux software and provides best features:-
User-friendly
Expands to suit your needs
Smart looking distro
ClearOS is by far the sleekest and best looking firewall distro inside this roundup. It is obvious that many of time and attention has gone into creating the interface.
Because most anti virus distros are composed for the geek, it is wonderful to find a refreshing shift in what appears to have become the de facto standard of ‘cobble it together and consider the interface later’. This said ClearOS will operate quite happily and easily from the command line to get more sophisticated users.
The installation is painless and takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. You are given the option to begin in Public Server or Gateway manner, based on the way you would like to utilize ClearOS.
Once done, reboot and you will be given all of the information you will need to access and manage your new firewall . Everything is simple — it is obvious that a great deal of thought has gone into creating ClearOS as easy as you can.
When you’ve completed the setup and got the website admin system, it will not take long to familiarize yourself with all the many settings and attributes of ClearOS since the distro supplies ‘Getting Started’ assistance as soon as you log into the interface. Setting up firewall rules is fast and painless, as is a lot of another configuration.
The most pertinent quality of ClearOS is its usability, but this distro is about far more than simply sleek looks. It packs in lots of features too — not only does this give you a simple, clean way to control a firewall, but it also empowers the inclusion of additional services to your system.
In general, ClearOS is a potent distro. As it is available in both complimentary’Community’ and compensated ‘Professional’ variations, it is ideal for both personal and businesses.
You can download ClearOS here
A IPCop firewall that provides a lot of details about your network setup and give easiest ways
Delivers effective protection
Provides plenty of info on your network
Interface doesn’t look great
This distro, although completely different from IPFire, utilizes a very helpful colour-coding scheme very similar to this latter, so as to represent various connections. Green is for LAN, crimson for the web, orange for DMZblue for wireless customers.
IPCop was originally a branch of Smoothwall (which we will also cover afterwards) and was subsequently supplied from the IPFire team as upgrades on IPCop are few and far between. The latest variant (2.1.9) premiered in February 2023.
Installation is relatively simple, however there are a number of wildcard questions thrown to the mixture. Although these can mystery the novice user, requiring the default options will not lead to any problems unless you’ve got a very special network configuration. Among the chief benefits of IPCop is the setup image is quite small (approximately 60MB) and may be copied on a DVD or flash drive.
IPCop’s net interface seems clunky, although our tests demonstrated that this was only psychological, as it was really amazingly responsive. But aside from the ‘real time’ charts that Smoothwall supplies, IPCop provides much more info about your LAN installation, also about the functioning of the firewall itself, like a record of those links which are now open.
The Firewall also offers a ‘caching proxy’, so you can cache frequently accessed pages everywhere.
IPCop does a fantastic job for a firewall, providing lots of information regarding traffic in your system, and while it may not be the prettiest distro on earth, it does exactly what it is intended to do.
You can download IPCop here
OPNsense is an easy-to-use open source firewall:-
Feature-packed
Weekly security updates
OpenVPN support
OPNsense is a easy-to-use open source firewall according to FreeBSD 10.1 to make sure long-term support. Clearly enough, the job’s title comes from the words’open’ and’feel’, standing for: ‘Open source is logical.’
The OPNsense project started out as a branch of the established firewall pfSense in January 2023. The group maintained their motives for forking the job proved partially because of the sort of license pfSense utilized at the moment, and partially because they thought they could produce a more stable firewall.
OPNsense incorporates an extremely wealthy GUI written in Phalcon PHP that’s a true joy to use. Besides becoming more attractive than pfSense’s port, OPNsense was made partially on account of how the group believed that the graphical interface should not have root access, since this may lead to safety problems.
The GUI includes a very simple search bar in addition to a brand new System Health module. This module is interactive and gives visual feedback when analysing your own network. You may also export your data into CSV format for further investigation.
This is a potent type of Deep Packet Inspection where rather than only obstructing an IP address or interface, OPNsense can scrutinize individual information packets or links and prevent them before they get to the sender if needed. OPNsense Also Provides LibreSSL over OpenSSL.
You can download OPNsense here
Simple to set up
Serious security chops
Nicely lightweight
IPFire is a Linux firewall distro focusing on user-friendliness and effortless installation without compromising your safety, supporting some helpful features like intrusion detection.
IPFire is specially made for men and women that are new to firewalls and media and may be installed in minutes. The setup procedure permits you to configure your own system into various security sections, with each section being colour-coded. A green section is a secure place representing all ordinary customers connected to the local wired network. The red section reflects the world wide web.
No visitors can pass from crimson to any other section unless you have configured it that way in the anti virus. The default installation is to get a device with two network cards with a green and red section only. But during the installation process you might also employ a blue section for wireless links and an orange one called the DMZ for almost any public servers.
Once setup is complete, you can configure better and further options and add-ons through an intuitive web interface.
You can download IPFire here
The most important firewall distribution here:-
Clean interface
Feature-rich
No non-firewall extras
Much like OPNsense, pfSense relies on FreeBSD and made especially to function as a router and firewall. As we have mentioned previously, the fork between both of these jobs was contentious and pfSense nevertheless has many loyal users. Upgrades are published Rs.
This distro runs on a variety of hardware but now only supports x86 architecture. The web site includes a useful hardware manual to permit you to pick a compatible device.
The installation is done from a command line but it’s easy. You can choose to boot from either a CD or USB drive.
The installation assistant will request that you assign ports through the setup, instead of once you have booted to the internet interface. It is possible to use the auto-detect attribute to work out that network card is that.
The firewall includes a few built-in attributes, including multi-WAN, Dynamic DNS, hardware failover, and unique procedures of authentication. Contrary to IPFire, pfSense has a characteristic to get a captive portal, where all DNS questions can be solved to one IP address like a landing page for a people Wi-Fi hotspot.
This distro has a clean interface and is extremely easy to use. Once more, as it is based on BSD, a number of the language used is confusing, but does not take long to get to grips with.
PfSense is perhaps the very feature-rich firewall distro on the market, but drops down because of a scarcity of non-firewall-related added capabilities. If you are only after a very simple firewall, then you can not go wrong by selecting pfSense, but should you require anything beyond that simple operation, you might wish to think about one of the other distros.
You can download pfsense here
A best necessary firewall that’s commendably user-friendly:-
Easy-to-use
Offers compatibility with older hardware
Smoothwall Express is most likely the most famous firewall distro. To examine this, we did a fast survey of 20 Linux geeks, asking them to mention a firewall distro. 19 of these came up with Smoothwall first.
The installment of Smoothwall Express is text-based, however you do not have to be knowledgeable about the Linux console and it is all pretty straightforward. You might prefer to download or print out the setup guide to help you through the installation procedure. So as to do this you will want to create my smoothwall profile.
Developer is earmarked for people who really need to work on communicating the Smoothwall job. Express is a stripped-down model of Smoothwall that guarantees maximum compatibility with old hardware.
Unless you’ve got an extremely special network setup, you can generally accept the default choices.
The online control panel is straightforward and easy to comprehend. Smoothwall Express does not offer much in the way of additional features, but will not enable you to have another account to command the major link, which is particularly beneficial when you’re utilizing submersible, together with its caching web proxy support.
You can download Smoothwall here
ConclusionSelecting the proper firewall distro is mainly determined by your particular needs, but whatever they might be, getting security from your firewall is merely a matter of common sense given the great number of threats online nowadays. Nevertheless, besides basic security, once your firewall has been set up it may also be valuable to have a couple of added features for good measure.
The winnerFor us, though, a box at the corner which is not used to its entire scope is a box that is wasted. That is the reason why we prefer using virtualisation, where the firewall may operate as a virtual host on precisely the exact same hardware you use for internet surfing.
While ClearOS stays the most effective firewall, virtualisation isn’t quite as simple as it is with additional anti-virus distros like IPFire. And this, together with the fact that IPFire enables easy customisation by its add-on support Pakfire, means it is the narrow winner over ClearOS, receiving our gold trophy.
But Smoothwall Express deserves an honourable mention. It is the only firewall which once installed will continue operating with minimal prompting and interference out of you. Should you ever have to find certain settings, then these are easy to discover also.
You're reading Top 6 Linux Firewall Software Of 2023 For Protecting Your Linux System
Become A System Rescue Guru With Linux, Part 1
SystemRescueCD comes with WindowMaker for folks who prefer a graphical environment to the command line, but it’s pretty limited. It’s good for running GParted, Leafpad, Firefox and Dillo, and for running multiple X terminals. It’s nice and lightweight, so it should work even on frail old PCs and laptops.
And a lot more stuff you can read about at SystemRescueCD . With a SystemRescueCD or USB stick you can perform heroic rescues on any Linux, Unix, Mac OS X, Windows, and probably a number of lesser-known platforms as well. Yes, you can really fix these systems- you’re not limited to the tired old reformat-reinstall dance that those big shot innovative vendors rely on.
One of my favorite Linux features is its endless adaptability as a cross-platform rescue tool, and my favorite rescue Linux of all is the excellent Gentoo-based SystemRescueCD. SystemRescueCD comes with every imaginable necessity:
SystemRescueCD doesn’t automatically set up networking, so run the net-setup command after it boots up to configure networking. startx gives you WindowMaker. If you have any problems starting SystemRescueCD, reboot and hit the F2-F5 keys to see a lot of helpful information on boot options.
To use SystemRescueCD, just boot it up. It will ask you for a keymap preference; if you ignore it and wait it will select a US keyboard by default and finish booting. If you are using the bootable USB image, be sure to test it a lot on different systems. Any PC made in this century claims to support booting from USB devices, but this isn’t always reliable. Still, it’s the ultimate in cool to whip out your Swiss Army Knife with the built-in USB stick and boot computers with it. SystemRescueCD uses around 380 megabytes, so these days you won’t have any trouble finding a USB device with enough capacity.
If your hard drive is in its death throes, the fastest and most reliable method of rescuing your data is to connect a second hard drive and copy everything to it. If you don’t want to open the case and hassle with connecting an internal drive, you have several good external drive options. You can get a standalone USB/Firewire drive. There are external enclosures for single SATA/PATA drives. You can get a USB-to-PATA/SATA adapter, with a power connector. These are nice for rescue operations because some models will take both 2.5″ and 3.5″ drives, and both SATA and PATA drives, so you can use whatever hard disk you grab first. The external drive must have a filesystem on it, which you can create from SystemRescueCD with GParted.
When the extra drive is ready, create a directory to mount it in, then mount it and copy your files. In this example the sick hard disk is /dev/sda, and the external drive is /dev/sdb. We’re going to save /etc/ and /home:
% mkdir /mnt/sickly % mkdir /mnt/rescue % mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/sickly % mount /dev/sdb1 /mnt/rescue % cd /mnt/sickly % cp -r home/ etc/ /mnt/rescueDo not mount anything in mnt or bad things will happen; always create a new mountpoint.
GNU ddrescue, by Antonio Diaz, is a superior data-rescuing utility. It operates in a similar fashion to dd-rescue and dd-rhelp, which are also good rescue commands. It works at the block level, so it doesn’t matter what filesystem you’re saving- it works on all of them. Yes, every single one. It copies good blocks first, and when it hits bad blocks it skips over them and keeps going. Time is crucial on a dying hard disk, and ddrescue is the fastest of the three. Make sure your source disk is not mounted before running ddrescue; you can check this with the mount command.
ddrescue has a lot of command options, but this simple invocation does the job just fine:
% ddrescue -r3 /dev/sda1 /dev/sdb1 rescue-logfileThat tells it to run three times, and to copy whatever it can from /dev/sda1 to /dev/sdb1. The partition you’re copying to should be half again as large as the source partition so you have a safe margin to operate in. The logfile can be named whatever you want. Using a logfile requires more disk space, but it’s your insurance against interruptions and crashes.
Then run the appropriate version of fsck for your filesystem on the copy, not on the original. For extra insurance, make a copy of your copy first. Then mount it read-only and see what you were able to save. This example is for Ext3:
% e2fsck -v -f /dev/sdb1 % mkdir /mnt/ddrescued % mount -o ro /dev/sdb1 /mnt/ddrescuedYou’ll probably want to install ddrescue on another system so you can read the dommed info pages, which are much more detailed than the man page. (Yes, we hates info pages and crippled man pages.) SystemRescueCD doesn’t include an info reader.
In part two, you’ll learn how to perform rescue operations over the network.
Resources
SystemRescueCD
Carla Schroder is the author of the Linux Cookbook and the newly-released Linux Networking Cookbook, and is a regular contributor to LinuxPlanet.
This article was first published on chúng tôi
7 Of The Best Latex Editors For Linux
Word processors are great. They can handle basic composition jobs such as writing letters and essays. However, word processors cannot easily handle documents with custom layouts and graphs.
This is because word processors such as Microsoft’s Word and Libreoffice’s Writer are not designed for those tasks. As such, this can be incredibly limiting if you want to create documents with unusual formats and symbols.
Knowing that, one way to get around this problem is by using a flexible document language such as TeX. From there, you can then use a preparation program such as LaTeX to output your TeX file into a printable document.
What is TeX and LaTeX?TeX is a typesetting and formatting language developed by Donald Knuth in 1978. Unlike modern “What You See Is What You Get” (WYSIWYG) text processors, TeX is similar to the source code of a program.
This source code then tells a typesetter how to compile and publish a TeX file. Doing it this way allows you to easily modify a document and separate its parts as files and directories. In turn, this can be incredibly useful if you are working on a big project such as with technical documents, manuals and books.
On the other hand, LaTeX is an offshoot of the TeX language. It was developed by Leslie Lamport in 1985. Since then, it has become the most popular version of TeX today.
Image source: Latex Project
Below we will show you some of the best LaTeX editors for Linux today.
1. TeXmakerOne of the most professional and well-known LaTeX editor today is TeXmaker. This is a simple, two-panel editor that allows you to write the LaTeX code and immediately see the results on an adjacent panel.
TeXmaker also includes a number of scripts that will assist you in creating tables and figures. This makes TeXmaker attractive to beginners as it reduces the code that you will write to create a document.
Further, TeXmaker also includes features such spellcheck and multi-language support. Lastly, if you want to switch from Linux to Macbook, you’ll be able to, thanks to cross-platform support.
At the moment, TeXmaker is available to the GNOME desktop. As such, if you are using Ubuntu, installing it is incredibly easy through apt:
sudo
apt
install
texmaker 2. LyXLyX is one of the oldest LaTeX editors still alive today. Despite that, it has one of the most intuitive way of editing LaTeX documents – you can edit your documents in a WYSIWYG format.
Instead of editing the code, you directly edit the final document. This can be especially useful if you want to use LaTeX but you do not want to write LaTeX code.
However, one of the biggest issues with LyX also stems from its WYSIWYG approach. Unlike TeXmaker, LyX opted to use its own syntax when doing complex structures. This means that there is still a learning curve in using LaTeX’s more powerful features.
Because of that, LyX is more appropriate for simple documents such as essays and communication letters.
Similar to TeXmaker, LyX is also available in Debian and Ubuntu through apt:
sudo
apt
install
lyx 3. KileUnlike TeXmaker and LyX, Kile does not automatically display the final document. Instead, Kile expects you to write and compile the code before you see any of your work.
In that regard, you can consider Kile similar to an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) rather than a text editor.
While this might seem archaic, this allows Kile to be as flexible as possible. For example, it is easy to create complex tables in Kile through the use of its function library.
Since Kile is an IDE for LaTeX, it also supports Tab Completion and Syntax Highlighting. This can be especially useful if you are still learning the basics of writing code.
Further, Kile also natively supports BibTeX. This is a bibliography management program that runs alongside LaTeX. As such, Kile can also be helpful if you are writing academic articles and you want your citations to register as you write them.
With that, Kile is available in Debian and Ubuntu through apt:
sudo
apt
install
kile 4. TeXstudioTeXmaker fans will find using TeXstudio familiar. TeXstudio originally forked from TeXmaker in 2009 due to a lack of openness to adopting new features and support.
That is exactly what TeXstudio offers: a template system, integrated assistance for inserting complex figures and some of the usual features such as PDF preview. Further, TeXstudio also have syntax highlighting to help you keep track of your code as you go.
If you like how TeXmaker works and you are looking for a fine-tuned editing experience, you will find TeXstudio a better fit for you. This is thanks to a wider set of options to customize the UI and automation tools.
You can install TeXstudio in Debian and Ubuntu through apt:
sudo
apt
install
texstudio 5. GummiGummi is a simple yet beautiful LaTeX editor. It is a two-panel editor similar to TeXmaker and TeXstudio. However, unlike both of those, Gummi distills the core experience to its basics.
This means that there is little to no fluff included with Gummi. There are no complex functions, no additional menus and no macros.
This makes Gummi highly accessible for novice LaTeX users since it only takes the code that you have and display it in a screen. This approach also makes Gummi incredibly lightweight which, in turn, makes it easy to run even in old hardware.
However, this simplicity is also Gummi’s downside. It does not have any means to track files across a directory and it does not have any autocomplete functions. Despite that, Gummi is still useful for simple documents such as essays and letters.
You can install Gummi in Debian and Ubuntu through apt:
sudo
apt
install
gummi 6. TeXworksTeXworks is a simple TeX editor that focuses on giving a single interface for non-technical users. Similar to Gummi, it is also a two-panel editor that does not have any additional features.
This approach, in turn, allows it to be both lightweight and compatible across different operating systems.
Further, TeXworks also allows you to write and compile code for different TeX engines. This means that you can use it for writing PDFLaTeX and ConTeXt documents.
This can be useful if you are using different TeX engines and you want a single interface for writing and compiling documents.
With that, you can install TeXworks in Debian and Ubuntu through apt:
sudo
apt
install
texworks 7. OverleafOverleaf is a beautiful, cloud-based LaTeX editor. Unlike the previous editors, Overleaf is an online editor that you can access from your web browser. This means that you can run Overleaf from anywhere as long as they can run a modern web browser.
Being an online editor, Overleaf also allows you to share and collaborate on documents with other people. This is useful if you are working on an academic article with multiple people and you want a single place for writing.
Further, Overleaf also works with schools to provide a template for journals. These features, as such, make Overleaf an attractive option for writers that want to submit their work to publications.
You can start using Overleaf today by going through their registration page.
Frequently Asked Questions 1. I want to create a LaTeX document from my text editor. What programs should I use?There are a number of ways to compile a LaTeX document from scratch. However, the most common way of doing this is by obtaining a copy of the TeXLive distribution. This is a bundle of software that contains all the programs and packages that you need to create and publish LaTeX documents.
If you are using Debian or Ubuntu you can install the full TeXLive distribution through apt:
sudo
apt
install
texlive-fullOnce installed, you can then run the pdflatex program to produce a printable PDF from your TeX file. For example, if I want to create a PDF of my TeX-formatted essay I can run the following command:
pdflatex chúng tôi What is the difference between LaTeX and XeTeX?As discussed above, LaTeX is a document preparation system. This means that it deals with the process of laying out the content of a TeX file. This content is then sent to a typesetting engine such as PDFLaTeX which creates a print-ready document in either PDF or PostScript format.
On the other hand, XeTeX is an engine for Unicode documents. This means that XeTeX allows you to easily use Unicode characters natively in your documents without the need to use escape characters.
Image credit: Unsplash
Ramces Red
Ramces is a technology writer that lived with computers all his life. A prolific reader and a student of Anthropology, he is an eccentric character that writes articles about Linux and anything *nix.
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5 Of The Best Gaming Mice For Linux
Most peripherals aren’t supported under Linux, right? Well, there’s a lot more support available than you probably think. While it’s true that most hardware manufacturers completely neglect Linux, it’s also true that the open source community is capable of just about anything. They’ve stepped up and created excellent open-source drivers for a lot of popular gaming hardware. Then, of course, you have mice that just don’t need drivers and will work out of the box. Those are a great option for gaming on Linux, too.
1. Roccat Kone XTDRoccat doesn’t support Linux, but they do give a nod to the people in the open source community that do. They actually include a link on their official product pages to the Linux drivers.
Linux support for Roccat mice and the Kone XTD is done by volunteers, and it hasn’t been updated in a while, but the mice still work great. Actually, they work without the drivers, but the drivers do allow you to control the lighting.
2. Zowie FK2Zowie mice are driverless. You can plug them into your Linux (or any) system, and they’ll work. Zowie’s mice are known to be fairly minimal but very dependable and well built. If you’re looking for a good FPS or general purpose gaming mouse, consider the Zowie FK2 or FK1.
3. Razer DeathAdder EliteIt’s almost surprising to see a high-end mouse from Razer on this list, but there are actually two. The Razer DeathAdder Elite is one of the best gaming mice on the market: it’s fairly minimal and boasts an impressive 16000 max DPI.
Razer doesn’t actively support Linux, but there’s an awesome open-source project that does. The OpenRazer Project supports the DeathAdder Elite, including RGB functionality, and it’s available for most major distributions. By installing OpenRazer, you can have a fully functional DeathAdder Elite on your Linux system.
4. Razer Naga ChromaA lot of what holds true for the DeathAdder Elite applies to the Naga Chroma. OpenRazer supports the Naga Chroma, too. If you’re a fan of MMOs or MoBAs, the Naga Chroma (or Naga Hex) is an excellent option on Linux. The buttons all work well, and you can control the LEDs through OpenRazer.
5. Corsair M65The Corsair M65 has long been a favorite gaming mouse. Again It’s an excellent all-around mouse, but it really excels with FPS. It supports up to 12000 DPI and weight tuning.
Again, Corsair doesn’t support Linux, but there is an open-source project that does. The basic functions of the mouse should work without the drivers, but if you want to control the RGB functionality, install them.
Closing ThoughtsIf none of these mice are directly appealing to you, explore other mice by the same brands. Check the compatibility offered by the open source drivers. They do cover a fairly broad array.
Image credit: All mouse images are property of their respective manufacturers.
Nick Congleton
Nick is a freelance tech. journalist, Linux enthusiast, and a long time PC gamer.
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Dropbox Alternatives For Linux Users
Like many of you, I too have found myself wooed by the convenience of using Dropbox. It’s cross platform, simple to setup and provides a cloud storage option for those who might otherwise be less inclined to store files off-site. In this article I’ll explore alternatives to Dropbox for Linux users.
When BitTorrent Sync first became popular, I loved it. I found it was faster than competing technologies and I could sync huge files on my LAN very quickly. I loved the fact that syncing to a third party service (a cloud) was never part of the equation. WAN syncing also works well, for those needing to sync over the Internet.
What I liked: BitTorrent Sync is simple to use, doesn’t sync to the “cloud” and has no folder size limits. The UpnP port mapping worked flawlessly with my router.
What I didn’t like: BitTorrent Sync doesn’t offer selective sync with their free version. It also doesn’t allow me to change my folder access permissions. Not having the ability to sync to the “cloud” also means any backup of your files is on you. The strong encryption is also nice, although we’re talking about a proprietary application.
Summary: If you’re a heavy Dropbox user and are willing to pay the one time fee, you could save yourself some cash overall.
Sync your files between computers over your LAN or across the web, using strong encryption and open source software. When BitTorrent Sync first mentioned their new premium version some users felt betrayed; they felt it should have remained completely free. Instead, the free version lost features to the paid version. For some, switching to Syncthing was the natural course of action.
What I liked: Syncthing is open source, has packages for every sort of platform you can imagine and is relatively easy to setup…usually. I also love the ssh support in case you’re needing to avoid the web UI when away from home.
What I didn’t like: Despite Syncthing providing options for UpnP, I’ve never had much success with it. I’ve read that this could be the result of a timeout issue or perhaps the router doesn’t know what to do with the discovery service. I did eventually have it working with UpnP after changing out the router with another one. So be aware, UpnP can be hit and miss.
Summary: If you’re able to iron out or avoid the issues with UpnP, Syncthing is a very strong contender to replace Dropbox. Like BitTorrent Sync, there is no cloud storage in the equation.
I decided to include SpiderOak with these Dropbox alternatives as it provides device syncing in addition to data backup. Most people use SpiderOak as a secure means of backing up their files. I’ve found it’s also useful for syncing between PCs running SpiderOak.
What I liked: SpiderOak provides a zero-knowledge storage platform. This means your privacy is fully respected as your data is encrpted at all times except when you decrypt it on your own PC. I’ve also found that their storage (like Dropbox) is cheap. You can get upto 1 TB of data storage for $12 USD per month.
What I didn’t like: SpiderOak uses some open source components. Unfortunately, there are still some aspects of SpiderOak that are not fully open source. The software for Linux feels a bit bloated. Great UI, but the flow of the application can bring an older computer to a screeching halt.
Summary: If you want end to end encryption with better privacy options than Dropbox, then SpiderOak is for you. This is also a great option if you’re needing to backup your files in addition to simply syncing them.
The next option is a bit of a rough spot with many Linux users. Despite years of empty promises, Google has yet to deliver on a working Google Drive client for Linux. Thankfully this is not a big deal– there are alternatives. Both the latest Gnome desktop and Insync provide great Google Drive access for Linux users.
What I liked: Google Drive offers free storage up to 15 GB. An additional 100 GB is only $1.99 USD. Syncing is easy, simply run one Insync or Gnome desktop to keep your files accessible. Most people waiting on Gnome to make this happen will end up using alternatives like Insync in the meantime.
What I didn’t like: Cost aside, the lack of commitment from Google to Linux users in this space is frustrating. Bundle this with the fact that Google is famous for completely dumping products makes me hesitant to rely on Google Drive for anything terribly important.
Unlike the other options listed here, Tarsnap puts Linux first. Going even deeper, Tarsnap doesn’t support Windows. The rates are very reasonable, as it uses AWS for its storage. Setting aside its geeky nature, Tarsnap is a big hit among a number of Linux users.
What I liked: Cost. Tarsnap is setup to provide reliable backup at a fair cost. If you set it up to do so, Tarsnap can be used to sync files between machines. Tarsnap also provides excellent security and is open source software.
What I didn’t like: It’s pretty difficult to use for a casual Linux user. If you’re comfortable reading documentation and using the command line however, this is a great fit.
Summary: If you are dead set against using more mainstream options or simply would prefer to stick to using the command line, then Tarsnap is a fantastic option.
Unlike the other Dropbox alternatives listed here, ownCloud is more of a Google Apps replacement. Collaborate document editing, calendars, galleries and more – ownCloud is a full software suite designed to run on your own server. Like Google Drive, you can also use ownCloud to sync files between machines.
What I liked: Once installed, ownCloud is dead simple to use and provides a great open source experience. It feels a lot like Google Apps. You can share your files with anyone you wish and ownCloud offers you decent encryption and security.
What I didn’t like: You need to install the software on your own hardware to act as a server. Not a big deal to geeks, but it could be confusing for a casual user expecting a Syncthing like experience. In the past, I’ve had ownCloud choke a bit on larger files. Though I’ve heard this has been resolved but I’d urge caution until you feel comfortable with it handling your most important files.
Let’s face it, there are a ton of solutions out there. And there may even be some options available I’ve never heard of. Using the Comments form below, share your favorite Dropbox alternatives. How do you use them and do you rely on cloud based storage or direction solutions like Syncthing. Hit the Comments, share your ideas and experiences in this arena.
Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.
Easily Create A Screencast Of Your Linux Desktop Using Screenstudio
ScreenStudio
ScreenStudio is a JAVA-based screencasting application built around “avconv” that is currently available on all Linux distributions. It provides a simple UI along with a lot of configuration options. Once you launch the application, you’ll observe that all the settings are divided into various categories including Record, Stream, Overlay, Sources, and Options.
InstallationTo install the software on Ubuntu (and other Debian-based systems), run the following commands:
sudo
add-apt-repository ppa:soylent-tv/
screenstudiosudo
apt-get update
sudo
apt-get install
screenstudioFor other distributions, head to the software’s official website.
RecordThe application lets you record video in various formats like FLV, MP4, OGG, MPEGTS, and more. You can also select the Profile that suits you. As for the Preset, it’s ultra-fast by default, but the developers recommend using a “lower” setting if your computer can handle it.
StreamNot only you can record a session to a file, you can also stream it to services like Twitch, YouTube Live, Hitbox, and more.
Just select the streaming service, configure the server, profile, Stream Key, and Preset information, and you’re good to go.
OverlayThe application also lets you customize your stream by adding overlays. For example, you can add a text overlay if you want your name, or your website’s name, to appear over the stream.
Here is what the default overlay looks like (observe the ScreenStudio logo and text at the bottom left) :
and here is how it looks after I made some overlay-related changes:
SourcesThere are also some other options that let you choose things like which screen to record (in case there are multiple screens) and how many frames per second to record. This section also lets you choose a webcam and related settings like its stream size, delay, and audio settings.
OptionsIn this section, you can simply configure the recording and streaming shortkeys.
Other optionsApart from the settings explained earlier, the application also contains an “Options” drop-down menu that offers some generic settings. For example, you can set a capture area, window area, change the folder where video is stored, reset all your preferences, and more.
ConclusionHimanshu Arora
Himanshu Arora is a freelance technical writer by profession but a software programmer and Linux researcher at heart. He covers software tutorials, reviews, tips/tricks, and more. Some of his articles have been featured on IBM developerworks, ComputerWorld, and in Linux Journal.
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