Frequently Asked Questions

What is a "CD image" anyway?

A CD image is the exact representation of the data on a CD in a normal computer file, that can e.g. be transmitted over the Internet. CD burning programs can use the image files to make real CDs.

For a correctly recorded CD, the .iso file must not appear on the CD when you access it! Instead, you should see a number of files and directories - in the case of a Debian CD, this includes a "dists" directory and a "README.html" file.

The .iso format is roughly comparable to a .zip file: It contains other files and directories, and only these will appear on the final CD. Some archive programs allow you to "unpack" .iso files. Do not use this feature to create a CD from the unpacked files! The resulting CD will fail to boot because the .iso format includes special information related to booting from the CD, which is lost when you unpack the file. See below on how to correctly record a CD image under Linux, Windows or MacOS.

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My question is not answered by this FAQ!

If you cannot find an answer to your question here, you can ask for help on one of the Debian mailing lists. In all cases, you should search the mailing list archives before sending mail to the lists. You can subscribe to and unsubscribe from the lists. However, you do not need to be subscribed in order to send mail to the lists - if you are not subscribed, ask for replies to be CC'd to you.

Mailing lists relevant to problems with CD installation:

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Why should I use this "jigdo" program? I prefer a simple HTTP or FTP download!

Today, there are nearly 300 Debian mirrors (which contain the complete Debian distribution as .deb files), but far fewer machines serving Debian CD images. As a result, the CD image servers are constantly overloaded.

Additionally, nobody is very enthusiastic about setting up more CD servers because of the tremendous amounts of wasted bandwidth (some people keep restarting failed downloads instead of resuming from the point where the connection was closed) and because a regular mirror is more attractive (it allows continuous upgrades of Debian, or using the "testing"/"unstable" distribution instead of the "stable" one).

jigdo tries to make the most out of this situation, by downloading the data for the CD images from one of the 300 mirrors. However, these mirrors only hold individual .deb files, not the CD image, so some additional manipulation of the data is necessary to produce one big CD image file from the many small .deb files.

Do not be afraid to try out jigdo! The complex process of generating the CD image is completely hidden from you - instead, you benefit from the fact that one of the 300 Debian mirrors is bound to be nearer and faster than any of the CD servers.

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Which of the numerous images should I download? Do I need all of them?

No. First, of course you only need to download either CD or DVD images - the two types of images contain the same packages.

Also, you only need the CD/DVD images for your computer's architecture. The architecture is the type of hardware your computer uses. By far the most popular one is the Intel/AMD architecture, so most people will only want to get the images for "i386". If your PC has a 64-bit AMD or Intel processor, you will most likely need the "amd64" images (though "i386" is also fine), the "ia64" images will not work.

Furthermore, in most cases it is not necessary to download all of the images for your architecture. The packages are sorted by popularity: The first CD/DVD contains the installation system and the most popular packages. The second one contains slightly less popular ones, the third one even less popular ones, etc. You will probably only need the first DVD (or the first two CDs) unless you have very special requirements. (And in case you happen to need a package later on which is not on one of the CDs/DVDs you downloaded, you can always install that package directly from the Internet.)

Please also read the next paragraphs to determine whether you want/need to download network install CDs, update CDs or source CDs.

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What is a "netinst" or "network install" CD?

To quote the network install page: A "network install" or "netinst" CD is a single CD which enables you to install the entire operating system. This single CD contains just the minimal amount of software to start the installation and fetch the remaining packages over the Internet.

If you only want to install Debian on a single machine which has a cheap Internet connection, the network install may be the fastest and easiest option for you: You only download the packages that you selected for installation on your machine, which saves both time and bandwidth.

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What are the "update" CDs?

Update CDs are CDs which contain all the packages that changed between the rev0 and a later revN release of the current stable distribution. For example, if you already have the full set of 3.0rev0 CDs, you can use the "update-3.0rev2" CD to turn this 3.0rev0 set into a 3.0rev2 set.

This type of CD is intended for vendors having large amounts of pressed rev0 CDs (which makes them cheaper than individually burned CDs). If you order CDs from such a vendor, it is possible that you receive CDs for a slightly older revision, plus an update CD for the latest revision. This is a perfectly acceptable way of distributing Debian on CD.

Of course, this type of CD can also be useful to you as an end user; instead of creating the full set of CDs for each new revision of a release, you only need to download and burn one or two update CDs for your architecture.

You only need to download either the update CD or the normal CDs, not both!

Now, what if for some reason you do not want to download the update CD even though you already have the full set of CDs for the previous revision? In this case, you should consider using jigdo's "update" feature: jigdo can read the contents of the old CDs, download only those files that have changed for the new CDs, and create the full set of new CDs. Still, it will have done this by downloading only about the same amount of data as for an update CD.

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What are the "source" CDs?

There are two types of images, the "binary" CDs that contain precompiled, ready-to-run programs, and the "source" CDs that contain the source code for the programs. The vast majority of people do not need the source CDs; you should not download them unless you really have a good reason for it.

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Where is the CD image with non-free?

Debian has a quite strict view with regard to the licenses of software: Only software that is Free in the sense of the Debian Free Software Guidelines is allowed into the actual distribution. All the other, "non-free" software (for example, software for which source code is not available) is not supported officially.

The official CDs may freely be used, copied and sold by anyone anywhere in the world. Packages of the "non-free" category have restrictions that conflict with this, so these packages are not placed on the official CDs.

Sometimes, someone is kind enough to create unofficial non-free CDs. If you cannot find any links on this website, you can try asking on the debian-cd mailing list.

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Are DVD images of Debian available?

Yes - Debian offers DVD images for the current stable release. Additionally, as far as we know, Debian is the only Linux distribution to offer weekly full-size DVD images for download! Because of their size, these images are distributed with jigdo.

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What's the difference between official and unofficial images?

Official images are built by a member of the Debian CD team and have undergone some testing to ensure they work. Once they have been released, the images never change - if they turn out to be broken, a new set with a different version number is released.

Unofficial images can be built by anyone - CD team members, other Debian developers or even advanced Debian users. Typically, they are more up-to-date, but have received less testing. Some have new features (e.g. installation support for new hardware), or contain additional software packages which are not part of the Debian archive.

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Is a Debian "live CD" available?

A so-called "live CD" is a CD which contains a complete system pre-installed on the CD. You do not need to install anything on the harddisc, instead you boot from CD and are able to start working on the machine right away. All programs run directly from CD.

The Debian Live Project produces a variety of live CDs using only unchanged, official Debian packages.

Additionally, we would like to recommend Knoppix, which is based on Debian - a very useful, full-featured live CD!

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The CD/DVD fails to boot! / From which CD should I boot?

Only the first CD/DVD in a set is bootable.

If your Debian CD fails to boot, first ensure that you have correctly written it to the CD-R(W) medium - please see the explanation above. Additionally, please check whether your BIOS is set up to boot from the CD/DVD drive.

If your system cannot boot from CD at all, it is also possible to boot from a floppy disc.

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Where are the images for M68K, Hurd or other architectures?

Depending on the state of support for a certain architecture, CD/DVD images are available from different places:

  • If the architecture you are looking for is officially supported by the current stable release, see the "Debian on CD" page for the available download options.
  • If a Debian port for an architecture exists, but has not yet been released officially, CD images may or may not be available. Again, see the "Debian on CD" page - in contrast to stable images, only one download option may be supported, so have a look at both the "jigdo" and "HTTP/FTP" sections.
  • For the Debian port to the GNU/Hurd, see the page about unofficial Hurd CDs.
  • Otherwise, check the Debian port pages for the architecture you are interested in.

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Are images for the "unstable" distribution available?

There are no "unstable" full CD or DVD images. Due to the fact that the packages in "unstable" change so quickly, it is more appropriate for people to download and install "unstable" using a normal Debian FTP mirror.

If you are aware of the risks of running unstable, but still want to install it, you have two choices:

  • Install "testing" using a netinst image, then upgrade to "unstable" by changing the entries in your /etc/apt/sources.list. To avoid unnecessary downloads and package upgrades, it is advisable to install a minimal "testing" system first and only to install most of the software (e.g. desktop environment) after the switch to "unstable".
  • Use the business card image. Boot from it in expert mode or with priority=medium. You will then be able to select the distribution (stable/testing/unstable) during mirror selection.

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Which CD/DVD image contains package XYZ?

To find out which image contains a certain file, use the search facility for Debian .jigdo files. Due to the way jigdo works, a .jigdo file contains a list of all the .deb packages and also of most other files on a CD/DVD. You can use the search script to locate the image you need.

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Can I have a list of all the packages contained in an image?

Yes, but only if .jigdo files are available for that image. This is handled by the same script as the search facility mentioned above - see the jigdo page.

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The software on the official CDs is outdated - why don't you release a new version?

We only make official releases of the "stable" distribution when we think they truly deserve that name. Unfortunately, this means that stable releases only happen about every 1.5 years...

If you require more recent versions of some of the software in Debian, you can install "stable" and then upgrade (via the net) those parts you want to the versions from "testing" - it is possible to mix software from the different releases.

Alternatively, try out the CD images of "testing" that are generated automatically every week. In this case, be sure to set up your computer correctly to receive "testing" security updates, especially if you run "testing" on a server. More information about "testing" security support is available from the security FAQ.

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How do I know if I am downloading the newest CD images?

The note at the bottom of the "Debian on CD" page always shows the version number of the latest release.

As for mirror sites that offer direct HTTP/FTP downloads, most use the "standard" scheme /<version>/<architecture>/<imagename>.iso, for example /3.0_r1/i386/binary-i386-1.iso or /3.0_r1/source/source-1.iso.

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How can I verify that the downloaded CD images are correct?

If you use jigdo, the image checksum is automatically verified after the image has been generated. For HTTP or FTP downloads, use the md5sum utility to calculate the checksums of the files you downloaded, then compare them to the checksums in the MD5SUMS files which are distributed alongside the jigdo files of official releases. An md5sum program for Windows systems can be downloaded from our ftp server; the source code is also available.

To ensure that the images were not only downloaded correctly, but are indeed official images, you also have to verify the GnuPG signature on the MD5SUMS files using the Debian GPG keyring. CD vendors are encouraged to do this.

If you want to check many CD image files or burned CDs easily on Unix/Linux systems, the checkiso script can be a great help.

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Why is my downloaded DVD image smaller than 1 GB when it should be larger than 4 GB?

Most likely, the tool you use for downloading the image does not have large file support, i.e. it has problems downloading files larger than 4 GBytes. The usual symptom for this problem is that when you download the file, the file size reported by your tool (and the amount of data that it downloads) is too small by exactly 4 GB. For example, if the DVD image is 4.4 GB large, your tool will report a size of 0.4 GB.

Some versions of wget also suffer from this problem - either upgrade to a version of wget which does not have this restriction or use the curl command line download tool: "curl -C - [URL]"

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How do I record a CD-R under Linux/Unix?

Use the cdrecord program, with a command line like this (as root):
nice --18 cdrecord -eject -v speed=2 dev=0,6,0 -data -pad binary-i386-1.iso

Debian forked cdrecord in etch. Please try wodim on Debian based systems instead of cdrecord.

For Linux, there are also the X programs X-CD-Roast, gcombust, Gnome Toaster and K3B, to name a few. Note that they're all frontends to cdrecord.

K3b
Select the menu entry Tools - CD - Burn CD Image. In the dialog that opens, enter the path to the image in the Image to Burn field, check whether the other settings are correct, then click on Start.
X-CD-Roast
After the program has started, click on Setup and choose the HD settings tab. Copy the Debian CD image to one of the directories that are displayed in the table. (If the table is empty, enter the path of a directory you want to use for temporary storage, and click on Add.) Click on OK to exit the setup. Next, select Create CD and then Write Tracks. Choose the Layout tracks tab, select the line displaying the image filename and click on Add, then click on Accept track layout. Finally, click on Write tracks.

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How do I record a CD-R under Windows?

This might be a little problem, as many Windows programs use their own formats for CD images. To burn the .iso images you will most likely have to use a "special" menu. Look for options like "ISO9660 file", "Raw ISO image" or "2048 bytes/sector". (Note: other bytes/sector values are fatal!) Some programs do not offer these choices; use another burning program instead (ask a friend or colleague). Here is some information about how to record CD images with specific products:

ImgBurn (Freeware)
There are screenshots of how to write an image to CD/DVD
CDBurnerXP Pro (Freeware)
The process of writing an .iso image is described in the program's manual.
ISO Recorder (Freeware)
This program can record .iso images on Windows 2003, XP and Vista.
Adaptec/Roxio Easy-CD Creator
From the File menu, choose Create CD from image.... Then select the ".iso" file type, and the correct image. This opens up the CD creation setup GUI, from there ensure that all the information for your CD-R is correct. In the Create options portion, choose Create CD; under Write method, choose Track at once and Close CD.
Nero from Ahead Software
Disable the Wizard, then select Burn Image from the "File" or "Recorder" menu. Select All Files in the file selection window if necessary. Select the .iso file, click OK in the "this is a foreign file" dialogue box, in case one is displayed. In the option box that opens, the defaults should be okay: "Data Mode 1", "Block Size 2048", "Raw Data, Scrambled, and Swapped" not selected, and Image Header and Image Trailer left at 0. Click OK. Under Write CD or Burn, use the default options, e.g. Write and Determine maximum speed, plus check the Finalize CD option.
WinOnCD Power Edition from CeQuadrat
You have to select Track Image (not CD Image!) in this program. File format is "2048 - Mode 1 or Mode 2 Form 1 Data only" and Track format "CD-Rom Mode 1".
CD Extreme from Sony
Choose New Job... from the File menu. Then select Global-Image or Other Image. This opens up the CD creation setup GUI, from there manually enter the path to the .iso image or browse... using files of type "other". From the Edit menu, choose Recoding Options, in the resulting Disk Image Options dialog, choose:
   Recording Type: Disk at Once (DAO) Closed
   Mode and Blocking: CD Mode1 (Blocking 2048)-DVD
Do not check off "Post-gap...".
Microsoft Resource Kit Tools
The command-line Resource Kit Tools are provided by Microsoft free of charge, they work with Windows 2003 and XP. Two programs to write images to CD and DVD are included, they are named Cdburn.exe and Dvdburn.exe. Usage of the programs is described in the accompanying help file - essentially, the command to be executed is something like cdburn drive: iso-file.iso /speed max
cdrecord
This program is also available for Windows 9x/NT systems. See the README for more details.

If you can provide updated information or details for other programs, please let us know.

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How do I record a CD-R under Mac OS?

The Toast program for Mac OS is reported to work fine with .iso files. You can be extra-safe by giving it the creator code CDr3 (or possibly CDr4) and type code iImg using e.g. FileTyper. Double-clicking on the file will then open up Toast directly, without having to drag-and-drop or go via the File-Open menu.

Another option is Disk Copy (included with Mac OS X 10.1 and higher): After opening the Disk Copy application (in the /Applications/Utilities folder), select Burn Image... in the Image menu and choose the CD image to burn. Ensure that the settings are correct, then click on Burn.

Additionally, the cdrecord program is available for Mac OS X as well.

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How should I label the CDs?

There is no obligatory way of labeling. However, we suggest you use the following scheme to ensure interchangeability:

Debian GNU/{Linux|Hurd} <version>[<revision>]
Official {<architecture> Binary|Source}-<number>

For example:

Debian GNU/Linux 3.1
Official i386 Binary-1

Debian GNU/Linux 3.1 rev1
Official alpha Binary-2

Debian GNU/Linux 3.1 rev1
Official Source-1

If you have enough space, you can also add the codename to the first line, as in: Debian GNU/Linux 3.1 "Sarge".

Note that you are allowed to use the Official designation only on CDs the image of which has a checksum that matches the one from the jigdo files of official releases. Any CD that has no matching checksum (e.g. your own creations) must be clearly labelled as Unofficial, for example:

Debian GNU/Linux 3.1 rev1
Unofficial Non-free

In the case of official weekly snapshots, version numbers like "3.1 rev1" should not be used to avoid confusion with released Debian versions. Instead, label the image with a codename like "etch" or a distribution name like "testing". Also add "Snapshot" and the date of the snapshot:

Debian GNU/Linux "etch"
Official Snapshot alpha Binary-2
2005-06-17

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Is there any artwork for CDs and covers?

There is no official layout for the cover, back and label of a Debian CD, but a number of people have produced nice-looking images. Please see the separate artwork page.

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Are old CD/DVD images still available?

Some older images are available from the archive section on cdimage.debian.org. For example, you might want to try out older images if you need support for a certain (sub)architecture which has been dropped for a newer release.

Note that when you install using an old CD/DVD, the contents of /etc/apt/sources.list will reference the current stable Debian release by default. This means that any upgrade over the net will upgrade to the current stable release. To avoid this, but still receive security upgrades for an old release which is still supported, you may want to change the contents of this file, replacing "stable" with "oldstable".

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What is the best way of installing Debian on many interconnected computers?

If you want to install Debian on a large number of machines and then keep all these installations up-to-date (e.g. security updates), installing from CD ROM is not ideal, but then neither is installing via the Internet, because the packages will have to be downloaded again for each machine. In this case, you should set up a local cache, the three options being:

  • Make CD contents available via HTTP or FTP: Download the CDs, then make their contents available to your LAN on a local mirror. The individual machines can use this mirror as if it were a regular Debian server. For example, if the contents of a CD are available under the URL http://10.0.0.1/cd1/, machines in the local network can use the packages from the CD with the following line in their /etc/apt/sources.list:
    deb http://10.0.0.1/cd1/ stable main contrib
    A different URL and a separate entry in sources.list is necessary for each CD.
  • Instruct your HTTP proxy to cache .deb files: Configure the proxy to keep .deb files for a long time, then set http_proxy in your environment on each machine to point at the cache, and use apt's HTTP acquisition method.
    This gives you most of the benefits of running a mirror, with none of the admin hassle. Since you can set limits on the proxy's disk usage, it works even for sites with limited disk space, and it has the advantage over mirroring that you only download those packages you install, which saves bandwidth. Squid can be told to keep the files by adding a line to /etc/squid.conf:
    refresh_pattern   debian.org/.*.deb$   129600 100% 129600
  • Set up a private Debian packages mirror: Beware that the Debian archive has grown to a tremendous size! Refer to the mirroring page for details.

Installing on a large number of machines can be tricky. Fully automatic installation (FAI), which is also available as a Debian package, may help you with this task.

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I have a local Debian mirror and want to create my own CDs. How do I do this?

Apart from a local Debian mirror, you also need plenty of disc space. The CD creation scripts are packaged in the debian-cd package. However, it is usually a better idea to use the latest code from SVN. (Still, you should have a look at the package's dependencies to ensure you have all the necessary tools.)

To get the latest SVN version, make sure you have SVN installed. From an empty directory, give the following command:

svn co svn://svn.debian.org/svn/debian-cd/trunk

Should you try to use the scripts, check the debian-cd mailing list archive for solutions to the problems that will inevitably show up. :-)

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How do I become a mirror for Debian CD images?

The necessary steps to set up your CD image mirror and keep it up to date are described on a separate page.

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