Thank you for choosing DragonLinux! We hope you will find DragonLinux easy and enjoyable to use. Here are a few notes that will help you get started.

DragonLinux v2r1 is based on Slackware v7.1. With our own custom installation we offer a partition-less installation. You no longer need to repartition your hard drive to install Linux. (A bootable MS-DOS or Windows [3.x or 95/98] drive is required.) Linux gurus will note that UMSDOS, as was used in previous versions of DragonLinux, is no longer used.

Please backup your system before you begin. Linux is a very reliable and robust OS, but it is a good practice to have a backup - especially when installing a new operating system. Also, you will have access to the DOS files on your drive from the Linux filesystem tree - so be careful to not to delete them!

DragonLinux doesn't require an extremely powerful system to run. It will run on systems as far back as the 386. Here is a general idea of what is required to run DragonLinux.

• 386 processor (486 or Pentium class recommended)
• 16MB RAM (8MB might make it for console, 32-64MB for X recommended)
• FAT16 or FAT32 partition with 50-130 megabytes of hard disk space for minimal install

Additional hardware may be needed if you want to run the X Window System at a usable speed or if you want networking capabilities.

First, read this whole document so you have all of the information you will need in the upcoming sections. It will save you time later.

You will need to copy the files that will boot and run the installation routine. To do this, you can run the X:\PREINST.BAT file on the CD-ROM. (Where X: is the letter of your CD-ROM.) This will copy a few files to your C: drive, in the C:\DRAGON directory. (It will create it if needed.)

You can also double-click on the PREINST.BAT (or PREINST depending on your settings) to run the pre-installation batch file from within Windows.

The files that should be on your drive are as follows:

• C:\DRAGON\KERNEL\BZIMAGE
• C:\DRAGON\KERNEL\LOADLIN.EXE
• C:\DRAGON\SETUP\SETUP
• C:\DRAGON\SETUP\SETUP.BAT

If you are in Windows 3.x, you will now need to exit Windows. If you are in Win9x, you will now need to choose the Shutdown from the Start Menu, and select the "Restart in MS-DOS Mode" option from the shutdown dialog.

Change your current working directory by using this command:

• cd\dragon\setup

Next, run the setup.bat file by typing in "setup" (no quotes) and hitting enter.

At this point you will see a number of (mostly unimportant for now) messages go by on the screen. This is the Linux Kernel booting.

When it is ready, it will present you with a login prompt. You enter your user name here, which is "root" (no quotes). It will then take you to a command prompt. At the prompt, type "setup" (no quotes) and hit enter.

Setup will display a short welcome message, press return to move on.

Setup will attempt to locate the Packages files automatically. If it does not detect your CD, you may have to enter the device name manually, or get a different kernel if you have a proprietary CD-ROM interface (Such as a separate card, or sound card interface.) If all else fails, you can copy the X:\DRAGON\PACKAGES (Where X: is the letter of your CD-ROM drive) directory (and it's sub-directories) to C:\DRAGON\PACKAGES. Setup will detect them on your hard drive and continue with setup.

Setup will then ask your which partition you wish to install DragonLinux onto. For most users, this will be /dev/hda1 - Which, for most users, is your "C:" drive. If you had to copy the files to your hard drive (or you chose to for speed during install) this step is skipped.

Next setup will ask you how large of a swap file to create. It is recommended that it be no less than 8 MB, and no more than twice the amount of physical system memory. If you do not wish to use a swap file (one is mandatory on low memory systems, or if you wish to run X) you may choose cancel. (Not recommended.)

Setup will present you with the available package sets for install. By default, all of them are selected. Use the arrow keys to move up and down through the list, using the space bar to toggle the packages on or off. The first three package sets should be considered mandatory. If you do not install the base, console, and network package sets, many important utilities will not be installed, and may impair the ability to boot your DragonLinux system.

The X Window System packages are a very popular add-on. The included version is XFree86 v3.3.6. The Xapps series has very many useful software tools for X, including the popular Netscape Communicator package.

You may also select the KDE, GNOME, or both environments. These are complete environments for X. They will also make using X much easier to those already familiar with the Windows operating system. The current versions included are GNOME v1.2 (The same core version of GNOME used in the very popular Helix Code GNOME distribution.) with the Sawfish Window Manager v0.30. KDE v1.91 with QT v1.45 is available as well. Both are excellent environments, and many users simply install both.

It is strongly recommended that you install the development series. This includes many compilers and PERL - which are very useful tools when you wish to try out new software. Many times the only way to obtain software is in source code form, and it needs to be compiled to be used. It is also necessary to install this package if you wish to compile or upgrade your own kernel later on.

The Linux v2.2.16 kernel source code is also available for installation from this menu. Compiling your own kernel has many rewards including better performance, better optimization to your system, and smaller kernel size.

Once you have selected the packages you wish to install, choose ok. You will then be asked how much space you wish to allocate on your drive for use with DragonLinux. Two things to keep in mind. First, the filesystem does not expand - if you need more space, you will have to either reinstall, or ask support to help you expand certain parts of the filesystem. This is not always the simplest of tasks, but can be performed with the proper guidance. So be sure to have enough space allocated for new software that you would like to download and install, as well as store extra configurations, image or music collections, etc. Second, the current version of DragonLinux does not support more than 2GB of allocated space. There are ways of expanding this as well, but they are beyond the scope of this simple start-up guide. If you need more space, contact DragonLinux support for more assistance.

One you have told setup how much space to allocate, DragonLinux will show you a brief summary of the information it has gathered. To continue, press enter. The rest of the installation takes care of itself. First it will create the large file in which the filesystem will inhabit. Especially with large file systems, this may take several minutes. After it has created the file, it will need to format it. This will take less time as it did to create. Then you will begin to see DragonLinux install the various package sets you selected. You will see descriptions of all the packages that are installed, and both the compressed and installed size of each package. This process will also take several minutes. If you wish to view those descriptions at a later time, they are located in the DISKINFO files in each package sub-directory on the CD, and also located in /var/log/packages inside of DragonLinux.

Once the package installation is complete, DragonLinux shows you how to start DragonLinux, and then asks you if you wish to reboot your system. Say yes.

Now that you have DragonLinux installed, you will need to know how to start it up. Since DragonLinux is another operating system, it will not run inside of a DOS window of any kind. You will need to exit your windows environment for it to run. In the case of Windows 3.1, you simply exit Windows to get to DOS. In Windows 95 & 98, you will need to choose and Restart in MS-DOS mode from the shutdown menu. (Click on Start, then select shutdown, then choose Restart in MS-DOS mode.)

Now you should be looking at a DOS prompt. (Most likely it looks something like this: C:\WINDOWS>) You will need to change first to the C:\DRAGON directory. To do this, type in: cd \dragon

Now to start DragonLinux, simply type "dragon" (no quotes) at the prompt and hit enter. It should then begin to boot the kernel. Once it is finished, you will be looking at a login screen, and there will be some instructions there for you. They will tell you to login as "root". To do that, type in "root" (no quotes) when prompted for a user name, and hit enter.

You will see that there is a message upon your login. Read it carefully. It will help you setup your system.

Now that you have DragonLinux installed, you will want to configure it to your system, and your needs.

Before you start, there is a step you should do first to secure you new DragonLinux system. You need to set a password for the super-user or administrator account on your system. (This is the user you are logged in as, "root".) Do not connect your system to the Internet until you have set a root password, or your system may be compromised! To set your root password, type "passwd" (no quotes) at a prompt after you have logged in. It will ask you for a new password, and warn you if it thinks it is not good enough. If you wish to use a "weak" password again, you may enter it, but it is not recommended. After it verifies the password you typed in, it is set. Do not forget your root password! Also do not give it to anyone unless you trust them with *all* of the data on your drive.

A very quick way to get most of the important settings on your system is to run the Slackware setup utility. To run the Slackware setup utility, you simply type "setup" (no quotes) after you have logged in. Once you have run the setup utility, you will want to use the arrow keys to move down the list and highlight the CONFIGURE option, and press enter.

It will ask you if you want to configure your system, choose yes. Then it will ask you about creating a boot disk, and installing a kernel. DragonLinux v2r1 does not currently support these options, so press the TAB key until you highlight CANCEL and press enter to skip those questions.

Then setup will ask you about your modem. (COM: Port) This will setup a special device link (/dev/modem) for your modem. You can choose no modem if you do not have one.

If will then ask you if you would like to auto-mount your CD upon boot-up. This is a good option, as it will automatically mount (make accessible) and CD that is in the drive upon boot-up. That way if you need to install any extra packages from the DragonLinux CD, it will be already mounted. However, this can slow the boot process, and otherwise be annoying if you forget to put the correct CD in.

It will ask you if you want to try out some custom screen fonts. If this is the first time you are configuring your system, it is advised to skip this option as well. (Choose no.) You can always go back later and change it if you so desire.

The configuration tool will then ask if you wish to setup your network. This will configure your network settings. Even if you do not have a network card, it is best to say yes.

Now the Slackware configuration will run the "netconfig" utility. It will display a brief introduction, and advise you that if you want to run it again you can do so by running "netconfig" at any time.

First it will ask your for your desired host name. If your LAN administrator (possibly you) has not told you what your host name is, you can enter in your own. Many users put in an alias, or some other pet name. (For example, I call my server box www, and my development box devel.)

Next is will ask you for your domain name. Again, if you do not have one assigned to you (from either your ISP or your LAN administrator) you can enter in a fake domain name. (A common one is example.net)

Next you will have to choose what kind of IP Setup you will have. There are three choices: Static IP, DHCP, and loopback. Choose Static IP if you have a static IP. An example of this is many Cable and DSL configurations (but not all), and for those that are setting up a private home or work LAN. If you have a DHCP server on the network (Many Cable and DSL configurations, as well as established LANs have a DHCP server) choose this option. If you are not setting up a LAN for private use, or for use with Cable or DSL service, choose loopback. Loopback is also used when you have a dial up connection to the Internet.

If you are setting up a Static IP network, netconfig will ask you to enter your IP address. It will also ask your for your net mask (sometimes called hostmask) and gateway addresses. Then it will ask you if you are going to be accessing a name server. Most users will be accessing a name server of some sort, so say yes, and the following screen will ask you for the address of your name server.

If you are using the loopback or DHCP server there is no more configuration to be done.

Netconfig may also ask you if you want to try to detect your Ethernet LAN adapter. If you have one, say yes and it will try to automatically detect what kind of network card you have. If it finds it, it will show you which module it found. If you choose not to, and you do have a LAN card, you can edit your /etc/rc.d/rc.modules file manually.

The next menu will ask you to select your mouse type from a list. Highlight the correct one and press enter. This will set your special device link (/dev/mouse) for your mouse.

The next question has to do with Sendmail configuration. Most users will take the default SMTP+BIND configuration. Many places in Europe however, UUCP is still widely used due to the high cost of Internet access. Choose the appropriate option.

The next question will be if your system hardware clock (sometimes called CMOS clock) is set to UTC or local time. For most users this will be local time. Select the appropriate answer that best suits you.

Next it will ask you to choose your time zone from a large list. Use the up and down arrow keys to highlight the time zone you are in, and press enter.

Now if you installed the X Window System, it will ask you which window manager or environment you wish to load as your default. Choose GNOME or KDE if you installed one of those package sets, otherwise pick another window manager you prefer. (Not tabwm unless it is the *only* option.)

You will then be returned to the main Slackware setup menu. Use the arrow keys to highlight EXIT and press enter.

If you use a modem and phone line to connect to the Internet through an ISP, you will want to run "pppsetup" (no quotes) as well. This will ask you several questions about connecting to your ISP. You will need to have your ISP information handy.

Pppsetup will ask you for your ISP's phone number (you must also enter ATDT for tone, or ATDP for pulse dialing, in front of the phone number), your modem's COM port, baud rate (115200 is adequate for most configurations), and if you want to use call back support (usually no). It will then ask you for a default init string. If you have a custom init string you would like to use, enter it, or just hit return to accept the default. You will need your ISP's domain name (ie uswest.net) and name server IP address. Next it will ask you how your ISP verifies your login information. Most ISPs use PAP authentication. It will ask you for your user name and password. It will show you a summary screen, and then your ppp setup will be complete.

If you installed the X Window System, you will also want to run "xf86config" (no quotes) to setup your X server. This can be a tricky one to setup. It will ask you about your keyboard, mouse, video card type, and monitor information. You may want to get some information from the Internet, or check X:\DRAGON\PACKAGES\XWINDOWS\README (where X: is the letter of your CD-ROM drive) for more help getting X up and running. Note, only the SVGA server is installed by default during the install process. (You can install the appropriate server for your video card. See the readme mentioned above. The extra servers are located in X:\DRAGON\PACKAGES\XWINDOWS\EXTRAS (where X: is the letter of your CD-ROM drive).)

Now that your DragonLinux system is installed and configured, you can now get down to having fun and exploring your new operating system. First you will likely want to connect to the Internet, and get comfortable just using Linux for simple things. Visit some Linux web sites. Check out those that are aimed at new users. You may also want to stop by Linux Mafia (http://www.linuxmafia.org/) - they have a lot of software packages available to download. They are in a format that is simple even for a new user to install on Slackware based distributions, including DragonLinux.

Also, you will want to create a normal user account so you don't go doing everything as root. It is always best do do everything as a user unless root is absolutely necessary. The "adduser" (no quotes) command will create a new user account.

Thank you for using DragonLinux!

Microsoft, Windows, Windows NT, ActiveX, Direct3D, DirectX, and WIN32 are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Intel and Pentium are registered trademarks. MMX is a trademark, of Intel Corporation. Netscape, Netscape Navigator, and Netscape Communicator are trademarks or registered trademarks of Netscape Communications Corporation. The Open Group and X Window System are trademarks of The Open Group. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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