# Tazlito Manual

## NAME

Tazlito - SliTaz Live Tool.

## SYNTAX

    tazlito [command] [list|iso|flavor] [dir]

## DESCRIPTION

Tazlito is a small utility to extract a LiveCD, rebuild the ISO image and regenerate the root filesystem of the LiveCD. Tazlito can also generate a distribution from a list of packages previously downloaded. To run, Tazlito uses the configuration file /etc/tazlito/tazlito.conf or an easily generated tazlito.conf found in the current directory. It specifies the name of the ISO, volume, maintainer and the paths of the packages to distribute and the generated ISO. Tazlito can also set up a directory containing additional files which will be copied to the LiveCD when generating the distribution.

Tazlito is distributed under the free GNU licence GPL V3, installed by default on SliTaz and installed/sucessfully tested on Debian GNU/Linux. You will find additional information about creating a LiveCD in the Handbook.

## COMMANDS

### usage

The 'usage' command displays a summary of available commands with a short description:

     # tazlito usage

### stats

Stats displays the configuration variables, the paths to the various files and directories, and information on the ISO image:

     # tazlito stats

### gen-config

The 'gen-config' command allows you to generate a configuration file ready to be edited. By default the file is created in the current directory, but can be in another directory if specified via the command line:

     # tazlito gen-config
     # tazlito gen-config /path/to/distro

### configure

This command configures the system configuration file or one found in the current directory:

     # tazlito configure

### gen-iso

The 'gen-iso' command can generate a new LiveCD image following modifications and additions to the root filesystem of the cdrom. To function, this command needs a directory containing the distro-tree of the Live system. This tree can easily be built with the 'extract-distro' command, modified and rebuilt via:

     # tazlito gen-iso

### gen-initiso

The 'gen'initso' command will do the same work as 'gen-iso', but it rebuilds the initramfs compressed system prior. The initramfs contains the root filesystem and must be rebuilt if modified:

     # tazlito gen-initiso

### list-flavors

The 'list-flavors' command downloads (if necessary) and displays a list of the different flavors available. You can force the download with the --recharge option:

     # tazlito list-flavors
     # tazlito list-flavors --recharge

### get-flavor

The 'get-flavor' command downloads (if necessary) and prepares the files for 'gen-distro' to generate a flavor:

     # tazlito get-flavor particular-flavor

### show-flavor

The 'show-flavor' command displays the description of the flavor and its size after regeneration. The options --brief and --noheader reduce the output displayed:

     # tazlito show-flavor particular-flavor
     # tazlito show-flavor particular-flavor --brief
     # tazlito show-flavor particular-flavor --brief --noheader

### gen-flavor

The 'gen-flavor' command creates a description file of a new flavor from the results of generating a distro (gen-distro). The .flavor file can then be sent to slitaz.org:

     # tazlito gen-flavor new-flavor

### gen-liveflavor

The 'gen-liveflavor' command creates a description file of a new flavor from the results of generating a distro based on the current system. The --help option provides more information:

     # tazlito gen-liveflavor
     # tazlito gen-liveflavor --help

### upgrade-flavor

The `upgrade-flavor' command refreshes a flavor file by updating the list of packages with the latest versions available:

     # tazlito upgrade-flavor this-flavor

### extract-flavor

The 'extract-flavor' command converts a flavor into an easily modifiable tree structure in /home/slitaz/VERSION/flavors which can be managed with mercurial: http://hg.slitaz.org/flavors. For example on cooking you will have the work directory in /home/slitaz/cooking.

     # tazlito extract-flavor this-flavor

### pack-flavor

The 'pack-flavor' command converts a tree structure in /home/slitaz/VERSION/flavors into a flavor file (.flavor). It is inverse of 'tazlito extract-flavor':

     # tazlito pack-flavor this-flavor

### extract-distro

The 'extract-distro' command is used to extract an ISO image from the LiveCD to rebuild the structure of the root cdrom and system. It is then possible to make the desired changes or additions and rebuild the ISO image via 'gen-iso' or 'gen-initiso'. Example of use:

     # tazlito extract-distro slitaz-cooking.iso

### gen-distro

The Generate Distribution command can generate the distro-tree and an ISO image via a list of packages. To function, this command needs a list of packages, a directory containing all the (.tazpkg) packages on the list, and a directory to generate the distribution. The list of packages can be extracted from a flavor with the 'get-flavor' command. If one uses the LiveCD, the options --cdrom and --iso= permit the regeneration of packages that place files in /boot without being obliged to download them and recovers the additional files of the LiveCD. The path to the various directories are configured in the configuration file and packages can be downloaded from the SliTaz mirrors or generated by Cookutils. To generate a distribution:

     # tazlito gen-distro
     # tazlito gen-distro --cdrom
     # tazlito gen-distro --iso=slitaz.iso
     # tazlito gen-distro package-list

### clean-distro

Removes all files generated or extracts of the structure of the LiveCD:

     # tazlito clean-distro

### check-distro

This command simply verifies if files installed by the packages are present on the system:

     # tazlito check-distro

### writeiso

This command will write the current filesystem to a cpio archive (rootfs.gz) and then generate a bootable ISO image. Writeiso can be used in a HD install or in live mode and will also archive your current /home directory. This command lets you easily remaster and build your own LiveCD image, just boot, modify any files, and then:

     # tazlito writeiso [gzip|lzma|none]
     # tazlito writeiso gzip
     # tazlito writeiso gzip image-name

### frugal-install

Perfom a frugal installation into /boot/frugal and add a GRUB entry if needed. Frugal mode will make SliTaz work completely in memory (RAM) - useful to test a distro without burning an ISO or to have a rescue system ready to use when the computer powers on. To install all needed files from a distro tree or an ISO image:

     # tazlito frugal-install
     # tazlito -fi slitaz.iso

### check-list

Checks if the distro-packages.list is updated with the latest package versions:

     # tazlito check-list

### repack

Recompresses the rootfs with the best possible compression:

     # tazlito repack slitaz.iso

### merge

Combines several flavors like nested Russian dolls. Each rootfs is a subset of the previous. The first rootfs is extracted from the ISO image used in the third argument. The flavor will then be chosen to launch at startup according to the amount of RAM available:

     # tazlito merge 160M slitaz-core.iso 96M rootfs-justx.gz 32M rootfs-base.gz

### build-loram

Creates an ISO image flavor for low ram systems from a SliTaz ISO image. You can build a flavor with / always in ram or where / resides on the cdrom:

     # tazlito build-loram slitaz.iso loram.iso
     # tazlito build-loram slitaz.iso loram-cdrom.iso cdrom

### emu-iso

The emu-iso command uses the Qemu emulator to start and run SliTaz. Qemu is used to test the newly built ISO image without burning to a cdrom or booting into frugal mode:

     # tazlito emu-iso
     # tazlito emu-iso path/to/image.iso

### burn-iso

Burn-iso will guess the cdrom device and its speed, and wodim (part of cdrkit) will begin to burn an ISO image. The default ISO image is the one located in the current configuration file, but it's possible to specify a different image via the command line:

     # tazlito burn-iso
     # tazlito burn-iso slitaz-hacked.iso

## FLAVORS

A .flavor file contains just a few KB of information needed to (re)manufacture a custom LiveCD of SliTaz.

### Manufacture a flavor

You can choose the flavor to (re)manufacture from among those available:

    # tazlito list-flavors

    List of flavors
    ================================================================================
    Name              ISO   Rootfs  Description
    ================================================================================
    base               6.9M  13.1M  Minimal set of packages to boot
    core-3in1         31.5M 105.6M  SliTaz core system with justX and base alternatives
    core              31.5M 104.6M  SliTaz core system
    eeepc             31.2M 105.4M  SliTaz eeepc system
    justX             16.1M  51.2M  SliTaz with a minimal X environment

We will start by remanufacturing the eeepc flavor which uses 105.4M of RAM and has a CD-ROM size of 31.2M:

    # tazlito clean-distro
    # tazlito get-flavor eeepc
    # tazlito gen-distro

### Create a flavor

To create a flavor, you must:

- Either create an ISO image with tazlito gen-distro and then create a flavor file with tazlito gen-flavor
- Either directly create the tree structure that defines the flavor (see tazlito extract-flavor) and then create the flavor with tazlito pack-flavor
- Either use the online builder

### Post a flavor

Because a .flavor file contains just a few KB; it can be easily sent via the mailing list.

The results of tazlito extract flavor can also be put in mercurial (http://repos.slitaz.org/flavors). This method is preferred because the tree will be directly visible with the mercurial web interface.

This tree includes:

- A receipt file describing the flavor thanks to the variables:
  - FLAVOR: The flavor name.
  - SHORT_DESC: Short description.
  - VERSION: Free format.
  - MAINTAINER: Email address of maintainer.
  - FRUGAL_RAM: Minimum RAM required (optional).
  - ROOTFS_SIZE: Size of rootfs.gz decompressed into RAM (optional).
  - INITRAMFS_SIZE: Size of rootfs.gz on the CD-ROM (optional).
  - ISO_SIZE: Size of CD-ROM (optional).
  - ROOTFS_SELECTION: Optional, see Meta flavor below.
- The file packages.list containing the list of packages without specifying the version (tazlito uses the latest available). This file is missing if ROOTFS_SELECTION exists in the receipt.
- The optional mirrors file containing the list of unofficial mirrors (undigest) to be added to include personal packages.
- The optional directory rootfs containing the tree to add to the root filesystem rootfs.gz (configuration files usually).
- The optional directory rootcd containing the tree to add to the root of the CD-ROM.

### Adapt a flavor

It is often easier to modify an existing flavor than to create one from scratch. To adapt the eeepc flavor for example:

    # tazpkg get-install mercurial
    # cd /home/slitaz
    # hg clone http://hg.slitaz.org/flavors
    # cd flavors
    # cp -a eeepc myslitaz

Files in my-slitaz can then be changed, and:

    # tazlito pack-flavor myslitaz

Will simply create the new flavor.

Tip: you can skip mercurial installation by extracting a flavor. Using the previous example:

    # tazlito get-flavor eeepc
    # tazlito extract-flavor eeepc.flavor
    # cd /home/slitaz/flavors
    # cp -a eeepc myslitaz

### Meta flavor

A meta flavor contains several flavors like nested Russian dolls. The flavor will be launched at startup according to the amount of RAM available. The ROOTFS_SELECTION variable defines the minimim RAM and corresponding flavor parameters, example:

    ROOTFS_SELECTION="160M core 96M justX 32M base"

A meta flavor doesn't contain a list of packages (packages.list). SliTaz kernels prior to 2.6.30 do not support meta flavors.

## MAINTAINER

Christophe Lincoln <pankso at slitaz.org>