Option

Summary

Why

Pros

Cons

How

Full system installation

You install Bio-Linux orhttp://www.nugo.org/nbxas the sole operating system on your machine.

You want to use the machine only as a Bio-Linux workstation, with all system resources devoted to Linux and the applications running on it.

Simple set-up; fast; whole hard drive available for Linux files; configure your system how you want it; work at the console or use remote access

Takes time to install and configure; requires committing a whole P.C. to Bio-Linux

Boot from DVD or USB and select “Install”, then “Partition using entire disk”

Live system

You run the DVD or USB stick in Live mode

You want to try Linux with no changes saved to your PC; or check hardware compatibility; or run a temporary Linux system

Very simple; nothing is written to your hard drive; [USB only]: carry your personal system and data in your pocket.

Slow; limited storage space; [DVD]: all changes are lost when you reboot; [USB]: memory sticks are unreliable when used this way

You boot from the USB or CD and select “Try Bio-Linux without changes to your computer”

Dual boot installation

Note:

Wubi is

currently broken for Bio-Linux

You partition your hard disk and give a portion to Linux and a portion to the existing OS - Windows, MacOS, or whatever. You choose which to run each time you reboot.

You want a machine that sometimes runs one system and sometimes another.

Simple set-up; fast; flexible; share files between systems;

Uses more disk space; you can only run one system at once; 

Boot from DVD or USB and select “Install”, then “Dual Boot” mode

Run Linux in a virtual machine (eg. VMWare)

Virtualisation software allows you to run the whole of Linux as a program in Windows or MacOS, and work with it as if it was a separate dedicated machine (of course, you can also run Windows within Linux).

You want access to both systems at once without having separate machines. You only use Linux occasionally and want to start it on demand

No major changes to your machine; very flexible; fast to start; allows Linux to run on some unsupported hardware; can hibernate system and restart later

Most virtualisation software is commercial, so you either buy a license or use a no-cost restricted version. Needs a powerful machine as memory, disk and CPU are shared. Can be fiddly to use and confusing to configure if you want anything other than the default set-up.

Grab the freeVMWare player orVirtualBox. There are some pre-made images around the web but these are out-of-date, so you should just boot from the regular Bio-Linux DVD ISO and either start using it in Live mode or hit install.

Run Linux in “the cloud”

A company such as Amazon leases you a virtual machine which you use as with your own virtual machine above.

You want to use a powerful computer or computers for a short time, or make use of cloud storage and network speed.

Very flexible; supplier deals with system set-up and backup; stop and start system as you need it; easily clone entire system

Can be costly; network access is slow; can't upgrade whole system in place

Get an EC2 accountand either use thepre-made image from the JCVI or run an Ubuntu image and install the packages you need

Get access to a departmental shared system

Most institutions run Unix-type servers on which accounts are available. Many now support Linux services (including CEH) and this is still the easiest way to get access to Linux capabilities.

You have a supported Linux server available to you.

Set-up and software installation done for you; machine set up to work with local printers, e-mail, shared storage, etc.; your data is backed up for you.

You may have limited resources (eg. disk quota); Installing software packages must be done by the admins; network access may be slow (but there are ways around this);  machine won't be “standard” BL, so some of our documentation will not apply.

Ask your local IT support.