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What is Linux?
Linux is a free, open-source operating system that was created in 1991 by Finnish programmer Linus Torvalds. Unlike proprietary operating systems like Windows and macOS, Linux is not controlled by a single company or individual. Instead, it is developed by a community of programmers and is available for anyone to use or modify. There are many different versions, or "distributions," of Linux, each with its own look, feel, and functionality. Some of the most popular distributions include Ubuntu, Mint, and Fedora.
While Linux can be challenging to learn for newcomers, it is a powerful and flexible operating system that can be customized to meet your specific needs. Whether you’re looking for an alternative to Windows or macOS, or you need an operating system for a Raspberry Pi or other single-board computer, Linux is a great option.
Why You Need A Linux Bootable USB?
A Linux bootable USB is a USB drive that contains a Linux operating system and can be used to boot a computer into that Linux OS. A bootable USB can be a useful tool for many purposes, such as installing a Linux OS on a computer that does not have an optical drive, or for troubleshooting a computer that is having issues booting from its hard drive.
There are many ways to create a Linux bootable USB on Mac, but one of the easiest is to use the Etcher. This program will walk you through the process of creating a bootable USB for Linux, and it supports a wide variety of Linux distributions.
Preparation:
1. Prepare Your USB Drive
First, you’ll need a USB drive with at least 2GB of free space. Any drive will work, but we recommend using a USB 3.0 drive for the best performance.
2. Download the Linux ISO
Now that your USB drive is prepared, you’ll need to download a Linux ISO. For this guide, we’ll be using the Ubuntu 16.04 LTS ISO.
Method 1. Make a Bootable Linux USB Drive With Etcher?
Etcher is a free and open-source utility used for writing images to flash drives or SD cards. It is cross-platform and supports Windows, macOS, and Linux. Etcher is also a popular choice for creating bootable USB drives, as it can be used to write both ISO and img files.
Step 1. To create a bootable USB drive with Etcher on macOS, first download the Etcher application from the link below.
Step 2. Once the application has been downloaded, launch it and select the ISO or img file that you wish to write to the USB drive. Step 3. Next, select the USB drive that you wish to write the image to. Etcher will now write the image to the USB drive.
Step 4. Once the process is complete, you will have a bootable USB drive that can be used to install Linux on your Mac.
Keep in mind that you will need to format the USB drive as FAT32 in order for Etcher to be able to write to it. Because of this, it is recommended that you use a USB drive that is 8GB or larger. The only cons of this program is that it doesn’t support older versions of macOS. Also, the program is not as intuitive as some of the other options on this list.
Method 2. Create A Linux Bootable USB on Mac Using the Terminal?
If you want to create a Linux bootable USB on your Mac, you can do so using the Terminal. This can be useful if you want to install Linux on your Mac, or if you want to create a rescue USB drive. This method is relatively complicated and requires the use of the terminal. If you are not comfortable using the terminal, there are other methods that may be more suitable for you.
To create a Linux bootable USB on your Mac using the Terminal, follow these steps:
1. Insert your USB drive into your Mac.
2. Open the Terminal. You can find the Terminal in the Utilities folder in your Applications folder.
3. In the Terminal, type the following command:
sudo dd if=/path/to/linux.iso of=/dev/diskN bs=1m
Replace /path/to/linux.iso with the path to the Linux ISO file you want to use. Replace /dev/diskN with the name of your USB drive. For example, if your USB drive is named “Untitled,” the command would be:
sudo dd if=/path/to/linux.iso of=/dev/disk1 bs=1m
4. Press Enter.
5. Type your password when prompted, and press Enter.
6. Wait for the command to finish. This may take a few minutes.
7. When the command is finished, type the following command:
diskutil unmount /dev/diskN
Replace /dev/diskN with the name of your USB drive.
8. Eject your USB drive.
Your USB drive is now ready to use. You can boot from it and install Linux, or use it as a rescue drive.
How Do I Know If My USB Is Bootable Linux?
There are a few ways to check if your Linux USB is bootable.
1.One way is to simply try to boot from it. If your computer is set to boot from USB first, it will attempt to boot from the USB. If it is not set to boot from USB first, you can usually access the boot menu by pressing a key during bootup (usually F12). If the USB is bootable, you should see a menu option to boot from it.
2. Another way to check is to use the lsblk command. This command will list all block devices on your system. If you see your USB drive listed, it is probably bootable.
3. Finally, you can use the dd command to check if the USB drive is bootable. This command will copy a certain number of bytes from the USB drive to a file. If the USB is bootable, dd will return a status of 0. If the USB is not bootable, dd will return a non-zero status.
Here is an example of how to use dd to check if a USB drive is bootable:
# dd if=/dev/sdb of=/tmp/bootable.txt bs=1 count=1
# echo $?
0
This example shows that the USB drive is bootable because dd returned a status of 0.
Can I Directly Put Linux ISO to A USB to Have It Bootable?
No, you cannot directly put an ISO onto a USB to make it bootable. An ISO is a disk image, meaning it is a file that contains all the data from a optical disc, like a CD or DVD. In order to make a USB drive bootable, you need to write this image file to the drive, which is a different process. For Linux ISO images, this can be done with the help of a tool like UNetbootin. For Windows ISO images, you can use the tool Rufus.