WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:01.679 You know, usually when you buy a house in one 2 00:00:01.679 --> 00:00:07.799 of those strict homeowners associations, there's this expectation of rigid predictability. 3 00:00:07.960 --> 00:00:10.080 Oh absolutely, the dreaded rule book. 4 00:00:10.160 --> 00:00:13.000 Yeah, you get this thick binder of rules and you 5 00:00:13.000 --> 00:00:17.399 can only paint your front door these three approved shades 6 00:00:17.399 --> 00:00:21.280 of beige, and you can only plant like these specific 7 00:00:21.399 --> 00:00:26.280 preapproved bushes in the yard. It's clean, I mean, it's predictable, it's. 8 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:29.039 Safe, sure, but it's also incredibly restrictive. You know, don't 9 00:00:29.039 --> 00:00:31.440 actually own the outside of your house. You're just managing 10 00:00:31.440 --> 00:00:33.840 it within their extremely tight parameters. 11 00:00:33.960 --> 00:00:38.119 Exactly. So imagine moving into a neighborhood where not only 12 00:00:38.240 --> 00:00:40.920 can you paint your door neon purple if you really 13 00:00:40.960 --> 00:00:44.399 want to, but the town literally hands you the architectural 14 00:00:44.399 --> 00:00:46.240 blueprints to the entire block. 15 00:00:46.399 --> 00:00:47.320 That would be wild. 16 00:00:47.399 --> 00:00:49.640 They just drop them on your front porch and say, hey, 17 00:00:49.679 --> 00:00:51.159 if you want to tear out the plunting to make 18 00:00:51.159 --> 00:00:53.359 the water pressure better for you and you know for 19 00:00:53.399 --> 00:00:55.240 everyone else, just go for it. 20 00:00:55.560 --> 00:00:58.000 That is a massive shift in mindset. I mean, it 21 00:00:58.079 --> 00:01:01.159 is the fundamental difference between just renting space in a 22 00:01:01.280 --> 00:01:07.319 closed proprietary ecosystem and actually owning a completely open computing architecture. 23 00:01:06.799 --> 00:01:10.719 And that massive shift is exactly what we are decoding today. 24 00:01:11.120 --> 00:01:15.319 We are basically shortcutting your path to becoming a Linux insider. 25 00:01:14.959 --> 00:01:16.719 Yep, diving right into the deep end. 26 00:01:16.760 --> 00:01:21.640 Right, We're ripping into this really comprehensive manual Beginning fedor 27 00:01:21.719 --> 00:01:25.519 Desktop fedor twenty eight edition by Richard Peterson, and we 28 00:01:25.560 --> 00:01:27.959 have mountainous sources. You're covering everything. 29 00:01:27.640 --> 00:01:30.959 From the foundational philosophy of open source software all the 30 00:01:31.000 --> 00:01:34.200 way down to the actual nuts and bolts of custom installations. 31 00:01:34.319 --> 00:01:37.359 Yeah, and even rescuing a totally broken system, which we'll 32 00:01:37.359 --> 00:01:40.319 get to. So if you've ever felt locked into the 33 00:01:40.400 --> 00:01:44.120 rigid ecosystems of commercial operating systems, or if you're just 34 00:01:44.159 --> 00:01:48.359 insanely curious about how developers build their own custom digital workspaces, 35 00:01:48.640 --> 00:01:51.079 this deep dive is absolutely for you. 36 00:01:51.239 --> 00:01:51.760 For sure. 37 00:01:52.239 --> 00:01:54.439 We're going to figure out how faedor twenty eight bridges 38 00:01:54.480 --> 00:01:58.640 the gap between those high level hardcore programmers and everyday users, 39 00:01:59.079 --> 00:02:01.439 essentially handing you to total control over your machine. 40 00:02:01.519 --> 00:02:03.840 And we should probably establish right up front that we 41 00:02:03.920 --> 00:02:06.719 aren't just looking at a dry technical guide here, No, 42 00:02:06.799 --> 00:02:10.439 definitely not. This is really a manifesto for a completely 43 00:02:10.479 --> 00:02:14.879 different computing philosophy. You are learning a totally new way 44 00:02:15.039 --> 00:02:17.960 to think about your relationship with the actual hardware sitting 45 00:02:18.000 --> 00:02:18.439 on your desk. 46 00:02:18.479 --> 00:02:21.199 Okay, let's unpack this because before we even look at 47 00:02:21.240 --> 00:02:24.879 the graphical interface or the software itself, we really have 48 00:02:24.960 --> 00:02:28.479 to understand the DNA of how this operating system is built. 49 00:02:28.560 --> 00:02:29.280 Right, the foundation. 50 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:34.560 Yeah, you really can't understand Fedora without understanding the broader 51 00:02:34.719 --> 00:02:36.680 open source movement that birth did. 52 00:02:36.840 --> 00:02:40.039 The history is just crucial to everything that follows. I mean, 53 00:02:40.360 --> 00:02:43.879 Lenox was originally developed in the early nineties by Linus Torvalds, 54 00:02:44.360 --> 00:02:49.159 and he was working alongside this massive global network of programmers, just. 55 00:02:49.199 --> 00:02:51.599 People all over the world contributing code exactly. 56 00:02:51.919 --> 00:02:55.680 But the engine that keeps this entire global collaboration running, 57 00:02:55.719 --> 00:02:58.639 the thing that basically keeps it from falling apart into chaos, 58 00:02:59.039 --> 00:03:00.479 is the legalize. 59 00:03:00.439 --> 00:03:01.520 Right, the legal framework. 60 00:03:01.719 --> 00:03:06.000 Specifically, it operates under the General Public License or GPL, 61 00:03:06.520 --> 00:03:08.479 which comes from the Free Software Foundation. 62 00:03:08.639 --> 00:03:11.199 Okay, So I was reading through the source materials and 63 00:03:11.240 --> 00:03:13.599 there's a really crucial distinction here that I think trips 64 00:03:13.599 --> 00:03:14.159 a lot of people out. 65 00:03:14.199 --> 00:03:15.360 Oh the public domain thing. 66 00:03:15.520 --> 00:03:19.800 Yes, people here open source and they automatically. Think public domain, 67 00:03:20.439 --> 00:03:22.199 meaning you know, nobody. 68 00:03:21.919 --> 00:03:23.800 Owns it at all, right, like anyone can just take 69 00:03:23.800 --> 00:03:24.520 it and do whatever. 70 00:03:24.680 --> 00:03:29.680 Exactly, But Jenu software is actually copyrighted. The GPL retains 71 00:03:29.719 --> 00:03:33.680 the copyright, but it mandates that the software and crucially, 72 00:03:33.919 --> 00:03:37.719 any modifications you make to it, have to remain freely available. 73 00:03:37.919 --> 00:03:41.800 What's fascinating here is why this specific legal structure matters 74 00:03:41.800 --> 00:03:45.840 so much. This licensing acts as an ironclad shield against 75 00:03:45.840 --> 00:03:49.439 commercial monopolies hijacking open source code. 76 00:03:49.240 --> 00:03:50.879 Because without it, they totally would. 77 00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:53.719 Oh, in a heartbeat, think about what would happen if 78 00:03:53.759 --> 00:03:56.840 a massive tech corporation could just take the global community's 79 00:03:56.879 --> 00:04:01.000 hard work, tweak maybe three lines of code, slap a 80 00:04:01.039 --> 00:04:04.479 new corporate copyright on those changes, and lock the whole 81 00:04:04.560 --> 00:04:05.719 thing behind a paywall. 82 00:04:05.960 --> 00:04:08.719 The entire open ecosystem would just collapse. 83 00:04:08.319 --> 00:04:13.479 Overnight, exactly. The GPL essentially forces the door to stay 84 00:04:13.560 --> 00:04:14.960 open in perpetuity. 85 00:04:15.039 --> 00:04:18.360 It feels like, well, it's like a master chef handing 86 00:04:18.399 --> 00:04:21.279 you their award winning recipe. I like that analogy, right, 87 00:04:21.680 --> 00:04:24.399 but the chef insists that you not only get to 88 00:04:24.439 --> 00:04:26.959 eat the cake, but they demand that if you take 89 00:04:26.959 --> 00:04:29.600 that recipe into your own kitchen and figure out a 90 00:04:29.600 --> 00:04:32.160 way to make it taste even better. You are legally 91 00:04:32.199 --> 00:04:36.439 required to share your new improved recipe with the entire 92 00:04:36.480 --> 00:04:37.439 world for free. 93 00:04:37.759 --> 00:04:40.480 That is a perfect way to visualize it. It guarantees 94 00:04:40.560 --> 00:04:44.399 continuous communal evolution. Nobody gets to hoard the improvement. 95 00:04:44.519 --> 00:04:45.879 It's all about sharing the wealth. 96 00:04:45.959 --> 00:04:48.720 Yeah, and you can actually see this exact philosophy baked 97 00:04:48.839 --> 00:04:51.480 right into the Fedora logo itself, which is pretty cool. 98 00:04:51.519 --> 00:04:54.079 Oh man. The logo design meaning is so cool. So 99 00:04:54.120 --> 00:04:57.800 it's this lowercase F in case in a blue circle, right, yep. 100 00:04:57.839 --> 00:05:00.480 But the F literally stands for freedom, and if you 101 00:05:00.519 --> 00:05:02.959 look closely at the typography, it sort of melts into 102 00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:04.240 an infinity symbol. 103 00:05:04.040 --> 00:05:05.000 Right, those dual loops. 104 00:05:05.120 --> 00:05:07.079 Yeah, and then the whole thing is shaped like a 105 00:05:07.079 --> 00:05:10.480 speech bubble, which is evoking communication and voice. 106 00:05:10.680 --> 00:05:13.319 It's really a visual promise of what the software delivers. 107 00:05:13.879 --> 00:05:18.199 It represents free and open software with infinite possibilities, all 108 00:05:18.279 --> 00:05:19.759 driven by global communication. 109 00:05:20.240 --> 00:05:22.920 And because the g and UGPL forces the code to 110 00:05:22.959 --> 00:05:26.160 remain open and modifiable like that, the global community doesn't 111 00:05:26.199 --> 00:05:29.199 just sit around and build one single, rigid version of 112 00:05:29.240 --> 00:05:30.720 Fedora for everybody. 113 00:05:30.839 --> 00:05:33.160 No, that would defeat the whole purpose. 114 00:05:33.040 --> 00:05:36.199 Right, They build highly specialized versions for vastly different needs. 115 00:05:36.199 --> 00:05:39.720 It is literally a massive buffet of choice. 116 00:05:39.360 --> 00:05:43.079 It really is. So when you download the default Fedora workstation, 117 00:05:43.639 --> 00:05:47.480 you are getting what's called the Gnome E three desktop. 118 00:05:47.000 --> 00:05:48.600 Environment, which is the standard one. 119 00:05:48.560 --> 00:05:51.360 Right, Yeah, that's your standard user friendly interface. It's clean, 120 00:05:51.439 --> 00:05:55.399 it's modern. But the community takes that underlying base and 121 00:05:55.439 --> 00:05:57.800 creates what Fedor calls spins and labs. 122 00:05:58.199 --> 00:05:59.680 I saw the list of these spins and labs in 123 00:05:59.720 --> 00:06:03.160 the dot inventation and the sheer volume is just staggering. 124 00:06:03.199 --> 00:06:04.120 It's a lot to take in. 125 00:06:04.199 --> 00:06:07.480 It is. You have alternative desktop environments like KDE Plasma 126 00:06:07.680 --> 00:06:10.839 or XFSE, which I guess is specifically designed to be 127 00:06:11.560 --> 00:06:13.519 super lightweight for older computers. 128 00:06:13.879 --> 00:06:16.160 Yeah. XFSE is great if you're trying to revive a 129 00:06:16.160 --> 00:06:17.560 ten year old laptop. 130 00:06:17.279 --> 00:06:20.639 That's amazing. And then there's Cinnamon, which is derived from 131 00:06:20.680 --> 00:06:23.879 Linux Mint, and make Copies, which has that traditional Gnome 132 00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:24.600 too style. 133 00:06:24.720 --> 00:06:26.480 Those are all the visual spins, right, But. 134 00:06:26.439 --> 00:06:28.560 Then you get into the labs, which are these highly 135 00:06:28.560 --> 00:06:32.879 specialized curated bundles. There is literally an astronomy spin YEP, 136 00:06:33.120 --> 00:06:37.279 a robotic spin, a security lab for safe penetration testing. 137 00:06:37.680 --> 00:06:41.279 Oh and Fedora Jam, which is completely geared toward audio 138 00:06:41.360 --> 00:06:42.560 and music production. 139 00:06:42.920 --> 00:06:47.000 Because the community recognized that, you know, an astronomer professing 140 00:06:47.160 --> 00:06:51.279 raw telescope data needs fundamentally different software right out of 141 00:06:51.360 --> 00:06:53.759 the box than a network security tester who's trying to 142 00:06:53.759 --> 00:06:55.480 find vulnerabilities in a corporate server. 143 00:06:55.800 --> 00:06:58.160 Okay, so let me ask you this. Are these spins 144 00:06:58.319 --> 00:07:01.519 just cosmetic paint chops. Does someone just change the wallpaper 145 00:07:01.560 --> 00:07:03.839 to a picture of a galaxy, add some starry icons, 146 00:07:03.879 --> 00:07:06.759 and say boom astronomy spin. Or do they fundamentally change 147 00:07:06.759 --> 00:07:07.959 the machine's architecture. 148 00:07:08.360 --> 00:07:10.920 It is much much deeper than a paint job. But 149 00:07:10.959 --> 00:07:12.680 the core engine remains intact. 150 00:07:12.920 --> 00:07:14.680 What do you mean by the core engine. 151 00:07:14.399 --> 00:07:18.000 Under the hood, the Linux kernel, the actual heart of 152 00:07:18.000 --> 00:07:21.040 the operating system that talks directly to your hardware, that 153 00:07:21.079 --> 00:07:24.160 remains exactly the same across all these versions. Okay, so 154 00:07:24.240 --> 00:07:27.879 the foundation doesn't change, right, What changes dramatically is the 155 00:07:28.000 --> 00:07:31.600 user interface and the prepackaged, pre configured tools. 156 00:07:31.639 --> 00:07:31.959 Got it. 157 00:07:32.680 --> 00:07:35.560 If you install that Astronomy Lab, you aren't spending your 158 00:07:35.560 --> 00:07:39.800 first three weeks hunting down and compiling complex data processing software. 159 00:07:39.920 --> 00:07:43.199 And it's all there, totally integrated and ready to run 160 00:07:43.240 --> 00:07:44.680 the moment you turn on the machine. 161 00:07:44.720 --> 00:07:48.720 See that is incredibly powerful. But here is the obvious 162 00:07:48.759 --> 00:07:50.399 problem for someone totally. 163 00:07:50.079 --> 00:07:51.959 New to this, the paradox of choice. 164 00:07:52.120 --> 00:07:56.839 Exactly because there are infinite possibilities, choosing just one might 165 00:07:56.879 --> 00:08:00.279 feel completely overwhelming. Oh absolutely like you might want to 166 00:08:00.279 --> 00:08:03.079 try out that kdie plasma interface, but you definitely don't 167 00:08:03.079 --> 00:08:06.040 want to completely wipe your current computer and risk losing 168 00:08:06.079 --> 00:08:08.319 all your family photos just to run an experiment. 169 00:08:08.399 --> 00:08:11.000 And that anxiety right there is exactly why the live 170 00:08:11.120 --> 00:08:13.199 USB is one of the most powerful tools in the 171 00:08:13.319 --> 00:08:14.720 entire Linux ecosystem. 172 00:08:14.800 --> 00:08:15.480 It's a lifesaver. 173 00:08:15.879 --> 00:08:18.199 It really is. The community built a way for you 174 00:08:18.279 --> 00:08:20.600 to basically test drive the car without buying it. 175 00:08:20.879 --> 00:08:23.079 Yeah. I was reading about how you can use this 176 00:08:23.199 --> 00:08:26.600 program called Fedora Media Writer or even a command line 177 00:08:26.600 --> 00:08:31.879 tool to put a fully operational Fedora operating system directly 178 00:08:31.920 --> 00:08:33.279 onto a standard thumb drive. 179 00:08:33.559 --> 00:08:36.759 And we should clarify this isn't some stripped down simulation 180 00:08:37.039 --> 00:08:38.759 or like an interactive video tour. 181 00:08:39.000 --> 00:08:39.919 No, it's the real deal. 182 00:08:40.039 --> 00:08:42.840 It is the full operating system running entirely off the 183 00:08:42.879 --> 00:08:46.080 thumb drive, just using your computer's RAM and processor. 184 00:08:46.279 --> 00:08:46.840 That's crazy. 185 00:08:46.840 --> 00:08:49.679 You plug it in, restart your computer, and suddenly you 186 00:08:49.759 --> 00:08:52.919 are just running Fedora. You can test if your Wi 187 00:08:52.919 --> 00:08:55.440 Fi card works, play with the software, and see if 188 00:08:55.440 --> 00:08:58.519 you actually like the interface, all without writing a single 189 00:08:58.600 --> 00:09:00.000 megabye it to your actual HeartWare. 190 00:09:00.159 --> 00:09:03.559 So it's completely risk free. And I saw something in 191 00:09:03.559 --> 00:09:07.159 the manual about a concept called persistence that completely blew 192 00:09:07.200 --> 00:09:07.600 my mind. 193 00:09:07.639 --> 00:09:09.159 Oh yeah, persistence is great. 194 00:09:09.399 --> 00:09:11.320 Normally, when you turn off a lot of USB, it 195 00:09:11.360 --> 00:09:14.000 forgets everything you did, right, like, it just resets to 196 00:09:14.080 --> 00:09:14.799 factory default. 197 00:09:14.960 --> 00:09:17.679 Usually, yes, it's a clean slate every boot, right. 198 00:09:18.279 --> 00:09:22.120 But apparently you can allocate a memory overlay to the USB, 199 00:09:22.519 --> 00:09:25.240 like say five hundred and twelve megabytes or something, so 200 00:09:25.279 --> 00:09:27.600 that any changes you make to the operating system are 201 00:09:27.639 --> 00:09:30.080 actually saved directly to the thumb drive itself. 202 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:32.639 Yep. You just use a specific command flag for it. 203 00:09:32.840 --> 00:09:35.080 And you can even set up a persistent home directory 204 00:09:35.080 --> 00:09:37.039 for your personal files on that same drive. 205 00:09:37.240 --> 00:09:41.559 And crucially, that persistent home directory is encrypted by. 206 00:09:41.480 --> 00:09:45.159 Default, so it's secure too. It's literally like renting a 207 00:09:45.240 --> 00:09:47.399 fully furnished apartment on a thumb drive. 208 00:09:47.600 --> 00:09:48.799 I love these analogies. 209 00:09:48.879 --> 00:09:51.159 Well, think about it. You walk in it's totally set up. 210 00:09:51.639 --> 00:09:54.080 But whatever groceries you buy and put in the fridge, 211 00:09:54.399 --> 00:09:57.159 or whatever browser book marks you save, they stay right 212 00:09:57.200 --> 00:09:58.519 there for the next time you plug it in. 213 00:09:58.679 --> 00:10:01.840 Think about the security and portability implications of that. Though. 214 00:10:02.639 --> 00:10:06.360 You are carrying a secure, personalized, ENCRYPTID computing environment in 215 00:10:06.399 --> 00:10:07.240 your pocket. 216 00:10:07.000 --> 00:10:09.000 That feels like spy stuff, it kind of is. 217 00:10:09.000 --> 00:10:11.559 You can plug it into a public library computer or 218 00:10:11.679 --> 00:10:14.440 borrow a friend's laptop, boot it up, and you are 219 00:10:14.559 --> 00:10:17.600 instantly in your own private workspace. When you're done, when 220 00:10:17.600 --> 00:10:20.759 you unplug it and walk away, you leave absolutely zero 221 00:10:20.919 --> 00:10:22.279 trace on the host machine. 222 00:10:22.559 --> 00:10:26.279 Wow. Okay, so playing around in a safe, persistent USB 223 00:10:26.480 --> 00:10:29.639 environment is great for a test drive, but if you 224 00:10:29.679 --> 00:10:32.720 actually want to make Fedor your daily driver, if you 225 00:10:32.759 --> 00:10:35.799 want to really own the hardware, you eventually have to 226 00:10:35.840 --> 00:10:36.720 overwrite your hard drive. 227 00:10:37.080 --> 00:10:39.159 You do have to take the plunge eventually. 228 00:10:38.840 --> 00:10:42.679 And that is where things get genuinely intimidating for new users, 229 00:10:42.720 --> 00:10:45.600 I think, because you have to face the Anaconda installer. 230 00:10:45.960 --> 00:10:49.639 Yeah. Anaconda is Fedora's installation program. It's designed to be 231 00:10:49.720 --> 00:10:53.759 visually streamlined, but it definitely does not hide the plumbing 232 00:10:53.759 --> 00:10:56.039 from you the way Winders or macOS does right. 233 00:10:56.080 --> 00:10:57.279 It doesn't treat you like a kid. 234 00:10:57.360 --> 00:10:59.840 No, it forces you to look at how your system 235 00:10:59.919 --> 00:11:00.879 is actually built. 236 00:11:01.080 --> 00:11:04.519 So the installer handles the basics, you know, configuring your 237 00:11:04.519 --> 00:11:08.320 localization stuff like setting your time zone through NTP servers 238 00:11:08.360 --> 00:11:10.519 and figure out your keyboard layout. The easy stuff, the 239 00:11:10.519 --> 00:11:13.600 easy stuff. Yeah, But the real heavy lifting happens in 240 00:11:13.639 --> 00:11:18.440 the system configuration section, specifically the installation destination. This is 241 00:11:18.440 --> 00:11:21.519 where you actually carve up your hard drive into partitions. 242 00:11:21.879 --> 00:11:23.360 And there are a few ways to do this. You've 243 00:11:23.360 --> 00:11:28.000 got standard partitioning BTRFS software RAID. But this is really 244 00:11:28.080 --> 00:11:31.519 where we run into a concept called logical volume management 245 00:11:31.759 --> 00:11:32.480 or LVM. 246 00:11:32.720 --> 00:11:36.559 LVM. Okay, so this sounds like absolute magic to me 247 00:11:37.320 --> 00:11:40.519 from what I understand. Instead of treating a hard drive 248 00:11:40.600 --> 00:11:44.720 as this rigid physical object, it basically treats your disk 249 00:11:44.799 --> 00:11:48.600 storage as one massive, flexible pool of memory. 250 00:11:48.799 --> 00:11:53.240 It is an incredibly elegant solution to a really old problem. 251 00:11:53.440 --> 00:11:56.159 How So, Well, in a traditional setup, you might say, okay, 252 00:11:56.399 --> 00:11:58.919 this physical hard drive is strictly from my operating system, 253 00:11:58.960 --> 00:12:01.200 and this other physical dri drive over here is strictly 254 00:12:01.240 --> 00:12:02.120 for my video file. 255 00:12:02.279 --> 00:12:04.000 Right, C drive and D drive kind of thing. 256 00:12:03.960 --> 00:12:06.519 Exactly, And if your video drive gets full, you're just 257 00:12:06.799 --> 00:12:08.519 out of luck. You have to buy a new physical 258 00:12:08.600 --> 00:12:11.440 drive and manually move files around. It's tedious, super titious, 259 00:12:11.480 --> 00:12:14.320 But LVM abstracts the hardware entirely. You take all your 260 00:12:14.320 --> 00:12:17.879 physical drives, throw them into one massive virtual pool, and 261 00:12:17.919 --> 00:12:20.919 then you just carve out logical volumes from that pool. 262 00:12:21.000 --> 00:12:23.480 So the computer doesn't care where the physical discs are. 263 00:12:23.519 --> 00:12:25.840 Not at all. And the best part is you can 264 00:12:25.919 --> 00:12:28.919 resize those volumes on the fly as your needs change, 265 00:12:29.399 --> 00:12:33.240 without ever having to physically migrate data between different hard drives. 266 00:12:33.320 --> 00:12:35.279 Okay, hold on though, because that seems like a major 267 00:12:35.320 --> 00:12:37.879 contradiction based on what the source material says. What do 268 00:12:37.960 --> 00:12:42.559 you mean, Well, if LVM is this ultimate flexible pool 269 00:12:42.600 --> 00:12:46.679 of memory where everything is completely fluid, why does the 270 00:12:46.720 --> 00:12:49.720 manual explicitly single out the boot partition? 271 00:12:50.080 --> 00:12:50.399 Ah? 272 00:12:50.519 --> 00:12:54.159 Right, It very clearly states that the boot partition cannot 273 00:12:54.200 --> 00:12:57.039 be a logical volume. It has to be a separate 274 00:12:57.360 --> 00:13:01.039 Standard x four partition. Why is that the one single 275 00:13:01.039 --> 00:13:03.159 thing that isn't allowed to join the LVM party. 276 00:13:03.559 --> 00:13:05.919 That is a great question. It comes down to the 277 00:13:06.039 --> 00:13:08.399 order of operations. When a computer first. 278 00:13:08.120 --> 00:13:10.279 Wakes up like when you press the power button. 279 00:13:10.080 --> 00:13:12.639 Exactly when you first press the power button. Your computer's 280 00:13:12.679 --> 00:13:17.200 motherboard is frankly pretty dumb, right, it doesn't natively understand 281 00:13:17.200 --> 00:13:21.039 complex software abstractions like LVM. The bootloader, which is the 282 00:13:21.120 --> 00:13:24.679 tiny critical program that basically starts the engine, needs a 283 00:13:24.799 --> 00:13:27.879 very simple, universally readable space to look at. 284 00:13:27.799 --> 00:13:29.759 First before it can understand anything else. 285 00:13:30.159 --> 00:13:34.080 Right, it needs a standard basic partition using an older 286 00:13:34.120 --> 00:13:37.240 filing system just to load its initial set of instructions. 287 00:13:37.879 --> 00:13:40.960 Once it reads those basic instructions, it becomes smart enough 288 00:13:41.000 --> 00:13:44.919 to load the complex LVM drivers and understand the rest 289 00:13:44.960 --> 00:13:46.639 of your massive storage pool. 290 00:13:46.799 --> 00:13:49.480 Okay, so the boot partition is essentially like the key 291 00:13:49.519 --> 00:13:52.000 to the library. Yes, you can't lock the key inside 292 00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:54.000 the library. You'd never be able to open the door 293 00:13:54.039 --> 00:13:55.159 to get in and read the books. 294 00:13:55.320 --> 00:13:58.879 Precisely, it has to sit completely outside the complex system 295 00:13:59.200 --> 00:14:01.159 in order to actually start the complex system. 296 00:14:01.240 --> 00:14:02.159 That makes total sense. 297 00:14:02.240 --> 00:14:04.600 And by the way, for users who want total graphical 298 00:14:04.600 --> 00:14:07.039 control over all these partitions, you don't even have to 299 00:14:07.120 --> 00:14:09.399 use the command line for this part. Oh really, Yeah, 300 00:14:09.399 --> 00:14:12.200 there is a visual tool called the blivet GUI that 301 00:14:12.279 --> 00:14:15.200 lets you map all of this out visually during setup. 302 00:14:15.360 --> 00:14:18.559 Okay, that's a relief. So you've carved out your partitions, 303 00:14:18.840 --> 00:14:22.480 the Anaconda installer finishes its job, and you finally reboot 304 00:14:22.519 --> 00:14:25.720 the machine. What actually greets you because I assume you 305 00:14:25.759 --> 00:14:28.200 aren't just staring at a wall of green matrix. 306 00:14:27.799 --> 00:14:30.679 Text, not unless you want to be. No, You're dropped 307 00:14:30.720 --> 00:14:32.559 right into Genome three, which. 308 00:14:32.320 --> 00:14:34.320 Is the desktop environment we talked about. 309 00:14:34.120 --> 00:14:39.759 Earlier, right, and GENOT three fundamentally reimagines how a desktop 310 00:14:39.799 --> 00:14:43.679 should flow. It completely moves away from that traditional start 311 00:14:43.759 --> 00:14:46.440 menu and taskbar setup we're all so used to. 312 00:14:46.600 --> 00:14:49.279 Yeah, it's very different. You have the Activities Dash, which 313 00:14:49.320 --> 00:14:52.759 gives you this incredible bird's eye view of everything happening 314 00:14:52.799 --> 00:14:53.519 in your workspace. 315 00:14:53.600 --> 00:14:54.440 It's super fluid. 316 00:14:54.600 --> 00:14:57.759 And then there's the integrated System Status area, which is 317 00:14:57.919 --> 00:15:01.879 incredibly clean because it can holidates your network connections, your 318 00:15:01.919 --> 00:15:05.919 battery power, your sound levels, and your user profiles all 319 00:15:05.919 --> 00:15:08.000 into one single unified menu. 320 00:15:08.200 --> 00:15:10.799 Keeps the clutter way down definitely. 321 00:15:10.679 --> 00:15:13.879 And instead of wrestling with those older, clunky package managers 322 00:15:13.919 --> 00:15:16.879 like the old Package Kit, you get g and Ome software, 323 00:15:16.919 --> 00:15:19.240 which is a huge upgrade. Yeah, it feels very much 324 00:15:19.240 --> 00:15:22.080 like a modern app store. For finding and installing programs. 325 00:15:22.200 --> 00:15:25.279 It is a highly refined, polished experience. I mean the 326 00:15:25.360 --> 00:15:28.639 very first time you log in Genome, initial setup walks 327 00:15:28.639 --> 00:15:31.000 you through your privacy settings and hooking up your online. 328 00:15:30.759 --> 00:15:32.600 Accounts or even help animations right. 329 00:15:32.600 --> 00:15:36.480 Yeah, animations specifically designed to teach you the new workflow, so. 330 00:15:36.440 --> 00:15:41.039 It feels very welcoming overall. But as we established earlier, 331 00:15:41.519 --> 00:15:45.360 true ownership means really knowing how the engine works, especially 332 00:15:45.360 --> 00:15:47.360 when the engine totally stalls out on the highway. 333 00:15:47.399 --> 00:15:49.960 And every operating system will stall eventually, I mean, software 334 00:15:49.960 --> 00:15:53.240 conflicts happen, updates, break things. It's inevitable. 335 00:15:54.120 --> 00:15:56.120 But Linux gives you the tools to break the glass 336 00:15:56.159 --> 00:15:58.759 and fix it yourself, rather than just throwing your hands 337 00:15:58.799 --> 00:16:01.600 up and giving up exactly. The troubleshooting section was by 338 00:16:01.639 --> 00:16:04.320 far my favorite part of all our sources. Yeah, let's 339 00:16:04.320 --> 00:16:06.440 look at the boot process itself. Let's do it. So. 340 00:16:07.080 --> 00:16:10.600 It's managed by a program called the GRUB two bootloader, 341 00:16:10.879 --> 00:16:14.240 which is configured in a specific file. When everything goes right, 342 00:16:14.360 --> 00:16:17.120 it hands off the process and you get this nice 343 00:16:17.240 --> 00:16:21.120 graphical boot animation Plymouth. I think it's called. 344 00:16:20.960 --> 00:16:22.960 YEP using kernel mode settings. 345 00:16:22.600 --> 00:16:26.399 Right, But if the graphical interface completely breaks down. You 346 00:16:26.440 --> 00:16:29.000 aren't just left staring at a vague error code or 347 00:16:29.080 --> 00:16:31.559 you know, a spinning beach ball of death. 348 00:16:31.759 --> 00:16:34.320 No, you have immediate built in recourse. 349 00:16:34.559 --> 00:16:37.480 This is so cool. You can restart the computer and 350 00:16:37.519 --> 00:16:40.240 when the grub menu pops up, which is that black 351 00:16:40.279 --> 00:16:43.039 screen with a few text options at the very beginning, 352 00:16:43.960 --> 00:16:47.360 you just press the letter E on your keyboard to 353 00:16:47.600 --> 00:16:50.480 edit the boot sequence right there on the fly. Yes, 354 00:16:50.919 --> 00:16:53.159 you navigate down to the line that says linux, and 355 00:16:53.200 --> 00:16:55.080 you just type the number three at the very end 356 00:16:55.120 --> 00:16:57.919 of it, and that magically boots you directly into a 357 00:16:57.919 --> 00:17:02.159 command line interface bypassing the broken graphical shell entirely. 358 00:17:02.240 --> 00:17:04.880 So in the older days of Linux, that three actually 359 00:17:05.119 --> 00:17:07.359 referred to a specific run level. 360 00:17:07.480 --> 00:17:08.559 Okay, what does it mean now? 361 00:17:08.720 --> 00:17:12.880 Today? It basically tells the system initialization process to target 362 00:17:12.880 --> 00:17:16.079 the multi user command line instead of the graphical interface. 363 00:17:15.759 --> 00:17:16.720 Like an override switch. 364 00:17:16.880 --> 00:17:20.359 Exactly. You are literally telling the computer, hey, the graphics 365 00:17:20.359 --> 00:17:22.359 are totally broken. Don't even try to load them. Just 366 00:17:22.400 --> 00:17:23.640 give me a text prompt and. 367 00:17:23.720 --> 00:17:26.759 From there you can log in, update your broken video drivers, 368 00:17:27.039 --> 00:17:30.000 fix whatever typo you made in a configuration file, and 369 00:17:30.079 --> 00:17:31.279 just reboot back to normal. 370 00:17:31.400 --> 00:17:32.000 It's brilliant. 371 00:17:32.200 --> 00:17:35.319 That is amazing for fixing a graphics issue. But what 372 00:17:35.400 --> 00:17:38.240 if you were totally utterly locked out? Like what if 373 00:17:38.279 --> 00:17:41.319 you messed up a critical configuration file so badly that 374 00:17:41.359 --> 00:17:44.599 the system just crashes before it even reaches that command line. 375 00:17:44.640 --> 00:17:47.000 That is when you execute the ultimate rescue maneuver. 376 00:17:47.079 --> 00:17:47.839 Oh I love this part. 377 00:17:47.880 --> 00:17:50.880 Okay, you grab that live USB we talked about earlier. 378 00:17:50.519 --> 00:17:51.400 The persistent one. 379 00:17:51.519 --> 00:17:54.640 Right, you plug it in and you boot the computer 380 00:17:54.720 --> 00:17:57.240 from the USB instead of your broken hard drive. Okay, 381 00:17:57.359 --> 00:18:01.160 Once you are safely inside that temporary usbnvironment, you run 382 00:18:01.200 --> 00:18:02.680 a specific command called. 383 00:18:02.559 --> 00:18:04.759 Trout, which means change root exactly. 384 00:18:05.200 --> 00:18:08.720 You run cruit and systemage and what that does is 385 00:18:08.759 --> 00:18:13.279 it literally mounts your broken, unbootable hard drive as a 386 00:18:13.359 --> 00:18:16.559 simple directory within your temporary USB environment. 387 00:18:16.720 --> 00:18:19.839 Wait, so your broken OS becomes just a folder inside 388 00:18:19.880 --> 00:18:20.759 your working OS. 389 00:18:20.920 --> 00:18:23.240 Yes, and that allows you to go in with text 390 00:18:23.319 --> 00:18:25.599 editors and manually repair the broken files. 391 00:18:25.680 --> 00:18:28.559 It is exactly like performing open heart surgery on your 392 00:18:28.559 --> 00:18:32.559 computer from a completely outside perspective. You are literally operating 393 00:18:32.599 --> 00:18:35.839 on the patient while standing safely in an entirely different room. 394 00:18:36.079 --> 00:18:38.920 If we connect this to the bigger picture, this right, 395 00:18:38.960 --> 00:18:42.200 here is the defining characteristic of the open source philosophy 396 00:18:42.240 --> 00:18:45.279 we started with today. How So, because this level of 397 00:18:45.359 --> 00:18:49.880 total transparency empowers you to fix your own tools. Think 398 00:18:49.880 --> 00:18:54.200 about a closed commercial ecosystem. If the boot process fails 399 00:18:54.279 --> 00:18:57.759 fundamentally there, your only option is often to just wipe 400 00:18:57.799 --> 00:19:01.839 the entire drive, reinstall the SOS from scratch, and pray 401 00:19:01.880 --> 00:19:03.240