Friday 20 October 2017

Lubuntu Next: Or Lubuntu LXQt the future for Lubuntu

The latest version of Ubuntu has now been released as 17.10 (Artful Aardvark) together with all its flavours with the exception of Ubuntu GNOME.  And whilst this may have everyone's attention and perhaps even searching for alternatives I have been trying out a new distro called Lubuntu Next which was requested in a comment.


Currently Lubuntu Next is a separate release to Lubuntu as it uses LXQt in place of LXDE and exists because no decision has been made on formally replace LXDE with LXQt in Lubuntu.

It is a bit rough around the edges however it is interesting to see what the future direction is. Full details on the release can be found in its wiki.

I've respun the latest daily ISO (saved as lubuntu-next-17.10-daily-141017-desktop-amd64.iso) and created ISOs suitable for booting on both Intel Atom-based and Intel Apollo-based mini PCs.

The ISOs can be downloaded from:
  • Atom (-i lubuntu-next-17.10-daily-141017-desktop-amd64.iso --atom)
  • Apollo (-i lubuntu-next-17.10-daily-141017-desktop-amd64.iso --apollo)
(ISO removed due to Lenovo BIOS issues)
Whilst the ISOs target specific Intel architectures to ensure everything works they should also work on any Intel devices but read the wiki to see the limitations.

Anyone wanting to spin their own version can download the latest daily ISO from http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/lubuntu-next/daily-live/pending and respin using my 'isorespin.sh' script using the options above or after consulting my documentation.

Note:

Building ISOs with 'rEFInd' version 0.11.1 (the current default) results in the error message 'invalid loader file!' when attempting to boot.

Version 0.11.0 works correctly and because my 'isorespin.sh' script first looks in the current directory for the 'rEFInd' boot manager files before downloading them from the internet if not found it means a specific version can first be downloaded and used automatically when the script is run.

I recommend downloading the file 'refind-bin-0.11.0.zip' from 'https://sourceforge.net/projects/refind/files/0.11.0' in the directory where you are running 'isorespin.sh':
wget https://sourceforge.net/projects/refind/files/0.11.0/refind-bin-0.11.0.zip/download -O refind-bin-0.11.0.zip
and unzip it:
unzip refind-bin-0.11.0.zip
Then remove the downloaded file afterwards:
rm refind-bin-0.11.0.zip
so that it does not create a conflict when running the script. Check that you just have a directory called 'refind-bin-0.11.0' containing the 'rEFInd' boot manager files. Then run the 'isorespin.sh' script:
./isorespin.sh
or
/usr/local/bin/isorespin.sh
with the required options to respin your ISO as required.

Please donate if you find the ISOs or script useful using the following link http://goo.gl/nXWSGf.

43 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi. I cant load --appolo iso. I getting "invalid loader file! Error: not Found while loading vmlinuz.efi". Same with ubuntu 17.10. I have appolo lake jumper ezbook 3 pro. Ubuntu 17.04 works fine.

Linuxium said...

The 'Apollo' ISO was built with rEFInd version 0.11.1 which results in the 'invalid loader file!' error. I've rebuilt the ISO with rEFInd version 0.11 and confirmed that it works and updated the link with the new ISO.

Unknown said...

Neat, thanks for answering my request in Lubuntu Next and also providing a matching image. Will try this weekend and report back!

Unknown said...

*on

Mu Cephei said...

Thank you very much for clarifying the refind bug. You are the best.

Unknown said...

Thank you!

Unknown said...

Hi, i can't install any other refind. I have to respin an ubuntu 7.10 iso with the modded deepin-isorespin.sh script. Folder with the older refind files is in the directory, besides the install script, nothing else.

Ítalo said...

Hello, can you respin, please, the ubuntu 17.10 to apollo? I tried do it but when i will boot the iso, the pc tell me that there's a file missing. I test another distros and this always happens.

Ítalo said...

Hello, i have the same problem. Can you, please, send the udpated link to me? Thanks

ogenithikable said...

Hello, i am trying to install the liniuxium lubuntu next - atom version but i can not and i get this message:
"(initramfs) mount: mounting /dev/loop0 on //filesystem.squashfs failed: Invalid argument
Can not mount /dev/loop0 (/cdrom/casper/filesystem.squashfs) on //filesystem.squashfs".
Is there anything i can do to have this iso installed?
Thank you very much.

Unknown said...

Hi there, am having trouble with wifi with both this version and Ubuntu 17.10 Beta 2 version for Beelink Z83-ii. The rest are working fine.
Z83-ii uses AP6255 wifi chip, from what I gather in the BIOS.
Looking through the comments, it seems Beelink's BT3 also uses the same chipset and the poster had successfully connected to wifi.

Any chance there's a solution for Z83?
Thanks!

Linuxium said...

Try following the steps outlined here 'http://linuxiumcomau.blogspot.com.au/2017/10/respinning-isos-with-refind.html' and make sure there is no file/directory called 'refind*' (i.e. no file or directory starting with the word 'refind') in the directory you are respinning your ISO from.

Linuxium said...

If you provide the 'isorespin.log' file and a copy of the text from the error message I will try and help with your problem.

Linuxium said...

I updated the ISO using the same link as before so all you need to do is click on the red text 'Apollo' above.

Linuxium said...

I would try and 'dd' the ISO to your USB again and see if this helps. Otherwise you could check your BIOS to make sure the relevant boot options are selected.

Linuxium said...

Did you copy across the wifi firmware from Windows and also restart the 'systemd' service? See both 'Wifi issues' and 'Bluetooth issues' in my documentation ('https://linuxiumcomau.blogspot.com.au/2017/06/customizing-ubuntu-isos-documentation.html').

Unknown said...

Following your advice, I couldn't found any NVRAM related stuff under /sys/firmware/efi/efivars though? Is it possible that it's listed under another name?

Unknown said...

Found it in windows\system32\drivers\4345r6nvram.txt
However, copying it to /lib/firmware/brcm/brcmfmac43455-sdio.txt and restarting the network manager still failed to detect wifi.

Unknown said...

Looking through stackoverflow, suspend/resume solves the problem

sudo rmmod brcmfmac
sudo modprobe brcmfmac

Any idea why though? I don't have a clue on why it worked.

Linuxium said...

Reloading the driver will pick up the firmware now that it is in place.

Flavio said...

i have an Hp x2 10, i've installed your iso (atom vers.), but i can't have battery stats working...why..? there's a workaround?? thanks in advance

Wild Rose said...

Thanks for sharing. I tried the apollo version however I did not notice rEFInd there. The boot menu looked like a standard GRUB and then I got a message "no suitable video found. booting in blind mode". The iso did boot well and worked without issues though...

Wild Rose said...

Also I could not find bluetooth applet anywhere. I am wondering which package am I missing. I did try installing bluez but it did not change anything

Dr G K Gyan said...

Hi sir, thanks a lot.
At last I successfully installed and ran a Linux distro (Lubuntu-Next) upon my iBall Compbook Excellence, having Intel Atom Z3735F processor. Everything including Wi-Fi working fine except "video and audio".
So please guide me to fix this last issue.

Dr G K Gyan said...

http://paste.ubuntu.com/25952591/

Linuxium said...

Try respinning with the latest kernel (v4.14) and see if this helps.

Linuxium said...

As per my documentation this message can safely be ignored.

Linuxium said...

Try following the section 'Wifi issues' in my documentation (see link above top right).

Linuxium said...

Lubuntu Next is still very experimental. Have you tried respinning Lubuntu 17.10?

Анатолий said...

Hello! Of all the versions available in this blog, only this one works correctly, but there is a problem with Wi-Fi, because when connecting to a private network, the password dialog is not shown, but the connection is started immediately. In this case, open networks are connected without problems.
Is it possible to somehow correct this?
Thank you.
(Googlt translation)

Linuxium said...

You could try respinning the latest daily image and see if is fixed.

Lushious said...

I've not been having a lot of luck respinning Lubuntu 17.10.1 (from Lubuntu's website). I am running isorespin.sh as SU and here's my log. I'm very new to respinning Linux ISOs, so I apologize if it's an easy fix.

Script '/usr/local/bin/isorespin.sh' called with '-i /home/alush/Downloads/lubuntu-17.10.1-desktop-amd64.iso --atom' ...
Work directory 'isorespin' used ...
ISO '/home/alush/Downloads/lubuntu-17.10.1-desktop-amd64.iso' respun ...
Bootloader 'GRUB' added ...
Local package 'rtl8723bs_4.12.0_amd64.deb' failed to install correctly.

Linuxium said...

The package versions changed so I had to update my script. Download 'isorespin.sh' again and replace your existing version. Then respin as before and it should now work.

Lushious said...

This error explains itself, but I don't know what I would need to do ignore the .sh from trying to install over the existing package. Same ISO as the one referenced above.

Preparing to unpack rtl8723bs_4.12.0_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking rtl8723bs (4.12.0) ...
dpkg: error processing archive rtl8723bs_4.12.0_amd64.deb (--install):
trying to overwrite '/lib/firmware/rtlwifi/rtl8723bs_bt.bin', which is also in package linux-firmware 1.169.1
Errors were encountered while processing:
rtl8723bs_4.12.0_amd64.deb

Linuxium said...

You need to download 'isorespin.sh' again and replace your existing version otherwise you will keep getting this error. Type 'isorespin.sh -v' to make sure you are on 8.1.0.

Lushious said...

I re-downloaded isorespin.sh from your 21.06.2017 guide and I’m coming up with version 8.1.1. And, of course, the same error when trying to respin. Is there a different link I should be using?

Linuxium said...

Can you use 'pastebinit' to post a URL to your 'isorespin.log' file as I've tested the respin using your opening post command and it works without issue.

Lushious said...

I don't have PasteBin, but I do have OneDrive. Here's a link to both the Isorespin.sh file I'm using, as well as the log file created.

https://1drv.ms/f/s!AvDz5St3w-nin1dDSJjqSwh8xRlL

Linuxium said...

Why is the 'isorespin.log' file incomplete?

Here is my log for comparison: http://paste.ubuntu.com/p/SZKShNjD75/

Do you have the file 'rtl8723bs_4.12.0_amd64.deb' in your local directory where you are respinning from? If so can you remove it/move it and try respinning again?

Lushious said...

I am running the isorespin from Terminal using the GUI and pointing it to an ISO in my Downloads folder. No other files exist in my Downloads folder. I'm selecting the options "ISO" and "Add frequently used..." I then select the lubuntu ISO referenced, which sits in my Downloads folder. I then select the option for Intel Atom. I agree to the command line options.

I do get a "line 1972: 7z: command not found" message straight out of the gates, but then I get the progress bar. "Updating bootloader/bootmanager" runs without issue. During "Installing local packages" is when I get the error. And the log shows the same as I linked.

No other files exist in /usr/local/bin, other than the ISORESPIN.sh file. I'm running Ubuntu 17.10. I also tried this same process on Ubuntu 16.04 last night with the same results.

Linuxium said...

Can you check if you have the package 'p7zip-full' installed and if not install it? Then try again.

Lushious said...

That did the trick! Thanks for all of your time and help!

Linuxium said...

I've incorporated a check to make sure the package 'p7zip-full' is installed in a new version of the script (8.1.2) to ensure this error doesn't happen again. Thanks for reporting it.

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