Unlike classic distributions, it does not come with a CD and does not install with a few clicks but is intended for those who want to know as much about the internal functioning of a Linux SO or those that want a maximum personalization of their distribution. Linux From Scratch (LFS, Linux from Scratch) is a project to create a Linux operating system from source code.
The name “Linux From Scratch” refers to both the way to build a Linux system and the set of instructions for creating it. The way to create an LFS is to compile and install each component manually by the user. This is, of course, a more laborious method than installing a pre-compiled distribution.
The basic idea is that by installing components one at a time, the user can better understand how a Linux system works inside.
In addition, by compiling all the software according to the system and the user’s needs, they will run faster, will be more flexible, less resource consuming, and will take up less disk space.
The new system will only contain programs and minimal configurations to make it functional, leaving it to the user’s discretion which software will install and which settings will continue to do.
By overcoming the disadvantages of such a distribution, the high time required to install the order of the day and the fact that the distribution is minimalist and the need for consulting other documentation to install a more complex system than the initial one, the LFS has a number of critical assets :
1. Because everything is done “from scratch” the user learns what are all the “bricks” of a Linux system and how they interact with each other, learns what each software package does and what tools it provides to the user but finds out the locations and files where to configure various software, services, etc.
2. Derived from the fact that the user compiles everything from official sources, he increases his control over compiling with certain options or optimizations, including or not specific modules or support for more or less useful facilities.
3. Due to the installation of only useful packages, the result is a very compact system, tailored to the needs of the user, away from the very busy style of most of today’s distributions.
4. This is addressed to those users who go beyond the initial level, in order to follow the installation/compilation tutorials in the LFS book and move on to maximize the personalization of programs. The LFS philosophy allows them – through direct access to program sources and the knowledge gained in the LFS – inspect/modify program sources for personalization to the full from the executable level of the software!
In the case of a bug or a security hole, the user with some programming knowledge can solve the problem very quickly, perhaps even before an official patch occurs, and certainly well before a security update occurs in most current distributions.
It is also good to know that through the effort of other passionate people, the LFS system has been expanded through several other books such as BLFS (Beyond Linux from Scratch) that detach the installation of graphical systems (X, KDE, Gnome) or printing, etc. or HLFS (Hardened LFS) that focuses on installing a highly secure system.
In order to build an LFS, an empty partition and a functioning Linux system are required. Instead of a Linux operating system installed on the hard drive, the user can use a Linux From Scratch LiveCD available for free on the LFS site.
Start with installing a temporary system. Then the root directory will need to be changed (using the chroot command) with the folder where the temporary system was installed, after which the user will install the system properly.
All explanations, software packages, tutorials, configurations, and optimizations are on site, all you have to do is take the first step towards a smaller, faster, closer to your needs Linux.