views:

534

answers:

3

I want to setup a x86 Linux Box such that:

  • It uses minimal system resources.
  • Runs SDL, without XWindows
  • Includes sufficient functionality to run QEmu.

Basically I simply want it to ONLY be a host for Virtulization and be as "thin" as possible leaving nearly all resources available for the "client" OS.

Is there anything like that available for the x86 and is there a straitforward way to run SDL without X-Windows.

EDIT:

OH Yeah, thanks for the info Sleske! The framebuffer comment pointed me in the right direction! For anybody else interested http://www.linux-fbdev.org looks very promising! I just need to figure out how to config SDL for FB access now.

Pete

A: 

Try Tiny Linux distro at http://tiny.seul.org/

Sean A.O. Harney
I like it, it still seems appears to use XWindows though. I like the fact that it targets old hardware, but that's not really what I'm trying to do here. I have linux on the PS2 (32Megs of ram), and found it funny that people bitched about it not having enough memory. I remember a time when desktops had less than 16, and still ran Linux.
NoMoreZealots
+1  A: 

Are you certain that is a good idea?

It's not at all clear to me that SDL uses significantly less resources than X windows. Why do you believe this? Also note that X windows is much more commonly used for general software than SDL, so you' re setting yourself up for all kinds of problems. I believe you should reconsider your assumptions.

That said, I'd recommend Debian as the distro. It gives you very fine-grained control of what you want to install, and includes QEmu.

Edit:

If you just want to try it for curiosity's sake: SDL can indeed run without X11 on Linux, by outputting to the Linux framebuffer. A quick Google however gives the impression that there is little docs on how to do this, and apparently this is mostly only used on embedded devices. So good luck trying!

You might also want to check whether QEMU directly depends on X11, or if it will get by with just SDL. If it depends on X11, you might have to tackle that as well.

sleske
Am I certain it's a good idea? Absolutely not, but I want to try it. Well as it is SDL one of the components required to run a Qemu for graphics emulation on client OSs, so I don't think I can avoid using it without significant modifications to Qemu. The question is how do I get SDL to run without XWindows?
NoMoreZealots
Ah, I see, intellectual curiosity. Very commendable ;-), I updated my answer accordingly.
sleske
I believe I've seen reports of Qemu running on platforms that don't have X-Windows, but have an SDL port.
NoMoreZealots
A: 

Why not go with Gentoo?

Haven't tried it myself, but I understand that you get to choose what bits to compile.

dmckee