Rescatux

Rescatux is an open source GNU/Linux system rescue CD that has been designed from the ground up to help users fix broken operating systems that won’t boot anymore. It is a Linux distribution built around the LXDE desktop environment.

Distributed as a dual-arch Live CD

It is available for download as a dual-arch Live CD ISO image of approximately 400MB in size, which must be written on a CD disc or a USB flash drive of 512MB or higher capacity in order to be booted from the BIOS of a PC. Supported architectures include 64-bit (amd64) and 32-bit (i386).

Boot options

From the minimal boot menu, the user can start the live environment with support for 32-bit or 64-bit platforms, as well as to start the Super Grub2 Disk utility. If you are not sure which option is best for you, do not hesitate to use the autodetect option.

Simple, fast and straightforward desktop environment

The LXDE (Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment) session is comprised of a bottom panel from where the user can launch applications, interact with running programs or cycle between multiple virtual workspaces.

Includes some of the best system rescue and data recovery tools

Some of the best system rescue and data recovery graphical tools are included in this tiny system rescue CD, such as Boot-Repair, GParted, OS-Unistaller, PhotoRec, TestDisk and Clean-Ubiquity.

In addition, there are also several command-line utilities designed for system rescue/recovery tasks, such as the gpart storage device scanner and extundelete data recovery tool for EXT filesystems.

Bottom line

Summing up, Rescatux is here to help you fix broken GRUB2 and Legacy GRUB boot loaders, regenerate GRUB menus on Debian and Ubuntu systems, fix Windows MBR partitions, check filesystems for errors and fix them, clear Windows passwords, change Linux passwords, regenerates sudoers files, and many more.

What is new in this release:

• This new beta release comes with new exciting UEFI options:
• Update UEFI order
• Create a new UEFI Boot entry
• UEFI Partition Status
• Fake Microsoft Windows UEFI
• Hide Microsoft Windows UEFI
• Reinstall Microsoft Windows EFI
• Check UEFI Boot

What is new in version 0.30.2 / 0.41 Beta 1:

• This new beta release comes with new exciting UEFI options:
• Update UEFI order
• Create a new UEFI Boot entry
• UEFI Partition Status
• Fake Microsoft Windows UEFI
• Hide Microsoft Windows UEFI
• Reinstall Microsoft Windows EFI
• Check UEFI Boot

What is new in version 0.30.2 / 0.40 Beta 6:

• This release improves support for both 64-bit amd64 UEFI boot (avoids booting in blind mode problems) and 32-bit UEFI boot (not tested that one myself). It should be bootable from some Intel-based Mac Book (Pro) systems too. We also add AFD scanning technology to reduce user interface time based interactions while scanning the computer system. Finally some of the internal code has been updated to reflect the new repositories which are found in github rescatux's organization.

What is new in version 0.30.2 / 0.40 Beta 5:

• This release adds support for both 64-bit amd64 UEFI boot (most common) and 32-bit UEFI boot (not tested that one myself). It should be bootable from some Intel-based Mac Book (Pro) systems too.

What is new in version 0.30.2 / 0.40 Beta 1:

• Now Rescatux is based on Debian Jessie (Latest Debian stable release)!
• The great new feature in this release is the SELinux support. SELinux support is used by the Fedora, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), CentOS alike distributions. It's not so much about adding SELinux related features which might be implemented in a far future. It's about being able to interact with SELinux based system without damaging original contexts (contexts like additional permissions in SELinux).
• Currently if you wanted to use the change password option on these systems then the system did not let you login (even if you know a password from a user different from the one its password you had changed) because these wrong contexts.
• Now it should work flawlessly but please give us feedback here on the comments or in the mailing list. Anything about you detecting that Rescatux is not using the correct contexts for your files is welcomed.
• It's also welcomed feedback from people who uses non standard policy types such as the military ones. Given the nature of these systems try the options in non production machines of course.
• This new beta release loses the long awaited feature about being able to select your own language, country and keyboard. The reason is that Rescatux 0.40 is based on jessie. These means that I have to use tails-greeter from Jessie and not Wheezy. The other problem on tails-greeter is that I need to hack it (this time properly thanks to the insights I have been given in Debconf 15 from Tails people) in order to fit my needs.
• Finally don't expect any new release in the next months. I am too busy. Anyway once I'll start not being busy I will be able to speed a lot because the SELinux support improvement was very difficult to implement.
• Many options have not been tested after having based Rescatux on jessie. So please use the Rescatux 0.32 beta 3 as if it was an stable release and this one as if it was a beta one. Use Rescatux 0.40 beta 1 if you have a SELinux based system of course.
• In case you were asking yourself I add 0.1 to the Rescatux version either when the Rescapp program has been improved a lot or when the Debian OS has been updated to a new stable release. The latter is the reason why we jump from 0.3X to 0.4X suddenly.

What is new in version 0.30.2 / 0.32 Beta 3:

• Change keyboard layout

What is new in version 0.32 Beta 2:

• As you might imagine the biggest improvement in this release is that resetting windows password, promoting a windows user to Administrador and unlocking a windows user uses the latest version of chntpw which makes easier and more safe to add users to the admin group. It also fixes a bug that prevented a promoted admin user to be demoted from windows.
• The other big improvement is that lilo is being used instead of syslinux so that you can finally solve this:
• grub rescue>
• ( grub rescue > ) problems when you remove GNU/Linux partition from Windows itself. Unfortunately that only works if Windows boot partition is in the first hard disk. This is the Restore Windows MBR option which it's going to be still BETA till many of you report me that it works ok. The difference is that the old version did break working Windows seven (and probably others) boot when used. So that it's fixed.
• There is not Super Grub2 Disk available from boot menu but, as you can see per, the pending bugs there will be one.
• Finally you can boot Rescatux from Super Grub2 Disk thanks to its loopback.cfg file which I hope will be accepted upstream in Debian Live soon although they seem to be busy with Jessie freeze.
• In the development arena I have removed old scripts and add new build folders so that everything is easier to understand when developing Rescatux.
• This release is very needed so that we can all test this new 140201 chntpw version before I release the stable version in probably less than three months. So please report any bug if you find them. So, contrary to other versions I encourage to download it so that we can debug it.
• I almost forgot that we have a new background for you to enjoy!

What is new in version 0.32 Beta 1:

• Fixed bugs:
• Networking detection improved (fallback to network-manager-gnome)
• Bottom bar does not have a shorcut to a file manager as it's a common practice in modern desktops. Fixed when falling back to LXDE.
• Double-clicking on directories on desktop opens Iceweasel (Firefox fork) instead of a file manager. Fixed when falling back to LXDE.
• Improvements:
• Super Grub2 Disk is no longer included. That makes easier to put the ISO to USB devices thanks to standard multiboot tools which support Debian Live cds.
• Rescapp UI has been redesigned
• Every option is at hand at the first screen.
• Rescapp options can be scrolled. That makes it easier to add new options without bothering on final design.
• Run option screen buttons have been rearranged to make it easier to read.
• RazorQT has been replaced by LXDE which seems more mature. LXQT will have to wait.
• WICD has been replaced by network-manager-gnome. That makes easier to connect to wired and wireless networks.
• It is no longer based on Debian Unstable (sid) branch.

What is new in version 0.31 Beta 5:

• Fixed bugs:
• Hard disk detection was improved when non standard partitions such as LVM or encrypted ones are present.
• Internal improvement:
• Added cryptsetup packages to default build so that we can mount LUKS partitions later.

What is new in version 0.31 Beta 4:

• Better handle of /boot/grub2 in Fedora installations when running grub-install or update-grub options
• Update Grub should work in any Grub2 system (previous version only worked on Debian or Ubuntu distributions)
• New option: Promote a Windows user to Administrator
• XFE is the new file manager instead of qtfm
• New option: Unlock a Windows user to re-enable it
• LVM and RAID support for Restore Grub and Update Grub options (It seems it already worked from 0.30.2)

What is new in version 0.31 Beta 3:

• Razor-qt desktop was updated from 4.x version to 5.x version
• Added a frame so that embedded webpage is seen inside a grey square.
• Now xchat nickname shows Rescapp version so that accurate help can be given in the chat.
• Added the following expert tools:
• boot-repair
• clean-ubiquity
• os-uninstaller
• testdisk
• photorec
• Rearranged as an expert tool:
• gparted
• Added these CLI programs for experts:
• extundelete

What is new in version 0.30.2:

• A major bug concerning the Kernel selection on boot (64bit or 32bit) has been fixed in this release. If you have Rescatux 0.30 or Rescatux 0.30rc1 please check Rescatux 0.30 64bit kernel not being select ok Bug for a way of workarounding the bug without having to download again the iso.