Create and manage ISO images
Individualist
Special tools are required to create and process ISO images. AcetoneISO offers this functionality, even making it possible to handle multimedia files.
ISO images have become part and parcel of the Linux universe, offering the capability of burning a complete distribution onto CDs and DVDs and thus becoming one of the most important means of distribution.
ISOs also form the basis of creating a bootable USB stick and can be used directly inside virtual machines as well. AcetoneISO lets you adapt ISO images to your personal requirements, allowing you to derive a highly individualized operating system from a standard image; however, AcetoneISO can do considerably more.
This small program can be found in the repositories of popular distributions, from which you can easily install it and all dependent packages via your distribution's package manager. If necessary, you will find the source code on SourceForge [1].
Getting Started
On initial startup, AcetoneISO opens a window containing various configuration options (Figure 1). To begin, specify the file manager to be used, then select the fundamental database settings. By default, AcetoneISO locates all images in the home folder of the active user, but if you work with a lot of ISO images, they should be stored in their own partition inside a dedicated folder. Otherwise, you risk quickly running out of storage capacity in your home directory.
Mounting and Unmounting
To access an ISO image, you first need to attach it to the existing file structure. Because ISO images are not equipped with a standard filesystem, it is necessary to mount the image manually. For this purpose, the program window of AcetoneISO displays on the right-hand side all ISO archives accessible via the path specified in the program settings.
To mount the image, either double-click on the desired image or right-click on the image and select mount <image name>. As part of this process, AcetoneISO creates a subfolder named virtual-drives/
, which in turn contains several additional subfolders. After mounting the ISO image, AcetoneISO enters the image name in the Mount images tab inside the program window, as well as in the History pane at the bottom.
Double-clicking on the mounted image opens the file manager and makes its structure accessible, just as for a regular drive. Alternatively, you can start the file manager by right-clicking the image and then selecting open <ISO image> in file manager (Figure 2).
AcetoneISO allows you to work with up to seven images simultaneously, which are opened in their own numbered directories in the virtual-drives/
folder. To unmount a mounted ISO image after processing, simply click on the button Unmount <ISO image name>. After you confirm a security prompt, the image is unmounted and can no longer be accessed.
Personalized Images
With AcetoneISO, you can not only manage your existing ISO images but also configure your own images. To do so, first save the files making up the new ISO image in a suitable folder structure on the hard drive, then click Image Conversion | Convert Image to ISO from the program window menubar. In two steps, the software now guides you through file selection and target image location to the creation of the finished ISO image.
Conversely, the program can convert data stored on an optical device to an ISO image quickly and easily. To that end, you merely need to select the menu entry Image Conversion | Generate ISO from CD/DVD and it is: and specify in a dialog the path to the optical device, the block size, and the name of the image to be created. In this way, you can convert not only data DVDs, but also audio and game CDs, even those for PlayStation 1.
AcetoneISO now stores the contents of the optical medium as an image, which could take a while depending on the amount of data involved. However, you should be careful when the source device is bootable: To convert such a CD/DVD to an ISO image, you use the Utilities menu.
In the submenu Boot | Extract Boot Image the software first asks for the source medium, which you define by clicking the button CD/DVD. Next, AcetoneISO asks for the target location on the hard drive, then it converts and stores the bootable image. For DVDs, especially, this process can take considerable time.
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Juno Computers Launches Another Linux Laptop
If you're looking for a powerhouse laptop that runs Ubuntu, the Juno Computers Neptune 17 v6 should be on your radar.
-
ZorinOS 17.1 Released, Includes Improved Windows App Support
If you need or desire to run Windows applications on Linux, there's one distribution intent on making that easier for you and its new release further improves that feature.
-
Linux Market Share Surpasses 4% for the First Time
Look out Windows and macOS, Linux is on the rise and has even topped ChromeOS to become the fourth most widely used OS around the globe.
-
KDE’s Plasma 6 Officially Available
KDE’s Plasma 6.0 "Megarelease" has happened, and it's brimming with new features, polish, and performance.
-
Latest Version of Tails Unleashed
Tails 6.0 is based on Debian 12 and includes GNOME 43.
-
KDE Announces New Slimbook V with Plenty of Power and KDE’s Plasma 6
If you're a fan of KDE Plasma, you'll be thrilled to hear they've announced a new Slimbook with an AMD CPU and the latest version of KDE Plasma desktop.
-
Monthly Sponsorship Includes Early Access to elementary OS 8
If you want to get a glimpse of what's in the pipeline for elementary OS 8, just set up a monthly sponsorship to help fund its continued existence.
-
DebConf24 to be Held in South Korea
Busan will be the location of the latest DebConf running July 28 through August 4
-
Fedora Unleashes Atomic Desktops
Fedora has combined its solid distribution with rpm-ostree system to make it possible to deliver a new family of Fedora spins, called Fedora Atomic Desktops.
-
Bootloader Vulnerability Affects Nearly All Linux Distributions
The developers of shim have released a version to fix numerous security flaws, including one that could enable remote control execution of malicious code under certain circumstances.