In order to better help you navigate through the FreeBSD world, we’ve compiled a list of FreeBSD Resources to assist you on your journey. You’ll find videos, how-to guides, community resources and more! Whether you’re just getting started with FreeBSD or looking for information on a specific topic, take a look at our list of resources to help you find what you need.
Packet Filter, also known as PF or pf, is a BSD-licensed stateful packet filter used to filter TCP/IP traffic and perform Network Address Translation (NAT.) Originally created by OpenBSD, PF has been ported to FreeBSD since 5.3-RELEASE. PF can identify where a packet should be directed or if it should even be allowed through; this […]
Foundation Letter Letter from the Foundation A New Release is On the Way! Welcome to the September/October issue. As I write this, FreeBSD is putting the finishing touches on its next major release: 14.0. Stay tuned, as articles in the November/December issue will cover many of 14.0’s exciting new features. In the meantime, the current […]
CCCamp 2023 Trip Report By TOM JONES It is a warm October, but I think this morning I saw the first frost of the year. Not that I am complaining about the weather (even if it is a national past time). Autumn is great, I get to wear hoodies again, and periods of sun are […]
By Anne Dickison BSD Events taking place through March 2024 Please send details of any FreeBSD related events or events that are of interest for FreeBSD users which are not listed here to freebsd-doc@FreeBSD.org. November 2023 FreeBSD Vendor Summit November 2-3, 2023 San Jose, CA The Summit provides commercial FreeBSD users with the unique opportunity […]
By Michael W Lucas Dear D-List Windbag Who Somehow Scammed Himself Into This Position, We’re right at the edge of a new release and our highly tuned environment has a whole bunch of custom-built software. Everyone’s sweating blood over the upgrade. How can I get my management off my back? —I Don’t Care What You […]
Recollections: An Interview with Warner Losh (imp@) By Tom Jones TJ: Can you tell us what you were doing in the late eighties and early nineties in the buildup to the FreeBSD project? WL: In the late eighties, I was getting my degree in computer science and mathematics from the New Mexico Institute of Mining […]
By Benedict Reuschling I’m forever grateful for the people who made ports and package installations on FreeBSD so easy. Whereas other Unix-like systems need to either manually install a bunch of libraries or dependencies, let alone package origins as text files, the BSDs typically don’t need any of that. A simple pkg install foo does […]
By Alonso Cárdenas In Information Security management, infrastructures that support the implementation of controls become more neccesary every day. One of the most used tools in organizations is SIEM (Security Information and Event Management). SIEM helps identify attacks or attack trends in real time by collecting and analyzing ordinary messages, alarm notifications, and log files […]
By Charlie Li One day on IRC, bofh@ ran into a problem whilst trying to update a Python port: the source no longer included a setup.py file. Without such a file, the Python framework within the Ports framework just did not work, there was no path forward. Intrigued, I started doing some light digging on […]
Installing VirtualBox™ Note: To run VirtualBox™, an Xorg session is needed. Refer to the handbook’s section on the X Window System to install and configure Xorg. VirtualBox™ is available as a FreeBSD package or port in emulators/virtualbox-ose. To quickly install the package: # pkg install virtualbox-ose The kernel module vboxdrv will need to be loaded before […]
An Introduction to ZFS
ZFS combines the roles of volume manager and independent file system into one, giving multiple advantages over a stand-alone file system. It is renowned for speed, flexibility, and, most importantly, taking great care to prevent data loss.
The simplest way to install and manage applications and system tools on FreeBSD is through the pkg package management tool, which makes dealing with binary packages fast and easy. Binary packages are pre-compiled and require no in-depth understanding of compiling software on FreeBSD, making them the ideal method to install software for new users.
In this guide, we’ll use the xine video player to set up basic video playback on a fresh FreeBSD install. The xine multimedia player relies on the XWindow system and the XVideo extension to provide a graphical video playback interface. System Requirements: Xorg supports a wide variety of video cards, but not all are supported […]
FreeBSD offers two primary methods of downloading applications and system tools: packages and ports. This video guide focuses on using the port collection to install irssi, a powerful and modular text-based Internet Relay Chat (IRC) client.
A collection of FreeBSD desktop distributions that have taken the FreeBSD operating system in a new direction while still relying on the incredibly powerful and stable base operating system of FreeBSD. From integrated desktop environments, portable USB-based systems, to data recovery tools, FreeBSD has been used by a wide variety of open-source projects. This page hopes to highlight just a few of these projects.
The second part of our in depth guide to running your own FreeBSD Installfest, this section covers installing packages, setting up a desktop environment, and using poudriere and jails to further customize your system.
The first part of our in depth guide to running your own FreeBSD Installfest, this section covers FreeBSD installation, system configuration, and GUI prep.
Our latest how-to guide is all about networks, covering the basics of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Learn how to set up and configure Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on FreeBSD devices, even when the network is hidden. Further setup for USB tethering and using your FreeBSD device as an access point is also covered. This is intended to be an introductory level guide, with only limited required experience of the FreeBSD operating system.
While the process creating a jail is quite simple, actual application and configuration requires a decent understanding of the FreeBSD operating system. This guide is aimed at people who are already familiar with the basics of the FreeBSD operating system.
With FreeBSD’s ongoing migration to git from subversion, the system for updating FreeBSD from source has adapted. This guide will cover getting sources from git, updating them, and how to bisect those sources. It is meant as an introduction to the new mechanics for general users.
FreeBSD relies on the continued contributions of its user base to survive. Becoming involved is simple and there are a wide variety of tasks that users can contribute to. This guide will focus on how programmers can contribute to the project.
One of the easiest ways to get involved with the FreeBSD Project is through the submission of bug reports. A bug report can be about any component of FreeBSD, including problems with the operating system programs, a mistake in the documentation, or a new feature that the submitter wishes to see incorporated. This guide will focus on the process of using the Bugzilla form to report bugs and changes.
Quality documentation is crucial to the success of FreeBSD, submitting documentation is one of the easiest ways to contribute to the project and anyone is welcome to submit! Willingness to contribute is the only membership requirement.
Poudriere offers a unique way to bundle install and manage large collections of ports with minimal input, this how to guide will introduce the application and how to manage your own system.