From 24d4f7c069b460e970b2d349625d2062eb695609 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Your Name Date: Sat, 1 Mar 2025 12:31:07 -0700 Subject: feed --- feed.html | 430 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++------------------------------ feed.org | 11 +- 2 files changed, 233 insertions(+), 208 deletions(-) diff --git a/feed.html b/feed.html index 393ecf7..524f088 100644 --- a/feed.html +++ b/feed.html @@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> - + Posts @@ -200,36 +200,48 @@

Table of Contents

-
-

Website update

-
+
+

Website update

+

-I’ve changed a few things about the website. The blog posts have been consolidated into a single org document, allowing for easy RSS-feed generation with ox-rss. You can now add my RSS feed, https://skylarcloud.xyz/feed.xml, to any RSS reader and get updates. +I’ve changed a few things about the website: +

+ +

+The blog posts have been consolidated into a single org document. I like the feeling of having one large waterfall of writing, with a level-one table of contents to navigate the posts. +

+ +

+I’ve figured out how to create an RSS feed using ox-rss, which makes it easy to generate an xml feed from the newly-consolidated feed.org document. You can now follow my feed from any RSS reader! +

+ +

+https://git.skylarcloud.xyz now has a repo with the org and html files used for this site.

-
-

Convenient torrenting with qBittorrent

-
+
+

Convenient torrenting with qBittorrent

+
-
-

Introduction

-
+
+

Introduction

+

Your access to media should not be limited by money, nor should it be limited by technical ability. I want to demonstrate with this quick guide that torrenting is as accessible and easy as it’s ever been, using Free and open-source software.

-
-

Install qBittorrent

-
+
+

Install qBittorrent

+

qBittorrent is a Free and open-source BitTorrent client that supports tons of features, but you need to know much at all to get started. To install it, go to their downloads page website at https://www.qbittorrent.org/download and select the right option for your computer. It supports Windows, MacOS, and can be installed through most common package managers on Linux.

@@ -239,9 +251,9 @@ After it’s downloaded, install it like you would with any other program.

-
-

Enable the search engine

-
+
+

Enable the search engine

+

To let us search for media, we need to turn on qBittorrent’s search engine.

@@ -256,9 +268,9 @@ There should now be a “Search” tab next to “Transfers” u
-
-

Search for and download some media

-
+
+

Search for and download some media

+
  • In the “Search” tab, click on the search bar, enter the name of some movie, and press Return. Very quickly, you should see many results, with slightly different titles, sizes, and numbers of “Seeders”, among other things.
@@ -271,9 +283,9 @@ There should now be a “Search” tab next to “Transfers” u
-
-

Now just wait

-
+
+

Now just wait

+

You can track the progress of torrents being downloaded in the “Transfers” tab. When it’s 100% complete, you can right-click the file, and click “Preview file” to have it play in your default media player.

@@ -283,21 +295,21 @@ If you’re feeling charitable, you can leave qBittorrent running in the bac

-
-

Extra tips

-
+
+

Extra tips

+
-
-

Consider using a VPN

-
+
+

Consider using a VPN

+

Some copyright holders use bots to detects users downloading their media. If you’re not using a VPN, these companies can see your IP and potentially send complaints to your ISP. If you download many things and want to keep your ISP happy, using a VPN will ensure your torrenting can’t be traced to your IP address. I personally use and recommend Mullvad ($5/month for 5 devices), but there are other reputable ones like Proton and IVPN.

-
-

Stream Media

-
+
+

Stream Media

+

When you go to download a torrent and the download prompt pops up, you can optionally select “Download first and last pieces first” and “Download in sequential order”.

@@ -307,9 +319,9 @@ This will likely make the total download take longer, but by downloading it in o

-
-

Hosting a media server with Jellyfin

-
+
+

Hosting a media server with Jellyfin

+

Jellyfin is a Free and open-source media-hosting server you can run on your computer. It’ll let you sign in to your library on a smart TV, other devices on your local network, or in a browser.

@@ -325,21 +337,21 @@ Setting it up is outside the scope of this post, but I highly recommend it. It b
-
-

QubesOS Saltstack configuration v1

-
+
+

QubesOS Saltstack configuration v1

+
-
-

Notice:

-
+
+

Notice:

+

The repository is now hosted on this site at https://git.skylarcloud.xyz, not Github! For up-to-date instructions, refer to the new README.org in the new repo, there have been lots of changes since the publishing of this post.

-
-

Intro

-
+
+

Intro

+

I’m publishing the janky V1 of my QubesOS configuration written with Saltstack. It’ll help set up a window manager, a couple of handy qubes, Doom Emacs, and the 3isec repo to jump-start your QubesOS experience.

@@ -352,42 +364,42 @@ It’s not new-user friendly yet, nor is it in a state where anyone can imme You can use my configuration almost as-is (just change the username references!) and it does work, but it’s not very feature-filled or optimized, and it’s probable that the next versions will conflict with it.

-
-

Link to repo on Github

-
+ -
-

Installation

-
+
+

Installation

+

Make sure state.user-dirs is active, then just move the repo to /srv/user_salt/ in dom0, and apply with sudo qubesctl --all state.apply

    -
  • Resources for installation
    -
    +
  • Resources for installation
    +
      -
    • Community user guide for user-salt
      -
      +
    • Community user guide for user-salt
      +
      • -
    • Issue I sometimes run into from a fresh QubesOS install
      -
      +
    • Issue I sometimes run into from a fresh QubesOS install
      +
      -
      ln -s /srv/salt/qubes/user-dirs.top /srv/salt/_tops/base/user-dirs.top
+
      ln -s /srv/salt/qubes/user-dirs.top /srv/salt/_tops/base/user-dirs.top
      @@ -397,9 +409,9 @@ Make sure state.user-dirs is active, then just move the repo to
-
-

Programs in dom0

-
+
+

Programs in dom0

+

My configuration will install a few programs in dom0. It’s important that I put this at the top because generally, you want to limit the number of packages in dom0. Every new package is more attack surface on your most critical qube. I trust the programs I’ve chosen to add, and by using my configuration, you’re implicitly trusting them too.

@@ -409,20 +421,20 @@ Look in /srv/user_salt/ to find the related salt files and see the

-
-

Window Management

-
+
+

Window Management

+
-
-

i3

-
+
+

i3

+

i3 is a tiling window manager. It’s used primarily through the keyboard, so muscle memory can operate everything very quickly once you get used to it. When a window is opened, it will be ’tiled’, maximizing screen space. To open windows, rofi is used to search for applications and qubes.

    -
  • Keybindings
    -
    +
  • Keybindings
    +

    You can navigate i3 with ’vim-like’ keybindings, inspired by the vi text editor. Some basic keybindings are shown below, and you can see many more by reading i3’s config file at /srv/user_salt/dots/i3

    @@ -477,9 +489,9 @@ You can navigate i3 with ’vim-like’ keybindings, inspired by the vi
-
-

Misc

-
+
+

Misc

+

wm.sls will do a few other smaller things:

@@ -494,13 +506,13 @@ You can navigate i3 with ’vim-like’ keybindings, inspired by the vi
-
-

My qubes

-
+
+

My qubes

+
-
-

Emacs

-
+
+

Emacs

+

If you’re a Doom Emacs user (there are dozens of us!) this will hopefully make your life slightly easier.

@@ -514,9 +526,9 @@ My personal configuration is in the repository and will be written be default, b

-
-

Torrenting

-
+
+

Torrenting

+

A template and app qube for qBittorrent will be created. The gruxbox theme that I use will be moved from dom0 to the app qube so it’s easy to apply.

@@ -535,8 +547,8 @@ qBittorrent is a torrent client that lets you search for and download large file
    -
  • VPN use
    -
    +
  • VPN use
    +

    If you’re downloading copyrighted content in an area where it’s illegal, I would strongly urge you consider using a VPN to hide your IP address. LE is unlikely to bust down your door for watching Spongebob, but copyright holders can and will send letters to your ISP, which can eventually get your internet service shut off if you continue. Tor can be used, but it’s extremely slow, and hogs a lot of bandwidth on the network.

    @@ -548,18 +560,18 @@ Personally, I use Mullvad and don’t have any complaints. Proton and IVPN a
-
-

Personal/work email

-
+
+

Personal/work email

+

A template for email will be created, and two app qubes, “email-personal” and “email-work”. These just have the Thunderbird email client installed so you can sign into your accounts.

-
-

3isec

-
+
+

3isec

+

The 3isec repo is a handy repository of salt files with some miscellaneous utilities. The repository will be added to dom0, their gpg key will be added from this salt repository, and their graphical interface for it will be installed in dom0. You can start it with ’qubes-task-gui’ in dom0.

@@ -569,9 +581,9 @@ I usually install common, mirage-firewall, monitor, mullvad-vpn, and sys-multime

-
-

Post install

-
+
+

Post install

+

Almost everything will be done out of the box, but here are some recommended finishing touches:

@@ -583,9 +595,9 @@ Almost everything will be done out of the box, but here are some recommended fin
-
-

What’s next?

-
+
+

What’s next?

+

This project will develop over time as I learn more about Saltstack and continue to work on my personal configuration. I have lots of plans:

@@ -602,17 +614,21 @@ This project will develop over time as I learn more about Saltstack and continue
-
-

Create an anonymous Whonix environment with KVM + NixOS

-
+
+

Create an anonymous Whonix environment with KVM + NixOS

+
-
-

The why

-
+
+

The why

+

I’ve spent significant time using QubesOS on various computers, and I’ve been thoroughly spoiled by the VM magic Zen and the Qubes team have enabled. For a few reasons though, I’ve recently switched my main laptop from running QubesOS to NixOS. NixOS is great: it’s declaratively managed, fast, stable, has tons of fresh packages, but I can’t help but feel like my trust in the system has decreased a little bit due to the lack of isolation via virtualization that QubesOS provides.

+

+(3/1/2025 update: I’m using QubesOS again) +

+

Luckily, while VMs are fantastic to use especially with QubesOS, it’s very much possible to get some of the benefits of QubesOS on a host Linux system like NixOS.

@@ -622,9 +638,9 @@ To demonstrate this, I’ll be going through a Whonix installation on NixOS

-
-

What’s Whonix?

-
+
+

What’s Whonix?

+

Whonix is a 2-VM setup for compartmentalizing your computing, and uses the Tor Network to keep your activity anonymous. It runs on KickSecure (hardened Debian).

@@ -638,53 +654,53 @@ The Whonix “Workstation” VM is where you’ll do your actual com

-
-

KVM vs VirtualBox

-
+
+

KVM vs VirtualBox

+

Whonix supports 2 type-2 hypervisors: KVM and VirtualBox. KVM is build into the Linux kernel, and is thus fully Free Software. VirtualBox is developed and maintained by Oracle, and is not Free software. I’ll be using KVM for these examples, but there’s a convenient guide for VirtualBox.

-
-

KVM vs QubesOS Zen

-
+
+

KVM vs QubesOS Zen

+
-
-

Hypervisor simplicity

-
+
+

Hypervisor simplicity

+

KVM is part of the Linux kernel, meaning that the virtualization is being done by a larger, monolithic program than a type-1 hypervisor like Zen, with a larger attack surface.

-
-

Type-1 vs type-2 hypervisor

-
+
+

Type-1 vs type-2 hypervisor

+

KVM runs on a host Linux system, and therefor the contents of the VM are only as secure as the host system. This is perhaps the biggest downside to running this KVM setup over Qubes in terms of security. I’d recommend delegating any risky activity to VMs like Whonix to try to mitigate the risk of malware running on your host system.

-
-

No sys-net/firewall/usb/audio/etc.

-
+
+

No sys-net/firewall/usb/audio/etc.

+

QubesOS uses VMs to compartmentalize the hardware, and running Whonix on a Linux host keeps those in the domain of the large Linux kernel.

-
-

Performance

-
+
+

Performance

+

Whonix on KVM performs about as well as on QubesOS (varying based on how much virtual CPU/memory you allocate of course), but a big benefit of having a Linux host is that the applications ran in it won’t be slowed down by virtualization. Risky activities can be compartmentalized while keeping the main system fast and convenient to use.

-
-

Relevant Whonix security documentation

-
+
+

Relevant Whonix security documentation

+

The advantages QubesOS has over KVM listed above are just a few basic examples. QubesOS has a much more robust security model in many ways, and if your security is essential, you should understand the downsides:

@@ -694,9 +710,9 @@ The advantages QubesOS has over KVM listed above are just a few basic examples.
-
-

Installing Whonix on KVM

-
+
+

Installing Whonix on KVM

+

Make sure to check the relevant NixOS and Whonix documentation to ensure these examples are up-to-date. Always be weary of executing commands from a random blog on the internet, and go to the source whenever possible.

@@ -710,9 +726,9 @@ Make sure to check the relevant NixOS and Whonix documentation to ensure these e Some of this setup (packages, user groups, dconf settings, the actual virtualization setup) is declaratively configured, but many of the commands to set up Whonix are not. On a fresh NixOS system build with your configuration.nix, you’ll still need to download the Whonix images and set them up with the commands outlined below. It’s possible more (or even all?) of this could be done declaratively with more NixOS knowledge.

-
-

Installing KVM + Virt-manager

-
+
+

Installing KVM + Virt-manager

+

Enable libvirtd and virt-manager

@@ -762,16 +778,16 @@ Start qemu’s virtual networking, allowing VMs to communicate

-
# Start qemu networking
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-autostart default
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-start default
+
# Start qemu networking
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-autostart default
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-start default
-
-

Download the Whonix XFCE .qcow archive

-
+
+

Download the Whonix XFCE .qcow archive

+
  • You can the most up-to-date versions directly from their website:
      @@ -781,30 +797,30 @@ Start qemu’s virtual networking, allowing VMs to communicate
-
-

Extract the archive

-
+
+

Extract the archive

+

-Make sure your working directory and archive are both in your home directory. (You may need to mv ~/Downloads/Whonix* ~/) +Make sure your working directory and archive are both in your home directory. (You may need to mv ~/Downloads/Whonix* ~/)

-
# Unpacking archive with gnu tar
-[~/]$ tar -xvf Whonix*.libvirt.xz
+
# Unpacking archive with gnu tar
+[~/]$ tar -xvf Whonix*.libvirt.xz
-
-

Agree to the Whonix Binary License Agreement

-
+
+

Agree to the Whonix Binary License Agreement

+

To read the agreement, use:

-
# Prints the license agreement
-[~/]$ more WHONIX_BINARY_LICENSE_AGREEMENT
+
# Prints the license agreement
+[~/]$ more WHONIX_BINARY_LICENSE_AGREEMENT
@@ -813,73 +829,73 @@ Assuming you agree:

-
# Creates an empty file "..._accepted" that tells Whonix you agree
-[~/]$ touch WHONIX_BINARY_LICENSE_AGREEMENT_accepted
+
# Creates an empty file "..._accepted" that tells Whonix you agree
+[~/]$ touch WHONIX_BINARY_LICENSE_AGREEMENT_accepted
-
-

Setup Whonix virtual networks

-
+
+

Setup Whonix virtual networks

+
-
# Add virtual networks
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-define Whonix_external*.xml
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-define Whonix_internal*.xml
-
-# Activate the networks
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-autostart Whonix-External
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-start Whonix-External
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-autostart Whonix-Internal
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-start Whonix-Internal
+
# Add virtual networks
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-define Whonix_external*.xml
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-define Whonix_internal*.xml
+
+# Activate the networks
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-autostart Whonix-External
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-start Whonix-External
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-autostart Whonix-Internal
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system net-start Whonix-Internal
-
-

Import Whonix Gateway and Workstation images

-
+
+

Import Whonix Gateway and Workstation images

+
-
# Creates two qemu profiles for the Whonix VMs
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system define Whonix-Gateway*.xml
-sudo virsh -c qemu:///system define Whonix-Workstation*.xml
+
# Creates two qemu profiles for the Whonix VMs
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system define Whonix-Gateway*.xml
+sudo virsh -c qemu:///system define Whonix-Workstation*.xml
-
-

Image File Installation

-
+
+

Image File Installation

+
-
# Assigns those qemu VMs to the Whonix .qcow2 images
-[~/]$ sudo mv Whonix-Gateway*.qcow2 /var/lib/libvirt/images/Whonix-Gateway.qcow2
-[~/]$ sudo mv Whonix-Workstation*.qcow2 /var/lib/libvirt/images/Whonix-Workstation.qcow2
+
# Assigns those qemu VMs to the Whonix .qcow2 images
+[~/]$ sudo mv Whonix-Gateway*.qcow2 /var/lib/libvirt/images/Whonix-Gateway.qcow2
+[~/]$ sudo mv Whonix-Workstation*.qcow2 /var/lib/libvirt/images/Whonix-Workstation.qcow2
-
-

Remove Whonix home clutter

-
+
+

Remove Whonix home clutter

+
-
# WARNING: running this command will delete every file that starts with "Whonix" or "WHONIX" in your working directory.
-[~/]$ rm Whonix*
-[~/]$ rm -r WHONIX*
+
# WARNING: running this command will delete every file that starts with "Whonix" or "WHONIX" in your working directory.
+[~/]$ rm Whonix*
+[~/]$ rm -r WHONIX*
-
-

Post-installation

-
+
+

Post-installation

+

Use the virt-manager application to start Whonix-Gateway, and open its terminal. We’ll use setup-dist to create your Tor connection and otherwise prepare Whonix for use.

-
# Whonix Gateway VM
-[gateway user ~]% sudo setup-dist
+
# Whonix Gateway VM
+[gateway user ~]% sudo setup-dist
@@ -888,8 +904,8 @@ Upgrade the system to pull the latest packages:

-
# Whonix Gateway VM
-[gateway user ~]% sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
+
# Whonix Gateway VM
+[gateway user ~]% sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
@@ -898,26 +914,26 @@ Start the Whonix Workstation, and repeat the upgrade step:

-
# Whonix Workstation VM
-[workstation user ~]% sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
+
# Whonix Workstation VM
+[workstation user ~]% sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
-
-

Using Whonix

-
+
+

Using Whonix

+

Assuming the VMs are booting properly and can receive updates, you should be good to go! You now have a compartmentalized environment where your traffic will be anonymized, and any malware should generally be contained to the VM (sophisticated enough malware could theoretically jump the KVM hypervisor, but if that’s part of your threat model you probably shouldn’t be getting security advice from this blog :P)

-
-

Some tips

-
+
+

Some tips

+
    -
  • Basic applications
    -
    +
  • Basic applications
    +
    • Tor Browser: Fingerprinting-resistant browser made for anonymous internet use
    • VLC: Video player capable of playing almost media file you throw at it
      • @@ -929,8 +945,8 @@ Assuming the VMs are booting properly and can receive updates, you should be goo
    • -
  • Staying secure and anonymous
    -
    +
  • Staying secure and anonymous
    +

    Think before you act! Whonix gives you a good platform for staying anonymous, but you can absolutely de-anonymize yourself if you’re not careful.

    @@ -948,8 +964,8 @@ There are an uncountable number of ways you could de-anonymize yourself, so s

      -
    • Use a live system when possible
      -
      +
    • Use a live system when possible
      +

      When you’re booting the Workstation VM, you can select the option to run it ’live’. This means that when you shutdown the VM, everything you did during the session is erased.

      @@ -963,8 +979,8 @@ Ideally, you should only use Whonix persistantly for updating and installing pac

      • -
    • Optionally disable Javascript in Tor Browser
      -
      +
    • Optionally disable Javascript in Tor Browser
      +

      Javascript adds a massive attack surface to your browser, and disabling it can remove entire categories of browser-based malware. But, many many sites rely on Javascript for basic functionality.

      @@ -986,7 +1002,7 @@ If you care about further hardening the setup, and are willing to break many web
-

Created: 2025-03-01 Sat 12:12

+

Created: 2025-03-01 Sat 12:30

diff --git a/feed.org b/feed.org index 17077de..e4b3c14 100644 --- a/feed.org +++ b/feed.org @@ -6,7 +6,13 @@ :ID: c843faa8-1fce-478d-bab2-e016c75bf59d :PUBDATE: 2025-03-01 Sat 10:14 :END: -I've changed a few things about the website. The blog posts have been consolidated into a single org document, allowing for easy RSS-feed generation with ~ox-rss~. You can now add my RSS feed, https://skylarcloud.xyz/feed.xml, to any RSS reader and get updates. +I've changed a few things about the website: + +The blog posts have been consolidated into a single org document. I like the feeling of having one large waterfall of writing, with a level-one table of contents to navigate the posts. + +I've figured out how to create an RSS feed using ~ox-rss~, which makes it easy to generate an xml feed from the newly-consolidated feed.org document. You can now follow my feed from any RSS reader! + +https://git.skylarcloud.xyz now has a repo with the org and html files used for this site. * Convenient torrenting with qBittorrent :PROPERTIES: :ID: a3fa9387-fbfd-41dd-9def-a4588c04bc73 @@ -254,6 +260,8 @@ This project will develop over time as I learn more about Saltstack and continue :END: I've spent significant time using QubesOS on various computers, and I've been thoroughly spoiled by the VM magic Zen and the Qubes team have enabled. For a few reasons though, I've recently switched my main laptop from running QubesOS to NixOS. NixOS is great: it's declaratively managed, fast, stable, has tons of fresh packages, but I can't help but feel like my trust in the system has decreased a little bit due to the lack of isolation via virtualization that QubesOS provides. +(3/1/2025 update: I'm using QubesOS again) + Luckily, while VMs are fantastic to use especially with QubesOS, it's very much possible to get some of the benefits of QubesOS on a host Linux system like NixOS. To demonstrate this, I'll be going through a Whonix installation on NixOS using KVM, nix.configuration, and home-manager. I'll talk a bit about the security trade-offs of using KVM over VirtualBox or on QubesOS, and how Whonix can be a useful tool for elevating your secure posture, protecting your host from malware and your activity from being deanonymized. @@ -533,3 +541,4 @@ Javascript adds a massive attack surface to your browser, and disabling it can r Personally, I keep Javascript on because I trust KVM to contain malware relatively well, and I only use the Tor Browser in live mode so any potential malware will be wiped on reboot. If you care about further hardening the setup, and are willing to break many websites, Javascript can easily be disabled by setting the Tor Browser security level to the highest option. + -- cgit v1.2.3