ForLEx For Linux

ForLEx (Forensic Live Examination) is an open-source operating system known for providing a lightweight environment for forensic examinations. It uses the LXDE graphical desktop interface on top of a rock-solid Debian GNU/Linux base.

The distribution is available for download as a single, dual-arch Live CD ISO image that can be used on either 32-bit (i486) or 64-bit (x86_64) computer platforms. Keep in mind though, that you must write the ISO image to either a CD disc or a USB thumb drive in order to boot it from the BIOS of a PC.

Default boot options include the ability to start the live system with support for 32-bit (i486) or 64-bit (amd64) architectures, with normal boot options or in failsafe mode, perform a system memory (RAM) diagnostic test, view detailed information about the hardware components of the computer on which you boot ForLEx, as well as to access a help screen from where you can learn how to add extra kernel parameters.

As mentioned, the distribution uses the LXDE graphical desktop environment on top of a rock-solid Debian base. LXDE (Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment) loads very fast and comprises of a single taskbar located on the bottom edge of the screen, as well as a system monitoring widget that resides on the left side of the screen.

Default application include the FTK Imager disk imaging program, Guymager forensic imager for media acquisition, Iceweasel web browser, gFTP file transfer client, Wicd network manager, AbiWord word processor, Geany IDE, Audacious audio player, ForLEx mount manager, and Ophcrack Windows Password cracker.

Overall, we can declare ForLEx as one of the smallest free operating systems designed for forensic examinations. It runs directly from the bootable medium and it’s based on the award-winning Debian GNU/Linux distribution.