Introduction to Thinstation

Welcome, intrepid sysadmin, lab manager or curious tinkerer! If you’ve ever wished your legacy PCs could feel young again or you need a streamlined thin-client solution on a shoestring budget, Thinstation might be your holy grail. Think of it as the Energizer Bunny of thin-client OS: lightweight, efficient and goes on and on (and on…).

In this guide, we’ll walk through every step—from hardware checklist to PXE boot wizardry—so you can turn dusty desktops into sleek remote-desktop portals. And yes, there will be puns. Because Linux makes us punny.

Why Choose Thinstation?

• Featherweight: Footprint measured in megabytes, not gigabytes.
• Customizable: Pick and choose only the protocols and tools you need (RDP, Citrix ICA, SSH, VNC).
• Centralized Management: All configurations live on the server upgrades are a breeze.
• Resurrect Old Hardware: Turn that pentium-II relic into a responsive thin client.

System Requirements

Tip: Some ultra-vintage NICs may require custom firmware. Consult the Thinstation Wiki.

Prerequisites

1. A host machine running Linux (Ubuntu, Fedora, etc.) for building your Thinstation image.
2. Basic command-line skills (don’t worry, we’ll hold your virtual hand).
3. Internet connection for fetching packages.
4. USB drive or PXE-ready server if you want network boot.

Step 1: Download Thinstation Source

Thinstation isn’t your typical “download ISO, burn CD” affair. You clone the GitHub repo and build an image from source. That way you only include what you need, which is exactly the point.

 git clone https://github.com/thinstation/thinstation.git
 cd thinstation
  

Pro tip: Use --depth=1 if you’re short on bandwidth.

Step 2: Configure Your Build

Inside the build/ directory, you’ll find a thinstation.conf template. Copy it out and tweak the parameters.

 cp build/thinstation.conf.example build/ts.conf
 nano build/ts.conf
  

Key Configuration Options

• TS_ARCH: Set to x86_64 (or i386 for really ancient CPUs).
• TS_PACKAGES: List the protocols you want, e.g. rdesktop vncclient.
• TS_FONT: Choose a small bitmap font like ter-v16n to save space.

Fun fact: If you skip the font, you might get illegible dragons instead of letters. Unless that’s your aesthetic.

Step 3: Build the Image

Now that your ts.conf is customized, invoke the build script:

 ./mk_thinstation.sh build/ts.conf
  

You’ll see dozens of packages compile and assemble. Grab a coffee—and maybe a snack: the thin client munchies are real.

When it finishes, you’ll find an image (thinstation.iso or thinstation.img) in the build folder.

Step 4: Create Bootable Media

Option A: USB Stick (Linux)

 dd if=build/thinstation.img of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress  sync
  

Replace /dev/sdX with your USB device. Always double-check! (No one enjoys surprise data destruction.)

Option B: USB Stick (Windows)

1. Download Rufus (portable version).
2. Select the thinstation.img. Keep defaults, click Start.
3. Wait. Drink tea.

Option C: PXE Boot

If you have a PXE server, copy the kernel and initrd from the isos folder into your TFTP directory and adjust the DHCP config:

filename pxelinux.0
next-server 192.168.1.10

LABEL thinstation
  KERNEL thinstation/vmlinuz
  APPEND initrd=thinstation/initrd.img boot=thinstation
  

Step 5: First Boot Validation

Plug in your USB or PXE-boot the target machine. You should see the Thinstation bootloader splash, followed by network DHCP. If it hangs:

• Check cabling and switch ports.
• Ensure your DHCP/TFTP are serving the correct files.
• Press Esc for verbose boot messages (debugging is delicious!).

Step 6: Connect to Your Remote Server

Once Thinstation is up, it reads client.conf from the server (or embedded on the USB). Edit client.conf for your protocol:

loadmodule network
network dhcp
loadmodule rdesktop
rdesktop server.example.com
  

Hit Enter and watch your remote desktop appear. Like magic, only better—because it’s open-source.

Tweaks Tips

Custom Backgrounds

• Drop a wallpaper.png in the build/images folder.
• Add set wallpaper wallpaper.png in ts.conf.

Keyboard Layouts

• Install the proper console keymap: TS_KEYMAP=us or de.
• For virt-management, ensure the host keymap matches the client.

Audio Support

• Include alsa or pulseaudio in your TS_PACKAGES.
• Adjust volume in client.conf or via on-screen controls.

Troubleshooting

• No DHCP Lease: Check network module loaded and DHCP server scope.
• No Display: Verify video driver support. Some GPUs need fbdev fallback.
• Stuck at “Loading modules…”: Rebuild with verbose logging: mk_thinstation.sh -v.

Advanced: Building a Central Repository

Scale up with a repository server to serve updates and modules. Thinstation supports an HTTP repository:

[thinstation]
name=Thinstation Repo
baseurl=http://repo.example.com/thinstation/pack
enabled=1
gpgcheck=0
  

Point your build host to this repo, and you’ve got easy remote package additions. Just edit /etc/yum.repos.d/thinstation.repo.

Conclusion

And there you have it: from dusty desktop to ultra-lean thin client in a few steps. You’ve learned to fetch, configure, build and deploy Thinstation like a true Linux wizard—robe optional.

With this setup, maintenance is centralized, upgrades are painless, and those old machines will hum along happily. Now go forth and thin-station your entire network!

Further reading resources:
• Thinstation GitHub: https://github.com/thinstation/thinstation
• Official Wiki: https://thinstation.github.io/
• Community Forum: https://forums.thinstation.org/