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I do this with the ExpressCard slot on my ThinkPad, not because I'm paranoid but because I like to experiment with many OSs and it's easier to manage than messi

by c22 9y ago

I do this with the ExpressCard slot on my ThinkPad, not because I'm paranoid but because I like to experiment with many OSs and it's easier to manage than messing with partitions and bootloaders. I appreciate how the ExpressCard SSDs don't stick out of the laptop at all. I keep all my user data on the internal drive though (encrypted), so my risk to unattended laptop hijinks isn't much mitigated.

gerdesj 9y ago
Good skills mate. So: Your user data is on the HDD and encrypted AND you use a removable disc to boot your machine AND you have a "something you know" (password) That looks quite secure to me, provided you look after your removable disc and password. I'm not familiar with IBM gear - is ExpressCard a removable disc? I tried to read the WP page on it but got confused. I have one of these for my laptop - Dell Inspiron 17. It runs Arch Linux. I don't trust it at all (I'm CREST accredited) but I still use it.
- c22 9y ago
  ExpressCard is the succesor to PCMCIA. It's not limited to disks, you can also get cellular modems, gps cards, or whatever. The drives I use are these: http://www.wintecind.com/features/filemate/ssd/wf_expresscard_ssd.html http://www.wintecind.com/features/filemate/ssd/wf_expresscar... I agree my setup is probably pretty secure, but not any moreso than a single os install with FDE, especially since I often leave an OS ExpressCard in the machine and the other ones I leave scattered around my desk...
  - iamnothere 9y ago
    The EOMA68 project is putting together an interesting variant on this approach. Instead of taking your hard drive with you, they are building computers with a mainboard on a PCMCIA card, so you can eject your entire system from its housing and take it with you. A small SSD is included, so you could literally bring your entire environment with you if you don't mind being limited to 8GB. https://www.crowdsupply.com/eoma68/micro-desktop https://www.crowdsupply.com/eoma68/micro-desktop

by c22 9y ago

gerdesj 9y ago

Good skills mate. So: Your user data is on the HDD and encrypted AND you use a removable disc to boot your machine AND you have a "something you know" (password) That looks quite secure to me, provided you look after your removable disc and password. I'm not familiar with IBM gear - is ExpressCard a removable disc? I tried to read the WP page on it but got confused. I have one of these for my laptop - Dell Inspiron 17. It runs Arch Linux. I don't trust it at all (I'm CREST accredited) but I still use it.

c22 9y ago
ExpressCard is the succesor to PCMCIA. It's not limited to disks, you can also get cellular modems, gps cards, or whatever. The drives I use are these: http://www.wintecind.com/features/filemate/ssd/wf_expresscard_ssd.html http://www.wintecind.com/features/filemate/ssd/wf_expresscar... I agree my setup is probably pretty secure, but not any moreso than a single os install with FDE, especially since I often leave an OS ExpressCard in the machine and the other ones I leave scattered around my desk...
- iamnothere 9y ago
  The EOMA68 project is putting together an interesting variant on this approach. Instead of taking your hard drive with you, they are building computers with a mainboard on a PCMCIA card, so you can eject your entire system from its housing and take it with you. A small SSD is included, so you could literally bring your entire environment with you if you don't mind being limited to 8GB. https://www.crowdsupply.com/eoma68/micro-desktop https://www.crowdsupply.com/eoma68/micro-desktop