Kali Linux USB persistence the right way

[@davidbombal]

Boot Kali Linux off a USB flash drive and keep persistency :) Download: www.kali.org/ // Link to PDF // davidbombal.wiki/kaliusb // KZbin video REFERENCE // Kali USB Live Boot with Persistence: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fIq8hmynj5WDptU // David's SOCIAL // Discord: discord.com/invite/usKSyzb X: www.x.com/davidbombal Instagram: instagram.com/davidbombal LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/davidbombal Facebook: facebook.com/davidbombal.co TikTok: tiktok.com/@davidbombal KZbin: www.youtube.com/@davidbombal // MY STUFF // www.amazon.com/shop/davidbombal // SPONSORS // Interested in sponsoring my videos? Reach out to my team here: [e-mail] // MENU // 0:00 - Installing Kali Linux on a USB flash drive // Method 1 and method 2 01:05 - Download the PDF to follow the steps 01:46 - Etcher vs Rufus 02:32 - Method 1: Easy Method (Rufus) 02:56 - Downloading Kali 03:35 - Downloading Rufus 04:19 - Using Rufus to install Kali on the USB 06:39 - Rebooting into the BIOS and booting from Kali USB 08:18 - Testing persistence 09:54 - Method 2: Preferred Method (Etcher) // Downloading Kali 10:34 - Downloading Etcher 10:58 - Using Etcher to install Kali on the USB 12:04 - Rebooting into the BIOS and booting from Kali USB 13:34 - Enabling persistence using commands 16:49 - Testing persistence 18:40 - Conclusion kali kali linux kali linux usb kali usb persistence kali linux usb persistence kali linux 2024 kali linux 2025 Kali Live Boot USB Persistence Balena Etcher Flash USB Boot from USB Secure Boot BIOS Settings GRUB Menu Command Line Kali Linux Persistence Ethical Hacking Cybersecurity Linux Tutorial USB Boot Disclaimer: This video is for educational purposes only. I own all equipment used for this demonstration. No actual attack took place on any websites. Please note that links listed may be affiliate links and provide me with a small percentage/kickback should you use them to purchase any of the items listed or recommended. Thank you for supporting me and this channel! #kalilinux #kaliusb #kali

[@Hartley94]

Thank you.

[@codingwithebooks]

Hi David could you make a video removing a windows OS and installing kali as the new OS

[@dz_zyy]

Hello, David! I have a question, I've had trouble installing Kali on my Acer Nitro 5, it only works on virtual machines but I want to boot off a flash drive and it gives me the same error every time, I've disabled secure boot I've done everything right and it doesn't work, thank you in advance! Love the videos!

[@Rabiullah12]

Create a video on usb live persistence of parrot os

[@takeshidoi4214]

Mr David, Hi, sorry for my bad english, but i increase more one tool in Android, use Ultimate USB (no root needed), is great all in Wonder tool for bootable usb👍 accomplied your channel! Thank's for share security informations!

[@BrianMaddox]

Can I just say how much I appreciate you not using thumbnails of yourself screaming or doing goofy stuff? The great info and lack of that nonsense has definitely kept me subscribing!

[@jacktringoli3299]

Although it would have been funny if when he showed the flash drive plugged in and highlighted the first time and he's like "I already got mine plugged in" the editor would have used the funny "woooow" sound effect lol

[@wolfheart5408]

Nope. Starts feeling like I'm watching memes, not informative IT videos

[@isackmathias9965]

Thanks a lot, David! This is exactly what I’ve been looking for. Every time I installed Kali on my Mac, it got corrupted after updates, but your content helped me resolve the issue perfectly. Great work!

[@TELL_ME_WHY_NOT]

I am truly grateful for this content. You have done this before and continue to do it. I appreciate your effort, thank you, David Bombal.

[@visionary4787]

Thank you so much! I have been having trouble with persistence on my kali usb boot!! Keep up the good work david!

[@gauravvaswani2994]

Instead of going through all this trouble, get two usb flash drives, install the iso one of them, using which, you can install the os on the other flash drive. That is what i personally do for daily driving debian 12 bookworm as well as kali linux. It is very practical and functional method. Also, you won't have to select the kali persistence option everytime you want to boot into the os. Also, this method works for all linux distros, even the ones that do not natively have an option of having persistent storate such as arch. This method shown in the video can indeed help gain some exposure and expand your knowledge but, it is highly unnecessary. This method shown in the vid is more of a diy type of thing which someone would do for fun and is not very practical. If i missed out on something or if there is some other targetted use case for this method, please let me know. After all, we are all here to learn and expand our knowledge :)

[@ShinigamiGrin]

Actually it looks like it is the recommended method and considered best practice. I'm not entirely sure about the differences though.

[@zuerte2172]

thats what i usually do it bud sometimes you have to reinstall grub for removable media

[@ikust007]

Damn I would love to understand all that you say /( need a video for dummies . But the type of dummy that tries to learn…

[@NoName-g2r5d]

i got a new laptop with ubuntu in it. loved it but had to go to windows for school things. i thought about having a usb dedicated for linux. now that you mentioned it, I want to give it a try. I also thought using a usb with kali linux but in a VM . anyway how do you do it?

[@uxer666]

Do you use Ventoy?

[@andreafranceschini2400]

The first time I did it was in 2019, to keep things simple I chose to encrypt the persistence partition. It was a pain. 😊 Thanks for sharing all this hints

[@HellsingGhrey-ht2wg]

How did you encrypt the partition???

[@womacko]

​@@HellsingGhrey-ht2wg there is an article about it: kali_org - Adding Encrypted Persistence to a Kali Linux Live USB Drive

[@kingacme2389]

Fantastic work. The PDF and video well explained, aweseome, thank you David!

[@00Jimmy00]

Thank you David, great video. I too, recommend setting persistence via CLI

[@anvayashakti2374]

Thank you Sir David 🙏🏻 as always useful. Great video ❤

[@davidbombal]

Thank you!

[@jeparive]

Thanks Mr. Bombal You had just earned a loyal member of your channel.

[@coreywhite3161]

Awesome work David! Your channel is top shelf..

[@zalves2000]

I have your Udemy course. Fantastic work. Appreciate your KZbin content, also high quality and informative.

[@davidbombal]

Awesome, thank you so much for your support!

[@royjose9986]

- [ Nice video ❤ ] - Very good explanation 👍🏻 Thank you.

[@dondanij]

Gran video y explicación gracias por compartir con la comunidad!!

[@ahmedsaidu2400]

Thanks for this wonderful and educative lecture

[@GXAlex11]

Thank you very much for that content. What about encryption+persistency? Is it also possible to do a full installation on an USB drive with encryption? The same method as the full installation on a computer?

[@womacko]

Hey David, I'd highly appreciate if you can also make a video about how to add encryption. It's a major safety issue, having a pentest usb-stick without encryption laying around..

[@SFTLFT]

excellent video, well explained, greetings from Colombia

[@charmainedudley7747]

Hi David, love your videos (& of course your Guests (fav is OTW - awesomeness lol)! Just wondering, what you think about Ventoy - would be an interesting videe i.e. your take on it from a Linux user point of view (or Windows (ofc) if you do consider making a video on it ..... just a thought). Greetings from South Africa!

[@HellsingGhrey-ht2wg]

Mr. David, I love your vids. I did it a little bit differently though (I think). 1. Downloaded the Air Gapped Kali 12GB ish 2. Used Balena Etcher to move it to a USB 3. Stuck that USB into a ghost pc (Laptop with no hard drive, no speakers, no mic, no camera, no internal wifi) 4. Ran the Kali installation 5. Inserted ANOTHER USB and chose that USB as the install location 6. Ran the installation, chose the option to install all of the tools...and it took HOURS!!!!!!....almost 7 hours if not more... ...tried to boot from the USB and the laptop was like "NOPE!"...freaked out and wondered if I had to do it all over again... 7. Changed the Bios to book from legacy...secure boot was already disabled, being a ghost laptop and all 8. Ran Kali from the USB and it was AWESOME!!!!!!! It saved EVERYTHING to the USB, so I think persistence is already obtained. Feel free to elucidate on anything I may have missed or everlooked.

[@MalformedMisshapenMonstrosity]

Very useful video, thank you! What are your thoughts on using Ventoy to achieve this? I have a Ventoy drive with Kali and persistence and it seems to work pretty well.

[@omidhk98]

Thanks for the video. that was a big help❤

[@dimitristsoutsouras2712]

There is also ventoy that lets you select persistent storage.

[@gabor_kov]

Can you please do a video on how to do this with disk encryption. I have been thinking about buying one of those encrypted usbs, but you can encryption linux during the installation too. I don't know how to do that in a live environment

[@nabiel220]

Thank you Sir, For me, method two works fine ❤

[@YourInfoWorld7]

Not working if you make 13gb airgap live iso and boot it on new gen laptops, IT STUCKS AT GRUB 2.12 BLACK SCREEN. However it works well with older systems before of 2014, any idea y not working on new laptops ?

[@womacko]

Also we need an explaination, on how to edit the grub boot order, to skip it and directly boot into persistent (encrypted) kali live USB.

[@solanaceae2069]

First method worked on my old laptop. My Rufus didn't have the Large FAT option so I went with the FAT 16 default. Not sure how much difference that will make. Maybe I should have selected 32 though.

[@robotron1236]

Just install to the drive instead of running it live. I don’t use Kali, I use Manjaro (but I will be switching to pure arch soon due to the mdd debacle) but that’s how I do it for a portable drive.

[@gamereditor59ner22]

That's cool! I can use this method on my 1 TB drive.

[@Justice4all2023]

Problem with USB 3 is resources don't seem to allocate well with certain OSs and live systems freeze alot. Best OS seems to be Antix for live systems not freezing when doing minor work.

[@lesteraxelballadareslopez5850]

Excellent video about how to install Kali on flash drive.

[@FlandersKen]

use the whole drive for persistence in rufus, i.e. usb, or stick to default kali live image

[@FlandersKen]

save room for swap in partitioner

[@onethe2000]

Another aweseome Video, thank you David! What is the song playing at 9:54 (Metehod 2) if its even a song 😀

[@endlessoul]

Wonder if this would work with Ventoy!

[@davidbombal]

Something I need to try 😀

[@kobe068]

already tried it, had to tweak some things but it works ;)

[@technoshop5169]

​@@kobe068 can you share it sir. . Please

[@anticupid5165]

Appreciate it boss man

[@willthompson83]

Why Kali Linux instead of Tails? I saw a KZbin video and ended up putting Tails, Tor, and Kali Linux on separate USB drives. Tails runs slow as heck when web surfing, I like the way it looks when I snatched the drive out but back to my question why Kail Linux are they really the same, what's the difference?

[@jztchl]

It's because of tor

[@yaswanthch-t4r]

What is the difference between Live boot and Dual boot ?

[@beerekartheek9184]

Thank you for posting this video this video will very much

[@davidbombal]

You're welcome!

[@Outwars1]

Is there any difference in the machine/firmware level code or environment if rather than setting the primary boot drive to the USB in the UEFI BIOS, you use a quickboot option key to select a bootable device rather than fully entering the BIOS?

[@dawidvanstraaten]

Should be no difference

[@akliluabay95]

hey DB tnx for updating technology

[@TechInventorAman]

instead of a flash drive can i use an SD Card as well ?

[@diegogutierrez901]

Would be nice to explain also for Apple users. I have problems when trying to boot it. M1 chip

[@duser]

make sure you're using the ARM version (apple silicon version) of kali.

[@mapps6427]

it's like you knew i've been struggling with doing thiss🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾

[@bibas007]

What do you suggest for someone who is just starting to learn? Kali on a VM or a live USB?

[@dawidvanstraaten]

VM if you have the RAM.

[@PixelOdyssey254]

I wonder where i went wrong in installment, reason being mine it's requesting for grub> To enable less (1)- i like paging "Set pager=1".

[@Seth_22]

Thanks you so much!

[@dproscripts1811]

Great video, but every time I think about live booting (which I daily drive on a multi-os usb), I remember the horrors of windows 11 laptop bitlocker. I think its advisable to warn people about bitlocker (and how its enabled by default), how to get their decryption key (just in case), etc. I messed up by booting windows without secure boot, and was stressed out for a good 30 minutes while on vacation, trying an ungodly number of microsoft accounts to find the key. Just a good idea in general.

[@aownply]

if i plug off my usb , my kali still works , and ... i wonder if it uses any hard drive or etc of my host system?

[@Yashthealien14OisO]

What speed of usb is required?

[@CodeBMoney]

is there any way to download and install tails/balenaetcher using MacBook m2

[@mysafename1694]

Can this work On an old MacBook Pro that can't be updated anymore.

[@pelegkislasi8723]

just making sure, i can get back to the windows machine and all will be saved right?

[@dawidvanstraaten]

You will be able to. I normally just enable secure boot again before I boot back into Windows, but you don't have to.

[@opelekzy3889]

What do i need to do. Everytime i tried to power on kali on vmware it says "failed to connect pipe to virtual machine

[@tony6261]

what format should be used for the USB drive?

[@dawidvanstraaten]

It doesn't matter. You can format it to use ex-fat or ntfs. It'll be changed and formatted to the correct file system when the USB is flashed.

[@Myke001]

What is the process for doing this using macos please?

[@Balakrishnan-id1zs]

I got your CCNA course in Udemy, I love it!

[@zerotheory941]

Is there any reason why this cannot be done with any linux iso?

[@erichanson5628]

Rufus works great for all other Linux iso.

[@zerotheory941]

@@erichanson5628 Sorry, maybe I should clarify. Could the 2nd method be used to make say a persistent Pop_OS USB? or Fedora or Arch?

[@erichanson5628]

@@zerotheory941 You could. Just ask ChatGpt for the commands for that specific Linux distro to make it persistent. Rufus will work for the other Distros. It simply fails for Kali for some reason and has done so for years... It is a really strange glitch. I have installed Windows and over a dozen Linux Distros with no issue. Kali I have never gotten to work and had to switch to Etcher which is also a stellar program.

[@prabhavathys6577]

After setting up presistance if I reboot the system it asks me to load the kernal first with an error message in GNU GRUB window. If I list the files I have only three files possibility which are (memdisk , hd1 , hd0 ) in it both hd0,1 is not listing it shows the filesystem is unknown and and in memdisk it shows filesystem is transf . Kindly help me out, have flashed multiple times and tried multiple times same problem

[@OmaraAJ]

Do you remove flash drive afterwards?

[@davidchoudhary945]

After sudo fdisk…….. When i press n and hit enter it says all the space for primary partition is in use

[@Tanagumch]

David main issue is that after in later stage my Kali shows black screen with ‘_’ logo when I start or reboot the system again and it stuck it there forever,I need to type command “nomodeset” manually.Is their way to get rid of this issue.

[@itsmew8254]

I have a lenovo v15 laptop, and I cant find the boot priority option in my one

[@mphatsokhobera1139]

Boom !!!!! i successfully install kali from USB Flash Drive Thank you so much , i will like to learn more from here . #BrownJoker from Malawi

[@bronxboys101]

I used rufus to instal but never get an option to write in ISO mode or in DD mode just started automatically and I try twice installing

[@mohammedhariri9979]

I tried both rufus and etcher , after i choose boot with usb persistence, both giving me "integrity: problem loading X.508 certificate -65" and freeze

[@ThatNword]

Hy, are there any other operating system, that look good too??

[@hiphopworld587]

When i boot my kali with live persistence there is showing Black screen and white blinking hash _ and it's not starting 😭

[@CarloRicciardi]

I’ve tried the second method twice. Both times I ended up with this same problem after a very long attempt to boot kali. Any luck solving this?

[@TerradyneGurkhaLAPV]

Same here

[@sahilparmar357]

@davidbombal will this method work for garuda linux or any other linux? i want to make a live usb linux with my modifications. Thank you!

[@xholicJD]

Followed the preferred option yet my screen went black after selecting kali with persistence, any fix ?

[@vitosean9463]

Me too :(

[@xholicJD]

@@vitosean9463 try it on a different pc or laptop it worked there

[@hyperninjaprox]

Am i the only one who has wondered why david uses light mode instead of dark. Man i am watching this in my basement lol. At 4:19 You can see a pinned folder called "stuff" this is the kind of folder names i use on a daily bases nice to see i am not the chosen one lol. Nice tutorial man i always wondered why its hella slow running it of a persistent usb.

[@dawidvanstraaten]

David normally uses dark mode 😂

[@bnbbnb8115]

After i flash kali to the usb it says i have to format my disk before use. Kali fails to launch need help plz

[@PranjalP21]

What should I do if I want the persistence storage to be encrypted with LUKS or something else.

[@3bz_ir]

To encrypt the persistence storage in a live Kali Linux environment, you can use LUKS (Linux Unified Key Setup). Here's a general guide on how to do it: **Prerequisites:** - A live Kali Linux USB drive with persistence enabled. - Basic understanding of Linux terminal commands. **Steps:** 1. **Boot into Kali Linux Live:** - Insert your Kali Linux USB drive and boot your system from it. - Choose the "Live system with USB Encrypted persistence" option. 2. **Open a Terminal:** - Once the live system boots, open a terminal window. 3. **Identify the Persistence Partition:** - Use the `fdisk -l` command to list all the partitions on your USB drive. - Identify the partition that is labeled as "Linux filesystem" or something similar. This is usually the persistence partition. - Note the device name of this partition, such as `/dev/sdb2`. 4. **Create an Encrypted LUKS Container:** - Use the `cryptsetup` command to create a LUKS container on the persistence partition: ```bash sudo cryptsetup luksFormat /dev/sdb2 ``` - You will be prompted to enter a passphrase. Choose a strong, memorable passphrase. 5. **Open the LUKS Container:** - Use the `cryptsetup luksOpen` command to open the LUKS container: ```bash sudo cryptsetup luksOpen /dev/sdb2 encrypted_data ``` - Replace `encrypted_data` with a name for your container. 6. **Mount the Encrypted Partition:** - Create a mount point for the encrypted partition: ```bash sudo mkdir /mnt/encrypted_data ``` - Mount the encrypted partition to the mount point: ```bash sudo mount /dev/mapper/encrypted_data /mnt/encrypted_data ``` 7. **Modify fstab (Optional):** - If you want the encrypted partition to mount automatically on boot, you'll need to edit the `/etc/fstab` file. This is a bit more advanced and requires careful editing. Consult the fstab documentation for more information. 8. **Use the Encrypted Partition:** - You can now access your persistent data through the `/mnt/encrypted_data` directory. Any changes you make will be encrypted and stored securely. **Important Notes:** - **Security:** - Choose a strong, unique passphrase for your LUKS container. - Be cautious when entering your passphrase, as incorrect attempts can lead to lockout. - Consider using a passphrase manager to securely store your passphrase. - **Boot Process:** - When booting into the live system, you'll need to enter your passphrase to unlock the LUKS container before accessing your persistent data. - **Additional Considerations:** - For more advanced users, you can explore additional options like LUKS2, which offers more features and security. - Be aware that encrypting your persistence partition may slightly impact performance. By following these steps, you can significantly enhance the security of your Kali Linux live USB drive by encrypting its persistence storage.

[@MARIUSBAAR]

I could not get the etcher method to work I tried it twice I still see the 3 partitions on my USB but the file I saved on my desktop is gone also it takes now a lot longer to boot then before

[@MARIUSBAAR]

Ok after setup I made a note on desktop and on reboot it was gone so then I made a note again and after restart it now stayed so it is working but it is a lot slower now then at initial boot but still great work 👍

[@pabloi2735]

I have it in a virtual machine. Which are the benefits of the installing in a usb?

[@davidbombal]

Mobility - like you can use it with other computers. If you don't use persistence, you can pull the USB drive out and all is lost. So, better privacy.

[@HappytreeLuis]

Less ram and cpu load because your computer isn't running another operating system at the same time. It's portable meaning you can boot up you kali setup on any pc using just the usb stick. Also, it leaves less traces of your activities on the computers you use because the operating system isn't contained it's hardware.

[@yadatov]

C'est fabuleux c'est bien la 1ere fois que je suis un tuto linux qui fonctionne du 1er coup

[@emmanueldollaga9311]

Is this working on external drive?

[@jonfasika7243]

Hey I did exactly what in this vid but i didn’t work for me I’m using the Virtual box

[@tomigh6984]

Hey i was going trough the steps for downoalding nethunter and kali no root, whenever i try to connect to it, it just says connection failed my phone is Redmi note 9 android 13, please help

[@PavleAdzic-xm2qs]

if i download images for dual boot do i get it the same or please reply

[@Thezootkat]

What about a standalone chatbot usb with no operating system ( initramfs )

[@NeoVdV]

Does it works on Macbook air 2020 with M1 ?

[@rahulk6130]

This video worked like a charm. However, I am unable to get my bluetooth keyboard to pair. I get a pairing failure. The kb keeps connecting and disconnecting. Can't find anything on the net for this. Strangely, I used your video for running TAILS off a flash drive, and the BT kb worked out of the box, no having to set it. Can anyone help on the BT pairing issue ? Thanks.

[@harry36242]

Does it delete any info off the computer?

[@rouxanfuture]

I have done this plus many other methods to get persistence but nothing works...

[@znm-ii2vk]

Did it for rufus and got a port 69 error, not sure what it is

[@junehansen9749]

still dont work on Os Lenovo AMD A6 chrom. wount open Rufus, no matter the vertion.

[@junehansen9749]

and no i dont get that promt. i dont get anything, it just downloading and then i can delete it again.

[@junehansen9749]

so what to do on a chrome :) i dont have windows, nobody here have :)

[@reylobo23]

can I do that with Kali purple?

[@Artyrian_Tyler]

Оуу я ще 5 років тому намагався поставити на флешку Kali, а зараз це так просто зробити 😯

[@Swank2387]

I have tried both etcher and Rufus but after booting kali starts loading then stops and gives errors. Could not resolve symbol and AE not found and a few others. Anyone else have this issue?

[@b6yg]

Good man, I love the Brave browser more than Chrome any day. I think Brave even wins over Firefox.

[@GILDOMINGOSS]

Where is KZbin's dubbing on your videos, after several channels are already using...

[@kawsr2669]

David Bombal you already did that.

[@Footballcr7-p5e]

can I make a passowrd or username for kali lnux as installed kali linux

[@zoltandjsnowbarkoci9146]

if you choose persistent... then you cannot select dd iso...writer (rufus)

[@dawidvanstraaten]

Didn't have that problem when I tried it.

[@Pr4547h]

I already created a USB Persistent Kali I want to increase root partition space is it possible?

[@dingokidneys]

Do you have any space remaining on the USB stick? A normal installation of Kali with persistence would not leave you any. The easiest way to gain more space would be to just get a bigger USB drive and set Kali up on that with persistence. Copy your old persistent files over and you're all good.

[@erichanson5628]

I have never had luck with Rufus and Kali. I do use Rufus for most other things...

[@tis_official._]

Rufus worked for me🔥

[@techbash3854]

How to install kali nethunter in sd Card