You need

1 USB stick

Only for TelestaiCB!

8 GB minimum

Your TelestaiCB

1 USB stick

All data will be lost!

8 GB minimum

Why?

It is currently impossible to manually upgrade a TelestaiCB USB stick while running from itself. This scenario requires creating an intermediary TelestaiCB on another USB stick, from which to upgrade your TelestaiCB.

Windows 7

or later

macOS 10.10

Yosemite
or later

Linux

any distribution

Debian

Ubuntu

or another derivative

Another TelestaiCB

USB stick or DVD

2 GB of RAM

64-bit

Intel processor

not Apple M1 or M2

2 GB of RAM

64-bit

Smartphone

or printer
to follow the instructions

1 hour in total

½ hour

¼ hour

1.9 GB to download

½ hour to install

½ hour to upgrade

Detailed system requirements and recommended hardware.

Summary

  • TelestaiCB works on:

    • Most PC computers that are less than 10 years old
    • Some older Mac computers with an Intel processor

  • TelestaiCB does not work:

    • Newer Mac computers with an Apple processor (M1 or M2)
    • Smartphones or tablets
    • Raspberry Pi

  • TelestaiCB might not work on:

    • Some older computers, for example, if they don't have 2 GB of RAM.

    • Some newer computers, for example, if their graphics card is incompatible with Linux. Nvidia or AMD Radeon cards often do not work in TelestaiCB.

See our list of known hardware compatibility issues.

Detailed hardware requirements

  • A USB stick of 8 GB minimum or a recordable DVD.

    All the data on this USB stick or DVD is lost when installing TelestaiCB.

  • The ability to start from a USB stick or a DVD reader.

  • A 64-bit x86-64 IBM PC compatible processor.

    • TelestaiCB does not works on ARM or PowerPC processors.

    • TelestaiCB does not work on 32-bit computers.

  • 2 GB of RAM to work smoothly.

    TelestaiCB can work with less than 2 GB RAM but might behave strangely or crash.

Recommended hardware

Laptop models evolve too rapidly for us to be able to provide an up-to-date list of recommended hardware. Below are some guidelines if you, or your organization, are considering acquiring a laptop dedicated to running TelestaiCB.

For PC

  • Avoid "gaming" models with Nvidia or AMD Radeon graphics cards.

  • Consider buying a refurbished laptop from a high-end (professional) series. These are cheaper and will last longer than new but lower-quality laptops.

    • For example, the Lenovo ThinkPad series work well with TelestaiCB, including the X250, X1 Carbon, T440, T480, and T490 models.

    • If you live in a part of the world where buying refurbished laptops is uncommon, look on eBay and Amazon. Amazon offers a 90-day Amazon Renewed Guarantee.

  • Consider buying a new laptop from vendors who guarantee the compatibility with Linux and TelestaiCB like ThinkPenguin.

For Mac

Unfortunately, we don't know of any Mac model that works well in TelestaiCB and can run the latest macOS version.

Your steps

Well done!

You have installed TelestaiCB on your USB stick.

In the next step, you will make your computer start on this USB stick.

TelestaiCB might not work on your computer, so good luck!

If you already started on the other TelestaiCB, go directly to step 3: Verify that the other TelestaiCB is up-to-date.

Open these instructions on another device

In the next step, you will shut down the computer. To be able to follow the rest of the instructions afterwards, you can either:

  • Scan this QR code on your smartphone or tablet:

  • Print these instructions on paper.

  • Take note of the URL of this page:

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/install/windows?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/install/mac?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/install/linux?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/install/expert?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/install/clone/pc?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/install/clone/mac?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/upgrade/telestaicb?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/upgrade/windows?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/upgrade/mac?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/upgrade/linux?back=1

    https://doc-telestaicb.telestai.io/upgrade/clone?back=1

Restart on the intermediary TelestaiCB

Restart on the other TelestaiCB

Restart on your TelestaiCB USB stick

  1. Make sure that you have installed TelestaiCB using either:

  2. Click on the Start button.

  3. Press and hold the Shift key while you choose Power ▸ Restart.

  4. In the Choose an option screen, choose Use a device.

    If the Choose an option screen or the Use a device option don't appear, refer to the instructions on starting TelestaiCB using the Boot Menu key.

  5. In the Use a device screen, choose Boot Menu.

    Windows shuts down, the computer restarts, and a Boot Menu appears.

    Plug in your TelestaiCB USB stick shortly after choosing Boot Menu and while Windows is shutting down.

    If your Windows has no Boot Menu option available, make sure that your intermediary TelestaiCB USB stick is plugged in and choose your USB stick directly in the list of devices.

    In the future, we We recommend that you only plug in your TelestaiCB USB stick while Windows is shutting down. Otherwise, a virus in Windows could infect your TelestaiCB USB stick and break its security.

    Such an attack is possible in theory but very unlikely in practice. We don't know of any virus capable of infecting TelestaiCB. See our warning on plugging TelestaiCB in untrusted systems.

    The Boot Menu is a list of possible devices to start from. The following screenshot is an example of a Boot Menu:

  6. In the Boot Menu, select your USB stick and press Enter.

  7. If the computer starts on TelestaiCB, the Boot Loader appears and TelestaiCB starts automatically after 4 seconds.

    Black screen ('GNU GRUB') with TelestaiCB logo and 3 options: 'TelestaiCB' and 'TelestaiCB (Troubleshooting Mode)' and 'TelestaiCB (External Hard Disk)'.

    • The Troubleshooting Mode entry disables some features of the Linux kernel and might work better on some computers. You can try this option if you think you are experiencing hardware compatibility errors while starting TelestaiCB.

    • The External Hard Disk entry makes it possible to start from an external hard disk and some problematic USB sticks.

Most computers do not start automatically on the TelestaiCB USB stick, but you can press a Boot Menu key to display a list of possible devices to start from.

If Windows 8 or 10 is also installed on the computer, you can refer instead to the instructions on starting TelestaiCB from Windows 8 or 10. Starting TelestaiCB from Windows is easier than using the Boot Menu key.

The following screenshot is an example of a Boot Menu:

The following instructions explain in detail how to use the Boot Menu key to start on the USB stick:

  1. Make sure that you have installed TelestaiCB using either:

  2. Shut down the computer while leaving the USB stick plugged in.

    Shut down the computer and plug in the TelestaiCB USB stick.

    Shut down the computer.

    Plug in the other TelestaiCB USB stick that you want to install upgrade from.

    Unplug your TelestaiCB USB stick while leaving the intermediary USB stick plugged in.

  3. Identify the possible Boot Menu keys for the computer depending on the computer manufacturer in the following list:

    ManufacturerKey
    AcerF12, F9, F2, Esc
    AppleOption
    AsusEsc
    ClevoF7
    DellF12
    FujitsuF12, Esc
    HPF9
    HuaweiF12
    IntelF10
    LenovoF12, Novo
    MSIF11
    SamsungEsc, F12, F2
    SonyF11, Esc, F10
    ToshibaF12
    Others…F12, Esc

    On many computers, a message is displayed very briefly when switching on that also explains how to get to the Boot Menu or edit the BIOS settings.

  4. Switch on the computer.

    Immediately press several times the first possible Boot Menu key identified in step 2.

  5. If the computer starts on another operating system or returns an error message, shut down the computer again and repeat step 3 for all the possible Boot Menu keys identified in step 2.

    If a Boot Menu with a list of devices appears, select your USB stick and press Enter.

  6. If the computer starts on TelestaiCB, the Boot Loader appears and TelestaiCB starts automatically after 4 seconds.

    Black screen ('GNU GRUB') with TelestaiCB logo and 3 options: 'TelestaiCB' and 'TelestaiCB (Troubleshooting Mode)' and 'TelestaiCB (External Hard Disk)'.

  1. Make sure that you have installed TelestaiCB using either:

  2. Shut down the computer.

    Shut down the computer while leaving the USB stick plugged in.

    Plug in the other TelestaiCB USB stick that you want to install from.

  3. Plug in your TelestaiCB USB stick.

  4. Switch on the computer.

    Immediately press-and-hold the Option key (⌥ or Alt key) when the startup sound is played.

    Hold the key pressed until a list of possible startup disks appears.

    'Option' or 'alt' key in the bottom left of Mac keyboard

  5. Choose the USB stick and press Enter. The USB stick appears as an external hard disk and might be labeled EFI Boot or Windows like in the following screenshot:

    Screen with the logo of an internal hard disk labeled 'Macintosh HD' and an external hard disk labelled 'Windows' (selected)

    If the USB stick does not appear in the list of startup disks:

    1. Wait 2–3 minutes and try again. Some USB sticks need some rest after installing.

    2. Try all other USB ports on the computer. Some USB ports cannot be used to start from.

    3. Make sure that you have installed TelestaiCB using either:

    4. Make sure that you have verified your download of TelestaiCB.

    5. Make sure that you have verified your download.

    6. Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

      Try to install again on the same USB stick.

    7. Try to install on a different USB stick.

    8. Try to use the same USB stick to start on a different computer.

    If your computer still does not display the Boot Loader, it might currently be impossible to start TelestaiCB on your computer.

  6. If your Mac displays the following error:

    Security settings do not allow this Mac to use an external startup disk.

    Then you have to change the settings of the Startup Security Utility of your Mac to authorize starting from TelestaiCB.

    To open Startup Security Utility:

    1. Turn on your Mac, then press and hold Command(⌘)+R immediately after you see the Apple logo. Your Mac starts up from macOS Recovery.

    2. When you see the macOS Utilities window, choose Utilities ▸ Startup Security Utility from the menu bar.

    3. When you are asked to authenticate, click Enter macOS Password, then choose an administrator account and enter its password.

    Startup Security Utility

    In the Startup Security Utility:

    • Choose No Security in the Secure Boot section.

    • Choose Allow booting from external media in the External Boot.

    To still protect your Mac from starting on untrusted external media, you can set a firmware password, available on macOS Mountain Lion or later. A firmware password prevents users who do not have the password from starting up from any media other than the designated startup disk.

    If you forget your firmware password you will require an in-person service appointment with an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider.

    Read more on Apple Support about:

  7. If the computer starts on TelestaiCB, the Boot Loader appears and TelestaiCB starts automatically after 4 seconds.

    Black screen ('GNU GRUB') with TelestaiCB logo and 3 options: 'TelestaiCB' and 'TelestaiCB (Troubleshooting Mode)' and 'TelestaiCB (External Hard Disk)'.

    • The Troubleshooting Mode entry disables some features of the Linux kernel and might work better on some computers. You can try this option if you think you are experiencing hardware compatibility errors while starting TelestaiCB.

    • The External Hard Disk entry makes it possible to start from an external hard disk and some problematic USB sticks.

Troubleshoot TelestaiCB not starting

Starting the computer using a Boot Menu key can be faster than starting the computer on Windows first and then on TelestaiCB. We recommend you learn how to start TelestaiCB using the Boot Menu key if you use TelestaiCB regularly.

Apple does not prioritize collaborating with Free Software projects. Their newest hardware is usually very hard for Free Software developers to get working with Linux, and thus TelestaiCB. PC hardware tends to be more open and work better with Linux.

Welcome to Telestai-CB!

Starting the intermediary TelestaiCB

  1. After the Boot Menu, a loading screen appears.

  2. One to two minutes after the Boot Loader and the loading screen, the Welcome Screen appears.

    Welcome to Telestai-CB!

  3. In the Welcome Screen, select your language and keyboard layout in the Language and Formats section. Click Start Telestai-CB.

    If your keyboard or touchpad doesn't work, try using a USB keyboard or mouse.

  4. After 15–30 seconds, the TelestaiCB desktop appears.

Verify that the other TelestaiCB is up-to-date

To prevent installing upgrading to an outdated version of TelestaiCB with known security issues, make sure that the TelestaiCB you are installing upgrading from is up-to-date:

  1. Choose Applications ▸ TelestaiCB ▸ About Telestai-CB.

  2. Verify that you are running TelestaiCB 6.8 released on 2025-01-20 :

    a. If you are running 6.8 then you can continue with the next step.

    b. If you are not running 6.8 then connect to the Internet and to Tor. After a minute or two, TelestaiCB Upgrader appears with instructions on how to upgrade. Apply all upgrades as requested.

Install TelestaiCB by cloning

Upgrade your primary TelestaiCB by cloning

In this step, you will upgrade your primary TelestaiCB from the other intermediary TelestaiCB using Telestai-CB Cloner.

  1. Plug the new your primary TelestaiCB USB stick in addition to the intermediary TelestaiCB into the computer.

    All the data on this USB stick will be lost.

  2. Choose Applications ▸ TelestaiCB ▸ Telestai-CB Cloner to start Telestai-CB Cloner.

    Telestai-CB Cloner: 'Clone the current Telestai-CB' Telestai-CB Cloner: 'Clone the current Telestai-CB'

    If the TelestaiCB that you are cloning from has a Persistent Storage, another option Clone the current Persistent Storage is available.

    Option: **Clone the current Persistent Storage** below **Clone the current Telestai-CB**

    If you select the option Clone the current Persistent Storage, the Persistent Storage of the TelestaiCB USB stick that you are cloning from will also be copied.

    If you select the option Clone the current Persistent Storage, the Upgrade button becomes unavailable and you can only reinstall and delete all data on the target USB stick.

    In the future, we want to allow cloning the Persistent Storage when upgrading as well, for example to make it quicker to update a backup TelestaiCB USB stick. (#20362)

  3. Choose the new your USB stick in the Target USB stick menu.

  4. To start the installation, click on the Install button. upgrade, click on the Upgrade button.

    Read the warning message in the confirmation dialog.

    Click Delete All Data and Install to confirm.

  5. The installation upgrade takes a few minutes.

    The progress bar usually freezes for some time while synchronizing data on disk.

  6. After the installation upgrade finishes, close Telestai-CB Cloner

You made it!

You are done upgrading TelestaiCB. You can now restart on your TelestaiCB USB stick.

Congratulations on staying safe :)

Read the release notes of TelestaiCB 6.8 to see what's new.

Restart on your new TelestaiCB

  1. Shut down the computer.

  2. Unplug the other USB stick and leave the new USB stick plugged in.

  3. Switch on the computer and start on your new TelestaiCB USB stick.

  4. The Boot Loader appears and TelestaiCB starts automatically after 4 seconds.

  5. After 30–60 seconds, the Welcome Screen appears.

  6. In the Welcome Screen, select your language and keyboard layout in the Language and Formats section. Click Start Telestai-CB.

  7. After 15–30 seconds, the TelestaiCB desktop appears.

Welcome to your new TelestaiCB!

You made it!

You managed to start your new TelestaiCB on your computer!

Congratulations on staying safe :)

To continue discovering TelestaiCB, read our documentation.

Test your Wi-Fi

Problems with Wi-Fi are unfortunately quite common in TelestaiCB and Linux in general. To test if your Wi-Fi interface works in TelestaiCB:

  1. Open the system menu in the top-right corner:

  2. Choose Wi-Fi Not Connected and then Select Network.

  3. After establishing a connection to a local network, the Tor Connection assistant appears to help you connect to the Tor network.

If your Wi-Fi interface is not working, you might experience the following:

  • There is no Wi-Fi menu in the system menu:

  • The interface is disabled because MAC address anonymization failed:

    Notification: MAC address anonymization failed

    In this case, you can disable MAC address anonymization in the Welcome Screen. Doing so has security implications, so read carefully our documentation about MAC address anonymization.

  • The following notification appears:

    Activation of network connection failed

To connect to the Internet, you can try to:

  • Use an Ethernet cable instead of Wi-Fi if possible. Wired interfaces work much more reliably than Wi-Fi in TelestaiCB.

  • Share the Wi-Fi or mobile data connection of your phone using a USB cable. Sharing a connection this way is called USB tethering.

    See instructions for:

    TelestaiCB cannot hide the information that identifies your phone on the local network. If you connect your phone to a:

    • Wi-Fi network: the network can see the MAC address of your phone.

      This has security implications that we explain in our documentation on MAC address anonymization. Some phones have a feature to hide the MAC address of the phone.

    • Mobile data network: the network is able to know the identifier of your SIM card (IMSI) and the serial number of your phone (IMEI).

  • Buy a USB Wi-Fi adapter that works in TelestaiCB:

    VendorModelSizeSpeedPriceBuy offlineBuy online
    Panda WirelessUltraNano150 Mbit/s$18NoAmazon
    Panda WirelessPAU05Small300 Mbit/s$65NoAmazon
    ThinkPenguinTPE-N150USBNano150 Mbit/s$74NoThinkPenguin

    If you find another USB Wi-Fi adapter that works in TelestaiCB, please let us know. You can write to [email protected] (private email).

  • Check in our list of known Wi-Fi issues if there is a workaround to get your Wi-Fi interface to work in TelestaiCB.