diff --git a/basics/intro.md b/basics/intro.md deleted file mode 100644 index 2118573b..00000000 --- a/basics/intro.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,187 +0,0 @@ ---- -layout: doc -title: Introduction -permalink: /intro/ -redirect_from: -- /en/intro/ -- /doc/SimpleIntro/ -- /wiki/SimpleIntro/ ---- - -A Simple Introduction to Qubes -============================== - -This is a short, non-technical introduction to Qubes intended for a popular -audience. (If you just want to quickly gain a basic understanding of what -Qubes is all about, you're in the right place!) - - -What is Qubes? --------------- - -Qubes is a security-oriented operating system (OS). The OS is the software -which runs all the other programs on a computer. Some examples of popular -OSes are Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Android, and iOS. Qubes is free and -open-source software (FOSS). This means that everyone is free to use, copy, -and change the software in any way. It also means that the source code is -openly available so others can contribute to and audit it. - - -Why is OS security important? ------------------------------ - -Most people use an operating system like Windows or OS X on their desktop -and laptop computers. These OSes are popular because they tend to be easy -to use and usually come pre-installed on the computers people buy. However, -they present problems when it comes to security. For example, you might -open an innocent-looking email attachment or website, not realizing that -you're actually allowing malware (malicious software) to run on your -computer. Depending on what kind of malware it is, it might do anything -from showing you unwanted advertisements to logging your keystrokes to -taking over your entire computer. This could jeopardize all the information -stored on or accessed by this computer, such as health records, confidential -communications, or thoughts written in a private journal. Malware can also -interfere with the activities you perform with your computer. For example, -if you use your computer to conduct financial transactions, the malware -might allow its creator to make fraudulent transactions in your name. - - -Aren't antivirus programs and firewalls enough? ------------------------------------------------ - -Unfortunately, conventional security approaches like antivirus programs -and (software and/or hardware) firewalls are no longer enough to keep out -sophisticated attackers. For example, nowadays it's common for malware -creators to check to see if their malware is recognized by any popular -antivirus programs. If it's recognized, they scramble their code until it's -no longer recognizable by the antivirus programs, then send it out. The -best antivirus programs will subsequently get updated once the antivirus -programmers discover the new threat, but this usually occurs at least a -few days after the new attacks start to appear in the wild. By then, it's -typically too late for those who have already been compromised. In addition, -bugs are inevitably discovered in the common software we all use (such as -our web browsers), and no antivirus program or firewall can prevent all of -these bugs from being exploited. - - -How does Qubes provide security? --------------------------------- - -Qubes takes an approach called **security by compartmentalization**, which -allows you to compartmentalize the various parts of your digital life into -securely isolated virtual machines (VMs). A VM is basically a simulated -computer with its own OS which runs as software on your physical computer. You -can think of a VM as a *computer within a computer*. - -This approach allows you to keep the different things you do on your computer -securely separated from each other in isolated VMs so that one VM getting -compromised won't affect the others. For example, you might have one VM for -visiting untrusted websites and a different VM for doing online banking. This -way, if your untrusted browsing VM gets compromised by a malware-laden -website, your online banking activities won't be at risk. Similarly, if -you're concerned about malicious email attachments, Qubes can make it so -that every attachment gets opened in its own single-use, "disposable" VM. In -this way, Qubes allows you to do everything on the same physical computer -without having to worry about a single successful cyberattack taking down -your entire digital life in one fell swoop. - - -How does Qubes compare to using a "live CD" OS? ------------------------------------------------ - -Booting your computer from a live CD (or DVD) when you need to perform -sensitive activities can certainly be more secure than simply using your main -OS, but this method still preserves many of the risks of conventional OSes. For -example, popular live OSes (such as [Tails] and other Linux distributions) -are still **monolithic** in the sense that all software is still running in -the same OS. This means, once again, that if your session is compromised, -then all the data and activities performed within that same session are also -potentially compromised. - - -How does Qubes compare to running VMs in a conventional OS? ---------------------------------------------------------- - -Not all virtual machine software is equal when it comes to security. You may -have used or heard of VMs in relation to software like VirtualBox or VMware -Workstation. These are known as "Type 2" or "hosted" hypervisors. (The -**hypervisor** is the software, firmware, or hardware that creates and -runs virtual machines.) These programs are popular because they're designed -primarily to be easy to use and run under popular OSes like Windows (which -is called the **host** OS, since it "hosts" the VMs). However, the fact -that Type 2 hypervisors run under the host OS means that they're really -only as secure as the host OS itself. If the host OS is ever compromised, -then any VMs it hosts are also effectively compromised. - -By contrast, Qubes uses a "Type 1" or "bare metal" hypervisor called -[Xen]. Instead of running inside an OS, Type 1 hypervisors run directly on the -"bare metal" of the hardware. This means that an attacker must be capable of -subverting the hypervisor itself in order to compromise the entire system, -which is vastly more difficult. - -Qubes makes it so that multiple VMs running under a Type 1 hypervisor can be -securely used as an integrated OS. For example, it puts all of your application -windows on the same desktop with special colored borders indicating the -trust levels of their respective VMs. It also allows for things like secure -copy/paste operations between VMs, securely copying and transferring files -between VMs, and secure networking between VMs and the Internet. - - -How does Qubes compare to using a separate physical machine? ------------------------------------------------------------- - -Using a separate physical computer for sensitive activities can certainly be -more secure than using one computer with a conventional OS for everything, -but there are still risks to consider. Briefly, here are some of the main -pros and cons of this approach relative to Qubes: - -Pros: - - * Physical separation doesn't rely on a hypervisor. (It's very unlikely - that an attacker will break out of Qubes' hypervisor, but if she were to - manage to do so, she could potentially gain control over the entire system.) - * Physical separation can be a natural complement to physical security. (For - example, you might find it natural to lock your secure laptop in a safe - when you take your unsecure laptop out with you.) - -Cons: - - * Physical separation can be cumbersome and expensive, since we may have to - obtain and set up a separate physical machine for each security level we - need. - * There's generally no secure way to transfer data between physically - separate computers running conventional OSes. (Qubes has a secure inter-VM - file transfer system to handle this.) - * Physically separate computers running conventional OSes are still - independently vulnerable to most conventional attacks due to their monolithic - nature. - * Malware which can bridge air gaps has existed for several years now and - is becoming increasingly common. - -(For more on this topic, please see the paper -[Software compartmentalization vs. physical separation][paper-compart].) - - -More information ----------------- - -This page is just a brief sketch of what Qubes is all about, and many -technical details have been omitted here for the sake of presentation. - - * If you're a current or potential Qubes user, you may want to check out the - [documentation][doc] and the [FAQ][user-faq]. - * If you're a developer, there's dedicated [documentation][system-doc] - and an [FAQ][devel-faq] just for you. - * Ready to give Qubes a try? Head on over to the [downloads] page. - * Once you've installed Qubes, here's a guide on [getting started]. - - -[Tails]: https://tails.boum.org/ -[Xen]: http://www.xenproject.org -[paper-compart]: http://www.invisiblethingslab.com/resources/2014/Software_compartmentalization_vs_physical_separation.pdf -[doc]: /doc/ -[user-faq]: /doc/user-faq/ -[system-doc]: /doc/system-doc/ -[devel-faq]: /doc/devel-faq/ -[downloads]: /downloads/ -[getting started]: /doc/getting-started/ diff --git a/doc.md b/doc.md index 27114a6a..9dcba3bb 100644 --- a/doc.md +++ b/doc.md @@ -13,7 +13,6 @@ redirect_from: The Basics ---------- - * [A Simple Introduction to Qubes](/intro/) * [Users' FAQ](/doc/user-faq/) * [Mailing Lists](/doc/mailing-lists/) * [Further reading: How is Qubes different from...?](http://blog.invisiblethings.org/2012/09/12/how-is-qubes-os-different-from.html)