How to Set Up a Kali Linux Persistent USB Drive for Portable Pen Testing: Step-by-Step Guide ~ Logon2Tech

Create a Persistent Kali Linux USB Drive for On-the-Go Penetration Testing

Kali Linux, renowned for its powerful penetration testing tools, is a popular choice among cybersecurity professionals and ethical hackers. One of the most useful features of Kali Linux is its ability to be run from a USB drive, making it portable and perfect for on-the-go pen testing. In this guide, we will walk you through the process of setting up a Kali Linux persistent USB drive for portable pen testing, providing you with the flexibility to carry your tools and data wherever you go.

What is a Persistent USB Drive?

A persistent USB drive allows you to run an operating system (OS) like Kali Linux directly from a USB stick while saving changes, configurations, and data between reboots. Unlike a standard live USB, which runs in a read-only mode, a persistent USB lets you save your pen testing results, custom scripts, installed tools, and any other modifications you make. This persistence is crucial for pen testers who need to carry around their specific tools and test results in a portable, secure format.

What You Will Need:

A USB Drive (at least 16 GB recommended): The larger the USB stick, the more space you’ll have for persistence and data.
Kali Linux ISO: The latest Kali Linux ISO can be downloaded from the official Kali Linux website.
Rufus or Etcher: These tools allow you to create a bootable USB from the Kali Linux ISO.
GParted (optional): This is a partition editor that can help you configure the USB drive and allocate space for persistence.

Step 1: Prepare the USB Drive

Format the USB Drive

Insert your USB drive into your computer.
Open Disk Management on Windows or use GParted on Linux to format the USB drive.
Create two partitions on the USB drive:
- The first partition will be used for the Kali Linux live system (ext4 format).
- The second partition will be used for persistence (ext4 format).

Note: If you're using GParted on Linux, you can do this easily. If you're on Windows, using Rufus will handle partitioning for you.

Partition Scheme:

Partition 1 (Root): Make this primary and format it as ext4. This will hold the Kali Linux system.
Partition 2 (Persistence): Also make it primary and format it as ext4. This will hold the persistent storage.

Step 2: Download and Write the Kali Linux ISO to USB

Using Rufus on Windows:

Download Rufus from the official site.
Launch Rufus and select your USB device.
Under the "Boot selection" section, choose Kali Linux ISO and locate the file you downloaded.
Select the Partition scheme: Choose MBR for BIOS/UEFI compatibility.
Set the File system to FAT32 and click Start to create the bootable drive.

Rufus will copy the Kali Linux files to the first partition and make the USB drive bootable.

Using dd Command on Linux:

If you're on Linux, you can use the dd command to write the Kali Linux ISO to the USB drive. The command would look like this:

sudo dd if=kali-linux-2024.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress

Replace /dev/sdX with the correct device path for your USB drive (use lsblk to check).

Step 3: Set Up Persistence

Persistence allows Kali Linux to save data between sessions. To set up persistence on the second partition, follow these steps:

Identify the Partition: Open a terminal and use the lsblk command to find your USB drive. You should see something like /dev/sdX1 for the Kali Linux system and /dev/sdX2 for the persistent partition.

Create a Persistence Directory:

sudo mount /dev/sdX2 /mnt
sudo mkdir /mnt/persistence
sudo mount /dev/sdX1 /mnt/persistence

Edit the persistence.conf File: Now you need to configure the persistence settings. Create a file named persistence.conf on the second partition:
```
sudo nano /mnt/persistence.conf
```
Inside this file, add the following line:
```
/ union
```
This tells Kali to save all changes to the persistent partition.
Unmount the USB Partition: Once you’ve created the persistence configuration, unmount the partition:
```
sudo umount /mnt
```

Step 4: Booting Kali Linux with Persistence

Once the USB drive is set up with persistence, you can boot into Kali Linux and start using it with your portable pen-testing tools.

Boot from USB: Insert the USB drive into your target system and boot from it. You may need to access the BIOS/UEFI settings to set the USB drive as the first boot device.
Select Kali Linux (Live Persistent): On the boot menu, choose the option to boot Kali Linux with persistence. This will load Kali Linux and ensure that any changes you make are saved to the persistent partition.

Step 5: Verify Persistence

To verify that your persistence is working, try creating a file or installing a tool, then reboot the system.

Create a test file:
```
echo "Test" > /root/testfile.txt
```
Reboot Kali Linux. After rebooting, check if the file still exists:
```
cat /root/testfile.txt
```
If the file is still there, you’ve successfully set up persistence.

Step 6: Install Pen Testing Tools

Kali Linux comes pre-loaded with a variety of pen-testing tools, but if you need additional tools or updates, you can install them as needed. Some commonly used pen-testing tools include:

Nmap: A network exploration tool.
```
sudo apt install nmap
```
Metasploit: A framework for testing security vulnerabilities.
```
sudo apt install metasploit-framework
```
Burp Suite: A popular tool for web vulnerability scanning.
```
sudo apt install burpsuite
```

Remember, since your USB drive has persistence, any tools or files you install will remain on the USB even after reboot.

Step 7: Encryption (Optional)

For added security, you may want to encrypt the persistent partition to protect sensitive data. You can use LUKS (Linux Unified Key Setup) to encrypt the persistence partition. This process requires additional steps but will provide an extra layer of security for your pen testing data.

To encrypt the partition:

Install the necessary tools:
```
sudo apt install cryptsetup
```
Encrypt the persistent partition using LUKS:
```
sudo cryptsetup luksFormat /dev/sdX2
```

You will need to enter a passphrase to access the encrypted partition every time you boot.

Conclusion

Setting up a Kali Linux persistent USB drive is an excellent way for pen testers to carry their tools, configurations, and test results securely and conveniently. By following the steps above, you can have a fully functional portable Kali Linux environment that retains all of your data and tools, no matter where you go.

This setup is ideal for cybersecurity professionals who need a reliable, portable, and customizable pen-testing platform. Whether you're conducting penetration tests, vulnerability assessments, or network audits, your Kali Linux USB drive with persistence will be a powerful tool in your arsenal.

By ensuring that your tools and settings are portable and persistent, you can improve your productivity and efficiency when performing tests in various environments.