Top choice for newcomers to Linux is a user-friendly operating system that’s easy to set up and manage.
Top choice for newcomers to Linux is a user-friendly operating system that’s easy to set up and manage.
I suggest Ubuntu since it's widely used, yet Linux Mint offers a straightforward experience for beginners.
I really want to test "Mint" first, but if I don’t get comfortable with it, I’ll switch to Ubuntu.
Mint and Ubuntu are suitable for beginners, though the knowledge gained will be limited. You won’t grasp how your X server functions, what :0 means, or how SELinux works in Ubuntu. You’ll also struggle to understand why hackers can easily install malware on an Ubuntu server during an upgrade. In short, you won’t get a solid grasp of how the operating system operates. It will be nearly impossible to dive into pentesting without a deep understanding of what’s happening under the hood. Even using a virtual machine with Mint won’t help—try Arch or Gentoo first to build your skills. You’ll feel more confident, learn quickly, and start strong.
It's accurate what you say. From the OPs question, it seems he might be a bit confused about installing Arch or Gentoo—unless he wouldn't ask this if it wasn't the case. Only the person asking can judge how much of a learning curve they can manage and how well they understand the available documentation and resources. I also don't see a need to explore deeper into Mint, Ubuntu, or other Linux distros just to get the system running.
This approach isn't the right way to master penetration testing. You won't grasp techniques tools can't detect. Try using SQLMap with the command you provided—get started with a course or online training instead.