Copying my /home directory to external usb drive help
ok im thinking of copying my /home directory by just click & dragging it to my external usb hard drive. then do a fresh reinstall. then just replace the new /home directory with the one on my hard drive(old home directory) will it have my original programs i used to have and all my settings & stuff?
-i have ubuntu |
will not mostly work
yes the data will be there but not the ownership and app gard permissions you might want to use the -P option in "cp" see: Code:
cp --help cp -RP /home/YourUser /dev/usb? |
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I suggest instead using cp -a from command line. I insist on the importance of using -a to preserve ownerships and permissions, though files in your home directory shouldn't be hard to fix if you fail to preserve permissions. Alternatively you could use rsync or a similar tool. Quote:
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Out of curiosity, what is the problem that you are trying to fix with the re-installation of your OS? If you reinstall the same OS you usually get the same thing you have right now, unless you have messed something terribly outside your package manager. |
Hello james larson,
be aware, that if your USB-drive is formatted with FAT32 filesystem, you're files will lose their permissions. When copying them back to Linux, all files are seen as executable. It is no problem to create a Linux-filesystem like ext3 on an USB-drive. Don't you have a separate partition for your /home directory? if you have, you may do the reinstallation but be sure that /home is not new formatted. If you don't have a separate /home partition, I'd strongly recommend to create one. Markus |
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Markus |
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Markus |
james_larson, I have done similar things successfully to a FAT32 external drive (I left it FAT32 because, from time to time, I had to plug it into a Windows box).
I copy the non-hidden files in my home directory, then copy ONLY the hidden directories that contain configuration settings that I have changed or significant data that I need, primarily .fluxbox, .pan2, and .opera (which includes my mail store). I also back up any files from /etc that I have changed significantly, such as smb.conf and rc.firewall. When I restore the information into my new home, I restore all the public data, but I do not restore the hidden directories. I restore their contents into the new hidden directories in my new OS installation. When I do this, I also take the opportunity to do house-cleaning and junk all the stuff I don't need any more. Any permissions glitches (frankly, I can't recall any major ones), I can fix with chmod. It may not be elegant, but it has worked for me through several computer upgrades. |
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You're kidding, right? A copy to a raw device node? That would render it useless till you partition and format it again... |
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If your external device isn't formatted w/ a Linux file-system you'd be best off using tar - that way your ownerships & permissions will be preserved. That said: your programs don't reside in home; personalised settings for programs and menu entries may. Cheers, Tink |
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