How to save session and installed programs to hardrive - using Linux Mint Live CD
 

Isnt there a way with linux live cd's, to save the live cd session, and also to save any games that ive installed with Mint's software manager, to the computers HDD?

So E.g - I dont want to install flash plugins everytime i boot from the live CD to watch youtube, or install a video codec etc over again, or game that I installed with software manager.

wanna save it ALL to hardrive!

Thank you!

ALSO last simple question:
If I want to install Mint Linux (or ubuntu or whatever) properly along side on a windows 7 computer.. Is it as simple as:

- creating a new partition
- installing ubuntu to that new partition

Than done? I can select windows 7 or Linux at startup?

or is it more complicated than that?

Thankyou again!

Hi there,

so why don't you install the system normally?

There's no such thing as "impossible" in Linux. Based on that assumption I'm pretty sure that this can be done. But I don't know right away how it's done, and it would counteract the primary purpose of a Live CD, which is not to touch the host's HDD.

However, you might consider to use a USB pen drive with your live system on it instead of a CD, and when preparing that pen drive, you can reserve some space for persistent data. The advantage is that the host system remains clean, and you can use your saved environment on any machine.
There are some tools available to create a bootable Live USB drive, like Unetbootin. If you do a search on the web, you'll find some more.

It is actually that simple. The installer will detect an existing Windows installation and include that into the boot menu.
You don't even have to create that partition, just make sure there's enough unpartitioned space left on the HDD (allow for at least 20GB), and the Linux installer will take care of that. Besides, it's advisable to have at least two partitions - one for swap, and another for the actual file system. Once you dig into it, you may find it clever to even split the file system in two or three partitions (e.g. have a separate partition for the /home directory). But for the beginning and for learning, it's okay to have everything on just one partition.

[X] Doc CPU

From that clear advice i think youve convinced me to do a proper install. When i get home from work im going to install linux mint.

Will I be able to install Ubuntu with them too? So at startup i can pick from 3: Win7/Mint/Ubuntu.
Will ubuntu have to be on different partition to Mint?

Also I think i will also install Mint to a usb, youve reminded me how good portable computing can be. Can have My computer in my pocket lol. Theres an easy way to install ubuntu/mint to usb, using 'startup disk creator' within the distributions.

Thanks for your help so far!

Hi there,

assuming you have enough space on your hard disk, that should be no problem.
But to me, that sounds like you're still in the process of getting to know the various Linux distros, and exploring their assets and caveats. Have you ever thought about doing it in a virtual environment? Like installing VirtualBox on your Windows PC, and setting up a couple of virtual machines? So you can test drive Ubuntu, Mint, Debian, Fedora or whatever without re-partitioning your hard disk.
Once you have established your favorite, you do a clean install in a HDD partition.

Yes, definitely. Most Linux distros use the same standardized directory structure, so they would bite each other if you tried to put them all on the same partition.

Have a lot of fun!

[X] Doc CPU

I could do virtual box, but it runs in windows, so its not best native performance. Can you install all apps in virtual box, and it saves? Tho I think ive made my mind up that i like Mint and Ubuntu the best. taking into account The ease of use, slick looks, functionality and popularity. They both jus look so damn cool lol.

I dont mind doing i full install of them, as Ive got a nice big 200GB partition to play with, and i can split that into as many partitions as i want. Im not short of partition manager programs either

I just dont wanna mess my windows 7 boot up

thanks again bro

Hi there,

of course, yes. It's like a complete separate PC inside your PC. Or many of them. That's the idea!

Okay, that's a matter of personal taste. I've been using Ubuntu for almost three years now (having Windows XP on another PC), but I didn't upgrade beyond Ubuntu 10.10 because I hate the new Unity desktop. And I also don't like Gnome 3, which is why I like Mint with the MATE desktop, because it's a revival of Gnome 2.

If you're as careful as it sounds, you made your Windows 7 system partition pretty small from the start, and allocated the remaining space to additional partitions. More than about 20GB for the system partition would've been nonsense. So you can resize and reuse your data partition any time you like. Of course you do have a valid backup of your data, so even deleting the data partition would not be a problem.

If you silently answered "No!" to any of these implicit questions, you did something wrong. ;-)

[X] Doc CPU

Ah il give virtual box a try.

Yeh I like Mint 12 and ubuntu 11 as im new to linux and coming from using a phone with 'software manager' style interface and also a windows 7 user.

Heres my HDD layout:

1- [100mb boot partition auto made by windows]

2 - [35gb win7 installation]

3 - [200gb total empty playground partition]

4 - [140gb multimedia partition]

Hi there,

yeah, if you're used to Windows 7, there's almost nothing left that could shock you ...

That looks fine. Plenty of space to play with. :-)

[X] Doc CPU

I full installed Linux Mint.

Found out that if you create unallocated disk space (50gb in my case) and THEN install Mint with 'install along side other O.S' it AUTOMATICALLY will install to the unallocated partition space, and automatically format it to EXT4 and automatically create a 2gb Swap space.

Pretty easy, so I dont why MINT COULD HAVE NOT JUST TOLD ME THAT BEFORE (to create Unallocated disk space, and it will auto install to it), it would have been so much easier.. instead of me fiddling around with the other installer that was giving me 'root file not define error' or some crap..

But YEH woohoo Linux mint is installed to its own 50gb partition

BUT NOW - It has set itself as the DEFAULT BOOT in GRUB (damn Mint taking over), it should have asked me first, I want Windows 7 as the DEFAULT boot, and then at start up if I wanna go on Mint I will simply press the arrow to select it.

Do you know a simple way to set my WIN7 as default boot? With 3 second delay at least, so ive got time to select linux if I ever want to. But for my lil siblings, WIN7 will then automatically start for them in 3 seconds.

Thanks in advance!!

Solved boot change:

I downloaded 'startup manager' here http://linuxappfinder.com/package/startupmanager, clicked 'INSTALL NOW'

Then started after install, opened startup manager, and YES it gives me a GUI interface to change boot time delat and default operating system to boot

NICE! :)

(See this is the only problem I see with linux, For example If i wanted to introduce linux to my mum, and give her the cd, she wouldnt know this partitioning info that i do.

And then If I told her the computer will start linux instead of mint by standard now, but you can choose if you want windows, she'd say 'NO i want windows by default, and when ever i feel like trying out linux THEN il choose it'

And then when my mum hears shes gotta edit the grub menu text file, and get all nitty gritty with code computing, OR gotta download an 'extra program': 'startup manager' shes gonna be like, 'WTF FORGET THAT sounds like too much work, and if I leave it.. im always gonna forget to select windows on start up, and itl just waste more time'

And live cd - shell probably try it out once or twice, but then forget about it when she realises it takes long to boot from cd and also that, whenever shes opening apps the windows jitter because the cd is reading/buffering every time. She'l just get fed up with it.

Shes not gonna be willing to learn my 10 years of PC experience, just to learn how to isntall use linux, she gonna be like FORGET THAT lol.


But for me, il suck it up, and now that its installed MINT does run GREATT!!

Hi there,

well, I don't know what you've been told elsewhere, but didn't I tell you? Yes, I think I did. :-)

If you hadn't already found another "solution", I would've suggested you to adjust the configuration of the bootloader GRUB2. A change to one line in the configuration file is all it would've taken. Two lines to make it elegant.

I'm surprised, by the way, that the GRUB menu worked for you at all. I installed Mint on four PCs up to now (one virtual, one notebook, two desktop PCs, one of them in dual-boot with XP), but none of them really displayed the boot menu at first, because GRUB set an unsupported video mode and the monitor was out of range during boot. I had to fix the GRUB configuration in all four setups to get something on the screen.

Oh, by the way, I put "solution" in quotes because for me, installing some extra software is not an option if I can have the effect with some tiny change in a aconfig file.

It's never a good idea to face people with something new without guiding and accompanying them at the beginning.

Look, my parents have used a PC for more than ten years now. They started with Windows 98, then upgraded to XP. But they would've been helpless if it hadn't been for my installing and maintaining the system, and patiently helping them with everyday work. By now, they get along pretty well with it on their own, but every few weeks they ask my to fix something they deem suspicious or broken. Usually it's just a trifle, like an accidentally displaced button bar or something.
And now, some months ago, they asked me if I thought it was difficult to get used to Linux. My dad had heard a few times that it was supposed to be "better than Windows" (and yes, my parents have run into typical Windows troubles every now and then). I told them it was too general a point of view to say that one or the other system is better, they both had their pros and cons. And of course, it would mean some flexibility to go from Windows to Linux.
Now they have Mint 12 as an alternative OS alongside their well-acquainted XP, and they're very open to it and try to get familiar with it. A bit uncertain, of course, but very interested, knowing that they can boot into XP any time they need something and don't know how to do it in Mint.

And I'm sure that somebody who is just talked into trying something else wouldn't be so open to it. They asked for it, and I think that's a good start.

[X] Doc CPU

Oh yeh damn i didnt look properly, yep hit nail on the head there:
"You don't even have to create that partition, just make sure there's enough unpartitioned space left on the HDD (allow for at least 20GB), and the Linux installer will take care of that."

Thanks for that

Now I know for future use, when install linux along side another operating system, just to make sure there at least 20gb UN-allocated space on the HDD, surprisingly easy. Nice one from mint/ubuntu

and Yeah true, My mum still even asks me for help on her windows 7 too.

Thanks for your help anyway, youve been very helpful, much respect!