Moving /boot to new partition?

gbowden · 11-30-2006, 04:22 AM

Will it be safe to move /boot to another partition as long as I update the /etc/fstab?

Will I have to change any setting in LILO?

fstab:

Code:

/dev/sda3        swap             swap        defaults         0   0
/dev/sda1        /                ext3        defaults         1   1
/dev/sda5        /home            ext3        defaults         1   2
/dev/hda1        /windows-c       ntfs        ro,users,utf8,umask=0222  1   0
/dev/cdrom       /mnt/cdrom       auto        noauto,users,ro  0   0
/dev/fd0         /mnt/floppy      auto        noauto,owner     0   0
devpts           /dev/pts         devpts      gid=5,mode=620   0   0
proc             /proc            proc        defaults         0   0
//PRIVATE-E86712E/documents /officeb smbfs
username=root,password=*,users,uid=gbowden,gid=users 0 0

lilo.conf:

Code:

# LILO configuration file
# generated by 'liloconfig'
#
# Start LILO global section
boot = /dev/sda
compact        # faster, but won't work on all systems.
prompt
timeout = 300
read-only
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
vga = 773
# Normal VGA console
# vga = normal
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x64k
# vga=791
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x32k
# vga=790
# VESA framebuffer console @ 1024x768x256
# vga=773
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x64k
# vga=788
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x32k
# vga=787
# VESA framebuffer console @ 800x600x256
# vga=771
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x64k
# vga=785
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x32k
# vga=784
# VESA framebuffer console @ 640x480x256
# vga=769
# ramdisk = 0     # paranoia setting
# End LILO global section
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz-ide-2.4.33.3
  root = /dev/sda1
  label = Linux_2.4
  read-only # Non-UMSDOS filesystems should be mounted read-only for checking
# Linux bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz-generic-2.6.17.13
  root = /dev/sda1
  label = Linux_2.6
  initrd = /boot/initrd.2.6.w.gz
# Linux bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz-generic-smp-2.6.17.13
  root = /dev/sda1
  label = Linux_2.6_SMP
  initrd = /boot/initrd.2.6.smp.gz
# Linux bootable partition config ends
# Linux bootable partition config begins
image = /boot/vmlinuz-generic-smp-2.6.18.2
  root = /dev/sda1
  label = Linux_2.6_SMP2
# Linux bootable partition config ends
# Windows bootable partition config begins
other = /dev/hda1
  label = Windows
  table = /dev/hda
# Windows bootable partition config ends

gegechris99 · 11-30-2006, 06:21 AM

When I installed Gentoo some time ago, I used a different partition for /boot.

Here's the Gentoo Handbook that shows that is possible:

http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/handboo...?part=1&chap=8

So I guess that yes, you can move /boot to another partition of your drive (/dev/sda in your case) and update /etc/fstab accordingly. I'm not sure if /boot must be the first partition in your drive (as indicated in Gentoo handbook).

I don't think that lilo.conf need to be updated: you specify in it the drive to boot (/dev/sda) and the physical location of your "/" directory (/dev/sda1).

gbowden · 11-30-2006, 06:49 AM

Ok, thanks. I will try it and see and post back if I have any problems.

TSquaredF · 11-30-2006, 06:54 AM

I have a 10 MB partition that I use for /boot. In my case it is hda1, so I don't know if it can be other than the first partition. The kernel, sysmap, etc are in the top of this directory. I use GRUB, so the GRUB files are in /dev/hda1/grub. My menu.lst line for this is:

Quote:

kernel (hd0,0)/vmlinuz root=/dev/hda2 ro

This arrangement works well for me.
Regards,
Bill

gbowden · 11-30-2006, 09:20 AM

Everything went well I now have a /boot partition mounted as /dev/sda4 on /boot.

My new fstab:

Code:

/dev/sda3        swap             swap        defaults         0   0
/dev/sda1        /                ext3        defaults         1   1
/dev/sda5        /home            ext3        defaults         1   2
/dev/sda4        /boot            ext3        defaults         1   3
/dev/hda1        /windows-c       ntfs        ro,users,utf8,umask=0222  1   0
/dev/cdrom       /mnt/cdrom       auto        noauto,users,ro  0   0
/dev/fd0         /mnt/floppy      auto        noauto,owner     0   0
devpts           /dev/pts         devpts      gid=5,mode=620   0   0
proc             /proc            proc        defaults         0   0
//PRIVATE-E86712E/documents /officeb smbfs  username=root,password=*,users,uid=gbowden,gid=users 0 0

df output:

Code:

Filesystem            Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda1              91G   53G   33G  62% /
/dev/sda5              82G  6.1G   71G   8% /home
/dev/sda4             7.8G  141M  7.2G   2% /boot
/dev/hda1              38G   17G   21G  45% /windows-c
//PRIVATE-E86712E/documents
                       20G   13G  6.2G  68% /officeb

Regards,

Greg

gegechris99 · 11-30-2006, 09:47 AM

Glad to hear that.

But do you really need a 10Gb /boot partition ? That's a lot of kernels !!!

If you don't intend to experiment with many kernels, you should be OK with a 500M partition.

b0uncer · 11-30-2006, 09:56 AM

Quote:

If you don't intend to experiment with many kernels, you should be OK with a 500M partition.

Wow you're talking big. I remember it was not that long ago when a RedHat installer asked me to create a /boot of at least 16MB. When did we go to gigabytes?

I think 500 megs is quite a big too. What the heck is eating over 140 megabytes on your /boot? I'd check out, since in my own experience you don't really need that much space (well if you have a few dozens of fully equipped, every-module-installed kernels, then yeah), it's just pure waste having over 7 gigabytes of unused space on /boot.

gegechris99 · 11-30-2006, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Wow you're talking big. I remember it was not that long ago when a RedHat installer asked me to create a /boot of at least 16MB. When did we go to gigabytes

Yes a 500MB /boot partition is big but I looked at the lilo.conf file and there were 4 kernels.

So maybe gbowden wants to do some testing and I wanted to recommend him a safe limit.

gbowden · 11-30-2006, 10:05 AM

I don't know what's taking up 141 MB of data.

Code:

16:59:54 root@gbnet:/boot# ls -lah
total 11M
drwxr-xr-x  5 root root 4.0K 2006-11-30 16:27 ./
drwxr-xr-x 22 root root 4.0K 2006-11-30 16:10 ../
drwxr-xr-x  8 root root 4.0K 2006-11-16 21:22 2.4.33.3/
lrwxrwxrwx  1 root root   37 2006-11-30 17:05 README.initrd -> /usr/doc/mkinitrd-1.0.1/README.initrd
lrwxrwxrwx  1 root root   32 2006-11-30 17:05 System.map -> System.map-generic-smp-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 695K 2006-09-09 08:14 System.map-generic-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 707K 2006-10-01 00:20 System.map-generic-smp-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 762K 2006-11-18 14:05 System.map-generic-smp-2.6.18.2
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 615K 2006-09-01 08:51 System.map-ide-2.4.33.3
-rw-r--r--  1 root root  512 2006-11-16 18:57 boot.0800
lrwxrwxrwx  1 root root   28 2006-11-30 17:05 config -> config-generic-smp-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root  62K 2006-09-09 08:14 config-generic-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root  61K 2006-10-01 00:20 config-generic-smp-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root  64K 2006-11-18 14:05 config-generic-smp-2.6.18.2
-rw-r--r--  1 root root  41K 2006-09-01 08:51 config-ide-2.4.33.3
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 5.0K 2006-08-08 07:34 diag1.img
drwxr-xr-x  8 root root 4.0K 2006-11-16 22:43 initrd-tree/
-rw-------  1 root root 375K 2006-11-16 21:33 initrd.2.6.gz
-rw-------  1 root root 467K 2006-11-16 22:46 initrd.2.6.smp.gz
-rw-------  1 root root 453K 2006-11-16 22:16 initrd.2.6.w.gz
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 4.1K 2006-11-18 14:10 lilo.out
drwx------  2 root root  16K 2006-11-30 17:03 lost+found/
-rw-------  1 root root  76K 2006-11-30 16:27 map
lrwxrwxrwx  1 root root   29 2006-11-30 17:05 vmlinuz -> vmlinuz-generic-smp-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 1.7M 2006-09-09 08:14 vmlinuz-generic-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 1.8M 2006-10-01 00:20 vmlinuz-generic-smp-2.6.17.13
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 1.9M 2006-11-18 14:04 vmlinuz-generic-smp-2.6.18.2
-rw-r--r--  1 root root 1.3M 2006-09-01 08:51 vmlinuz-ide-2.4.33.3

du only shows 12 megs used:

Code:

17:02:28 root@gbnet:~# du -sh /boot/
13M     /boot/

The reason I used 7 GB for the /boot partition is because that's the space I had left when resising my swap partition to the nearest MB.

Is there a way to add 7 GB of free space on an existing partition like /home ?

Regards,

Greg

gegechris99 · 11-30-2006, 03:21 PM

You may have some junk data from your old swap partition but I don't know how it's possible.

Some programs for resizing partitions exist as "parted" that is available in the extra/ directory of Slackware 11.0.

But I haven't tried so you'd better first read the documentation on their site.

TNWestTex · 11-30-2006, 03:22 PM

Simple way in /boot do

Code:

mkdir stuff
cd /home/user
ln -sf /boot/stuff stor

otherwise you have to check how the partitions are physically on the disk. The /boot partition can be shrunk easily using filesize. A new 100 to 200M partition created at the end of the free space and /boot copied to it and the old /boot deleted. The free space created that way can be added to the partition preceding it on the drive whatever that may be. Re run lilo at the end to get everything set properly.

gbowden · 11-30-2006, 03:36 PM

I used QTParted to resize and then format the free space of the swap partition.

I then copied the old data from the previous /boot partition to the new /boot partition.

Would it be better if I resize the new /boot partition to about 100 megs then use the spare space to make a /tmp partition?

Then I would be able add the noexec in the fstab to the /tmp partition and hopefully add some security.

Regards,

Greg

gegechris99 · 12-01-2006, 03:34 AM

If you don't plan to add other kernels, you can do with a 50Mb /boot partition.

As for the remaining free partition from your old swap partition, it's up to you to decide what to do with it (OK, I think you know that). So here's a HOW-TO to help you decide:

http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Partition/

Paragraph 4 may be useful to you

gbowden · 12-01-2006, 03:43 AM

Thanks for all your help.

I'm going to make a /tmp partition from the left over 7 GB.

Regards,

Greg