How to build this distribution?

Xiangbuilder · 09-07-2003, 09:59 AM

I want to build a Linux system just by copying the files from existing linux system.
How to do this?
Maybe, you will type many words to answer this question.
So, if you wouldn't like doing this, just ignore.
Sorry for that.
Thank you.

fancypiper · 09-07-2003, 10:09 AM

That's all covered in the Linux From Scratch book.

Oops, I didn't read carefully, I thought you wanted to build Linux From Scratch

trickykid · 09-07-2003, 10:44 AM

Unless your speaking of installing an LFS system, I don't think you can just copy files over to create a whole new system. It would have to be setup the same with the same hardware to make it easy.

Are you trying to just create like a mirror image of one system to put on another?

I'm moving this out of LFS and into Linux - General as it doesn't appear your speaking of LFS, as with LFS you can't copy the files, you have to have an existing system installed and do lots of compiling, etc.

Xiangbuilder · 09-07-2003, 10:12 PM

Thank you.

I don't want to build LFS, because I will spend many times compiling.
Some friends always spends more than twenty hours building it.
I don't like that.

Thank you.

fancypiper · 09-07-2003, 10:19 PM

# Clone a distro to another drive or move directories around
Install drive in box (assuming IDE1 slave for examples) and ensure BIOS can detect it. Boot into Linux and login to your user's account. Open an x terminal and partition and format the new drive as you wish

Code:

[fancy@tinwhistle fancy]$ su -
Password: 
[root@tinwhistle root]# fdisk /dev/hdb

Exit with w to write the partition table.

Format the partitions with the chosen filesystems:
mke2fs /dev/hdbX -> ext2
mke2fs -j /dev/hdbX -> ext3
mkswap -> swap
mkreiserfs -> reiserfs
mkfs.xfs -> xfs

Make directories for source and destination mount points. You need these to keep out of an endless loop of copying itsself over and over.

Code:

[root@tinwhistle root]# mkdir /mnt/source
[root@tinwhistle root]# mkdir /mnt/destination

Mount your os partitions that you want to clone on /mnt/source
Mount your partitions on the new drive, making directory entries for your separate partitions (/boot, /home, /var etc.). If you are just copying a directory such as var, just cd to the directory you wish to copy instead of mounting partitions on /mnt/source.

Now, cd to /mnt/source and pipe it over with tar

Code:

[root@tinwhistle root]# cd /mnt/source
[root@tinwhistle source]# tar cf - . | (cd /mnt/destination && tar xBfp -)

Edit /etc/fstab as needed, install the boot loader if you moved a whole distro, and it should work when it is installed in it's final position when configured for the hardware.

Xiangbuilder · 09-08-2003, 01:06 AM

Thank you.
It is a good method to copy the whole existing linux OS.
If I want to build a Linux system as tiny as possible just by copying the files from existing linux system.
How to do this?
I believe that there must be a way to do this, but I can't do.

A Chinese website has explain how to do this, but not clearly.
I try to translate shortly, it maybe is useful to someone, my English is poor:

1.edit /boot/grub/grub.conf
2.create some necessary empty directories: /dev; /proc; /etc; /sbin; /bin; /lib; /mnt; /usr.
3.copy some necessary files from the existing linux OS's directories to the new linux OS's corresponding directories.
/dev:
console¡¢kmem¡¢mem¡¢null¡¢ram¡¢tty*, etc. (I don't like the word "etc" here, my installation was failed maybe just because of it. note that some files such as console can be copyed by the command: cp, a friend told me use the command:

Code:

#cd /;
#tar cf - dev | (cd /NEWLINUX; tar xf -)

)
/etc:
rc.d/*; fstab; inittab; passwd; group; shadow;
/bin and /sbin:
init¡¢getty (mingetty)¡¢login¡¢mount¡¢bash¡£
/lib;
ld.so (it is to a.out), or ld-linux.so (it is to ELF).

There is a file ld-linux.so.2 in /lib of my existing OS, however, there are no ld.so and ld-linux.so. So I copy /lib/ld-linux.so.2 to /NEWLINUX/lib/.
Finally, I can boot up the new OS and into its partition, however a error message said init mising, try to boot up without init. Maybe I can use some commands to boot up it without init. The website said: "if you don't want boot up the system through init, you can link init to /bin/bash. However, the person ddidn't point out how to make this link, maybe it is very simple in his opinion.

Thank you.

To do this, I should know much more knowledges about operating system than now I know, I am afraid. It is very difficult to me.

pe2338 · 09-14-2003, 09:09 AM

look for /sbin/init in the existing linux.
If you don't like/want to use init (although I would recomend it) make a symlink from /sbin/init to /bin/bash with

ln -s

more info on ln
man ln