Best method of running Linux distro from 4GB usb stick?
 

Im trying to understand how this should be done.

Do you run a live distro from stick or do you do an installation with swap and partitions as on a hard drive?

If you run a live distro how do you setup stick for storage and swap?


I currently run Mandriva 2007 on my PC so im using this for the memory stick since im familiar with this distro.

Confused usb stick newbie:scratch: Any pointers on the issue will be greatfully recieved.

You definitely don't want to just install to the flash device like it was a standard HDD. Flash has a limited amount of read/write operations that can be performed on it before it begins to fail. Installing a full operating system onto such a device will destroy it many times faster than under normal use.

The best way to go about it would be to place an initrd on the flash drive that holds the system itself, and then have a second partition on the drive that is mounted as /home. At the very least, if you were to install the distribution to the flash drive, you would want to mount the root partition as read-only. Of course that is likely to bring up a whole slew of other problems.

The easiest way about it would be to simply use a distribution that supports installing to USB devices, like SLAX or DSL.

Thanks - DSL then.

One more question. On the machine im using to test usb stick it only has USB-FDD boot option in bios. Will this be ok???

progress
 

Ok this where im currently at. :study: :scratch: :study:

I downloaded and burnt iso for DSL. Just to see what its like. Ok looks feels fine. Found option in desktop to install to USB-HDD, did that but it seems USB-FDD wont boot that on my machine so im stuffed for a direct boot test.

I have lilo on my machine so that i can dual boot between xp and mandriva 2oo7. Allows me to slowly migrate.

So I figure in this case to test my USB DSL stick I could just add to lilo options so in mandriva i tried to add /dev/sda1, ok, but it wants the location of kernal image, ok back into DSL ISO boot and find what looks like a location....KERNAL= /boot/linux24.

Back to Mandriva and tried ading /dev/sda1, linux OS, kernal location /boot/linux24.... i didnt like that...doesnt exist???

Now im stumped! :Pengy: :newbie:

One last thing! Why does DSL insist on making my 4GB USB one single FAT partion. Tried everything I know in FDISK. If its only 50Mb it doesnt need all that.

Further progress
 

Hey I found this and putting link in for anybody else whos wondering

http://www.cyberwalker.com/forums/sh....php?tid/2222/

So thats over and out for USB-FDD and Floppy boot to USB.

Ok so how can I test my USB DSL pen on my machine? Lilo to my mind should work but wheres the kernal path for DSL pendrive...otherwise I can ttry LILO

Next question... can I get an emulator in my mandriva linux KDE desktop and boot the pen drive in that?:Pengy:

Sorry if im being a nob! I just aint overly geeky:D (but im getting there!)