I have installed debian squeeze 3 times today and at least 20 times over the last two weeks.

where can I find simple instructions (if there be any) on backing up and restoring system data?

I have searched this and other forums and read the answers ranging from the google link to nerd talk I don't understand with the insults included.

I used a usb puppy install to copy the / partition on /dev/sdb6 to the backup partition on /dev/sdb8. If or when I crash this install can I copy the "backup partition" back to the / partition and the system work?

I tried to use partimage but get the error that / has to be unmounted but when I attempt unmounting it I get the error device is busy?????

I am wits end! Thanks in advance for any suggestion or help.

thanks
eddie

There are so many links for taking backup and restore debian.
Here you can checkup some of the links:
http://www.debian.org/doc/manuals/sy...in-backup.html
Here you can check some of the backup and recovery tools:
http://wiki.debian.org/BackupAndRecovery
Here is another link:
http://www.debianhelp.co.uk/backup.htm

You can check on google, there are so many and various ways to...

---------- Post added 13th Mar 2012 at 12:15 PM ----------

Check this: https://www.google.co.in/#hl=en&scli...w=1280&bih=879

The real question is what do you keep messing up that you have to reinstall?

Try downloading and using Clonezilla, it is a livecd made for creating and restoring backups.

1 members found this post helpful.

Yep, Clonezilla works great. It can make a full OS backup on the same machine on different partition or different hard disk or on another machine using ssh, samba or nfs. Quite easy to work with it.

I use remastersys to take backup of ubuntu and make live cd.

Thanks to all for the responses!

Downloaded Clonezilla and made a backup of the debian partitions this morning. I assume the restore process is a reverse of the backup??


Linux is a bucket-list item for me. I am 70 years old.

Bought first computer in 1983, a CP/M system and migrated to MS-Dos/windows when MS beat out Digital Research with IBM. Since 1995, every 6-10 months I make a run at Linux usually giving up in disgust after 2 to 4 weeks. Working on it 10 weeks this time.

Why I have to re-install so often.
Ended up with a spare machine. I want to build a "Swiss Knife" computer using Win-7 on one disk (750 GB) with a virtual box installation to play with linux distros. On the second drive (1 TB) several distros of linux installed. Debian, PCLOS, Slackware, ARCH and Gentoo. Debian is primary distro and will add Virtual box to it.

Many of the installs involve learning how to boot multiple distros. Learning about logical partitions and installing GRUB/LILO to the / directory instead of MBR. I use Easybsd for booting the different distros. My puppy-linux on a USB has been a great help. Hoping for the same results with Clonezilla.

Installing non-free drivers for graphics card is the current sticking point. I had them installed on one installation, but the next thing I attempted (backing up the system) caused the crash.


Satyaveer Arya
Visited the link. Only two links on the first 2 pages that I had not read.

Thanks Again!
eddie

fine, enjoy in your researches, this is one of attractive points on linux.
Check out what is in repositories (via Synaptic on Debian), there is plenty of various software.
This list of linux software looks fine: http://www.techsupportalert.com/cont...ware-linux.htm

Yes, restore with Clonezilla is reverse process from backup. Just keep in mind, if you change the size of your partitions, Clonezilla
could have a problem restoring it back, especially if you shrink partition after backup, in the case of reducing size of partition, it won't work.