I am not sure where to post this.
For safety reasons I run multi boot Linux.
It did not work well in last mishap.

I just experienced total meltdown of my primary OS.

As far as I can tell the cause was trying to copy folder from one partition to newly created and running / working RADI5 partition.
After careful analysis I used "sudo -i nautilus" to enable the destination files permissions.

It all behaved normal / correctly UNTIL I received a note that the destination is NOT large enough to accept the copy. That did not make sense since my destination was 100 GB and my source to copy was measly 5 GB. BUT the note has given me an option to do the copy anyway. Now I did not mind missing some files so I said OK copy it anyway.
And that was the last time I had a working operating system.

I can select regular option from grub menu or run any or the "advance " modes - the result are same - blank screen with lonely cursor in upper left corner, and no more disk activity.

My primary task - I like to restore my now defunct OS since my C code was build under it and now I have no clue how to access my code.

None of my C code is in my not accessible OS partition, it is in separate partitions.

So - how can I access it from my secondary and working OS?
In other words - is there "remote" way to access or make accessible my primary OS?
These are all standard C/C++ text files, nothing zipped or backed-up.

Secondary and more-less convenience task - how can I access my primary OS packages and "copy" them to my working backup OS? I have a few of them...


I am open to any suggestions.


ADDENDUM
Would e2fsck work? AKA is it worth the effort to try "newer version?"

q@q-desktop:~$ sudo e2fsck -p -v /dev/sda2
/dev/sda2 has unsupported feature(s): metadata_csum
e2fsck: Get a newer version of e2fsck!



http://old-releases.ubuntu.com/ubunt...n/e/e2fsprogs/

If your secondary OS Linux, then you should be able to mount the other partition to copy things over. If it is Windows, then you need to install an ext2/3/4 filesystem tools to read the partition. If you have WSL installed in Windows, it might be able to mount the other partition, but not sure.

1 members found this post helpful.

Making your OS functional and accessing your data are two different tasks. You can access your data (or what's left of it after you forced "writing to partition") by booting some external Linux media, mounting your filesystem(s) and copying off your files to another media, like a USB stick or network share.

2 members found this post helpful.

Most of your threads and posts seem to be about how useless Linux is, how it's deliberately unfixable and how we aren't helping you.
Seriously, wouldn't another operating system be a better fit for you? It's possible to get a used Windows laptop or Chromebook for a reasonable price.

SOLVED
For unknown reason the primary OS partition shrunk or was too small AFTER last package was added.
Having two Linux OS on single drive saved my a..
However , the note about " destination partition too small " is puzzling. It almost looks as "sudo -i nautilus" was in reality copying the source to wrong partition.

Thanks for all support received to solve this, appreciate that very much.

Live, learn, back-ups (multiplied by how important the data is to you )
and try to evolve from opinions... pun in 10 did.

Quick search example: https://www.welivesecurity.com/2015/...-up-your-data/

OK, I'll be frank.
I am very puzzled why this cliche about backing things up is endlessly repeated.
To me it clearly shows how the responder has chosen to NOT to read the post and mindlessly repeats the "back it up..." stuff. It this case this behavior does not contribute to the resolution of the issue - which is clearly stated at the post title. Read it please and if you can contribute to the solution - please do so.
I was NOT at any time concerned about loos of data , because I just lost access to the OS!
My data was never affected and as of today is still where I want it - intact.

I really appreciate group / forum support , but please , this constant preaching about irrelevant subject or personal innuendos is frustrating.

jan128,

you really should do something like LFS or at least Gentoo. Once you put your OS together from bits and pieces you won't break it any more, because you know exactly how it works. And even if you break it you will know why it broke and how to fix it.

[B][U]I'd mention it for other people finding this thread whether you care or not... especially after seeing solved.[/U][/B]It's not my C code that you almost lost, because you don't know how to SEARCH you'll <3 this one, i.e: RTfreeM!

but mistakes happen,,,

Thx Ondoho