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Old 07-23-2009, 03:39 AM   #1
ciden
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Question Want MINT on liveUSB. Do I have filesystem choices?


UNetBootin constrains filesystem choice to FAT32.
Is there a faster fs for the job? I also dont want the partition to be visible in windows.

I have a 2Gb pendrive with 2 1Gb partitions. i wish to have MINT on the 2nd partition, the first being FAT32 for common data. Since the MINT partition will be readonly, i was wondering if there is a fs better suited for the job than FAT32..?
 
Old 07-23-2009, 04:20 AM   #2
jdkaye
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I would guess that Mint usually runs on ext3 (or perhaps ext4) but I have no idea if these play nicely with UNetBootin.
cheers,
jdk
 
Old 07-23-2009, 06:32 AM   #3
linus72
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OK
first, you gotta know that, as far as I know

almost any Ubuntu persistent USB, which uses a casper-rw "file" to hold all changes, etc

Problem: Unlike most distros, puppy, etc
Ubuntu's casper-rw, which is Internally ext3, will only live on a fat32 parttiion, OR so i thought

Meaning, you have to have a usb with 2 partitions(ext3,fat32),
or a small fat32 parttion on hd,
or have the whole usb as fat32.

Now, wait, that's not all
I have found a few variations
and some hints

1) ext3 usb is far superior to fat32 in terms of data security/integrity

2) booting from a ext3, it will run slightly faster

Please read here
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Li...eCDPersistence

Now, BIG secret:

You can designate a WHOLE ext3 usb as "casper-rw"!
Meaning:

Quote:
Now that your USB Stick is unmounted we can format it. The only special consideration is that we must give the formatted partition the label “casper-rw”. This is the name the Live CD looks for to store persistent information. You can properly format your USB Stick by issuing the following command:
Code:
sudo mkfs.ext3 -b 4096 -L casper-rw /dev/sda1

Or you can make a casper-rw for a fat32 usb , ext3 partition on hd

Quote:
Instead of using a USB stick, you can use a file on your hard disk to store persistent information. The file must be named casper-rw and must be on the root of a partition. This partition can be any type that can be mounted automatically (e.g. vfat or ext3). (The persistent mode still works, if the file is created on the root partition of an USB stick.)

The following commands assume that a partition is mounted at /media/hda1. You can use any partition; even / will do fine. A file 128 MB in size will be created on this partition. To change the size, modify the count parameter of the "dd" command.
Code:
$ dd if=/dev/zero of=/media/hda1/casper-rw bs=1M count=128
128+0 records in
128+0 records out
134217728 bytes transferred in 0.947819 seconds (141606919 bytes/sec)
And this line in syslinux.cfg or menu.lst
is what makes it "persistent"

Code:
noprompt persistent cdrom-detect/try-usb=true

To answer your original question:
ext3 is better

Last edited by linus72; 07-23-2009 at 06:35 AM.
 
Old 07-23-2009, 07:58 AM   #4
michapma
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Are you installing Mint 6 or 7?

According to pendrivelinux.com:

Quote:
Linux Mint USB Creation Essentials

* LinuxMint-6.ISO > CD
* Working CD/DVD Drive
* Working internet connection
* 1GB USB flash drive (2GB+ recommended)
http://www.pendrivelinux.com/linux-m...nstall-via-cd/

Quote:
USB Linux Mint 7 Flash Drive creation essentials:

* 2GB or Larger USB Flash Drive (Fat32 formatted)
* Linux Mint 7 Gloria ISO
* fixmint7.exe

Persistence size: The default casper-rw loop file that becomes the partition for saving changes is only 1GB. If you have room and would prefer to use more space for saving changes you can download one of the following zip files and extract the new casper-rw file to your USB device, replacing the old one.

* 2GB casper-rw loop file
* 3GB casper-rw loop file
* 4GB casper-rw loop file
http://www.pendrivelinux.com/usb-lin...ation-windows/


I quote this more because of the size of the loop rather than the file system. You'd possibly be happier using the whole 2GB pendrive for Mint and using a separate 2GB pendrive for sharing data, or just go for a 4GB pendrive, which these days seem to cost just as little as a 2GB.
 
Old 07-26-2009, 12:35 PM   #5
ciden
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Thank you for ur time and patience.

I am still pretty confused about this stuff. I wanted MINT because it was a success in converting a friend of mine to dual boot. And he could even configure wi-fi by himself without prior linux experience. The included media codecs are also a significant plus

Could someone suggest a similar distro which can boot live from an ext3 disk?
 
Old 07-26-2009, 12:45 PM   #6
linus72
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What's up ciden?

I got all kinds of distro's on my ext3 usb dude

I can hook you up
What distro(s) you wanna put on there?

we can mix n match, whatever
you can try my new beta cd/usb too...

And, I have seen alot of posts here about mint not working so great

but, I can tell you how to put almost any distro on ext2 /ext3/fat32 usb dude
and have persistence, no Unetbootin

what do you wanna do?

I will tell you, for persistence, you will have to have a fat32 r/w
which you were already talking about
 
Old 07-27-2009, 11:15 AM   #7
ciden
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I used Ubuntu a while ago on a USB stick, and the boot was very slow, slower than even CD. maybe its due to the use of compressed filesystems. when faced with USB 1.0 machines, the speed is still slower.

My need is a demo system, which boots quickly from USB, and has easily configurable internet and media codecs pre-installed. I also want to be able to install it to harddrive, in case people like the demo.

My apprehension is that a full install to USB drive would complicate the installation to harddrive. I would be very happy with a HD installable read-only live usb. i do not require persistence.
 
Old 07-27-2009, 11:23 AM   #8
linus72
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OK
so, you want a fast light distro
that is nomadic
and can live on cd/usb/hd?

have you tried puppy, or tinycore?

tinycore will auto-dhcp on boot
installing it to hd is as easy as coping it to the hd

it doesn't have pre-installed codecs, but many avaiable

you want a customized Spin?

I can make anything dude
see my new stuff coming out today(I hope)
http://multidistro.com/tinycore-shots/tc-scrnshots.html
that's my isolinux/syslinux menu's and distro's

so, what codecs?
like vidio/audio stuff?
tinycores got alot of stuff available
 
  


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