Greetings.

I have Linux Mint 64 bit on a laptop, fresh install. I cloned the drive for backup purposes.

If I were to take that clone cd, and use it to install on another laptop, similar hardware, both systems capable of running 64 bit OS, will the only hurdle be having to download and install drivers for the second laptop's hardware?

Thanks in advance.

I don't think drivers are a problem. I've frequently installed a linux OS on one machine, imaged the OS with clonezille, then restored the image on another machine. It has always fired right up. Other than installing "grub" I don't do anything else.

I don't know but I suspect that a Windows install only installs the drivers necessary to your hardware, linux, I believe, installs all of the drivers.

I'm kind of surprised that you were able to clone an install to a disc.

Exactly how did you clone this install to a disc?

Clonezilla.

If you were able to clone a modern linux install to a disc then you could for the most part take it to a new similar system and clonezilla it to this new drive of equal size or larger.

Now what may happen next is one of two things. One it will work fine. Two it won't.

Too many variables if it won't so try it and tell us. Can we get it working? Most likely.

Generally the way to clone a system it to make some references generic before you clone. Also you'd install the new device drivers before you clone.

misconceptions:
- a cd can hold at most 750MB - a gnu/linux with graphical desktop is MUCH larger. so let's just suppose you use a much larger usb stick, or a dvd ( although even a dvd might be too small)
- doing what you propose, you would NOT get a so-called installation medium. you would have to boot the target system by some other means, then 'dd' the contents of that "disk" to the target system's hard drive.
- i have done this, but usually i had to adjust the UUID's in /etc/fstab and regenerate grub

Clonezilla boots off of a cd. The image I created is on a usb drive. I load the clonezilla cd on bootup, it then tells me to insert the usb drive, it detects it, I then tell it to make a clone on the hard drive from the usb.

I tried it yesterday, but the usb drive image I have is larger than the hard drive on the laptop, so for that reason, it refused to clone over. So I'd just need an equal or larger sized hard drive to install the clone.

Of all the people who have responded to this thread, only one has actually done this type of transfer. Several times.

The only sensible thing to do is to ignore that guy.

We didn't ignore you. Not sure the OP fully explained the issue.

Linux doesn't install all the drivers and doesn't fully work perfectly on clones. Even clones to identical hardware can have some problems especially without predictive naming. Boot issues could cause a failure. Clones to dissimilar hardware can't be determined.

As we found out the OP didn't clone to a disc in fact.


Long story.

Modern linux tends to be offered in a distro that targets a set of hardware. It doesn't exactly configure drivers as such from a pool.
It does however make not of some unique naming in generally two places.
Once is boot loader.
Two is storage naming.
Possibly a problem will be video as modern linux uses modesetting to try to maintain video across boot loader to gui.
Various drivers are not offered as they are not open.
Network may be an issue too as to naming conventions.
If you were to use some older software some oddities may exist.

I said before it will either work or not. Unless we know exact hardware we can't guess.

How many times have you done this? Seriously, how many times have you done this? I've installed on one machine and imaged and restored the image onto another machine about 15 times. I've also installed in VirtualBox, then imaged, then restored the image onto the HDD about 20-25 times. This VB to HDD thing is ongoing and gets done about once a week. So far I've got a 100% success rate. So I know how to accomplish what the OP first asked about. However, no one in this thread is interested in how to actually do what the OP asked, so I'll quit bothering you guys and get out of your way. Good luck.

^ i did "this" once or twice, and was amazed at how easiliy it worked, after some minor editing.


i should have clarified:
a fully installed gnu/linux with desktop is MUCH larger.

I tend to rsync to clone. That way size of drives isn't as much of an issue. As long as the difference is made up for in free space. Partition, format, mount, and rsync. Once the copy is made, change /etc/fstab to match the UUID of the partition it was installed to. Chroot, then install the bootloader from inside the chroot. Then exit the chroot and shutdown. Unplug the installation medium(s), and power on to glorious linux. A bit over simplified and there are complications depending on your hardware. But it can be "that simple" with a little familiarity.

? How many times have I cloned a system?? A few hundred times. I've cloned almost every known common OS. I've used linux for a very long time. Dang nabit if many haven't failed along the way.

I suggest that the OP try it. It will either work or it won't. Or they could use some known steps to help it work. Or they could use some other means to clone.