Backup Problems
Forum: User Feedback
Topic: Backup Problems
started by: Gene
Posted by Gene on Nov. 12 2006,07:30
All,I'm running dsl Live Cd on a P4 3.0g with 1g memory. I'm using the Backup/Retore to save my settings to a 1g usb. I can see the backup.tar.gz file in Emelfm. I reboot and cheatcode: dsl restore=sdxx (Depending on its current device designation(e.g. sdb1, sdd1, etc.)Its device designation sometimes changes from one boot to another.) At a given point during the boot I get the error "Invalid device sdd1" or whichever other designation I've assigned. Pressing enter continues the boot and dsl boots the defaults. I'm not sure I understand the purpose of Restore in Backup/Restore, but if I select it for my device, none of the apps will start. Fluxter changes to the saved setting color, but not the rest of the display. Am I missing something? I should mention the the usb drive is formated as FAT.
Thanks
Gene
Posted by mikshaw on Nov. 12 2006,13:56
Sounds like your designation is incorrect if you get an invalid device error.Have you tried removing the restore boot option completely? Maybe just letting the system find the backup on its own will save you some trouble.
Posted by Gene on Nov. 13 2006,04:20
OkSo, I tried using no input at boot: prompt and dsl booted to default. I tried using cheatcode: dsl norestore, and dsl booted to default. I also used the mount tool to find what designation my usb drive was and mounted it after each reboot and redid my settings from scratch: email, display and at least one bookmark in Firefox, and then used Backup/Restore to the given drive designation about half a dozen times. Each time I rebooted and cheatcoded: "dsl restore={last given drive designation}" and always received the the error "invalid device {given drive designation}", {given drive designation} being whatever it was at last mount, e. g.: sdb1, sdc1, sdd1, etc., it was different at each reboot and dsl always booted to default.
Also, I've tried using the Restore in Backup/Restore and it always locks up all the apps, I can't open anything. And I also couldn't use the tool for creating a bootable flash drive. It would always quit with the report that creating from the cd was not supported. I've seen some testimonials in this forum about how easy dsl is to learn and use. I've spent at least a handful of hours just trying to get it to save my settings and haven't done any real work with it.....sounds like the definition of insanity. I admit I'm frustated. Anybody have any ideas?
Gene
Posted by ^thehatsrule^ on Nov. 13 2006,14:19
I think mikshaw meant for you to just remove the restore option, not to use norestore nor restore= so see if DSL would've automatically found it.
Posted by Gene on Nov. 13 2006,14:58
How do I remove the restore option?
Posted by ^thehatsrule^ on Nov. 13 2006,15:06
Oops, I re-read your post and see that you have already tried it.What if you boot with nothing, then manually mydsl-load the backup.tar.gz? (That's what the restore should do anyways)
This sounds like a problem at a higher level though...
Posted by Gene on Nov. 13 2006,16:31
I'm just not sure if the higher level is me or the computer.....I appreciate the advise I've received from individuals in this forum. Thank you.
Ok, so I booted Knoppix Live CD and saved a configuration on the same pendrive as I've been trying to use with DSL. I rebooted and cheatcoded: knoppix myconfig=scan and it booted and loaded my configuration first time, no problem.
So I re-downloaded dsl-3.0.1-syslinux.iso and md5summed it, which I hadn't before, and booted to the same recurring problem.....
So, I like the idea of DSL, I like the way it runs, I like the spirit of its community and I would really like to use it, but after hours of fooling around with it and still not being able to configure it the obvious question is: why bother?
I'm new to linux. DSL doesn't seem like a good candidate for my learning it.
If I choose to pound my head against something I prefer it be something I can make a dent in.
Posted by ^thehatsrule^ on Nov. 13 2006,23:11
I'm pretty sure it's the computer's being non-cooperative, not you 
(something to do with those usb, I'd gather)Glad something else worked though, but you could always try DSL again (or even on another machine that works out-of-the-box)
Posted by Gene on Nov. 14 2006,15:00
Thanks for that, and enduring my histrionics. I've got another machine put away. It's an eMachines 1.5gig P4, 256meg mem, DVDrom, sans HD. Found it by the street with the trash. With another HD and a live cd it booted and ran fine. It's amazing what people will throw away. Anyway... I'll mess around with it and see how DSL does on it later when I have more free time... LOL.Thanks Again,
Gene
Posted by stevesr0 on Sep. 29 2007,00:37
Just saw this old posting, after posting a similar problem.I am adding this to let people know it has occurred at least for two unrelated people with different machines.
Steve
Posted by jpeters on Sep. 29 2007,03:19
| Quote (stevesr0 @ Sep. 28 2007,20:37) |
| Just saw this old posting, after posting a similar problem. I am adding this to let people know it has occurred at least for two unrelated people with different machines. Steve |
The weird part is about the designation of usb devices, which should be consistent and obvious (first, sda1, second, sdb1) at least after booting. If I try plugging a second device into the same port without first unmounting the first, it will mount as sdb1. I could see how this might pose a problem, since it would reboot as sda1.
Posted by stevesr0 on Sep. 29 2007,13:33
I just had the same experience. I realized that the USB pen drive I had used to make a backup and yielded an invalid device error wasn't mountable, so I unplugged it and put another one in which was mountable and received a different designation sdb1 (at this same time, sdb also appeared, so I know had sda and sda1 and sdb and sdb1).I indicated that sdb1 was to be used as the backup and shutdown. Wnen I rebooted using the restore=sdb1 code, I received an invalid device error. However, the mount tool now displayed an unmounted sda1 drive without an sdb1 drive and I could still mount it and display the files (including a backup.tar.gz file).
So I rebooted and used the restore=sda1 and NO invalid device message.
(However, still doesn't auto connect to my WEP protected static IP home network - I have posted about that in the Other Help forum.)
Steve