HD Install Backup

Forum: HD Install
Topic: HD Install Backup
started by: ke4nt1

Posted by ke4nt1 on April 19 2004,17:57

I have on my laptop:

hda1 = w2k - 2.4gb

hda2 = fat16 = copy of knoppix folder from cdr for "fromhd" boots and installs - 1gb

hda3 = ext2 = current knoppix build 0.6.3 std., with
dpkg, synaptic, firefox, etc. - 2.4gb

hda4 = swap - 200k

What is the best way to "backup" the DSL install , so I can
experiment with different options, software, etc.
I want to be able to restore my computer back to its current
condition after "pushing the envelope" with install options.
(after I break stuff) !

I can use PQ from the w2k to partition backup the hda3,
but this would not backup the MBR/Lilo.

I can use PQ from w2k and image the entire HDA1-HDA4
( a 6 gig pig on cd, which is my laptops only way to restore )

Is there a LINUX solution, within DSL, or that I can add,
for backup? "mkisofs to hda2, or dump to elsewhere?, for an easy backup and restore?"

Do I have to be concerned with the MBR? Since I'm only
installing DSL 0.6.3 again , on the same partition, can I
rewrite the lilo boot with the new installs, and then when
restoring the original "keeper" hda3 image, just reuse the
same NEW lilo/MBR?

73
ke4nt

Posted by ke4nt1 on April 19 2004,21:19

Many posts mention using "tarballs" for quick backups and restores.
While I can instruct the backup/restore feature
to back up certain sub-dirs , can it "tar" the whole enchilada?

I understood that a "backup/restore" from "backup.tar.gz
would be written (restored) over a fresh install from cd.

I want to restore the entire partition, like remastering, but
without writing to cdr or creating iso's ..

Am I even close to gold here, folks?

ke4nt

Posted by cbagger01 on April 20 2004,00:32

Get a copy of the original Knoppix livecd and boot from it.

Make your backup file's destination partition read/write support via the knoppix FAQ instructions.

Then use PartImage to back up your partitions to a file:

< http://www.partimage.org/ >

You could also search Google for a LiveCD that contains BOTH partimage and NTFS write support (aka "Captive NTFS") and then you could save your backup files to your Windows 2000 partition

Posted by lostcause on Nov. 25 2005,04:41

Ranish Partition Manager (here out referred to as RPM) might be what you're looking for. If "backing up and restoring linux boot partitions" is a attempt to get around the "4 primary partition limit" of the harddrive, then it's definitely your solution. I've been using it for about 6 or 7 years and, in my opinion, it's one of the best FREEWARE utilities out there! It allows for up to 32 bootable partitions per drive... or more than any sane person could deal with... whichever comes first. One of my PC's is currently setup to boot from one of seven OS's, each, on it's own partition (six are on the first hd). There are also four non-bootable data partitions and one swap partition... that's 12 partitions spread out across 4 drives... about 300 gigs worth with 180 gigs or so of free space... . In truth, only three are used extensively. The others are available but used less often. It works by creating a "sudo" partition table and storing it in its own partition. That partition need only take up one complete cylinder (about 8K in my case) and is typically placed in the last complete cylinder of each drive. You select which partitions you want placed in the MBR and assign them a number (1-4) for each drive. Upon booting, any partition that is not set as hidden will be available for boot and will automatically be assigned as partition 1 on that drives MBR. It will appear as the the C volume in DOS/Win or as hda1,hdb1,... hdf1...and so on with linux. I recommend booting Windows only from the primary/master. Linux isn't so touchy and can be started from any disc... go figure, right. The rest of the partitions appear as D, E, X, hda2, hdb5, hdf3... and so on. Partitions can be selected to boot automatically or you may select from a menu on startup. You only need to have one swap partition, different linux distos can share the same one. I recommend placing it as the first partition on the last disc. With exception to the swap partition, I also recommend placing bootable partitions toward the beginning of a drive and non-bootable ones toward the end... with free space in the middle. All of this might sound a bit troublesome... even dangerous to some, but once you get a handle on RPM's interface it's a breeze. The most difficult part for me was deciding the most efficient partition layout, the key rules of which are described above. The only catch is that you may need to blow away existing partitions and start from scratch, unless you have sufficient free space available. Also, other disc partition utilities such as fdisk (DOS and linux) cfdisk, hdparm, etc... should NOT be used to partition drives or make changes to the partition table... do all partitioning and configuration with RPM. The other utilities may be used to view the partition table, but keep in mind that partitions that are not assigned an number in the MBR will appear as free space, and therein lies the danger of using them. One last thing... you don't have to, but if the RPM Boot Manager partition is assigned as number 4 in the MBR, the partition table can be restored IF it is lost (WHEN it's lost in the case of "post" Windows ME installs). When installing a Linux distro, always place lilo or grub in the root partition, not the MBR. Older Damn Small hd installs (maybe newer ones too) automatically write to the MBR. Use RPM's boot partition restoration ability, boot again with the DSL cd, edit lilo.conf, and run liloconfig to place lilo in the DSL root partition. If you don't have the RPM boot manager partition assigned as partition 4 in the MBR it is overwritten, all may not be lost if you have a hard copy printed out. You'll have to key in a lot of info bit it beats reinstalling a ton of OS's. Below is a sample table. Some info is omitted for reasons of screen width. This is not the boot menu... just a copy of the table. The columns are a little crooked here... sorry.

*** harddisc 1 partition info ***

Ranish Partition Manager Version 2.43 (beta) by Muthu
Apr 09, 2002

File Starting Partition
# Type Row System Type Cyl Head Sect Size [KB]

0 MBR Master Boot Record 0 0 1 0
1 Pri Unused 0 0 2 31
2 >Pri 1 DOS FAT-16 0 1 1 497,983
3 Pri Windows FAT-32 62 0 1 1,992,060
4 Pri Windows FAT-32 LBA 310 0 1 14,996,677
5 Pri Windows NT NTFS 2,177 0 1 19,992,892
6 Pri Linux 4,666 0 1 19,996,892
7 Pri Linux 7,755 0 1 9,998,446
8 Pri Linux 10,730 0 1 9,998,446
9 Pri Unused 12,731 0 2 20,227,557
10 Pri 2 Windows FAT-32 LBA 13,731 0 1 20,788,110
11 Pri 4 Boot Manager 15,870 0 1 8,032
12 Pri Unused 15,872 0 1 1,357

RPM can be downloaded from www.ranish.com. Be sure to get version "2.43 (beta) by Muthu". It's the most functional. The interface is simple and intuitive... yet a bit cryptic in some aspects.
Trust me, it's worth the trouble of figuring out. Good luck. If you have any questions or experience any frustration ~I sure as HELL did~ drop me a line (lostcause@northstate.net)... I'll be glade to assist.

Posted by lostcause on Nov. 26 2005,02:16

It's me again, Last night while replying to your post, I kinda got it confused with another... so most of it isn't relevent to your dilemma. You might still find RPM usefull.You can make partition backups and restores by copying entire partitions, bit-by-bit, to any area on any disc with sufficient contiguous free space. Restoring is a one-step process as long as the partition is copied back to the exact same location (C|H|S) it was backed up from. Linux can be restored to any area of any disc, but if it's not put back where it came from you'll need to edit a few configuration files on the restored partition before it'll boot. If you have another bootable linux partition, it can be used to access files on the restored partition for editing rather than booting from a cd/dvd. Before booting assign the restored partition as number 2 or 3 in the MBR. It'll show up as hda2, hda3, hdb2... whatever. Make your changes and reboot to the restored partition. The downside -it's a big one- is that the ENTIRE partition is copied in the process, free space and all. That doesn't make for very efficient space usage and copying can take a substantial amount of time with large partitions (15-20 gigs or more). If you have an abundance of drive space then it isn't that much of a concern. If not, you can create a "dedicated" backup partition and copy a filesystem to/from it, or create tarballs by booting to one of your other Linux installs. You still don't need to boot from cd/dvd. DSL, because it's so damn small, is well suited for the role. Make it the first partition on your drive and use it as a bootable-utility OS. As for matter of software experimentation... Just create any number of 300MB partitions and install DSL to all of them. In this manner you would sacrifice only 3Gigs of drive space and be able to "hose-up" 10 OS's before needing to reinstall. Now I'm rambling... I'm known for that. In any case... download Ranish Partition Manager v2.43... my rambling will make more sense then. Check it out.