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Topic: Toram option with swap file?

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lesliek

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Posts: 91
Joined: Feb. 2006

Posted: Feb. 21 2006,20:54

I am presently running DSL v 2.2b from a live cd.

I have 64MB of physical memory and 128MB of virtual memory, the latter in a swap file.

In those circumstances, can I use the toram option when booting up or do I need to have at least 128MB of physical memory?

If I can use the toram option, that'd free up my CD reader. Would there be any other advantages or any disadvantages?

Any guidance would be much appreciated.

larkl

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Posts: 177
Joined: Sep. 2005

Posted: Feb. 21 2006,23:46

I kinda doubt that you can use the swap instead of physical memory for toram. You can do a frugal install, which puts the CD image on your HD (I'm probably oversimplifying what really happens). The grub is more configurable, so it's probably better.

lesliek

Group: Members
Posts: 91
Joined: Feb. 2006

Posted: Feb. 22 2006,03:05

Thanks very much for taking the trouble to reply, larkl.

I think I've now got confirmation that you're right about my not being able to use virtual memory with "toram".

I looked again at the changelog with this particular idea in mind and found the following:

For 2.0, item 23: "added hack for extending ramdisk to use swap"

For 2.1, item 19: "Updated extended ramdisk to use swap only if not using 'toram' option."

For 2.2, no relevant item.

If I understand that history properly, my idea's out. Oh well.

As to a possible frugal install, the conditions under which I'm configuring the computer prevent me from carving partitions out of the existing sole Windows partition on the sole HDD, so that seems to be out as well.

Thanks again,

Leslie

larkl

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Posts: 177
Joined: Sep. 2005

Posted: Feb. 22 2006,23:48

Well, Sorry that that won't work. What about a frugal install onto a USB key? If it's before the HD in the BIOS boot order, then it'll be a DSL box. Otherwise, the same old windows box (read your other topic) will boot up. I haven't done the USB boot, so I may be missing something here. Maybe it's an option.

lesliek

Group: Members
Posts: 91
Joined: Feb. 2006

Posted: Feb. 23 2006,00:24

larkl,

Thanks for your latest reply.

Unfortunately, the computer doesn't have any USB ports, so that's not an option either.

What I'm onto now, assuming I have to continue to use the live cd, is trying to edit my bootlocal.sh file to stop any services started unnecessarily earlier in the bootup process (I've got one at least so far) and then do the same with kernel modules. It's a slow process, because I've got to research each service and module before having a go (my knowledge in these matters is tiny). In that way, I hope to have as much RAM available as possible for running a Web browser, which is what the intended user of the computer will want to do with it.

There is an external modem that goes with this computer, but I haven't got it yet. When I do, I'll see whether the system's fast enough to use Firefox (which is what I use myself on my own computer). If not, I saw someone saying that they had success using Opera with less RAM than I'm working with, so maybe that'd be alright. Finally, there's the installed Dillo, about which I know nothing.

Thanks again for your help.

Leslie

9 replies since Feb. 21 2006,20:54

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