[rapaport]

I'm wondering if anyone has tried installing Linux on a desktop with only 1 hard drive (hd0) and then removed that hard drive and tried to boot linux off the hard drive as an external hard drive on a notebook that supports USB booting in BIOS.

I've run into all kinds of problems installing Linux from my notebook to an external and I'm looking for other options. I can't seem to get my distro (Ubuntu) to boot off the USB drive.

The error I have received each time I install on the external USB HD (40GB) is

pivot_root: no such file or dir 
/sbin/init:428 cannot open dev/console no such 
file Kernel panic - not syncing attemtped to kill init

Anyway, please let me know if anyone has tried the above (installing on desktop and then using that desktop HD as an external HD) as I am desperate for a stable Linux install on my external HD so I can begin to learn about Linux.

[lynch]

I'm guessing you want to do it this way because you only own one hard drive? There is a chance that will work . Just not a good chance.
Does it have windows on it also?
Every time you switch back and forth the hardware configuration is going to be re-written at best, or at worst, become a garbled unreadable mess.
And if you want X, there's another can of worms.
Be easier to buy another drive.
HTH
lynch

[rapaport]

No, I have 2 old hard drives from HP desktops that I'm connecting to my Dell notebook and trying to install Linux on the external drives but I'm having issues. Thats why I want to know if I trick the hard drive into thinking its the only one and install Linux to it, will it still work once I pull the hard drive out and boot it from the notebook will the hard ware configurations be too weird?