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Booting Linux from USB Flash Drive: Technical Tutorial


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lotuseclat79's Avatar
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11-Oct-2007, 07:08 AM #1
Booting Linux from USB Flash Drive: Technical Tutorial
Here.

"... in the eternal clause of the technical tutorial, your mileage may vary."

-- Tom
r11ckp's Avatar
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12-Oct-2007, 06:44 AM #2
ok this looks very difficult to do. just a few questions.

-Can i do all of them tasks on windows xp, to make linux (damn small linux) boot from startup?

-Whats the deal with all the commands in the blue boxes everywhere?

Iv never used linux before ive done lots of researching but im in a pickle, i just want (DSL) on my memory stick so i can use linux when i feel like it.

I dont want to completly remove windows.

Cheers
Rick
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12-Oct-2007, 09:56 AM #3
Hi r11ckp,

No doubt, the commands in the blue boxes are a consequence of your using a MS browser such as IE6 or IE7 (I run Ubuntu with my user interface overriding that by default of the webpage, so I see gray background with yellow text). They are commands which need to be issued from a Terminal command line window - so, I doubt very much that you could run them from Windows unless you get Cygwin which is a gcc envrionement for Windows to compile C programs, releases, etc. with gcc.

Since you have never used Linux before and have your heart set on DSL on a USB Flash drive (what you refer to as a memory stick), the first thing I would do is to use a search engine to find: Linux +DSL +USB

The following links give such information for what you want to do:

USB Damn Small Linux install.

Installing to a USB Flash Drive.

DSLoUSB.pdf download.

-- Tom
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The independence created by philosophical insight is - in my opinion - the mark of distinction between a mere artisan or specialist and a real seeker after truth. - Einstein wrote in 1944.

Some say knowledge is power, I say knowledge without action is powerless. - lotuseclat79

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saikee's Avatar
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Experience: A Linux user gone nuts on multi-boot
12-Oct-2007, 10:25 AM #4
Don't see any problem here.

The OP's link appears to be transferring a bootable Linux from a hard disk to a USB flash drive and that is a lot of work for what it worth because many Linux can be directly installed from an iso in a hard disk or in a CD to a flash drive. One can even put several bootable Linux iso onto one flash drive, including DSL if you want. My link is for advance Linux user. Newbie to Linux better off concentrating their attention below.

r11ckp's request can be fullfilled any time without going through the above lengthy process and use the as-provided DSL distro.

(1) Just use Windows to download a DSL iso
(2) Burn it into a bootable CD
(3) Boot up DSL because it is a Live CD but installable. Any Linux Live CD can run on a CD without being installed into a hard disk. DSL is one of the 100s around.
(4) Plug in a USB flash drive
(5) Use DSL's installer to install DSL onto the Flash drive.
(6) Amend DSL's boot loader Grub so that the flash drive appears as the 1st boot disk (Windows in an internal disk would have been detected as the first boot disk by DSL and the flash drive would have to be installed in the 2nd disk. e.g edit menu.lst to change "root (hd1,0)" to "root (hd0,0)")
(7) Power down, remove CD, tell the Bios the flash drive is the 1st boot disk and DSL will boot and work in the flash drive leaving the existing Windows untouched.

I believe DSl just need a fat partition in the flash drive for installation.

The step (6) can be totally avoided if the user temporarily disconnects the Windows disk so the the flash drive is detected and installed as the first bootable disk.
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Using a Linux live CD to clone XP
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Last edited by saikee : 12-Oct-2007 10:31 AM.
r11ckp's Avatar
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12-Oct-2007, 11:21 AM #5
(2) Burn it into a bootable CD

how do i make a bootable cd? ive already put DSL 3.4.4 onto a CDR but it doesnt boot up.

Media test failure or something. i can however run DSL in windows, but very slow

cheers for your help guys, this things winding me up
Redenbacher's Avatar
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12-Oct-2007, 12:00 PM #6
Burning a Bootable CD - DSL


You should be able to download the LiveCD from http://www.distrowatch.com
Or they'll even ship it to you for a small fee
Make sure you are burning the image, not just a data CD

Hope this helps
r11ckp's Avatar
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12-Oct-2007, 12:01 PM #7
downloading nero now, i hope it works. once i get that sorted i should be sailing...its never that easy though.

ill keep you posted
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