On 2/20/15, Richard Owlett <rowl...@cloud85.net> wrote: > Several months ago, when I was having problems with a very > customized install, I was pointed to debootstrap as an > appropriate tool. I finding that it will evidently give me not > only the fine control and minimal footprint desired, but it leads > me to explore areas of Debian that I know less about than I thought. > > My question -- Does anyone know of a detailed (newbie oriented) > writeup on using debootstrap to install a bootable Debian to a > second partition of a drive already containing a complete default > install? All the writeups I've found assume various levels of > experience and leave out things that "everybody knows". > Fortunately the leave out different things so I think I am > getting a reasonably complete overview. > > Comments? TIA
Ok, I've been looking at this. I think I hear what you're saying. I *think* I did it that way, but I need to look. Most times I just debootstrap into a directory then rsync it over, but I do think I went the partition route once.. I think.. I have a TON of notes I need to dig through where I've been rambling to myself as I did this over the last year or so.. I'm so sorry, I think I have "snow" brain. It's not really been snowing much but it's been the absolute coldest sustained cold I ever remember here. Kind of the opposite of spring fever but basically about the same effect. :) One thing that's already top of my head is not everyone who might try this is going to have 100% success. I've done it... at least five or six times... on the same laptop.. usually using the same everything, especially the online how-to, and SOMEHOW there'll be different issues each time. I don't know what changes. The good news is that, just as you're saying, I say the same. It has been a great learning experience with a much faster learning curve than anything else I've done. I think it's because we're really driving what happens rather than "just" downloading a single ISO package, zipping it open, and off we go. I'm looking right now for those two links I occasionally reference (somewhere?). I'm sure there are two. I gave you all one a while back then that same week had to search on the Net again for the same. Whatever I found afterward was not quite the same as but was very similar to what I shared on the list. Between the two and then us filling in with examples or something, it's really pretty much all there. The proof's in that I'm successfully working from Sid after having also done the same with both Wheezy and Jessie while using the exact same notes. My original quickly self-destructing distro debootstrapped Wheezy in. Wheezy then debootstrapped Jessie, and lastly Jessie debootstrapped Sid.. It consciously seems odd that nothing has had to be changed to get each newer distro running, especially Sid. If anyone knows that, yes, something should have changed to get Sid's debootstrap up and running, that would be good to know. I sure don't want to make something confusing even more so instead of helping. It might just be apprehension on my part because of all the chatter about how different some things are under the hood these days. :) We'll need to do this same thing for "hardening" users' debootstrapped copies after the initial install, too. I've... hm.. they lost me on that one. I have no doubt I'm not alone. I'm just not ashamed to say I've given it an honest try a couple times but... it's been beyond my comprehension level so far. And it's EXTREMELY important that we get through that part.... The hardening part, that's one of the things that's the bonus of going the ISO/image-type route. Some things like that are done there in those options where it's not in debootstrap. Debootstrap is absolute bare bones. Its purpose is to just give us just the barest number of packages so we can then start filling in ALL the other holes as needed. After first stumbling on debootstrap as an option, it was that "bare minimum" that was so attractive to me. I'm on dialup and was looking at 200+ MB downloads everywhere I turned. I just checked my saved deb archive files here. There's some duplication there so best number I can get right now is approximately 69.2 MB to get through the initial download phase of debootstrap. Not to worry, the steps require larger downloads after that. There's a couple gigabytes of saved debs I've got elsewhere that has a lot of duplication from upgrades but still.. Stuff like the window managers and even browsers are hefty. My personalized setup also has Openshot, Inkscape, and GIMP.. Seems like those combined were as large as the window manager, too. First thing I'm going to do is dig for another neat link I found AND LOST... Thinking as a newbie user, it would have been GREAT to have had that one link to reference to get to really know Debian's reach via software classifications... Let me find that... and those other two links. Even if the afterthought is never mind, this has been on my to-do list to find ways to start bringing parts of the debootstrap to the list. There's some very basic steps in the setup that would be useful even for someone who goes the ISO/image install route. Adding a user, changing a password, setting our date and time, those kinds of really basic things. All accomplished very simply via command line when you debootstrap.. :) I'm here working on it.. :) Cindy -- Cindy-Sue Causey Talking Rock, Pickens County, Georgia, USA * runs with plastic sporks * -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to debian-user-requ...@lists.debian.org with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact listmas...@lists.debian.org Archive: https://lists.debian.org/CAO1P-kDn5s1DGuj=gikqlk7xwjjpy0hx3+ork2+3404utqz...@mail.gmail.com