> I prefer to chose the "custom" setup during installation, as it
> allows more latitude in paritioning and chosing what is installed.
> Prior to 7.2, this was the only way that you could customize the disk
> partitioning, but with 7.2, if you choose the laptop option, it
> should allow you to manually partition the hard drive. Also note that
> the workstation and laptop options will not install any xinetd
> services (like telnet, ftp, finger or talk. You can still use these
> get out of the system, but the daemons will not run, and no one will
> be allowed in. This is for security).
>
> RH 7.2 uses swap space more aggressively than previous versions, and
> so recommends that you allocate twice your physical memory for the
> swap space, depending upon the amount of memory. I tend to follow
> this.
>
> You don't need to use one, but I recommend a /boot partition. The RH
> Installation Guide recommends 50 MB for this, but I have used as
> little as 7 and been OK. 10 - 15 MB will be fine. Note that I use
> LILO, and so the kernel (vmlinuz file) resides here, and so you will
> have to allow for this if you want to boot multiple kernels. My
> kernel tends to about 800 MB. If you choose too little, the installer
> will complain, and I believe that 7.2 will suggest about 20.
>
> I like to use a multiple of my memory (128 MB RAM) for /var and
> /temp. There is no reason for this, but I just do. 64 MB for /var
> should be OK; 128 - 192 for /tmp. I use /tmp as the location from
> which to install software packages, uncompressing them and running
> the installation. I have been bitten once or twice with too little
> /tmp space, so I tend to fo a little larger and use 192. If you don't
> plan on doing a lot of the "make install" type of installations, and
> stick with .rpm-ing, then you might get by with as little as 64 MB.
> Also you can link to /var/tmp to /tmp and save some space there.
>
> Of the remaining space, I think you will need at least 1.5 GB for /,
> and 2 would be better. Again, it depends upon how much additional
> third-party software (like Star Office or games) you plan on
> installing above what RH installs. I like to err on the large side,
> as the last thing I was is a full / partition. I personally also like
> to use a /usr/local partition for installing my third-party software
> (like Open Office, Port Sentry, Tripwire and WordPerfect) to avoid
> having to reinstall these programs if I update my system or reinstall
> it. This is a matter of preference, and with a hard disk this small,
> there isn't much room so I may not do this and just use a /
> partition.
>
> What is left over after you allocate everything else is what you
> available for /home.
>
> Thus with my 3.2 GB drive, and 128 MB RAM, this is what I ended up
> with
>
> swap 256 MB
> /boot 10 MB
> /var 64 MB
> /tmp 192 MB
> / 2000 MB
> /home 500 MB or so --- whatever is left over
>
> The 500 MB for home is OK but doesn't allow a lot of room if you like
> to download images or music files. You'll have to be very judicious
> in your pruning, and move what you want to keep, but don't use, to
> floppy, zip, or CD.
>
> The scheme I have suggested above is OK , if you are installing RH to
> learn it. If you are installing RH to use it as your primary OS and
> need to keep Windows, you might want to buy a bigger HD. A good 20 MB
> IBM is now about $120.
>
> If you chose the wrong partition sizing scheme, the worst thing that
> can happen is that you run out of space during installation and have
> to reinstall. The second worst thing is that you finish the
> installation and find that you have allocated too little space for
> the / partition. So, once you have gotten through the installation
> process, and can log on as root, then run "df -h" to see how much of
> each partition you have used. If it looks like you allocated too
> little space based on the percentage used, you can immediately
> reinstall to adjust the size. Reinstalling costs about an hour in
> time, most of it waiting for the installation to write the programs
> to the disk. It is better to reinstall immediately than later, after
> you've set everything up. (The latter is free advice, based upon
> experience <g>).
>
> Hope this helps.
>
> BOF
Thanks for some good insight on the partitions and RH install. Have
never touched RH before, will be easier with this info.
Randy Donohoe
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