Multiple Systems using the same /Home partition

[snowpine]

Ah, I understand. Be sure to use separate usernames for 12.04 and 12.10 so your config/settings don't clash.

Another option is to not use separate /home at all, but rather a separate data partition for documents/files.

[offgridguy]

The purpose of multiple partitions is to be able to delete and replace the existing OS for that partition. So, for example, I can work on 12.04 LTS and still have one to try 12.10. If I decide I don't like it, I won't upgrade to it, etc.

Sounds good to me, I do pretty much the same.

@ snowpine, the separate data partition is something i am trying at the moment,
input welcome at this thread.

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2117020

[Bucky Ball]

To be clear: you can indeed use the same /home, but using the same user home directories under different linux flavours is what is not recommended. Different versions of software might use different formats of their configuration data. If that is the case, the software may malfunction in one of the distro's making use of the same config data.

Doesn't work like that, at least in my experience, as the home folders for each install in the home partition don't have anything to do with each other. The config files for each are separate, in separate /home folders.

For instance, three installs using the same /home partition will look like this:

/home/username_1
/home/username_2
/home/username_3

They are separate folders and never use the same config files (by config files I assume you mean hidden files/folders). Never had that mix up and have used not only different flavours with this setup but different distros!

[C.S.Cameron]

After this fiasco trying to upgrade from 10.04 to 12.04, I changed the way I partition my drive so that /Home is now in its own partition.

In the event I have to reinstall a fresh Ubuntu, I can, in theory, leave my home partition alone and not lose anything.

However, I have been thinking about trying to install several flavors of Ubuntu such Xubuntu or Kbuntu and having them installed in separate partitions, but sharing the same partitions for /home and swap.

Any thoughts?

Buck

I've tried using the same home partition for different flavors.
I recall things started out ok but soon got quite wonky.

[vanadium]

Doesn't work like that, at least in my experience, as the home folders for each install in the home partition don't have anything to do with each other. The config files for each are separate, in separate /home folders.

For instance, three installs using the same /home partition will look like this:

/home/username_1
/home/username_2
/home/username_3

They are separate folders and never use the same config files (by config files I assume you mean hidden files/folders). Never had that mix up and have used not only different flavours with this setup but different distros!

It will indeed look like this if you choose it to look like this. That exactly suits what I was saying: there is no problem whatsoever if you use different user home folders for different linux flavours on the same partition. Using the same username across the different linux flavours is what is not recommended/supported (i.e., all your installs would use e.g. /home/username_1).

[n4pgw]

My system crashed last night. My Nvidia driver became corrupted and my attempt to fix it crashed the GUI so I only had access to the command line, which I don't know enough about to use.

I took this opportunity to reinstall Ubuntu from the USB drive which proved my theory about recovery being easier and faster with this partition plan.

Thanks to what I learned from those of you who responded, I made it work!

Here is the article I posted about it:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2117376


Thank you all!

[Bucky Ball]

Using the same username across the different linux flavours is what is not recommended/supported (i.e., all your installs would use e.g. /home/username_1).

Ah, got ya. Agreed.

@ n4pgw: If you feel your issue is solved please mark it that way from Thread Tools at top right to help others.