tig2
August 28th, 2015, 10:56 PM
Hello all,
I was checking recently several Linux distributions (all of them are based on Ubuntu) and installed them on my external USB hard drive. In order to prevent any accidental problems with my internal HD MBR, I removed the internal hard drive completely from my laptop and during installation used option "install bootloader to /sda" (since external drive just became /sda) just to make external USB drive easily bootable. I used this option to install bootloader to /sda for all Linux systems, since I wanted to see how different grubs look and function. Then I made a choice and settled on a particular Grub2 related to a particular Linux distro installed on /sda7 and made some adjustments in its configuration file.
Everything was fine until I had a large update of a Linux distro installed on /sda8. It added some new kernels, which apparently forced it to reinstall its Grub. And this Grub was installed in /sda knocking out my selected and customised Grub2, which I liked and chose before. So, here is what I need to resolve:
1) I need to make certain that all but one distros either do not install their grub completely during major updates, or install them into their own root partition, where they will not bother anybody. All settings in the system pointing to Grub location should be permanently adjusted.
2) What really worries me is that after I put back my internal HD, it will become /sda, and the external USB drive with all those Linux distros will be /sdb. Will those major Linux updates with grub re-install try to install it in my internal HD /sda and knock out my Windows MBR? I really don't want that to happen. And even if I manage to point the grub installation for all of them into their own root partition, there will still be one that boots the entire external drive. Will that Linux distro that produced it (in my case its system is on /sda7) be trying to install it in /sda, which is now internal HD, or will correct itself and install it in /sdb? How to make sure that the problem of replacing Windows MBR does not occur?
I would really appreciate the answer to these questions. I am just learning Linux system, so the detailed command lines for the terminal would be much greater help than just general strategic approach.
Thank you.
Tig.
I was checking recently several Linux distributions (all of them are based on Ubuntu) and installed them on my external USB hard drive. In order to prevent any accidental problems with my internal HD MBR, I removed the internal hard drive completely from my laptop and during installation used option "install bootloader to /sda" (since external drive just became /sda) just to make external USB drive easily bootable. I used this option to install bootloader to /sda for all Linux systems, since I wanted to see how different grubs look and function. Then I made a choice and settled on a particular Grub2 related to a particular Linux distro installed on /sda7 and made some adjustments in its configuration file.
Everything was fine until I had a large update of a Linux distro installed on /sda8. It added some new kernels, which apparently forced it to reinstall its Grub. And this Grub was installed in /sda knocking out my selected and customised Grub2, which I liked and chose before. So, here is what I need to resolve:
1) I need to make certain that all but one distros either do not install their grub completely during major updates, or install them into their own root partition, where they will not bother anybody. All settings in the system pointing to Grub location should be permanently adjusted.
2) What really worries me is that after I put back my internal HD, it will become /sda, and the external USB drive with all those Linux distros will be /sdb. Will those major Linux updates with grub re-install try to install it in my internal HD /sda and knock out my Windows MBR? I really don't want that to happen. And even if I manage to point the grub installation for all of them into their own root partition, there will still be one that boots the entire external drive. Will that Linux distro that produced it (in my case its system is on /sda7) be trying to install it in /sda, which is now internal HD, or will correct itself and install it in /sdb? How to make sure that the problem of replacing Windows MBR does not occur?
I would really appreciate the answer to these questions. I am just learning Linux system, so the detailed command lines for the terminal would be much greater help than just general strategic approach.
Thank you.
Tig.