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Thread: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

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    2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    Mods feel free to move this if I posted in the wrong location.

    My goal is to use a 2gb flashdrive to have an extremely fast and lightweight installation with Chrome and Java so I can run it on any computer.

    I've been fiddling with this over the past two days and have tried a few distros for a few mins each. Some report not enough space when trying to install java, some run a bit laggy, Ubuntu was very slow.

    I guess I don't know exactly what I'm doing. Can someone help out a noob?

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    ibjsb4 is offline Ubuntu addict and loving it
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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?


  3. #3
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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    UEFI boot install & repair info - Regularly Updated :
    https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2147295
    Please use Thread Tools above first post to change to [Solved] when/if answered completely.

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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    Quote Originally Posted by ibjsb4 View Post
    Not yet, but I read a bit about it and it's on my list.

    Quote Originally Posted by oldfred View Post
    Are you saying that "persistence" is different than a "direct install to a flashdrive?" I'm just looking for Chrome Sync and Java so I can use my screensharing software for work.

    Apologies, I am an extreme noob at Linux. Thanks for your help!

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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    With only a 2GB flash you can only use persistence, you probably need an 8GB as a minimum for a full install to a flash drive. But a full install has more update capabilities. With persistence you can save some things, but the installer still installs the original downloaded version which you are always booting.
    UEFI boot install & repair info - Regularly Updated :
    https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2147295
    Please use Thread Tools above first post to change to [Solved] when/if answered completely.

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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    Quote Originally Posted by Phateless View Post
    Mods feel free to move this if I posted in the wrong location.

    My goal is to use a 2gb flashdrive to have an extremely fast and lightweight installation with Chrome and Java so I can run it on any computer.

    I've been fiddling with this over the past two days and have tried a few distros for a few mins each. Some report not enough space when trying to install java, some run a bit laggy, Ubuntu was very slow.

    I guess I don't know exactly what I'm doing. Can someone help out a noob?
    In my experience, a USB stick install is not suitable for doing updates or installing (big) software packages.
    IMHO, A USB stick install is suitable for running that, and keeping some of your own files on the persistent part of the stick.

    Easy check: do a fresh install to a stick (I would use netbootin for that), and then run "df -h" to see how much space is left.

    HTH

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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    Quote Originally Posted by oldfred View Post
    With only a 2GB flash you can only use persistence, you probably need an 8GB as a minimum for a full install to a flash drive. But a full install has more update capabilities. With persistence you can save some things, but the installer still installs the original downloaded version which you are always booting.
    Ahh yes, that makes sense. I already made the mistake of trying to update Zorin, and of course it failed, which is exactly what I suspected.

    Quote Originally Posted by sanderj View Post
    In my experience, a USB stick install is not suitable for doing updates or installing (big) software packages.
    IMHO, A USB stick install is suitable for running that, and keeping some of your own files on the persistent part of the stick.

    Easy check: do a fresh install to a stick (I would use netbootin for that), and then run "df -h" to see how much space is left.

    HTH
    That's fine, that functionality is actually exactly what I had in mind - the only thing I want to install is Java support. Can anyone help me with that? I posted another thread.

    Thanks all! I know I'm a noob but I'm loving Linux so far. It's amazing how multiple machines seem to run better than with their stock windows drivers. LOL.

  8. #8
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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    I think for what you want to do, a 'real' install might be your best choice. Flash drives are pretty cheap these days; I bought a 16 GB. USB 3 store brand for $10.99. I formatted it to ext4 and did a 'real' install from a live DVD. I unplugged my hard drive just so nothing got installed to the hard drive by accident but that isn't necessary. Just pay attention during the install process that the O.S. and GRUB are written to the proper drive. Writing to flash drives is much slower than reading so installing takes more time than installing to a hard drive. I bought a USB 3 flash drive thinking write speeds might be faster than USB 2 even on a USB 2 port. I don't know if I wasted $3 or not . I installed PCLinuxOS on it and can update and install additional software just like on a hard drive. Even though installing takes quite some time, using the flash drive install while slower than an internal hard drive, isn't too slow. Everyday functions - web browsing, office stuff etc. work pretty well. Any proprietary software such as video or network adapter drivers should install and work normally.
    Last edited by kurt18947; July 15th, 2013 at 11:57 PM.

  9. #9
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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    Quote Originally Posted by kurt18947 View Post
    I think for what you want to do, a 'real' install might be your best choice. Flash drives are pretty cheap these days; I bought a 16 GB. USB 3 store brand for $10.99. I formatted it to ext4 and did a 'real' install from a live DVD. I unplugged my hard drive just so nothing got installed to the hard drive by accident but that isn't necessary. Just pay attention during the install process that the O.S. and GRUB are written to the proper drive. Writing to flash drives is much slower than reading so installing takes more time than installing to a hard drive. I bought a USB 3 flash drive thinking write speeds might be faster than USB 2 even on a USB 2 port. I don't know if I wasted $3 or not . I installed PCLinuxOS on it and can update and install additional software just like on a hard drive. Even though installing takes quite some time, using the flash drive install while slower than an internal hard drive, isn't too slow. Everyday functions - web browsing, office stuff etc. work pretty well. Any proprietary software such as video or network adapter drivers should install and work normally.
    Thanks for your reply. So how do I go about doing a full install on a usb? I've been using Univeral USB Installer and so far the only issue I've encountered is that I can't figure out how to get Java working.

    http://www.pendrivelinux.com/univers...easy-as-1-2-3/

    Thanks!

  10. #10
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    Re: 2gb live usb - why would I NOT use all available space for persistence?

    In answer to the title, if you use all available space for persistence , you will not be able to use the drive to move files to/from a windows machine. For drives larger than 8GB you would need to use a persistent partition as max size of the persistence file, (casper-rw), is 4GB, (being FAT32).

    If you have installed Ubuntu to USB using Startup Disk Creator, (from the Live CD), or UNetbootin, using the extra space options you should be able to install Java in the normal manner.
    See:
    http://www.ubuntugeek.com/how-to-ins...ntu-12-04.html

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