Thanks for previous responses concerning [1] and [2] on direct image-copying of Debian-Testing for USb booting. Single CD ISO-images of Testing boot fine on small USB drives using dd/cat/cp for copying the image to /dev/sdX.
Another question I have is whether multiple images of Testing can be effectively used to boot a 4GB+ USB drive?? A common-use scenario for this is to have the capability to boot up separate instances (in their less-technical sense) of a particular architecture's desktops on the same portable USB drive, e.g., i386 KDE, i386 Xfce, i386 Lxde with an initial boot menu offering the bootup choices of any of these three full installation images. Theoretically, multiple *architectures* could also coexist and be made bootable on the same USB drive capacity-permitting, e.g., mixed ISOs of amd64, i386, ia64, ...etcetera. 'dd' imaging doesn't seem to allow for multiboot selection. Syslinux's EXTLINUX [3] "could" allow for multiboot selection using a decidedly *mounted* ext2/ext3/ext4/btrfs-formatted USB drive. Some [4] recommend that ext4 USB drives be preferably formatted using the command sequence 'mke2fs -t ext4 -O ^has_journal /dev/sdX1', although ext3 is probably the safest course here in case of any doubt. UNetbootin [5] allows native Testing/Wheezy onto USB through using EXTLINUX [6] on an ext2/ext3 partition (/dev/sdX1, /dev/sdX2,... ??) Perhaps instructions using UNetbootin and Syslinux for multibooting distros other than Debian's [7] can be easily adapted for EXTLINUX to boot multiple but separate desktop instances of Testing/Wheezy on ext2/ext3-formatted partitions instead of using the default fat32 format ?? Open to further hints here. -A Refs: [1] Re: Full CD ISO image of Testing for USB Booting?, http://lists.debian.org/debian-user/2013/01/msg00576.html [2] Re: Full CD ISO image of Testing for USB Booting? [3] Syslinux's EXTLINUX, http://www.syslinux.org/wiki/index.php/EXTLINUX [4] Sysresccd Manual's 'Installation from Linux using an ext3/ext4 filesystem', http://www.sysresccd.org/Sysresccd-manual-en_How_to_install_SystemRescueCd_on_an_USB-stick#D.29_Installation_from_Linux_using_an_ext3.2Fext4_filesystem [5] UNetbootin site, http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/ [6] UNetbootin 'how it works' page, http://sourceforge.net/apps/trac/unetbootin/wiki/howitworks [7] 'MultiBootin With UNetbootin. A Multiboot Flash Drive Tutorial', http://tazbuntu.blogspot.com/2009/05/multibootin-with-unetbootin.html -- R.I.P. Aaron Swartz, January 11, 2013 YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN!! -- _____________________________________________________________ Get your FREE, LinuxWaves.com Email Now! --> http://www.LinuxWaves.com Join Linux Discussions! --> http://Community.LinuxWaves.com -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to debian-user-requ...@lists.debian.org with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact listmas...@lists.debian.org Archive: http://lists.debian.org/20130122212803.27b10...@resin03.mta.everyone.net
