Arch Linux

Hibernate

Member

From: Stockholm, Sweden

Registered: 2011-07-12

Posts: 100

Installing to an USB

I'm trying to install Arch Linux on a USB drives so that it can be started from any computer.
Either I get that Linux is waiting for a device, it freezes before the bootloader menu start or
that no file system exists.

The setup I want is a 50 MB ext2 partition for /boot, and a ~8 GB ext4 partition for /.
The bootloader should be syslinux (the bootloader used on the installation images).

I have tried with taking the boot folder from an installation images and dd in
either /usr/var/syslinux/mbr.bin or the MBR from an installation USB (dd 440
bytes from the beginning to the beginning), with and without running
extlinux --install.

Any suggestion on how the get the bootloader to load an installed Arch Linux from USB?

Ex animo
Hibernate

Last edited by Hibernate (2011-12-02 10:35:42)

trontonic

Member

Registered: 2008-07-21

Posts: 80

Re: Installing to an USB

Have you tried using unetbootin, just for checking that the USB stick is actually bootable? Have you tried another USB stick? Sometimes they can be problematic.

Hibernate

Member

From: Stockholm, Sweden

Registered: 2011-07-12

Posts: 100

Re: Installing to an USB

I'll look into unetbootin.

The USB stick is bootable, all by USB drives have been used for booting the Arch Linux installation.
I have not, yet tested installing Arch on another USB, but I do not see any reason why it would be more successful.

nomilieu

Member

Registered: 2010-07-03

Posts: 133

Re: Installing to an USB

Is there any particular reason you have to use syslinux?

I always just fire up qemu and use the install CD (with grub as the bootloader).

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WorMzy

Forum Moderator

From: Scotland

Registered: 2010-06-16

Posts: 11,902

Website

Re: Installing to an USB

I just copied a vt-only install to a 3GB partition on my 4GB USB stick, installed grub to it, configured that to boot Arch, fixed the fstab file (UUIDs are your friend), and disabled any unnecessary daemons (it uses systemd). I also created a 1GB partiton for data storage.

Works fine. Although, I wish I'd copied a 32-bit install instead.

No need for any Live USB creation software or any bollocks like that. Just cp -rp.

Possibly it should be optimized some more so that writes are non-existent, but meh.

Last edited by WorMzy (2011-12-02 23:00:59)

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trontonic

Member

Registered: 2008-07-21

Posts: 80

Re: Installing to an USB

The unetbootin suggestion was only meant for testing. (ref "Live USB creation software bollocks")

Hibernate

Member

From: Stockholm, Sweden

Registered: 2011-07-12

Posts: 100

Re: Installing to an USB

@nomilieu No it's just that I prefer syslinux over grub.

@WorMzy UUIDs is good idea to use, I'll test it when I have time to continue with this.