supergrub2 & ETP's pet to burn it to a USB Stick

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mikeslr
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supergrub2 & ETP's pet to burn it to a USB Stick

Post by mikeslr »

I have not tested either the supergrub2 utility or ETP's pet. This Post originally intended just to provide links to the discussion and pet by ETP, https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2P ... mX9VtX/pub. Further discussion can be found here, http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 7d#1049788 and on the new forum, here, viewtopic.php?p=11357#p11357

About the pet, ETP in part --read the full illustrated text -- says:
"Download this, https://sourceforge.net/projects/supergrub2/ of SG2D 7.4 Mb (this version is taken from this webpage)...
Write the SG2D image to a 4GB or larger USB stick. (See Important notes below)...
SG2D creates a 2nd partition on the USB where it expects the user to place ISO files.
... Add your ISO files to the folder “BOOTISOS” (No other name allowed - must be upper case)...
Note: The 2nd fat32 partition is not large enough for these modern Puppy Linux ISOs. You will need to convert it to a Linux format and then expand it to fill the stick in order to accommodate a number of ISO files. If you just expand the existing fat32 partition you will be restricted to using save files rather than the more desirable save folders.
...If you have stored a ‘modern’ PUP distro created out of the WOOFCE methods since the beginning of December 2019, your distro should compatible for discovery by SG2D. Most importantly: Your sessions can be saved per the usual methods for persistence. And expect that it (Persistence) will be found upon your reboots...
To make life easier a utility [ usb_sd_creator_64bit-v2.pet ] for writing the downloaded .img.zip file to a stick can be found below. It handles both the extraction and writing of the image...

Supergrub2burning-pet.png
Supergrub2burning-pet.png (61.94 KiB) Viewed 662 times

Just ignore option 1 and start with option 2...
Note: Folders for ISOs
You can place a folder of ISOs on the root of any partition that is part of your PC. The ONLY requirement is that is MUST be in a folder named BOOTISOS if on the 2nd partition of a USB stick or boot-isos if using a partition on a HD/SSD/NVME.
SG2D will find the folder(s) which must be in the root and present all eligible ISOs for selection.
Note: 2nd USB partition
If you are using SG2D installed to a partition, the 2nd partition can be expanded if space remains. This can easily be done without destroying any files/folders on that partition. In Puppy Linux, use GParted or Parted to expand the 2nd partition."

But not having explored it, I have some questions. The first is whether as alternatives to the usb_sd_creator_64bit-v2.pet, either BarryK's easydd or one of Mike Walsh's easydd applications could be used, https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ ... kC92wcE_oH
More importantly 1., my impression from the posts is that while supergrub2 is 'burned' to a USB-Stick, when booted it will examine all partitions on the computer for operating systems and look for a top level folder named BOOTISOS and finding that offer to boot ISOs within that folder. In other words the BOOTISOS folder does not have to be on the USB-Stick: if your hard drive is sda, a top-level folder on sda is named BOOTISOS and a fossapup.iso is within that folder, supergrub2 will offer to boot it. Is that impression correct?
2. If the BOOTISOS folder is on the USB-Stick, can a Puppy's SaveFiles or SaveFolder be written to the hard-drive and even more importantly, if they can will they be used the next time that Puppy's ISO is selected.
Can more than one BOOTISOS folder be employed? Say one on the USB-Stick and another on a hard drive?
Above its says "If you are using SG2D installed to a partition..." Does that include hard-drive partitions? And, if so "How?". AFAIK, SG2D is designed to be 'burned' to a USB-Stick, and ETP's pet merely enables that to be done while running a Puppy.

Clarity
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Re: supergrub2 & ETP's pet to burn it to a USB Stick

Post by Clarity »

The short answer is NO for booting Barry's ISOs. They do NOT comply for the universality that the PUP and DOG developers have adopted for boot process on BIOS/UEFI PCs.
The short answer is YES for using another writing program to create the SG2D bootable USB.
And for the sentence preceeding where you ask

mikeslr wrote:

Is that impression correct?

I say, YES.
AND, for the following sentences, you have it exactly correct; yes.

Yet all of the 2020-2021 WoofCE PUPs and DOGs ISO-files use a compliant approach and will work just fine...as does Ubuntus, etc.

Once your SG2D USB/DVD is made, it will find your folder of ISOs anywhere on any filesystem that is connected to your booting PC.

Thus, all you do in the future for those compliant ISOs, just download them to your folder and boot the SG2D USB or the SG2D DVD to select and boot any of the downloaded ISO(s) in the folder(s).

For me, the beauty of what the PUP & DOG developers gave us is "I NEVER NEED TO MODIFY A BOOT MENU EVER AGAIN" to boot any PUP-DOG distro directly. Merely download and boot it to desktop...that all of it.

Hope this is helpful.

I also have an expanded option for boots if you want to see that for your personal observation. If so, PM me.

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