Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via its download (DOGs too)

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Clarity
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Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via its download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

Eliminate all PUP USB build & boot ERRORS, now!

This is found on Puppy WoofCE GIT site:

...something really simple that covers all of the WoofCE PUPs

 needs merely a clear explanative set of instructions versus the multitude of misunderstandings and multitude of differing approaches to what is already solved for booting PUPs. This might have the result of reducing the "overthinking" that is occurring among developers as well as underthinking at the user level.

I am offering this to eliminate the boot problems that Puppy enthusiasts have run into over the years to put an end to those issues.

It's simple. The following creates a USB for booting all of your current modern and future PUPs/DOGs.

It contains 3 modern PUPs and a DOG. They are

  • FossaPUP64 v9.5 by @666philb

  • Slacko64 v8.2.1 by @01micko

  • CagePUP64 by @dimkr (beware, this ‘official’ Wayland build does NOT have SAMBA)

  • Fatdog v8.1 by the team of @kirk and @jamesbond and @step

To use, YOU only need to:

  1. download an image file and create a USB/SD/microSD.

That is ALL YOU NEED TO DO! Nothing more...no more creating Frugals, out-of-band manipulation of ISO contents, no more trying to get PARTED/GParted work to get booting, no more ...

This is merely a download and run solution.

If ANYONE has a problem with creating a USB with this solution, post here. (You will notice, too, on the download site that there is a "README..." of known utilities that will create a USB from an image file)

I do not expect anyone to have ANY problems with using this solution, either now or in your USB’s future. This solution works for beginners as well as for seasoned Pup/DOG veterans. It takes all of the guess work out of getting to a desktop with ANY modern PUP/DOG.

Would like to hear your comments.

EDIT: There are, now, 3 image files at the download site, above:

  1. One creates a "ext2" filesystem

  2. while the other creates an "f2fs" filesystem

  3. And there is a ZIP file containing an IMG that will fit on a USB 1GB or larger.

on your USB stick. You can choose either one and you can expect your choice to work, booting either of its distro contents on your 64bit PC. These ISOs are unmodified PUP/DOG ISO files released by their forum's author; thus expect them to be safe and to behave EXACTLY as the author's design them for your use.

The f2fs image was created for testing a USB issue with my new USB 3.2 sticks. The problem seems to be avoided in my test. The image in the ZIP contains only 2 PUPs vs the other IMG files are larger and contain more including a DOG distro.

Even as this may be true for my USBs, I cannot express more to use the example steps given by @wiak and @bigpup in their posts, below: namely they express to expand the 2nd partition before use of your USB. I have found in my test, that by doing so, it avoids the new USB problem I had. In most cases for tire-kickers, this is not necessary. But at some point, I am SURE everyone will expand the 2nd partition.

The downloads is kept to an absolute minimum for download and use of the starter 3-4 PUP-DOG ISO they contain.

NOTE: Some/many of you will 'notice' that this, additionally, lists other 'Operating Systems' that it finds installed on your PC. Those, too, can be selected from the listing and boots as you would expect in a native boot.

Enjoy

Last edited by Clarity on Sun Dec 18, 2022 10:49 pm, edited 20 times in total.
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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by r96chase »

Okay...so basically...this is a ready-made SG2D with Puppy built into it, correct? It won't do anything to my harddrive besides create a save folder, right?

I hope so for both of these tbh.

I am a crash-course Linux novice. :lol:

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by superchook »

Hi Clarity,
The script to dd the img to a usb does not appear to be included within the 1 kb file
cheers,
superchook

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Geek3579 »

Hi Clarity,

This looks interesting, thanks. I will try this.

The idea of a cloned image ( which this seems to be ??) has been around for a while, but is rarely mentioned, and has a great deal of merit IMHO.

I presume that one can burn the image to USB via RUFUS or Etcher in Windows, even. What is not clear is the minimum size USB required, and how one can expand the partitions to fill differing sized USBs.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Adam Li »

Hi Clarity
Where is script?
What is the minimum size USB required?
Thanks
Adam

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BionicPup32-8 19.03 / Precise 5.7.1 - Both Frugal Instal on HDD
Sorry for possible mistakes - English is not my mother tongue.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by wiak »

I just used following command to write the image to my usb flashstick which was on /dev/sdb:

Code: Select all

gunzip --stdout dd-2GB_SG2D.img.gz | dd of=/dev/sdb bs=1M

As provided it needs 2G flashstick space minimum as fdisk shows:

Code: Select all

Device     Boot Start     End Sectors  Size Id Type
/dev/sdb1  *     2048   69631   67584   33M  b W95 FAT32
/dev/sdb2       69632 3915775 3846144  1.9G 83 Linux

As you can see it creates two normal partitions on the flashstick.
If the flashstick is bigger you could extend the partition via Gparted I'd say (or simply use the rest of the flashstick as extra partitions).

Very nice, and useful Clarity! Booted without issues. I am posting from FatDog right now. I like FatDog - feels like a better Puppy to me and a bigger Dog. Actually, as I've posted elsewhere, I have WDL_Arch64 installation (full of all sorts of large business apps in my case) running as a vnc server with VirtualGL to do hardware accelerated graphics on the server, and FatDog comes with tigervncviewer, so on my old HP Elitebook 2530p machine from 2008 I'm actually using both FatDog and (via the vnc/VirtualGL connection) also WDL_Arch (full screen as it happens and with full normal WDL_Arch64 openbox-session desktop) - nice combination.

I can imagine a way to make 'normal' frugal installs easier to automate onto flashsticks, but this iso boot method works well as you say.

wiak

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by bigpup »

Slacko64 v8.2.1 is not a final stable release of a Puppy version.
It is in alpha/beta stage of development.
People will have issues and bugs using it.
This is going to make people think your image is offering buggy, defective software.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by dimkr »

Clarity wrote: Sun Aug 08, 2021 6:26 pm

[*]CagePUP64 by @dimkr (beware, this ‘official’ Wayland build does NOT have SAMBA)

It's not "official" (what about it makes it "official"?), it doesn't implement proper Wayland support (JWM runs on Xwayland) and I don't see how the lack of Samba is related to the title of this post. Also, as @bigpup said - topics like this can confuse users by endorsing use of unstable testing builds, and Cagepup64 is clearly unstable.

@Clarity - if you want to make your HOWTOs better, IMHO you should drop the extra information (which can be false or dangerous sometimes). Also, the number of issues, comments, posts, etc' around SG2D, GRUB, EFI, loopback.cfg, etc', is simply absurd, IMO, and I'm sure they can be replaced with a single page in https://github.com/puppylinux-woof-CE/woof-CE/wiki:

https://github.com/puppylinux-woof-CE/w ... ype=issues
https://github.com/puppylinux-woof-CE/w ... ype=issues
https://github.com/puppylinux-woof-CE/w ... ype=issues

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by rockedge »

@dimkr That is some good documentation you are providing. A lot of knowledge easy to grasp.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by wiak »

Well I like the system. Couldn't care less if the currently included distro isos are so-called official or not; once the usb stick is created, the user can easy delete any of the existing distros in there and add in alternatives if wanted. Personally I'll be replacing cage pup or whatever it is called with FocalDog64 and probably try to add in one of rockedge's WDL_Void iso creations via suitable lookback file, but not right now since flat out too busy. Certainly the method is mentioned a lot in several threads, but Clarity's off-site docs are indeed pretty interesting and well written and overall I'd prefer lots of threads covering such methods than the crazy off-topic covid threads that currently swamp the place...

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

Sorry for the delay. My community suffered a complete power, as well as ISP, outage. Now I am back up and operating.

@r96chase You are Correct! The intent of this is twofold:

  1. to make getting a ready made bootable USB stick that provides PUPs-DOGs that run as if you had done a frugal. The removes the Frugal requirement altogether. And each individual PUP-DOGs can be managed at boot-time with boot parms if necessary for additional functions.

  2. To create this ONE-TIME USB where all you need to do in the future is to merely download a forum DOG or modern WoofCE ISO to the /BOOTISOS folder on the stick and boot the downloaded ISO with never doing anything else.

The most important ability is you ONLY need to create your USB ONCE! Then you just add modern PUPs ISOs forever to your single USB stick. Boot any at your leisure.

@superchook and @Adam Li, @wiak answered. Thanks @wiak for making that easy for users to view and understand.

@bigpup AND @dimkr point out issues that new users should be aware of.

Yet, I advise users to create your USB, expand the 2nd partition to fill you USB stick using Parted/GParted and add ANY additional modern PUP-DOG of your choice. I merely included the ones on the USB as they are the ISOs I have been using or testing for quite awhile and I think many members have also been doing the same things with PUP ISOs.

Lastly, I think it important to mentions that ALL of @peebee's modern WoofCE ISOs can be added to your ISOs collection on your USB as well as @fredx181's modern distros. They ALL boot the same by merely adding the ISO file and booting directly to desktop. You, as a user, get ALL of the same function as if you had done some other procedure.

This ability has been available in modern WoofCE PUPs since, beginning December 2019.

Enjoy and share experiences; Appeal for help if you run into problems.

Again, I must repeat. This does NOT change PUPs behavior...It merely makes PUPs a download and run distro.
... so that users can 'kick its tires' immediately!

P.S. Ubuntu distros can also be added as well. Your USB will present it same as it does your PUPs.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by mikewalsh »

@Clarity :-

Just because something works for you, you cannot assume that it MUST work for everybody.

I told you quite some time ago, I tried SuperGRUB2 all ways I could think of, and it simply would not boot for me. (And no, I'm NOT interested in the "offer" of a "walk-through". I told you that, too, at the time, so please don't make it again.)

Remember; there is still a long way to go before we reach UEFI standards conformity between manufacturers. We're getting there s-l-o-w-l-y, but there's plenty of "awkward" machines out there on the market yet. This HP tower is one such device; I have to utilise a weird, bastard "Frankenstein" approach to booting stuff on here as it is. And NO; I will never be satisfied with any approach that uses GRUB2, because to me it's a bloated monstrosity of a thing that does NOT deserve the all-encompassing stranglehold it already has on the Linux world. Too many Linux distros are simply respins of a small number of 'major' players, every one of which meekly "toes the line" whenever Red Hat decides on a new, 'standard' approach to anything.

Maybe in another few years, perhaps.....but we're not there yet. It's part of the reason why one way of booting will work for one individual, yet for another it will be a case of "no cigar", and something else needs to be tried.

Don't think I don't understand the logic behind this thread. I DO.....and that's exactly why it's NOT a "one-size-fits-all" approach to the issue. Not yet, anyhow.

-------------------------------

However, your 'approach' is an interesting one, because it echoes the way most installs that are offered as an image work, too. The premise of booting direct from an ISO is not a new one, either. Aren't 'images' the way in which Barry has been offering his experimental stuff for several years now?

I'd question the choice of offerings, though. Fossapup/FatDog are fairly mature/well-sorted by now; Cagepup and the 8-series Slacko, however, are both still very much in the experimental stages. I'm not so sure these two would give a good representation of Puppy to newbies to Puppyland. What was the 'rationale' behind their selection? Or was it simply that you, personally, think they're interesting enough to be worth pursuing..?

(Okay, I've just eyeballed your response in the above post. Fair comment.)

Mike. ;)

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

Thanks @mikewalsh for your observations.

If you should choose to witness the USB, for yourself by testing, I would welcome if it works. Max time estimate appears to be about 15 minutes, at worst. With your background, it will be much less, I'm sure.

Experiences, from anyone, could/would lead to improvements.

Again, I must repeat. This does NOT change PUPs behavior...It merely makes PUPs a download and run distro.

Looking at it a little differently, it is a "productivity" solution for users to be able quickly add a PUP and boot in a mere few minutes by doing NOTHING except to download new PUPs to the USB they create. 3-5 mintes with NO knowledge of anything except to download to the USB stick they had created.

WE are NOT creating a new wheel, merely simplifying it.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by dimkr »

You ignored @mikewalsh's questions :?

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

Nope! Did not.

P.S. I am hopeful this is not attempts to engage a fight for ANY reason. Its just a tool to eliminate some of the issues encountered by users in the past and to make it simple and easy for users to always boot modern DOGs and PUPs by eliminating items that have been experienced.

On another note
I just noticed that QuickPUP64 by @mistfire is now available. I just tested it as well and that ISO file boots directly to desktop. Session was saved to local HDD and rebooted as well...same as the others PUPs and DOGs tested and used over the approx. last 2 years. (Note: the download gotten from here, downloads correctly. The one it that thread's opening post on its page 1 had unexplained issues.)

Since QuickPUP64 is beta, it is for those who want to quickly test and explore it. This is posted, here, merely to show how in 4 minutes I was able to download and boot it to desktop via the USB. This allows the ability to provide the developer immediate feedback.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by wiak »

Precisely the reason I liked the top post and download is that it saved me a lot of time reading up on Supergrub and implementing a similar build at home myself. Speaking only for myself, all new config methods take time to read, understand, and implement. Clarity effectively did all the work here - I just downloaded the image, wrote it to a usb stick and it booted straight away (on a UEFI machine that is using secure boot by the way... I can now examine the method at my leisure without having wasted any time - and only used a few minutes creating the install, which worked out of the box. I tend to just use one distro nowadays, but I do like to have a few others available for quick tests and this methodology suits perfectly for that - I realise I can now simply download a few more isos of interest and plonk them onto the SG configured stick - can't see anything but benefit from that. Certainly there may be some computers that won't work with it, but few and far between I'd imagine. So why the negatives on here - its a free contribution - use it or don't - harms no-one, probably helps many.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by mikewalsh »

Well, I've tried this again. Three re-downloads, three attempts with an almost-new known "good" USB3.2 SanDisk 32GB Ultra 'Fit'. MD5sums correct every time.

On each occasion, trying different 'write' methods, I'm told that both the image AND the drive are faulty..??

(The drive is perfectly fine. I've just installed a frugal Fossapup to it via my usual quick'n'dirty method, and am posting from Chrome-portable running in it now.)

Sorry, Clarity; I gave it the benefit of the doubt, but it just doesn't work for me! I DID try.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by bigpup »

On each occasion, trying different 'write' methods

How about some specific info on what write methods you tried?
You did what?
You see what?

Well, I just tried to see what it does with me.
I cannot get the image file to download.
All I get is warning messages about Google drive not being able to scan file for viruses and clicking on continue download anyway, seems to do nothing.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

Excellent and THANKS @mikewalsh. That's exactly the feedback needed. It allows to investigate the reasons for problems. BTW, your findings was actually discovered last night by me with a new USB stick, as well.

Let's examine the conditions:

  • The image is made from a dinosaur 2GB USB stick that was just big enough to ONLY have those PUPs with no room for much of anything more

  • The stick it is being "dd ..." to, is a brand new, never written to, 64GB USB 3.2 stick

  • "fdisk" shows what is expected: MSDOS, 2GB partition on a LARGE stick

  • My stick booted with NO problem in showing the enclosed PUPs & DOG

  • The DOG booted without issue

  • FossaPUP booted without issue

  • Cage booted without issue

  • But error occurred for Slacko64 and would not boot.

So I booted FATDOG with the stick, used its GParted to expand the 2nd partition (SG2DISOS) from 2GB to 4GB and rebooted the USB stick. And now Slacko64 boots as well as all other ISOs on the stick.

Preliminary conclusion: The 2GB image "may" have some partition table issues on that EXT2 partition that is exposed when using a 'New" USB 3.2 stick.

Reason for my conclusion: On couple of my old USB V2.0 sticks that are 8GB+, booting any of the ISO files is not an issue. Only on this 'new' USB stick is a boot problem occurring on one entry when the partition is left at <2GB.

Unrelated note of prior USB performance: Now you see WHY I have posted, in the past on the forum, of my displeasure with USB sticks: A thread that you, too, have commented on.

My problem and yours, too, is USB technology issues affecting behavior. (I have posted on USB behavior before on the forum)

Future
Soon, I think I have a USB 3.0 8GB stick to create similar to what is contained on 2GB USB 2.0 stick.
I will be posting a new image soon as I added @fredx181's DebianDOG & FossaDOG
along with @mistfire's QuickPUP64 as well as @josejp2424's DevuanPUP64 to that 4GB area and tested. They all boot and behave without ANY issues now that the 'new' USB partition is expanded. All of these PUPs and DOGs are the modern releases from developers on the forum.

Getting 4 PUP-DOG ISO files from a <2GB download is good. I will attempt to provide all 8 PUP-DOG ISO files mentioned in the next, separate, image file.

And @mikewalsh, I would welcome your finding on the next image made from a USB V3.0 stick to see if you have the same problem. If not, I understand.

Request
Please, anyone else, please post success or failures. It is helpful as this type of PUP boot ability continues forward.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

@mikewalsh, I see you ran into this in your past. Did this happen with you, again?

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by mikewalsh »

Clarity wrote: Wed Aug 11, 2021 9:32 pm

@mikewalsh, I see you ran into this in your past. Did this happen with you, again?

No idea, Clarity. Never got that far!

I've been playing around with Bill's old ISObooter from a few years ago. Pups will boot; some mainstream distros will, others won't.....seems to be very hit'n'miss, TBH. I keep trying different ISOs as ideas occur to me.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

That was your post of problems from last year.

Mike the prime reason for this solution is the ability of SG2D to provide 3 things; a linux command console if a user wants as well as no need for contiguous layout and NO post processing after downloading the PUP ISO file. This does EXACTLY the same ability of ISObooter which had used, prior to 2019.

Consider this as ISObooter without those needs. Simplicity for all users, merely wanting to boot their PUPs to desktop and run with ALL PUP's bells and whistles.

I had posted making a new image file made from a larger USB stick. But, that would be a larger download for users.

So, instead, I will take that same USB 2.0 2GB stick and add ONLY 1 distro to make for a smaller download file to create one's USB for booting.

Will post for community users who could have USB 3 sticks who may have run into the same problem we have encountered with booting an image created on a USB 2.0 stick to a USB 3.0/3.1/3.2 stick. Then the users can boot and download any additional modern PUPs-DOGs that they choose.

Any preference for a single ISO file on the image, anyone? And, has anyone else had ANY issues with booting ANY of the enclosed PUPs on the current download?

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

To be very clear: Thus far we have only a single report that is NOT related to SG2D nor the PUP ISO files or the DOG ISO files. The reported problem reflects either a filesystem problem or a USB controller problem that surfaces after the 2GB image is used to create a 'new' and bigger USB 3+ stick.

This does NOT seem to be widespread at all. Thus almost everyone else will not have the USB 3 problem I resolved.

So @wiak posted, very early in this thread, a pathway I think best for ALL USBs you use no matter if its a USB 2.0 or a USB 3+ stick:

  1. Download the image file in the opening post on page 1 of this thread

  2. Create your USB

  3. Immediately run GParted to resize the 2nd partition to your satisfaction (this appears to clear any filesystem issues that 'may' exist)

  4. Boot and run any of the ISOs on your USB

  5. Add any of the modern PUPs-DOGs you find in the forum to your USB stick in folder /BOOTISOS

Further, I think everyone understands, that this behaves exactly as all PUP-DOGs behave for persistence, namely save-folders, savefiles, multisession (FATDOG), "changes' (BusterDOG+DebianDOG+FossaDOG), ... continue as always.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by bigpup »

So @wiak posted, very early in this thread, a pathway I think best for ALL USBs you use no matter if its a USB 2.0 or a USB 3+ stick:

Download the image file in the opening post on page 1 of this thread

Create your USB

Immediately run GParted to resize the 2nd partition to your satisfaction (this appears to clear any filesystem issues that 'may' exist)

Boot and run any of the ISOs on your USB

Add any of the modern PUPs-DOGs you find in the forum to your USB stick in folder /BOOTISOS

Strongly suggest this be put in the first post of this topic.

One thing to consider about choosing ext2 format for the 2nd partition.
Ext2 file system(format) can and will get corrupted over time.
This has affect on the save file/folder.
Puppy for years has been using pfix=fsck in the boot entry for booting.
This does a check of the format(file system) at every boot.
Having this stopped all the issues putting Puppy on a ext2 format location.

Fatdog, not being Puppy Linux, does not use this in it's boot entries.

May want to consider using f2fs format for that 2nd partition.
Maybe ext 3 or 4 format.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

Thanks @bigpup.

Maybe the ext2 filesystem on the 2nd partition contributes to the USB problem. I will remake that partition as f2fs (Samsung's file system for solid state devices), test and post to see if the USB 3+ condition resolves. You 'may" have just provided a pathway overcoming that element for USB 3.2 sticks I (and @mikewalsh ) ran into.

One of the problems I slammed into last year was the fact that after some PUPs had booted, Gparted was not able to report storage use on partitions formatted as either f2fs OR ExFat, IIRC. Both of these filesystems are created with solid state devices in mind, but Gparted had not advance.

Hopefully today's PUP-DOGs can report usage when these filesystem are in play.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by bigpup »

I started to not say anything about f2fs format, just because a specific Puppy version may not have as much support for it.

All the newest versions seem to at least have normal support.

If you look in a specific running Puppy version Gparted->View->File System Support
This will tell you, what support for each file system, is maybe in the Puppy version.
I say maybe, because the Puppy version may not have all the needed software, only some of it or none.
This should show what it does support for each file system.
The versions of the needed software, that are in the Puppy version, can affect this.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by bigpup »

Report on using the image file to make a bootable usable USB.
Burned it using Easydd.
Did the expand 2nd partition, using Gparted, to use all the unallocated space, before trying to boot with it.

It Boots every iso on it, except Fossapup 64 9.5

In Fossapup boot process.
Get to the point of waiting for usb device and it hangs.
This is kind of a known issue with Fossapup on some computers.
Usually you can edit the grub.cfg file in the iso, changing pmedia=cd to pmedia=usbflash
That usually fixes it.
However, this install method only has the Fossapup64 9.5 iso and the files are in it.
So, they are in a read only mode of access, unless you want to unpack the iso, edit the file, and repack the iso.

One thing I kind of do not like about this iso booting with SG2D.
It makes a menu that has every possible drive partition that is on the computer.

Do you know of any way to just have it search only the USB that has the iso's and you are trying to boot from?
Only pop up a menu for only what is on the USB?

Dang!
Just slipped on one of those batteries :lol: (inside joke)

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

bigpup wrote: Thu Aug 12, 2021 8:11 am

Report on using the image file to make a bootable usable USB.
Burned it using Easydd.
Did the expand 2nd partition, using Gparted, to use all the unallocated space, before trying to boot with it.

It Boots every iso on it, except Fossapup 64 9.5

...Usually you can edit the grub.cfg file in the iso, changing pmedia=cd to pmedia=usbflash
That usually fixes it. However...

Do you know of any way to just have it search only the USB that has the iso's and you are trying to boot from?
...

At the FossaPUP64 Menu on its 1st line, hit "e" to edit the stanza with your parm changes. When complete with your change(s), hit F10 to boot.

Also, if you already have a save-session on the local drive, when editing add the parm, 'psave=/file-folder-location'.
For example I keep all of my saves for all of the PUP-DOG distros in a folder on a linux partition on the local drive. So in my case my psave looks like this

Code: Select all

linux .... psave=sda2:/Sessions/

I do this regardless if I have a save or not so that at session end if will ask, assuming it was a pristine boot.

Keeping all of my session folders/files for all of my distros is "good housekeeping' in that folder (Sessions) on the local drive. All of my local drives are faster than my USB sticks.

Post back if you have a problem with the directions.
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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by wiak »

Just a short extra report since I only tried booting FatDog in my first usage.

This time round I tried booting each in turn and all successfully booted on the machine I was using today (old HP Elitebook 2539p from 2008).

I don't know if you gave any details on how to select the OS to boot, @Clarity. I had no idea how to use the SuperGrub menu, but managed to boot via trial and error. If I selected any other menu item than I'm about to describe, all I could see was the old underlying Windows 7 installation I have on the hard disk of this machine. But what worked for me is as follows:

1. From boot menu, select: "Detect and show boot method"

bit of a delay at this point as SG does that detection I guess

2. Once the next menu page pops up, scroll down until you see entries of the form:

"Grub loopback Config <iso name of operating system>"
etc etc etc

3. Highlight the Grub Loopback Config OS you want and press enter

It then should boot (though user has to be patient - most have OS boot-related delays that look like hangs but just give them time and booted fine thereafter for me).

Note that some reported failures could easily result from not using the boot menu in this way - if I didn't have that Win7 on my system hard disk I suspect I would just have received a screen with no choices at all on it if I had used other than "Detect and show boot method" choice on first screen.

By the way, I'd avoid f2fs at this stage. Better to use ext2 or ext4. If using ext4 with usb flash sticks I usually tune that not to use journaling to lessen write cycles to the flash stick.

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Re: Booting modern PUPPY from USB only via a download (DOGs too)

Post by Clarity »

Thanks to EVERYONE who has tested this. And the suggestions are noted.

IN the coming days, I will post references to, both, documents and videos showing use of this SG2D USB disk.

I have made an additional 2GB image file that has the 2nd partition as the 'f2fs' filesystem. It is on the download site linked in the opening post on page 1 of this thread. Because of the way f2fs filesystem works for solid-state devices, there is only enough space for 3 PUP-DOGs vs the 4 on the 'ext2' filesystem.

BOTH of these image files work without issues on all 64bit PCs.

As has already been explained earlier, download and create your USB.

If you want to add your own modern PUPs or DOGs found on the forum, you must expand the 2nd partition on your USB. In all future use of your USB, you merely add your ISO file to the /BOOTISOS folder and boot. NOTHING ELSE IS NEEDED!

Add as many PUPs or DOGs ISO files as you like. All Ubuntu ISO files can also be added.

P.S. @mikewalsh the f2fs image works OOTB for me on my 2 new USB 3.2 sticks. Should work for you too.

@bigpup, I ran into the 2 USB stick problem you have posted on other threads about. Removing the other USB allows expected startup behavior. This is unrelated to the USB 3.2 issue from few days ago.

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