Puppy Linux Discussion Forum

I'm a long time Puppy user, but I'm new to DebianDog. With Puppy I can manually frugal install by copying initrd vmlinuz and a handful of sfs files to a directory and adding an entry to my pre-existing boot manager (grub2). The DebianDog iso contains a mess of files and the installer wants to install a boot loader straight away. I don't want to overwrite my existing bootloader. How should I proceed? In my test I am using the busterDog iso.

I also tried the bullseye builder appimage but I didn't know what to do with all the files it created. That builder also produces an alarming number of errors while it was running.

To do a manual frugal install, just take the contents of the ISO file (you don't really need anything but the /live directory) and copy them to a directory on your hard drive.

Then use samples in the /Examples-boot-codes.txt, which is the ISO file, to create a new entry in the menu.1st file or equivalent.

Why are you using an installer if you want a manual frugal install?

Create a directory on your hard drive (/mnt/sda1/debiandog)
Open the contents of the debiandog-xxx.iso
Copy the "live" folder to the created debiandog directory.

This is the contents of my /mnt/sda1/debiandog/live/

This is my /mnt/sda1/menu.lst entry:

title DebianDog (sda1)
uuid A000B2F200B2CF12 - NOTE - YOUR UUID WILL BE DIFFERENT
kernel /debiandog/live/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/debiandog/ changes=/debiandog/live/changes.dat
initrd /debiandog/live/initrd1.xz

For grub2 and using changes=EXIT mode I used the following recently to boot dd-bullseye; just modify to work with your own UUID and dir where you store your BusterDog live folder:

menuentry "DD Bullseye 64" {
insmod ext2
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 78683fe5-0323-4030-9ddd-39464a8fbf80
linux /dd_bullseye64/live/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/dd_bullseye64 changes=EXIT:/dd_bullseye64/live/
initrd /dd_bullseye64/live/initrd1.xz
}

Doubt you even need the insmod ext2 in the grub.cfg stanza, but maybe you do.

wiak wrote: Fri Aug 27, 2021 2:51 pm

For grub2 and using changes=EXIT mode I used the following recently to boot dd-bullseye; just modify to work with your own UUID and dir where you store your BusterDog live folder:

menuentry "DD Bullseye 64" {
insmod ext2
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 78683fe5-0323-4030-9ddd-39464a8fbf80
linux /dd_bullseye64/live/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/dd_bullseye64 changes=EXIT:/dd_bullseye64/live/
initrd /dd_bullseye64/live/initrd1.xz
}

Doubt you even need the insmod ext2 in the grub.cfg stanza, but maybe you do.

To add: Note that above is for save to folder (in "live") which works only on a Linux filesystem (e.g. ext3 or ext4)

dancytron, Trapster, wiak, fredx181,

Thank you fellows. This did it:

menuentry "BusterDog" {
    insmod ntfs
    search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
    linux /BusterDog/live/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/BusterDog/ changes=/BusterDog/live/changes.dat
    initrd /BusterDog/live/initrd1.xz
}

I also tried to place the contents of live inside BusterDog but that folder structure seems to be required.

I downloaded the test ISO from https://forum.puppylinux.com/viewtopic.php?t=5069.
Put into ventoy usb and launched and played around. As it seemed to have a working suspend/laptop lid resume, I thought I'd do a frugal install on my trusty sdcard, alongside other frugals.
The built in installer seemed to copy over the live folder but gave an error message 'copy failed' at the end. Didn't boot so did manual install, copying live folder contents to folder on sdcard.
Tried the various boot stanzas in menu.lst on sdcard but got error, generally file not found and something like file system ext2fs, even though it is ext3 partition. Tried various options but no joy.
Found this thread and copied a couple of your examples for grub2, which exists on my SSD (sda) from which I sometimes boot frugals on sda and sdb. I think grub2 is supposed to be faster. Never have problems.

Below are my edited stanzas. Folder is bdog. Confirmed copied live folder contents from iso in Ventoy with sync:sync.

menuentry "BookwormDog" {
insmod ntfs
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 81c56d04-e8bc-4d3c-9aa6-a8d1bce29dcb
linux /bdog/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/bdog/ changes=/bdog/changes.dat
initrd /bdog/initrd1.xz
}

menuentry "Bookwormdog - savefolder" {
insmod ext2
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 81c56d04-e8bc-4d3c-9aa6-a8d1bce29dcb
linux /bdog/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/bdog changes=EXIT:/bdog/
initrd /bdog/initrd1.xz
}

Neither boot,or rather it starts but then boot screen static. Waited several minutes. All other frugals boot within 60 seconds.

Any help welcome, for menu.lst or grub2.

These are the grub4dos menu.1st entries that I use. They use the path, not the id number. Getting the right disk can be tricky sometimes (root (hd0,0) part) and might take trial and error.

These presume a linux partition sda1 with a folder "StockBusterDogFork" and will autogenerate a changes folder except in the last one which will boot like a Puppy 1st boot without changes.

title StockBusterDogFork No Bluetooth (sda1) from=/StockBusterDogFork/ changes=EXIT:/StockBusterDogFork/
root (hd0,0)
kernel (hd0,0)/StockBusterDogFork/live/vmlinuz1 from=/StockBusterDogFork/ changes=EXIT:/StockBusterDogFork/
initrd (hd0,0)/StockBusterDogFork/live/initrd1.xz

title StockBusterDogFork copy2ram (sda1) noauto from=/StockBusterDogFork/ changes=EXIT:/StockBusterDogFork/
root (hd0,0)
kernel (hd0,0)/StockBusterDogFork/live/vmlinuz1 noauto copy2ram from=/StockBusterDogFork/ changes=EXIT:/StockBusterDogFork/
initrd (hd0,0)/StockBusterDogFork/live/initrd1.xz

title StockBusterDogFork for upgrade (sda1) noauto from=/StockBusterDogFork/ changes=/StockBusterDogFork/
root (hd0,0)
kernel (hd0,0)/StockBusterDogFork/live/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/StockBusterDogFork/ changes=/StockBusterDogFork/
initrd (hd0,0)/StockBusterDogFork/live/initrd1.xz

title StockBusterDogFork (sda1) No Changes from=/StockBusterDogFork/
root (hd0,0)
kernel (hd0,0)/StockBusterDogFork/live/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/StockBusterDogFork/
initrd (hd0,0)/StockBusterDogFork/live/initrd1.xz 

(Omission of noauto from the 1st one is intentional. That's what I usually use and I want it to mount everything.)

@Phil_54
You are missing the "live" in the stanza's (where vmlinuz1 and initrd1.xz should be inside), so, make it (e.g. for your savefolder stanza):

menuentry "Bookwormdog - savefolder" {
insmod ext2
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 81c56d04-e8bc-4d3c-9aa6-a8d1bce29dcb
linux /bdog/live/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/bdog changes=EXIT:/bdog/
initrd /bdog/live/initrd1.xz
}

The from= should not specify live (being parent folder of live), so OK as it is.
EDIT: To clarify, the "live" folder must always be present and containing vmlinuz1, initrd1.xz and the .squashfs files

@fredx181
I hadn't realised that the live folder, as part of the structure, was important. I moved everthying into live inside bdog, but grub2 boot failed (unless I didn't wait long enough ?).
I re-copied the original live folder into a live folder on my sdcard, i.e. not inside bdog folder. Redid the boot stanza removing bdog only, and booted eventually (I need to time this). Now writing this from within my new frugal install.

@dancytron
I'll try the menu.lst version later.
Thanks both for your response and help.

So, I understand you made it like this ? (no "bdog" folder, having the live folder directly on the root of your partition):

menuentry "Bookwormdog - savefolder" {
insmod ext2
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 81c56d04-e8bc-4d3c-9aa6-a8d1bce29dcb
linux /live/vmlinuz1 noauto from=/ changes=EXIT:/
initrd /live/initrd1.xz
}

That should work too but note that if there is any 'live' folder on another partition, it may conflict.
(I always make sure that the live folder is inside a folder with unique name (not located elsewhere) or use LABEL or UUID, which can prevent such conflict too (see more at http://www.porteus.org/tutorials/26-gen ... -them.html).
EDIT: Must say that not all porteus cheat codes work with DebianDog, the UUID and LABEL options for from= or changes= do work though.

@fredx181
Yes, that is what I have done. I'll experiment with sub-folder again, maybe didn't leave long enough to boot. Thanks for link too. I'm learning about differences of dog v puppy. Having fun.
Maybe questions later, but will search forum first.