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New Skeleton initrd.gz release v502-rc2
Just small bugfix release - doesn't effect most current projects but should now use this one with, for example, KLV-Airedale anyway.
For more information and the WDL skeleton construction kit download script itself, visit:
https://weedoglinux.rockedge.org/viewto ... p=355#p355
Rough HowTo produce frugal install WDL_manjaXFCE using official Manjaro XFCE iso is here:
gtkdialog_filemnt addon sfs module for that is introduced here:
You can discuss progress and/or any issues you are having in already started discussion/information thread here:
Consider this post a 'Fast Track' into WeeDog Linux system builds and usage. The overall brief 'HowTo' and initial downloads are under preparation and should become available within the next day or two. I will make further announcement at the time - probably on WeeDog Blog section with link back to a more completed version of this thread. My writing this early information is just my way of getting started - the 'being quickly written' rough WDL_manjaXFCE 'HowTo' will likely be the first output of the latest development work - I've been using most of it for months personally, but wasn't sure whether I'd be publishing further work or not, but better late than never....
Announcing the Release of the very Latest General Purpose WeeDogLinux initrd.
This can be used not only with WeeDogLinux built distro variants, but can also be used to create an alternative, overlayfs-based, frugal installation and boot mechanism for many other distributions including official Arch Linux, Manjaro, Slackware, Slitaz, and even Puppy Linux and the various Dogs.
The booted distro that results will be controlled by WeeDog's initrd/init layer and save persistence mechanisms, rather than by their usual official distro's initrd files (which are not used with WDL variation). WeeDog initrd not only provides scope for up to 100 overlay modules but these can be either sfs files or normal directories (which have not been compressed using mksquashfs) or any mixture of these.
Of course, a few of the utilities used in some of these various distros will not work or not work as intended when run as a WeeDogLinux frugal install since some are expecting an aufs layout and different layer names - but these are generally minor issues (and the larger distros such as Arch, Manjaro, Slackware and so on are usually 100% fine) that are generally easy to address. The key to using the WDL version is to instead learn how to achieve similar functionality using the many features WeeDog initrd overlayfs init provides and simply tweak the (usually very few if any) distro-specific utils to use WDL features instead. So, if running a WDL_pup, for example, you would not use 'pupmodes' at all, but instead use WDL w_changes modes for generally similar functionality. With the likes of official Arch, Mandrake, Slackware, and Void) you get the same WDL frugal install benefits exactly (so nothing new to learn...).
Documentation for WDL is however in short supply, so if you try it you should be prepared for some failures until you master the WDL organisation and approach (though if you do it carefully it should work first time though depends on how bad the HowTo I write is...), but you can always supply details of the issues you have and ask for help here. Good thing, at least, about the documentation for WDL being short is that there isn't much to read!!! Indeed, for the most part, the main documentation is found at the very end of the main WDL build scripts, though many of the above WDL-booted systems don't require you to use the build scripts at all - all you need is the WDL initrd and simple instructions for using it with your distro of choice.
To get you started, the next information I post will include a "How To boot official Manjaro XFCE edition as a WDL frugal installation" (WDL_manjaXFCE). But prior to my preparing that (sorry, just working on it), please find below the very short, and probably extremely cryptic form, the options that will become available to you (or at least most of them) is you choose to experiment with such WDL frugal installations. If you can decipher this cryptic brevity you are almost 'ready'! More to come... But only for anyone that is interested of course. (NOTE that I will NOT be covering booting mechanisms at all - be these BIOS, UEFI, grub2, grub4dos - except for providing help with menu.lst or grub.cfg stanzas - I am not producing any isos here either... Rather, this info is for those who are comfortable creating a directory, putting vmlinuz and initrd in it along with the necessary sfs modules and booting these via your already established grub setups... AND I provide no guarantee any of this will work on your systems - it does on my computers - and whatever you do is at your own risk entirely).
Once a WDL system build has been prepared (e.g. after following the example WDL ManjaroXFCE HowTo or, alternatively, following a normal build script build) the following applies:
initrd.gz and, unless "nosfs", NNfirstrib_rootfs.sfs are now
ready and, usually, appropriate vmlinuz kernel in the same directory.
Copy these to your chosen boot partition/directory if not already in it.
You need either NNfirstrib_rootfs.sfs
OR:
a copy of the uncompressed firstrib_rootfs directory renamed to
NNfirstrib_rootfs, where NN can be 01 up to 99
(depending on layer position required). Default is currently NN=08
You can also copy additional sfs files named NNsomething.sfs or an
unsquashed directory (e.g. of any such sfs) named NNsomething.
Finally create appropriate grub.cfg or grub4dos menu.lst boot entry
using kernel-line bootparams:
w_bootfrom=/mnt/partition/directory, or w_bootfrom=LABEL|UUID=/bootdir
Optional w_changes=[option] where option can be (uc is upper_changes):
media for uc saved direct to media (such as hard disk),
RAM0 for uc in RAM but external media uc contents not included at all,
RAM1 for uc in RAM but external media uc contents copied in,
RAM2 for uc in RAM but external media uc highest layer RO loopmounted,
/mnt/partition/dir for alt direct to uc media location,
no_uc0 or no_uc1, are only for rare special cases - refer to main docs.
Optional w_copy2ram, to copy all NNsfs, NNdirs, w_rdshN.plug to RAM.
Optional w_altNN=path2dir for alternative location for NNsfs/dirs.
Optional w_rmmodule="list of modules" or w_addmodule="list of modules".
Optional w_rdshN arguments (where N=0,1,2,3,4 or 5) to force debug sh,
Optional w_rdshN.plug files, which will be sourced by initrd/init,
Optional w_inram00.plug, which will be sourced by initrd/init,
Optional w_pre_switch_root.plug, which will be sourced by initrd/init,
Example grub4dos and grub2 configs:
Code: Select all
title WDL_manjaXFCE
find --set-root uuid () b812c597-8099-4bee-9bb3-8b9c10f1e902
kernel /WDL_manjaXFCE/vmlinuz-5.13-x86_64 w_bootfrom=UUID=b812c597-8099-4bee-9bb3-8b9c10f1e902=/WDL_manjaXFCE w_changes=RAM2
initrd /WDL_manjaXFCE/initrd.gz
Or use w_bootfrom=LABEL=xxx.../WDLtype or w_bootfrom=/mnt/sda4/WDLtype
menuentry "WDL_arch64" {
insmod ext2
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set 78683fe5-0323-4030-9ddd-39464a8fbf80
linux /WDL_arch64/vmlinuz-linux w_bootfrom=UUID=78683fe5-0323-4030-9ddd-39464a8fbf80=/WDL_arch64 w_changes=RAM2
initrd /WDL_arch64/initrd.gz
}I've already posted what the WDL_manjaXFCE file layout looks like here: viewtopic.php?p=34673#p34673
