Hi again!

I've not had a chance to try (yet again) to make a portable install of antiX. I tried to do so, unsuccessfully (again!) the last couple of days.

Then I found out there is"antix2usb". __{{emoticon}}__

Am I right in assuming that you can use that from a live CD or USB to make a full install of antiX on a USB drive? That is what I have wanted to try and do without success so far.

And if this is the case, is there anything I need to keep in mind with antix2usb? Apart from making sure it's installed on the right drive?
- Should the target drive be unmounted?
- What is the best file system for the new install (ext2, ext3, or ext4)?
- Is having a swap space advisable?

Thanks for any hints!

antix2usb creates a persistent live usb, this means that it will run as if it is a live cd but your changes (and files) will be saved.
i think the drive has to be mounted and an ext3 partition should do.
the script will automatically create a swap partition.
and lastly, keep in mind that this will delete everything on the usb!
hope this helps and have fun with your live usb!

the convert wrote:antix2usb creates a persistent live usb, this means that it will run as if it is a live cd but your changes (and files) will be saved.
i think the drive has to be mounted and an ext3 partition should do.
the script will automatically create a swap partition.
and lastly, keep in mind that this will delete everything on the usb!
hope this helps and have fun with your live usb!

That sounds good; so would antix2usb leave me with an full install for all intents and purposes? That's sort of what I'd like so I could give antiX a"test drive" sort of thing on a USB drive...

I'm always a bit unsure of the difference between a full and persistent install. But I'd prefer to have an install with my own ID and password and all that.

Thanks

Yes, you will be able to use it as a (sort of) full install.
and about the difference: if you are confused, just forget about it.
but for the sake of education __{{emoticon}}__ , i'll try to explain it again.persistent is about it being a live usb, that means it will run as if it was a live cd you put in your cd drive, but all of your changes (ID, password, installed programs, documents,...) are saved (that's the persistent part). So actually, you're creating your own personalized live cd on a usb.

the convert wrote:Yes, you will be able to use it as a (sort of) full install.
and about the difference: if you are confused, just forget about it.
but for the sake of education __{{emoticon}}__ , i'll try to explain it again.persistent is about it being a live usb, that means it will run as if it was a live cd you put in your cd drive, but all of your changes (ID, password, installed programs, documents,...) are saved (that's the persistent part). So actually, you're creating your own personalized live cd on a usb.

I kind of thought that was the case. I thought there was some sort of subtle difference between a persistent and full-blown portable install. Well, I guess not.

I'll try antix2usb after I've had my beauty sleep!
__{{emoticon}}__


Thanks!

glad i could help and have fun with it!

M_Mynaardt wrote:I thought there was some sort of subtle difference between a persistent and full-blown portable install. Well, I guess not.

There are a number of differences between a LiveUSB with persistence and a full-blown install to a usb stick. You can do either one. Here are the most significant differences:

1) A full-blown install is only meant to be run on one machine while a LiveUSB (with or without persistence) is meant to be self-configuring at boot-time so it can run on a wide variety of machines just like a LiveCD.

2) A LiveUSB uses a compressed file system so it takes up less space on the usb stick than a full-blown install would. I think this is very roughly a factor of two.

3) Currently, a full-blown install can be noticeably faster than a LiveUSB with root persistence although this should change in the next release where the LiveUSB will be faster.

4) Some software upgrades that are fine on a full-blown install will fail on the LiveUSB. This should be fixed in the next release.