First Install of openSUSE11.3 on external hardrive using USB drive!!

English Install/Boot/Login
1

Hello All,

I’ve pretty much installed Ubuntu Linux9.10, 10.04 and Debian 5 on external hard drives before, however, I just want to avoid certain pitfalls that may occur with openSUSE11.3. Has anyone successfully done this before? And, is it similar like Debian and Ubuntu installs in that you have to install the OS using an advanced option and specifying /dev/sdb, etc? Right now, I have Ubuntu installed on an external harddrive along with Debian as well and wanted to do the same for openSUSE11.3 and was wondering if all Unix derivatives share similar installation processes. I would just like to keep things as I have it currently where the system does not boot with Grub, and instead I have to go to the bios and specify which physical drive to boot from in order to change the boot order. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.

Best Regards,

freesparks

2

Hello freesparks and welcome to the community!:wink:

Just to make clear, I haven’t done this myself.

AFAIK the installation process is equal to most Linux distros.
Here’s a slideshow showing the installation process of openSUSE 11.3: 11.3 Installation Slideshow - with Tips

This slidshow doesn’t feature partitioning but it’s quite easy.
At image 11 of the slideshow you mustn’t continue but press “Create Partition Setup…”
There you will be confronted with a partitioner.
Select the right harddrive. Be carefull, selecting/partitioning the wrong one can end up very wrong!

Once you’re done with partitioning you can continue.
Another point of attention is at slide 14.
There you can choose where the bootloader needs to be installed.

If you enable MBR then it will override the current Bootloader in MBR and place his own.
The downside of this is that you need to external harddrive attached to boot, even if you don’t want to boot openSUSE.
And since openSUSE still uses Grub Legacy so you can’t boot Ubuntu 10.04 with it.

The solution to this is installing the bootloader on the root partition (/) of openSUSE.
Then you must reconfigure the current bootloader and add an openSUSE entry.

Just one more thing: Make a Backup!
Always make a backup when partitioning/installing.

Best of luck!:wink:

3

Hello Edward,

I can’t thank you enough for the quick reply. To elaborate and be clear about what you said when creating the partition, do i need to specify that /dev/sdb will be where my /boot will be installed because your absolutely right in that i do not want to install openSUSE on my internal hard drive. I only want to install it on my external hard drive, and be able to boot only by going into my bios and physically picking out the external drive to change the boot order. In the past on Debian5 and Ubuntu, I had to go to an Advanced Tab during the install and specify that I wanted to install the MBR on the actual external usb drive so that I would not have Grub be installed on my internal drive. I haven’t even gotten to this point yet because I am still stuck trying to make a Live CD using an 8GB USB stick. I followed all the instructions as specified on this link:SDB:Live USB stick - openSUSE, using Ubuntu’s Terminal, however i’ve had no luck booting from the USB stick. Any pointers on this? I even used Gparted to check to see if the stick was bootable and it indeed list that it was configured as bootable. I see all the files necessary inside the USB stick but it’s not booting. Any pointers on this would be greatly appreciated.

Best Regards,

freesparks

4

Hello freesparks,

When in the install process and you’ve selected the option “Create new partition setup…” you’ll see a screen with two options:

  1. Use your internal harddisk.
  2. Use your external harddisk.
  3. Custom partitioning.

The first two options will use the complete disk, which isn’t what you want.
So go for the third option.
You’ll see a partitioner and on your left a tree-structure.
Unfold HardDisks and you’ll see both /dev/sda and /dev/sdb.

Select the right harddisk, the names can be different then in your installed system.
So first check if /dev/sdb is the correct one.

Then you need to select that harddisk and press “Add”.
I recommend this setup:

  • Swap
  • Root partition (at least 10 GB)
  • Home partition (optional, make this one as big as needed because most of your data will be stored here)

Just to make clear.
You’ve got your internal harddisk which you most likely use for daily usage.
On that harddisk is a bootloader (in the MBR) and an OS?

Then you’ve got your external harddisk, which contains a few OS’s.
When you want to boot from this harddisk you change to boot order in BIOS.
It will load the MBR from the external harddisk and from there you choose one of the OS’s?

Could you post the output of these commands:

fdisk -l /dev/sdb

fdisk -l /dev/sdb

And which OS on your external harddisk owns the bootloader in the MBR?

Which iso file did you download?
Did you check the md5sum of that iso?

What I do is download a LiveCD iso.
Plug the USB stick into the computer, I don’t mount him.
Check his device name /dev/sdX.
And use dd to write to the USB stick:

dd if=./openSUSE-11.3-KDE4-LiveCD-i686.iso of=/dev/sd**X**

Best of luck!:wink:

5

Hello Edward,

As far as installing the operating system on the external drive, yes, this is exactly what I want to do, however its a brand new external USB drive.  To be clear, I have Ubuntu 10.04 installed on its own external USB drive and Debian5 installed on its own external USB drive.  Now I want to install openSUSE 11.3 on its own external USB drive that I purchased just solely for it. So basically, when I am booting in order to install openSUSE11.3, I have the brand new external USB drive installed along with the liveCD USB stick that has openSUSE LIVE CD GNOME installed on it.  I don't have anything else installed on externally on my system.  So as far as running the output of these commands:

fdisk -l /dev/sdb

I get this:

Disk /dev/sdb: 500 GB, 500105249280 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 60801 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 * 1 1945 15623181 83 Linux
/dev/sdb2 1946 33676 254871225 5 Extended
/dev/sdb5 1946 8024 48821535 83 Linux
Warning: Partition 5 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb6 8025 13495 43937775 83 Linux
Warning: Partition 6 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb7 13496 19574 48821535 83 Linux
Warning: Partition 7 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb8 19575 23221 29286495 83 Linux
Warning: Partition 8 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb9 23222 28084 39054015 83 Linux
Warning: Partition 9 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb10 28085 31731 29286495 83 Linux
Warning: Partition 10 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sdb11 31732 33676 15615180 82 Linux swap
Warning: Partition 11 does not end on cylinder boundary.
–this is the drive that i have Ubuntu installed on and is not attached to my system when i am trying to boot with the USB Live CD GNOME stick that is not booting.

And when I run

fdisk -l /dev/sda
,

I get this:

Disk /dev/sda: 120 GB, 120031511040 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 14593 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 1 13809 110920761 7 HPFS/NTFS
–this is my internal hard drive that only has Windows XP professional on it.

So to be clear, when I am booting I have the brand new external USB drive installed so it becomes /dev/sdb, and then I have the LiveCD USB GNOME attached as well and it becomes /dev/sdc. I know this to be true because when I run:

fdisk -l /dev/sdc

I get this:

Disk /dev/sdc: 8 GB, 8085450240 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 983 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdc1 * 1 984 7903948 c FAT32 LBA
– this is my USB Stick that I am using for my LiveCD GNOME install that is not booting.

I don’t have the Ubuntu 10.04 external hard drive attached because there is no need to have it attached since I am not trying to install openSUSE11.3 on it.

Again, I thank you so much for your help. I really am starting to get confident when installing linux on machines now. My last question and what i am not clear on is how to check the md5sum of that iso, other than that, i did everything you said as stated in the link.

Best Regards,

freesparks

6

Hello freesparks,

Ok, now it’s clear to me.
I thought you had only two harddisk, one internal and one external for more OS’s.
Since the harddisk is completely for openSUSE you can select instead of the custom partitioning the option to use the entire harddisk.
Just make sure you select the right one!!!

I’ve never let the openSUSE installer use an entire disk and I’m not sure how it will do it.
So I recommend you go for custom partitioning.
The advantage of this is that you can make a separate home partition which you can backup.
Meaning you don’t need to backup your root partition.
So when you backup you’ll only backup data and no programs.

I wouldn’t be sure about that.
This is the way Ubuntu names the devices.
I think the openSUSE installer will do the same, but when you’re installing openSUSE recheck it again.

You can get the md5sum from here: Index of /distribution/11.3/iso
Make sure to select the md5sum that correspond with you downloaded iso.

Some programs like k3b will check the md5sum for you before you burn the iso.
But I prefer the command line.
To do this just run:

md5sum -c <file>.md5

Make sure the md5 file is in the same directory as the iso!

Remember to make sure that openSUSE doesn’t install in the MBR!

Good luck!:wink:

7

Hello Again Edward,

I typed:

md5sum openSUSE-11.3-GNOME-LiveCD-i686.iso

And got this as a result:

da7fd586a7884bfc716142a86a87c06 openSUSE-11.3-GNOME-LiveCD-i686.iso

All I need to know now is where to go in order to ensure the integrity of the file.

Best Regards,

freesparks

8

Hello freesparks,

I posted a link in my previous post: Index of /distribution/11.3/iso
If you select openSUSE-11.3-GNOME-LiveCD-i686.iso.md5 from there you’ll see it’s the same:

da7fd586a7884bfc7161427a86a87c06  openSUSE-11.3-GNOME-LiveCD-i686.iso

This means the iso is not corrupted.

The question remains why it still doesn’t boot.
I recommend you retry to write the iso to the USB stick with dd.

Best of luck!:wink:

9

Hello Edward,

Ok it works, now for crunch time. My installation summary is as follows:

Changes To Partitioning:
*Set disk label of /dev/sdb to GPT
*Create boot volume /dev/sdb1 (20.00GB) with ext4
*Create root volume /dev/sdb2 (60.00GB) with ext4
*Create volume /dev/sdb3 (80.00GB) for /home with ext4
*Create volume /dev/sdb4 (50.00GB) for /usr with ext4
*Create volume /dev/sdb5 (30.00GB) for /var with ext4
*Create volume /dev/sdb6 (15.00GB) for /tmp with ext4
*Create volume /dev/sdb7 (40.00GB) for /opt with ext4
*Create swap volume /dev/sdb8 (8.00GB)
*Set mount point of /dev/sda1 to windows/C

Storage Settings:

*Default Mount-by:id
*Default Filesystem:ext4
*Show Storage Devices by:device
*Partition Alighnment:optimal
*Visible Information On Storage Devices:

*Cylinder
*Encryption
*Label

MY MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION IS THIS:
Should this line:

*Set mount point of /dev/sda1 to windows/C

Should this line be stated here, from as little as I know I know this is in reference to the MBR:??? Should I leave it at is if not where do I go to get rid of it and make it so that it does not interfere with my internal disk that has Windows XP Professional on it? In other words I don’t want to interfere with the way my system boots at present in reference to the MBR.

Best Regards,

freesparks

10

Hello freesparks,

This line doesn’t interfere with the MBR or the way your system boots.
The thing is that openSUSE will auto-mount your windows partition in the /windows/C directory.
In order to do this openSUSE makes/changes fstab.

The window partition and the MBR will remain untouched.
So I wouldn’t worry about it.
You can always change fstab so that openSUSE won’t mount your windows partition.

Just make sure you don’t install Grub in your MBR.

Good luck!:wink:

11

Hello Edward,

Where does it tell me where GRUB is to be installed? That is what i am worried about!! In Ubuntu and Debian, this portion of the install process asks you to state where Grub is to be installed. I love the fact that this has a summary. I just am not clear of where to ensure that Grub is being installed on the external harrd drive or not at all so that it does not interfere with the way i currently boot.

Best Regards,

freesparks

Thank you much for the quick reply!!!

12

Hello freesparks,

The best way to tell is to show you.
Here’s a picture: Picasa Web Albums - carl fletcher - 11.3 Slideshow
This picture may look different, this is because this image is of the InstallationDVD and not the GNOME LiveCD.

Anyway, in the summary you’ll see a section called Booting.
Make sure that the option Boot from MBR is disabled.
And that the option Boot from “/” is enabled.
The location of “/” is on the partition mounted on “/”.

If you want more options in configuring the bootloader press and hold the Change… and select Bootloader (<– Not sure about the name).

Good luck!:wink:

13

Hello Edward,

I’m in love!!! Hopefully all goes well.!!! I even prefer openSUSE’s install process more than i do Ubuntu and Debian for this reason. As your slide pointed it out. It pretty much spells it out for you. So there is no reason no to get it right… It’s installing now, hopefully all goes smoothly!

Best Regards,

freesparks

I’ll let you know how i faired out!!

14

Hello freesparks,

Good to hear you like it even though it isn’t installed yet!:stuck_out_tongue:

P.S. It isn’t my slide. http://forums.opensuse.org/english/information-new-users/unreviewed-how-faq/441310-11-3-installation-slideshow-tips.html

Good luck!:wink:

15

Hello Edward,

Well, everything went through with no errors, and the system prompted me to reboot, and the CD drive opened up, I removed the CD and closed it, the system rebooted and I waited for openSUSE to load and all I am getting is a blinking cursor. I’m really puzzled because I thought for sure it would work. Anyway, I’m gonna keep trying. I love troubleshooting because that’s the only way you really learn. Normally, with other linux distros like Debian and Ubuntu, I the cursor normally blinks and then I get to choose which linux kernel I get to use including Windows XP, if I had an extra system I would test different configurations of where to install GRUB to see if this is indeed the issue but I use this laptop for work and my other 2 CPU’s are macs. i will definitely keep trying!!

Best Regards,

freesparks

I thank you for all your help and expertise.

16

If I understand you, you do not see the grub menu? or is it after the grub menu that you see this screen?

17

I have a thread where I talk about installing openSUSE on an external (or second or third) hard drive at this thread. When you get to the main installation screen, it is all in the booting section where the magic takes place. You must of course also select a valid partition setup where grub is in either the MBR or is being loaded from primary partitions 1,2,3 or 4. While you can place openSUSE in most any partition, it is important to know where you installed grub. You need to select the hard drive in your BIOS setup as to which one is to be booted from first. Finally, many new hard drives have no generic boot code loaded in the MBR and if you did not load grub in the MBR or intentionally loaded a generic MRB (Master Boot Record), a perfectly good setup might otherwise not boot. Here is that other thread I had answered.

Dual Booting with openSUSE on an external HDD and other OS’s on an internal HDD

Another Interesting thread is located here about location the grub boot loader, if you have some version of Linux running, this might be work a try. This thread is kind of long, so read to the end.

Looking for Grub and Windows bootloader in all partitions.

Thank You,

18

Hello James,

No I did not get the Grub Menu after specifying that I wanted to boot from the external harddrive. I am doing as you suggested from this link:

Dual Booting with openSUSE on an external HDD and other OS’s on an internal HDD

and have booted from the LiveCD and now have launched the Terminal where I see:

linux@linux :

I guess its irrelevant but I’m a little apprehensive about running any commands that will involve sudo because I do not have superuser priveledges because
I am booting from the LIVE CD. Anyway with that said how do I go about ensuring that I installed the MBR on root on the external harddrive a you stated in the first step? How do I

  1. Mount the “/” root partition of the externally installed copy of openSUSE. Perhaps to /media.?

Some things I observed in snooping around that i like that is included on the LiveCD is what i stumbled upon in Control Center>Open Administrator Settings>,
under Boot Loader, when i click on it (as superuser) I get an error stating:

Because of the partitioning, the boot loader cannot be installed properly.

I then click OK and then i select the Boot Loader Installation and under the Type TapI see Grub listed by default and then i see a Boot Loader Location under which:
all of these are listed below:

Boot from Mater Boot Record
Boot from Root Partition
Custom Boot Partion

when I choose Custom Boot Partition I see both:

/dev/sda
and
/
dev/sdb

listed.

/dev/sdb is where i have openSUSE installed and this is partition scheme:

I guess my question is whether or not I can confgure it graphically?? And if not what are the step by step commands I would run in order to get this to work??

Best Regards,

freesparks

19

Hello freesparks,

Sad to hear it failed!:frowning:

I’m not aware of such option but maybe there is.
The quickest way to fix this is following this tutorial: HowTo Boot into openSUSE when it won’t Boot from the Grub Code on the Hard Drive
But instead of setup(hd0) choose hd1.
The thing is that GRUB starts counting at 0.
So your second harddisk is hd1.

If that didn’t work you can try this tutorial: http://forums.opensuse.org/english/information-new-users/unreviewed-how-faq/429971-re-install-grub-quickly-parted-magic.html
But watch out you change hd0 to hd1 or else you might overwrite your current MBR!!!

Best of luck!:wink:

20

If you are using a generic MBR then you need to have the boot flag set on the root partition.