USB Ubuntu 7.10 install from Linux: This tutorial enables you to install, boot and run Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon) from USB. In addition to installing Ubuntu to a USB device and then booting Ubuntu from USB, this tutorial will enable you to automatically save your changes and settings back to the stick and further restore them on each boot using a second "casper-rw" persistent partition. The tutorial was written for those already familiar with working from Ubuntu or another Linux desktop environment. If you do not have access to or prefer not to use a Windows computer, this Ubuntu Linux on a stick tutorial is for you.
Ubuntu 7.10 takes slightly longer to boot than previous releases. However, once it's up and running, it performs much better than running from the Live CD.
USB Ubuntu 7.10 Essentials:
Ubuntu7.10 ISO
CD Burner
1GB USB flash drive (2GB+ recommended)
U710fix.tar
Ubuntu 7.10 USB installation tutorial:
Hint: You can drastically speed up the install by Copying (Ctrl+c) and Pasting (Ctrl+v) commands into the terminal instead of manually typing them out. With the exception of replacing X with your drive letter.
Grab the Ubuntu 7.10 ISO and burn it to a CD
Insert the CD and your USB flash drive
Reboot your computer into Ubuntu from the Live CD
Open a terminal window and type sudo su
Type fdisk -l to list available drives/partitions. Note which device is your flash drive (example: /dev/sda) Throughout this tutorial, replace x with your flash drive letter. For example, if your flash drive is sdb, replace x with b.
Type umount /dev/sdx1
Type fdisk /dev/sdx
type p to show the existing partition and d to delete it
type p again to show any remaining partitions (if partitions exist, repeat the previous step)
type n to make a new partition
type p for primary partition
type 1 to make this the first partition
hit enter to use the default 1st cylinder
type +750M to set the partition size
type a to make this partition active
type 1 to select partition 1
type t to change the partition filesystem
type 6 to select the fat16 file system
type n to make another new partition
type p for primary partition
type 2 to make this the second partition
hit enter to use the default cylinder
hit enter again to use the default last cylinder
type w to write the new partition table
Type umount /dev/sdx1 to ensure the 1st partition is unmounted
Type mkfs.vfat -F 16 -n ubuntu710 /dev/sdx1 to format the first partition
Type umount /dev/sdx2 just to ensure the 2nd partition is unmounted
Type mkfs.ext2 -b 4096 -L casper-rw /dev/sdx2 to format the second partition
Remove and Re-insert your flash drive
Back at the terminal, type apt-get update
Type apt-get install syslinux mtools
Type syslinux -sf /dev/sdx1
Type cd /cdrom
Type cp -rf casper disctree dists install pics pool preseed .disk isolinux/* md5sum.txt README.diskdefines ubuntu.ico casper/vmlinuz casper/initrd.gz /media/ubuntu710/
Ignore any "cannot create symbolic link" errors
Type cd /home/ubuntu
Type wget pendrivelinux.com/downloads/U710fix.zip
Type unzip -o -d /media/ubuntu710/ U710fix.zip
Restart your computer, set your BIOS or Boot menu to boot from the USB device and reboot again.
You should now have a USB Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon flash drive that should automatically save your changes, restoring them on boot.
Note: If your having trouble getting Ubuntu to boot, your memory stick may have a corrupted MBR. To repair the MBR of your USB device, at the terminal type sudo apt-get install lilo then type lilo -M /dev/sdx (replacing x with the letter of your flash device)
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