[SOLVED] Safe procedure to install over current version

[bobo1919]

I'm running 6.0 x86 I 686 32 bit Mageia 6 on an Asus laptop with a dual boot windows installation.
What I need assistance with is overlaying the current
set up (as shown below) with the 64 bit version.

My concerns are:

1. How to safely save all important data on both the windows
And Linux partitions.
A step by step instruction would be most helpful.

For Linux just burning my home partition to a disc seem a logical
And safe way to do it.

For windows how about performing a create a recovery disk?

The windows version is windows 7 home premium.

2. The windows partition is so big I could shrink it to allow more
space for the new Linux installation.

3. When I do the install I select the MBR on the windows
Partition because that is where it is stored - correct?

Thank you.


Here is the disk partitioning situation.


Device: sda2
Volume label: OS
DOS drive letter: C (just a guess)
Type: NTFS-3G
Size: 634GB (90% of disk)

Device: sda1
Volume label: RECOVERY
Type: Hidden W95 FAT32 (LBA)
Size: 25GB (3% of disk)

Mount point: /
Device: sda5
Type: Journalised FS: ext4
Size: 12GB (1% of disk)
Mounted

Mount point: swap
Device: sda6
Type: Linux swap
Size: 3.1GB (0% of disk)
Mounted

Mount point: /home
Device: sda7
Type: Journalised FS: ext4
Size: 24GB (3% of disk)
Mounted

[ITA84]

1. I haven't done this in a while so there may be better tools around now, but generally when backing up entire disks or partitions I'd use Clonezilla Live (this is provided you have external drives or network shares to copy the partitions to, I don't think they can be burned to a disc)
2. Since shrinking the main partition directly from Windows 7 doesn't seem to be possible, you should probably defragment the partition from Windows first (to minimize the risk of losing files), and then shrink it from the Mageia installer (it should be as simple as dragging the end of the partition to the left)
3. The MBR is located at the start of a disk, not of a partition, and since you only have one disk you shouldn't have problems

[benmc]

agree with ITA84 regards Clonezilla -live.
you just need an external device with sufficient space to store the image(s).

you can create 1x image containing all your partitions info, or, multiple single partition images.
recommend creating also a simple text file with info regarding each partition i.e: sda2=win7C 100GB 70% used ... etc, so if you later need to recover something, you know where to find it.

I understand that individual partition images can be restored to a partition of a size different than the original, how-ever, you would not be able to restore an image to a partition smaller than the "used" data space.
for example an image of a 50GB partition with 20 Gb used, could safely be restored to a 25GB partition, but maybe not a 20GB.

[bobo1919]

Benmc and ITA84,

I solved this problem. It took awhile however I now have installed x86_64 Mageia 6.0 after using
Clonezilla to backup my home directory. The 64 bit install went very smoothly with no worries
about the double boot being retained after the install.

I now have resized the Windows partition and increased the Mageia 6 partition.

Currently, I have two empty ext4 partitions and was wondering if I want to install
Ubuntu on one of these two empty ext4 partitions.

The Ubuntu installer I have on a flash drive will perform this install however
I wanted to make sure it is safe to just grab an empty partition on an already working
dual boot machine.

Any comments?

[benmc]

cant answer for how the Ubuntu installer will affect your multi-boot of Mageia and windows.

What I can say is the Mageia installer easily allows installation of many multiple instances of Mageia (I have had over 20 on one machine during .iso testing).

I understand the Ubuntu installer offers "something else" as an option, so I would install via that option.
It will of course then control grub, as it will be the last installed system.

As you are now a "dab-hand" with Clonezilla, I would take an image of all your current partitions as a safety net before you start, it only takes a few minutes.
good luck.

[bobo1919]

Point received. What use do you have for installing multiple instances of Mageia? For performance or specific tasks/project?

I forgot to mention I used Apricon (very good purchase) to clone an image of the Windows partition to a SDD drive.

[benmc]

What use do you have for installing multiple instances of Mageia? For performance or specific tasks/project?

.iso testing:

sadly, when Classic Install.iso testing, a multi-DE install will sometimes show a flaw(bug) in the installer that is not apparent if a single DE is installed.
conversely, the reverse can also be true!

also, sometimes a multi DE install can have "unusual" effects with software, ie, clicking a .png will open okular(pdf viewer), instead of gwenview (image viewer).
I have also had occurrences of attempting to invoke an application causing the desktop to crash.

so single DE installs are needed, as are multi DE installs, for both i586 and x86_64, and for the Live .isos.
then there are copies of the previous / current release to do upgrade tests on as well. (clones are kept of these ones for repeating upgrade attempts)
Any bugs discovered are logged, and the install is kept for the life of either the bug or the .iso.

30+system partitions and then my daily driver set ( / &/home)

[bobo1919]

I have found my iso guru. I will know who to contact if I have further iso issues.