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nahkhiirmees

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Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

[SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

But maybe there is something that i don't completely understand about that partitioning phase.
I can make encrypted / - partition. And also another encrypted partition and make a "physical volume for lvm" inside that device.

But if i try to make VG and LV's inside that second encrypted partitition, i get complaints about /-partition and can't get past the partitioning phase.

Used Daedalus netinstall.

I tried to make /home and swap as logical volumes inside a encrypted volume group with Daedalus netinstall's partitioning tool. Couldn't get out of that partitioning phase because of complaints about / -partition.
Bug or a feature? Or something else?

nahkhiirmees

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Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Daedalus netinstall's UI looks very much like Debian netinstall's UI so i guess the former one is really not under Devuan's jurisdiction?

rolfie

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Registered: 2017-11-25

Posts: 1,171  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

The question is what do you really want to achieve? The documentation on the Devuan web page uses the guided partitioning, does possibly not help in this case.
I can describe what I do on my PCs. /home is encrypted but always on its own device and set up after the system installation.

Partitioning beforehand with a gparted life stick:
p1 = ESP 512 MiB VFAT/FAT32 on an EFI system, omitted on legacy with MBR/MSDOS partitioning scheme. It gets a bit complicated when GPT is used.
p2 = /boot 2048 MiB ext4 unencrypted.
p3 = large ext4 volume for encryption and LVM inside, set up in the installer by manual partitioning.

In the installer proceed until partitioning and select manual.
Assign p1 to be used as ESP if applicable.
p2: use as ext4, assign /boot, format. Assign names if you want.
p3: use as Volume for Encryption. Exit and go to "Configure encrypted volumes". Go through this process and exit.

Now you should also have a device called something like /dev/mapper/p3_crypt with ext4 file system. Now you set that into "Physical volume for LVM" instead of ext4. Exit.

Call the "Logical Volume Manager". You are asked to provide a name for the Logical Volume group at first. When that is setup you can define Logical volumes, e.g. 1_root, 2_swap as I do, and 3_home if you like. You will be asked for a size definition. You may use MB, % ... . Exit the "Logical Volume Manager" when you are done.
Now you should find /dev/mapper/1_root .... in the display. Select these devices one by one and assign file system and the mount point. Only when this point is done you can leave the partitioning menu and start the installation.

Topic 8 in https://www.devuan.org/os/documentation … encryption might give some insight how the result about should look alike.

nahkhiirmees

Member

Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Topic 8 in https://www.devuan.org/os/documentation … encryption might give some insight how the result about should look alike.

The installation procedure wasn't like that.

sda1=EFI
sda2=/boot
sda3=reserved for encrypted /
sda4=reserved for encrypted VG

would be the idea as far as the partitioning goes.

Call the "Logical Volume Manager". You are asked to provide a name for the Logical Volume group at first. When that is setup you can define Logical volumes, e.g. 1_root, 2_swap as I do, and 3_home if you like. You will be asked for a size definition. You may use MB, % ... . Exit the "Logical Volume Manager" when you are done.
Now you should find /dev/mapper/1_root .... in the display. Select these devices one by one and assign file system and the mount point. Only when this point is done you can leave the partitioning menu and start the installation.

That "Logical Volume" part was the problem. As i said before, i was able to make /dev/sda3_crypt and /dev/sda4_crypt . Even make a PV inside /dev/sda4_crypt .
But the problems started when trying to make VG, and devices /dev/vg/swap and /dev/vg/home . And make those the swap device and /home - partition. I ran into complaints about /-partition. Couldn't get past  that "partitioning the disk"-phase.

I guess i could provide some screenshots after i have successfully installed xorg and vbox, to clarify what i mean. But that will take some time.

Last edited by nahkhiirmees (2024-03-22 20:48:23)

ralph.ronnquist

Administrator

From: Battery Point, Tasmania, AUS

Registered: 2016-11-30

Posts: 1,251  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

If it tells you that you have not assigned "/" to a partition then I suppose one way out is to assign "/" to a partition.

rolfie

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Registered: 2017-11-25

Posts: 1,171  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

To the OP: your setup is quite unusual in my eyes. I always would try it with one encrypted partition.

But your setup should work too. Make sure you have selected /dev/mapper/sda3_crypt, ext4 as file system (or something that is supported), and / as mount point.

Getting these things sorted takes a while. At first I collected lots of web pages and how-to's, and made some sort of notes, and it took several installations to become more or less comfortable with the process without needing notes. Its pretty complex.

Last edited by rolfie (2024-03-22 21:22:20)

fsmithred

Administrator

Registered: 2016-11-25

Posts: 2,486  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Here's a video. We use the same installer.

How to install Debian GNU/Linux with LUKS encrypted LVM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEl2S5MI-WU

nahkhiirmees

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Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

If it tells you that you have not assigned "/" to a partition then I suppose one way out is to assign "/" to a partition.

I thought that i did.

Starting to think that i should run memtest on that machine.
Last night i noticed that i couldn't boot Chimaera dektop live nor Daedalus desktop live. I think firmware settings should allow booting those. Combine with other difficult behaviour lately...

Last edited by nahkhiirmees (2024-03-23 13:21:17)

nahkhiirmees

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Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Next time i'll try to remember check the "/"-situation after configuring LVM but before "done". Just in case.

Today i was able to boot the livedvd's,  so last night i must have changed the firmware settings before trying to boot the Chimaera or Daedalus

Still planning to run that memtest though.

Last edited by nahkhiirmees (2024-03-24 01:09:13)

nahkhiirmees

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Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Btw , can netinstall's partitioning tool make a working EFI partition or not?

rolfie

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Registered: 2017-11-25

Posts: 1,171  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Yes it can.

Size: my suggestion is 1024 MiB to avoid any issues with strange EFI bios implementations that would like to use the ESP as storage for firmware updates. Minimalists call this way too large. The size is an insurance against the unforeseen.

Filesystem: FAT32/vfat is a must.

If no other ESP is present, create a new one.

If there is an ESP in place already, no need to create a second one. It will not be overwritten or getting damaged. You need to make sure its added in the list of partitions as ESP to tell the installer to use it.

There is one stumbling stone though. Debian and Devuan and if I am not mistaken at least Ubuntu/Mint do add a generic directory into the ESP for their distributions. E.g. Stretch, Buster, Bullseye or Bookworm all add a directory called "debian". Older Devuan releases do the same. You see the problem?

If you want a dual boot for Chimaera and Daedalus you have to do some post processing, or only the later installation is bootable. The solution is to do another grub-install from the booted system with the option --bootloader-id=devuan4 as I am using it. Use efibootmgr to set the boot order as you like.

This rework is not to 100% update safe. I have been through grub updates that did re-establish the generic directory. So I had to redo my specific grub-install.

HTH,

nahkhiirmees

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Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Tried to install Daedalus netinstall on a vm. I have confirmed that i have to re-enter details about "/" -partition after configuring logical volumes. Or i can't get out of that partitioning phase.
Slightly irrational like Spock would say.

nahkhiirmees

Member

Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Also tried to make an EFI (or ESP)partition into that virtual hd. Not sure if i succeeded. I guess making gpt-style partition table was a wrong move.
But i could make a bios partition. Unfortunately couldn't boot that vm from vhd.

Last edited by nahkhiirmees (2024-03-25 23:32:54)

GlennW

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From: Brisbane, Australia

Registered: 2019-07-18

Posts: 644  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Hi, I found once I wiped the mbr as well as the old partitions I had to repartition in (ms-dos primary.. extended... other partitions) mbr before I could repartition with gpt.

There must be bites there that make the drive bootable that are missing if you don't use EFI (or ESP) boot after the bios has booted.

TBH, I haven't re-partitioned that drive (on my laptop) to gpt yet... but it was the only way I could get it to boot (by repartitioning to mbr mode). I could install everything, but not boot from that device, I used a super-grub usb for a while.

ymmv, but I hope this helps.

---

pic from 1993, new guitar day.

nahkhiirmees

Member

Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Today i realized that netinstall's sofware won't necessarily "see" Fuhitsu's motherboard from within the vm. It's rater that PIIX4 or ICH9.
So that may have some effect on whether or not there will be bootable ESP-partition inside that vm.

rolfie

Member

Registered: 2017-11-25

Posts: 1,171  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

At least with the VirtualBox you have to set the mode when configuring the VM. Per default its a legacy VM, only when efi is ticked you have to use efi mechanisms.

nahkhiirmees

Member

Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Almost off-topic but:

https://www.devuan.org/os/documentation … encryption

I guess it is easier for a beginner to havce just a big "/"-partition that contains everything.
But it is also more dangerous.
If something goes wrong after install, the files on /home - dir are also erased along with the others during reinstall.

With a separate /home or  (separate physical volume for) / there is slightly smaller propability of endangering /home.
Although non-existent.

I think there should be instructions about how to set up a backup software.
For example rdiff-backup seems simple, no configuration needed.

Last edited by nahkhiirmees (2024-04-10 21:45:13)

nahkhiirmees

Member

Registered: 2022-07-24

Posts: 261  

Re: [SOLVED] Daedalus netinstall partitioning

Tried that "efi-checkbox" rolfie mentioned. After that the installation procedure refused to continue. At first the netinstall's installation program started but forze after some time. Next time i didn't get past the efi shell.
So efi is to be avoided, at least with vmachines.

And, with efi disabled in a vm, i couldn't make an efi partition with netinstall's partition tool. But on the other hand there is no real need for that.