Preparing disks for Linux installation

[Garfunkel]

It's about time I installed linux on the ps3!

One question which i'm pretty sure i know the answer to but maybe there have been some developments:

When I use the format utility to partition the drive for use by linux and the ps3 OS do i lose the data (save game data etc) currently on the disk?

If so, surely their has to be a workaround, why can't you just resize the partition and create a new one from the free space?

[Coded-Dude]

it should give you the option to not overwrite your current data.
Its been over a year since I installed linux, but I didn't lose any data.

[Garfunkel]

LOL, now i'm really wishing i kept up in the ps3 section instead of getting angry at it :(

[OG_Monkey]

Installing Linux on a ps3 does what?

www.google.com is NOT a answer >_>

[Fillibuster]

It depends on what you want to use it for. Emulation, better browsing with Firefox, all kinds of things. I'm still thinking about doing it...

[Segitz]

Well, you HAVE to format you HDD and thus delete all files on it. Backup your stuff beforehand using the backup utility.

[Garfunkel]

But it's just silly that it doesn't just resize the disk instead...it must be because the the cryptic filesystem.

[Coded-Dude]

no you don't necessarily have to re-format the entire HDD, it should ask you if you want to formant a section unused by the PS3......I did NOT have to restore anythign to my PS3 when I installed linux. All the data remained, of course I only used a 10GB partition.

[Segitz]

no you don't necessarily have to re-format the entire HDD, it should ask you if you want to formant a section unused by the PS3......I did NOT have to restore anythign to my PS3 when I installed linux. All the data remained, of course I only used a 10GB partition.

Whoa, that's a new one for me^^ Maybe it was introduced some time between 1.6 and 2.1... Anyways, this is good news!

[Coded-Dude]

I'll have to go back and check my logs, but I've YD on my PS3 since Nov/Dec of 06.....

[Segitz]

I'll have to go back and check my logs, but I've YD on my PS3 since Nov/Dec of 06.....

I linuxified my PS3 on day one^^ (yes, I delayed playing Motorstorm and GTHD for installing Linux) and thus never had to reformat my HDD anyways

[err_ok]

I did this the other day and i saw no option which would allow me to keep the data i had already on there.

I installed PSUbuntu using the 'cli' flag and then just apt-get ubuntu-mythtv-frontend. TBH that's all i'll really use linux for.

[Sephiroth_VII]

Maybe you had less than 10 GB let on your HDD? That would make it impossible to simply resize it, since the PS3 requires at least that for each partition(no idea why).

[Garfunkel]

Nah, i had about 30 or so GB free.

[Sephiroth_VII]

I was talking to err_ok. Maybe I should've made it clearer.

[err_ok]

It was a new ps3 heh, can't get much more space... Still it is a 40gb one so who knows that could have been the problem.

[Sephiroth_VII]

Dunno. Sounds odd though.