is there a way for me convert my current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4? or i'd be willing to re-install on ext4 if that was only option. i was able to install fedora on ext4 by adding "ext4" switch when i booted from the cd, but it didn't work with mint.
also, is there a cutting edge perpetual beta version of mint? i want that.
convert current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4
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element
convert current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
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AK Dave
Re: convert current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4
Ubuntu Intrepid doesn't support ext4 in the kernel, and Mint Felicia is spun from Intrepid, so Felicia doesn't support ext4 either.
You could do some experimental Ubuntu upgrade to Jaunty alpha-6 (or wait till tomorrow and it'll be Jaunty beta-1) and then you'll have a kernel that can support ext4. But you still won't have an ext4 filesystem until you format your partition(s) to such.
There is no on-the-fly transition from ext3 to ext4.
Closest thing would be to use Ubuntu's upgrade paths to convert your Mint Felicia into Ubuntu Jaunty. Then boot from a Jaunty usb stick. Make a dd copy of your system partition. Reformat as ext4. Restore the system partition with dd. Maybe that would work, and if it doesn't you still have a dd backup to restore later.
What is so mission critical that you cannot wait a month for Ubuntu Jaunty?
You could do some experimental Ubuntu upgrade to Jaunty alpha-6 (or wait till tomorrow and it'll be Jaunty beta-1) and then you'll have a kernel that can support ext4. But you still won't have an ext4 filesystem until you format your partition(s) to such.
There is no on-the-fly transition from ext3 to ext4.
Closest thing would be to use Ubuntu's upgrade paths to convert your Mint Felicia into Ubuntu Jaunty. Then boot from a Jaunty usb stick. Make a dd copy of your system partition. Reformat as ext4. Restore the system partition with dd. Maybe that would work, and if it doesn't you still have a dd backup to restore later.
What is so mission critical that you cannot wait a month for Ubuntu Jaunty?
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Fred
Re: convert current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4
AK Dave wrote:
For anything mission critical I would strongly recommend you pass on ext4 for a while. Currently the journal in ext4 can be written to before the actual data is committed to disk. This has some definite data loss possibilities on an unexpected power loss or system crash. Actually the current reliability of ext4 in the 2.6.28 kernel is somewhat less than ext3 writeback mode. I might consider ext4 on a laptop or desktop with UPS, where a power failure is very unlikely, but not on a system running on standard commercial power.
Fred
I would have to take issue here Dave. The dd command takes not only the data but also the file system structure. It is a cloning command. So if you copy with the dd and then restore you will have restored the file system as well as the data. A better bet would be the cp command or my preference, rsync. These would copy and restore only data.Make a dd copy of your system partition. Reformat as ext4. Restore the system partition with dd. Maybe that would work, and if it doesn't you still have a dd backup to restore later.
What is so mission critical that you cannot wait a month for Ubuntu Jaunty?
For anything mission critical I would strongly recommend you pass on ext4 for a while. Currently the journal in ext4 can be written to before the actual data is committed to disk. This has some definite data loss possibilities on an unexpected power loss or system crash. Actually the current reliability of ext4 in the 2.6.28 kernel is somewhat less than ext3 writeback mode. I might consider ext4 on a laptop or desktop with UPS, where a power failure is very unlikely, but not on a system running on standard commercial power.
Fred
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element
Re: convert current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4
well you guys answered my question. i'll just do clean install when mint does ext4 native. or image it and play.
@AK Dave: not mission critical, i just like to stay on the leading edge.
@Fred: not sure about the data loss, http://lkml.org/lkml/2009/3/24/460 . and this is a laptop. dell mobile workstation m65 ( just to let anyone wondering that mint6_64 runs perfect on it).
thanks
@AK Dave: not mission critical, i just like to stay on the leading edge.
@Fred: not sure about the data loss, http://lkml.org/lkml/2009/3/24/460 . and this is a laptop. dell mobile workstation m65 ( just to let anyone wondering that mint6_64 runs perfect on it).
thanks
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Fred
Re: convert current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4
element,
I would of course defer to Linus in all cases. I think the message here is reliability has to be lower than the ext3 ordered mode where writes/syncs automatically occur every 5 sec. This isn't the case with ext4. Having said that, I am not sure he is saying that ext4 is more or less reliable than ext3 writeback, just that he thinks the logic in writeback is flawed. And who am I to disagree?
If I understand correctly, there is an ordered mode coming to ext4 in 2.6.30. I would wait on that for a desktop. I am also sure more bugs will be turned out and squashed too.
Fred
I would of course defer to Linus in all cases. I think the message here is reliability has to be lower than the ext3 ordered mode where writes/syncs automatically occur every 5 sec. This isn't the case with ext4. Having said that, I am not sure he is saying that ext4 is more or less reliable than ext3 writeback, just that he thinks the logic in writeback is flawed. And who am I to disagree?
If I understand correctly, there is an ordered mode coming to ext4 in 2.6.30. I would wait on that for a desktop. I am also sure more bugs will be turned out and squashed too.
Fred
Re: convert current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4
Currently ext4 has a data loss problem. http://blogs.gnome.org/alexl/2009/03/16 ... c-my-take/
With the patches queued for 2.6.30 it is safe.
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AK Dave
Re: convert current mint6 install from ext3 to ext4
Right said Fred, rsync not dd. 
As for ext4, it might be fine with 2.6.30 but we don't have 2.6.30 around here so maybe I'll just wait on ext4 and suggest the same.
As for ext4, it might be fine with 2.6.30 but we don't have 2.6.30 around here so maybe I'll just wait on ext4 and suggest the same.