LVM and software RAID

[grimdestripador]

+1

[grimdestripador]

I had an existing stripped lvm and needed to install. SO to SALVAGE MY DATA I copied the files to an external HD. Then after a restart I installed As normal.

http://linuxwave.blogspot.com/2007/11/m ... ivecd.html
or just type the following commands seperatly:
sudo apt-get install lvm2 & pvscan & vgscan & vgchange -a y & lvscan & mount /dev/VolGroup/lvol

I can't tell you how not to mess up the installer though. so just install; overwriting some partion (not on LVM). Hey if your clever, you'd use a some rescure live cd to partimage your installation, then copy it back (restore it) on to a newly created stripped LVM.

[morganm]

+1 Very disappointed to have downloaded the latest Mint8 and not have LVM. I understand it might not be a feature 95% of users might use, but what harm is there in having the option under the advanced partitioner? For those of us that appreciate the flexibility LVM brings, it would be really nice to have this option in the installer.

[pillingm]

I can only agree.

I chose linux mint for a computer I am building for my aunt, who is retired and only wants to surf the web and download and print knitting patterns. While it is ideal for that, and I have to say I'm very impressed with the menu and the official user guide; I had built the computer with 2 drives so I could have a mirrored md software raid, as the drives are the most likely thing to fail.

I am not game to backpatch the system to make it raid. Even if I made it work in the short time before Christmas, I could not test it well enough or know that an update wouldn't break it.

I think it really would make a big difference to have mirrored raid as an advanced installation option.

It would also be great to have it as a simple install option: i.e. the only thing that they user has to do is provide 2 blank disk drives and it would format it all for them in raid 1 (mirror) so that if either drive failed it would still boot and tell the user to replace the other disk and then rebuild it automatically.

[piratesmack]

You can install Mint with LVM, but you have to set up your logical volumes from the terminal first.
Make sure to use a separate /boot partition if you are using Grub legacy. LILO and Grub2 don't need this.

Start the installer and choose manual partitioning.
You should see a few /dev/mapper/YOURVG-LVNAME's, choose those and set up the mount points
(Note: The LV's need to be pre-formatted or the installer won't detect them.)

After the install, don't reboot just yet.
chroot your new Mint and install LVM2 first.

I can write a more step-by-step howto if anybody is interested.

[pillingm]

I chose linux mint for a computer I am building for my aunt, who is retired and only wants to surf the web and download and print knitting patterns. While it is ideal for that, and I have to say I'm very impressed with the menu and the official user guide; I had built the computer with 2 drives so I could have a mirrored md software raid, as the drives are the most likely thing to fail.

Update!

I sent my Aunt's computer halfway across the country by bus for Christmas, and when it got there the primary disk drive had failed. Hint: refuse to buy disks made in china even if they are a reputable brand! Now I had taken partition images of the system and put it on the other disk but while this saved the /home partition, to get grub to work properly, I still had to talk my visiting cousin though installing Mint from the CD and so we lost all of the configuration work I had done on the system including installing particular programs and the setup of backups using backup2l and cron. Can you imagine trying to talk a naive user through a cron set up. Not worth trying!!!

This is why RAID installs are useful and I think a primary part of a user friendly system.

In fact what I'd like to see is an option to do a default install that included:

• Install onto 2 mirrored disks
• Separate home and backup partitions
• A preinstalled and configured backup system such as bacula or backup2l

[pillingm]

.....

After the install, don't reboot just yet.
chroot your new Mint and install LVM2 first.

I can write a more step-by-step howto if anybody is interested.

I would be most interested, especially if you could include different sections for doing it with LVM, pure RAID and LVM with RAID.

Regards,

Michael

[piratesmack]

.....

After the install, don't reboot just yet.
chroot your new Mint and install LVM2 first.

I can write a more step-by-step howto if anybody is interested.

I would be most interested, especially if you could include different sections for doing it with LVM, pure RAID and LVM with RAID.

Regards,

Michael

Here it is:
http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=40961

Sorry, I don't know much about RAID or combining it with LVM.
Never used it