Using Puppy Linux
September 26, 2013
In my previous article, I wrote about using linux to backup data from a PC that won't boot. A couple of my friends pointed out that many people would prefer it if I added instructions on HOW to go about this process, and so here it is!
Read my previous article for more information on where this will come in handy, why I chose to use Puppy Linux, as well as my personal experience using it:
PC isn't Booting...Didn't Backup my Data...AAAHHHH!!!
Read my previous article for more information on where this will come in handy, why I chose to use Puppy Linux, as well as my personal experience using it:
PC isn't Booting...Didn't Backup my Data...AAAHHHH!!!
Topics Covered:
What You Need:
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Preparing Your Pen Drive
First, format your pen drive (Be sure to backup that data first!)
After formatting your pen drive, navigate to the location where you downloaded UNetbootin. Right click it and select "Run as Administrator"
A: Select DISK IMAGE
B: Click on this button and select the ISO image of Puppy Linux that you downloaded.
C: Make sure you select the Drive letter of the pen drive you want to install Puppy Linux onto.
D: Click OK.
Wait patiently while UNetbootin prepares your pen drive. It commonly slows down around 72%, so don't worry about that. Once it's finished, your pen drive is ready to use.
B: Click on this button and select the ISO image of Puppy Linux that you downloaded.
C: Make sure you select the Drive letter of the pen drive you want to install Puppy Linux onto.
D: Click OK.
Wait patiently while UNetbootin prepares your pen drive. It commonly slows down around 72%, so don't worry about that. Once it's finished, your pen drive is ready to use.
Booting into Puppy Linux
When you reboot your computer, make sure you get into the boot menu. This is done by pressing a certain key while the computer is booting up. The exact key you have to press varies between different brands. Then, select your pen drive from the list of options available.
Copying Files
These icons down here are the different drives you have on your computer. The last one (sdb, in this case) is the pen drive that has puppy linux on it. When you click on the icons, linux "mounts" the drives, enabling you to use them. Unfortunately, linux does not display the names you had given them in windows. However, there is a way to identify those names. To know how, look at Formatting Partitions, a topic covered later in this article.
It's important to note that in Linux, a single click is enough to open files.
In my case, "sda2" turned out to be me C drive. I plugged in another pen drive to copy files. That showed up as "sdc1". I created a new folder on sdc1 to store the copied files.
Right Click on empty space in the folder--->New--->Directory
It's important to note that in Linux, a single click is enough to open files.
In my case, "sda2" turned out to be me C drive. I plugged in another pen drive to copy files. That showed up as "sdc1". I created a new folder on sdc1 to store the copied files.
Right Click on empty space in the folder--->New--->Directory
Click and drag the left mouse button to select multiple files.
Drag the selected files into your new directory, and select copy. Wait while it finishes copying your files.
Copy all the files you want in this manner.
Copy all the files you want in this manner.
Formatting Partitions
If you want to format any of your drives, you can do so using Gnome Partition Editor. This is a famous tool for linux, and is more commonly called GParted.
To run GParted:
Go to Menu--->System--->GParted Partition Manager
Select ALL DRIVES and click OKAY
To run GParted:
Go to Menu--->System--->GParted Partition Manager
Select ALL DRIVES and click OKAY
The "Label" of each partition is the name you gave it in Windows. You can use this to match the partitions with their names.
Before we can format any partitions, we have to "unmount" them, if they are mounted. I wanted to format "sda2", from which I was copying files, so I had to unmount it.
To unmount a partition:
Right Click the partition--->Unmount
Before we can format any partitions, we have to "unmount" them, if they are mounted. I wanted to format "sda2", from which I was copying files, so I had to unmount it.
To unmount a partition:
Right Click the partition--->Unmount
After unmounting a partition, you are free to format it.
If you are going to install windows on the partition:
Right Click the partition--->Format to--->NTFS
All of the other options are various different partition formats. If you are only going to use that partition with windows and linux, NTFS is the best option. Suppose you are formatting a pen drive, it's best to select FAT32. If you're formatting an external hard drive, and you need to use it with windows and mac os, select exFAT. I'll write a more detailed article on what each of these formats are, where to use which, and why.
Click "Apply" to begin formatting.
If you are going to install windows on the partition:
Right Click the partition--->Format to--->NTFS
All of the other options are various different partition formats. If you are only going to use that partition with windows and linux, NTFS is the best option. Suppose you are formatting a pen drive, it's best to select FAT32. If you're formatting an external hard drive, and you need to use it with windows and mac os, select exFAT. I'll write a more detailed article on what each of these formats are, where to use which, and why.
Click "Apply" to begin formatting.
To format or edit partitions on other storage devices, select from the list of available devices at the top right hand corner of the window.
Shutting Down
To shut down Puppy Linux, click on Menu at the bottom right corner of the desktop, and go to:
Menu--->Shutdown--->Power-off Computer
You'll get a pop up asking whether or not you want to "save your session". Saving your session will save any changes you made to the root directory (that's where linux is running from). In this case, we didn't make any such changes, so select no, and Linux will shut down.
Menu--->Shutdown--->Power-off Computer
You'll get a pop up asking whether or not you want to "save your session". Saving your session will save any changes you made to the root directory (that's where linux is running from). In this case, we didn't make any such changes, so select no, and Linux will shut down.