starting sector number, 4532393984 exceeds the msdos-partition-table-imposed maximum

[oshunluvr]

GG, this I don't understand:

You don't need a swap with Btrfs. IF you keep an EXT4 partiton that has a distro installed on it a swap drive would be useful for it.

Why would the file system determine the need for swap? Everything I read says swap is a good idea, even if you have a ton of RAM. For example, tmpfs in RAM will use swap if it needs more space.

but this is new to me and notable:

Warning: As of 4.0 kernels this feature is not often used or well tested anymore, and there have been some reports that the conversion doesn't work reliably. Feel free to try it out, but make sure you have backups.

[GreyGeek]

The primary reason for swap, which is usually 2X or more larger than the amount of your RAM, is to allow suspend or hibernate. Also, the Ext4 file system uses swap when it runs out RAM, but I've never seen the swap partition get used when I was running a laptop with 4GB of RAM, and never since I've been using 6GB of RAM. That's why I stopped creating swap files five years ago and haven't missed them . I never use suspend on a laptop, because if it is not plugged in the battery can exhaust while it is suspended. I had a friend's laptop fail to boot after that happened.

It's always good to have backups regardless of the FS you use, but it is a LOT easier to create backups with Btrfs. IF you have backups you can try btrfs-convert and it it doesn't work just do a fresh install using Btrfs and restore your backed up files. If it does work then your files are intact and you can delete the compressed file that was created as a handy method to reverse the process.

My experience with Btrfs is that it has been and is rock solid. I am currently running RAID1 on two 750Gb HD's with zero problems. I would personally have no problem using btrfs-convert. But, on the other hand, it has always been my preference to install fresh and not upgrade, for both distros and file systems. A lot of ZFS trolls hit Btrfs comment sections but there is one BIG problem with ZFS - it is not GPL.

Oracle continues to license their code under their own, GPL-incompatible license. While this violation has many facets, and Oracle did not themselves violate GPL in this specific case, they hold the keys to this particular kingdom and they forbid the Linux community to enter. While there are complexities that we must address, in this context, Oracle could make everyone's life easier by waving their magic relicensing wand. Nevertheless, until they do, since GPL-incompatible licenses are the root of all GPL violations, combinations of GPL'd code with Oracle's GPL-incompatible code yield GPL violations, such as the ongoing violation by Canonical, Ltd.

Knowing Elison, it is not IF Oracle will sue Canonical, but when.

[rwbehne1]

What does " sudo fdisk -l" ("l" as in list) give you?

And, "sudo lsblk"?

root@kubuntu:~# fdisk -l
Disk /dev/loop0: 1.6 GiB, 1678491648 bytes, 3278304 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes

Disk /dev/sda: 2.7 TiB, 3000592982016 bytes, 5860533168 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 4096 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 4096 bytes / 4096 bytes
Disklabel type: gpt
Disk identifier: F9C78116-9D2E-4304-A329-E3A7704EF117

Device          Start        End    Sectors   Size Type
/dev/sda1   209922048 4075401215 3865479168   1.8T Linux filesystem
/dev/sda2  5403539456 5860532223  456992768 217.9G Linux filesystem
/dev/sda3        2048  209922047  209920000 100.1G Linux filesystem

Partition table entries are not in disk order.

Disk /dev/sdc: 29.6 GiB, 31809331712 bytes, 62127601 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disklabel type: dos
Disk identifier: 0x06008704

Device     Boot   Start     End Sectors  Size Id Type
/dev/sdc1  *          0 3384575 3384576  1.6G  0 Empty
/dev/sdc2       3362880 3367487    4608  2.3M ef EFI (FAT-12/16/32)

Disk /dev/sdf: 931.5 GiB, 1000170586112 bytes, 1953458176 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disklabel type: dos
Disk identifier: 0x0002de38
root@kubuntu:~#

root@kubuntu:~# lsblk
NAME   MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
loop0    7:0    0   1.6G  1 loop /rofs
sda      8:0    0   2.7T  0 disk 
├─sda1   8:1    0   1.8T  0 part /media/root/_home
├─sda2   8:2    0 217.9G  0 part /media/root/_usr_local
└─sda3   8:3    0 100.1G  0 part 
sdc      8:32   1  29.6G  0 disk /cdrom
├─sdc1   8:33   1   1.6G  0 part 
└─sdc2   8:34   1   2.3M  0 part 
sdf      8:80   0 931.5G  0 disk 
sr0     11:0    1  1024M  0 rom  
root@kubuntu:~#

sda - 3T hard drive (Where I will install soon)
sdb - Optical drive
sdc - The USB live system disk
sdf - An external WD drive I'm trying to format and set up with btrfs so I can move files from sda to it, allowing me to install one new partition on the sda in place of everything else.

[rwbehne1]

sudo mkfs.btrfs /dev/sdc1
sudo mkdir /mnt/newhome
sudo mount /dev/sdc1 -o autodefrag,space_cache,compress /mnt/newhome
sudo btrfs su cr /mnt/newhome/@newhome
sudo umount /dev/sdc1
sudo mount /dev/sdc1 -o autodefrag,space_cache,compress,subvol=@newhome /mnt/newhome

Ok, since the mkdir /mnt/newhome won't work I did wipefs --all --backup /dev/sdf then used KDE partition tool to install a new file system on it. Now when trying to mount I get this:

root@kubuntu:~# mount /dev/sdc1 -o autodefrag,space_cache,compress /mnt/newhome
[B]mount: /dev/sdc1 is already mounted or /mnt/newhome busy[/B]
root@kubuntu:~# umount /dev/sdc1
umount:[B] /dev/sdc1: not mounted[/B]
root@kubuntu:~# mount /dev/sdc1 -o autodefrag,space_cache,compress /mnt/newhome
[B]mount: /dev/sdc1 is already mounted or /mnt/newhome busy[/B]
root@kubuntu:~#

I'm getting a headache. How can a directory I just created be "busy"?

[rwbehne1]

Oh crap! Mea culpa! I forgot to change /dev/sdc1 to /dev/sdf1

[GreyGeek]

Weird!

sdc is your USB Live system disk, from which you are running everying, but you've mounted it on /media/cdrom?

The files you want to save are on sda1 and sda2. Where did the files originally come from and how did you get them on /media/root/_home and /media/root/_usr_local, AND, why did you start home and user_local with underlines?

sdf is the external drive and would make a good storage drive for @ and @home bkup snapshots. Is it a USB drive?

What's sdc1 (empty type) and sdc2 (EFI type) all about?

Do you have a graphical desktop or are you running everything from a terminal?

Run "sudo losetup /dev/loop0" and tell me what it returns.

How much data is on sda? Can you plug a 32 or 64 GB USB stick in and move everything to it? Or two or three if you have to? If you can then your best choice of action is to run the partition manager and delete all sda's partitions and then create a fresh sda1, set its boot flag, and format it with Btrfs as /, and write grub to sda1. You could mount sdf when ever you needed to use Btrfs "send & receive" to move rw snapshots to it for off line storage.

[rwbehne1]

Weird!

sdc is your USB Live system disk, from which you are running everying, but you've mounted it on /media/cdrom?

The files you want to save are on sda1 and sda2. Where did the files originally come from and how did you get them on /media/root/_home and /media/root/_usr_local, AND, why did you start home and user_local with underlines?

I didn't choose where to mount it, the live disk did. The USB Live system disk put everything where it is seen, and named it as it is. I just have to live with it.
sda1 = is my old /home partition
sda2 = is my old /usr/local partition

sdf is the external drive and would make a good storage drive for @ and @home bkup snapshots. Is it a USB drive?

Yes, it's a Western Digital USB drive.

What's sdc1 (empty type) and sdc2 (EFI type) all about?

That's how the KDE partition tool is presenting it.

Do you have a graphical desktop or are you running everything from a terminal?

Graphical, and I get a root shell to do this work so I don't have to keep typing "sudo " a hundred times. To get a root shell in the USB Live system just open a terminal and type "sudo su -", and Bob's your uncle!

Run "sudo losetup /dev/loop0" and tell me what it returns.

root@kubuntu:~# losetup /dev/loop0
/dev/loop0: [2080]:2643 (/cdrom/casper/filesystem.squashfs)
root@kubuntu:~#

How much data is on sda? Can you plug a 32 or 64 GB USB stick in and move everything to it? Or two or three if you have to? If you can then your best choice of action is to run the partition manager and delete all sda's partitions and then create a fresh sda1, set its boot flag, and format it with Btrfs as /, and write grub to sda1. You could mount sdf when ever you needed to use Btrfs "send & receive" to move rw snapshots to it for off line storage.

sda1 = 1.8TiB
sda2 = 633.31GiB
If you think it'll fit on a USB stick, but I don't think so. Right now I only have the Western Digital USB drive, so I have to make do with that. I could use a new drive of 3T or more, BUT, I' disabled, unemployable, pension-less, and living in the Philippines, so I don't have the income to but new gear. (But I DO accept donations, hint hint!) If money weren't an issue I'd build a new server from the ground up, and use this one as strictly a desktop.

I have already tried to write grub to sda:

root@kubuntu:~# grub-install /dev/sda
Installing for i386-pc platform.
grub-install: error: failed to get canonical path of `aufs'.

How does snapshots work? 

root@kubuntu:~#

And here's the tables now:

root@kubuntu:~# gdisk /dev/sda
GPT fdisk (gdisk) version 1.0.1

Partition table scan:
MBR: protective
BSD: not present
APM: not present
GPT: present

Found valid GPT with protective MBR; using GPT.

Command (? for help): p
Disk /dev/sda: 5860533168 sectors, 2.7 TiB
Logical sector size: 512 bytes
Disk identifier (GUID): F9C78116-9D2E-4304-A329-E3A7704EF117
Partition table holds up to 128 entries
First usable sector is 34, last usable sector is 5860533134
Partitions will be aligned on 2048-sector boundaries
Total free space is 2925 sectors (1.4 MiB)

Number  Start (sector)    End (sector)  Size       Code  Name
1       209922048      4075401215   1.8 TiB     8300  Linux filesystem
2      5403539456      5860532223   217.9 GiB   8300  Linux filesystem
3            2048       209922047   100.1 GiB   8300  
4      4075401216      5403539455   633.3 GiB   EF02  BIOS boot partition

Command (? for help): q
root@kubuntu:~#

[oshunluvr]

Your bios boot partition is 633.3GB - totally wasted space. Put it from sector 34 to 2047 in space otherwise unused then change partition 4 to something usable.

Here's a How-To on the EF02 partition creation: https://www.kubuntuforums.net/showth...titioned-disks

When you're done with that, you can use gdisk to re-order the partition numbers to avoid confusion.

[rwbehne1]

Your bios boot partition is 633.3GB - totally wasted space. Put it from sector 34 to 2047 in space otherwise unused then change partition 4 to something usable.

Here's a How-To on the EF02 partition creation: https://www.kubuntuforums.net/showth...titioned-disks

When you're done with that, you can use gdisk to re-order the partition numbers to avoid confusion.

Ok, done. Is this correct now?

p
Disk /dev/sda: 5860533168 sectors, 2.7 TiB
Logical sector size: 512 bytes
Disk identifier (GUID): F9C78116-9D2E-4304-A329-E3A7704EF117
Partition table holds up to 128 entries
First usable sector is 34, last usable sector is 5860533134
Partitions will be aligned on 8-sector boundaries
Total free space is 1328139151 sectors (633.3 GiB)

Number  Start (sector)    End (sector)  Size       Code  Name
  1              34            2047   1007.0 KiB  EF02  BIOS boot partition
  2            2048       209922047   100.1 GiB   8300  
  3       209922048      4075401215   1.8 TiB     8300  Linux filesystem
  4      5403539456      5860532223   217.9 GiB   8300  Linux filesystem

I also tried to install grub. This is what happened:

root@kubuntu:~# grub-install /dev/sda
Installing for i386-pc platform.
grub-install: error: failed to get canonical path of `aufs'.
root@kubuntu:~#

[oshunluvr]

Your partitions look good now.

The error message refers to the fact that you're trying to install grub from a liveCD which doesn't have grub on it (it uses syslinux or something similar to boot, not grub). Run the installer, install Kubuntu, and it will install grub. If you have already installed Kubuntu and it still exists on the hard drive but grub failed to install, post back.

[rwbehne1]

Your partitions look good now.

The error message refers to the fact that you're trying to install grub from a liveCD which dosen't have grub on it (it uses syslinux or something similar to boot, not grub). Run the installer, install Kubuntu, and it will install grub. If you have already installed Kubuntu and it still exists on the hard drive but grub failed to install, post back.

Okey dokey! Next step: I'll do a temporary install on sda2.

[rwbehne1]

Well, so far on the install I can safely say that the install screen sucks big time.

There's no progress meter. Just a short slide show that has ended (I think - either that or it's hung,) and it's just sitting there saying "The installation will finish soon. We hope you enjoy Kubuntu." The drive light isn't lighting up. No lights flickering. Not a clue.

How do I know when it's time to loose patience and just reboot it?

[oshunluvr]

Yeah that sucks. It shouldn't take more than 5-10 minutes so wait it out a bit, then try again I guess. You should be able to cancel the installation without mashing the reboot button. You might look and see how far it got. Usually, if grub fails you'll get an error message. I assume you're installing 17.04 which I haven't done so I don't know what issues there are. FYI, it you want a slightly differetn experience but still run Plasma 5 in the *buntu world, try KDEneon

[rwbehne1]

Yeah that sucks. It shouldn't take more than 5-10 minutes so wait it out a bit, then try again I guess. You should be able to cancel the installation without mashing the reboot button. You might look and see how far it got. Usually, if grub fails you'll get an error message. I assume you're installing 17.04 which I haven't done so I don't know what issues there are. FYI, it you want a slightly differetn experience but still run Plasma 5 in the *buntu world, try KDEneon

Yup, it's 17.04

I'm only doing a basic install, without updates, so it shouldn't have been going since 8:45pm - almost an hour now.
How can I tell how far it got? Without any progress screen, I can't tell.

[rwbehne1]

Oh holy crap with peanuts on top! What the hell is happening NOW?

I stopped the hung install, and it ended without explanation. So I loaded the partition tool to see what it installed in sda2, but this is what I saw:


What has happened? sda3 (my old /home) and sda4 (my old /usr/local) were NOT supposed to be touched, they're both ext4 partitions with important data on them. What has happened here? I carefully set up the install to ONLY install a small system exclusively on sda2. Damnit anyhow! How do I recover from this DISASTER?