Does anyone reuse /boot or /var partitions ?

[Felix Miata]

Adam Williamson composed on 2015-01-22 18:39 (UTC-0800):

> On Thu, 2015-01-22 at 21:21 -0500, Felix Miata wrote:

>> Not mounting as boot a partition containing kernels and/or initrds in its
>> root I could understand and agree with, but not forced reformatting.

> As things stand anaconda just doesn't have this degree of precision. I 
> think I'm right in saying nothing in anaconda looks at the actual 
> contents of existing partitions at all. It just knows whether there's 
> already a filesystem on the device, and whether you're reformatting it.

Even so, I don't understand what the problem is that dracut can't be limited
to producing images based on /lib/modules, name matches to the installing
arch, whatever is in the list of packages Anaconda has selected to install,
or some other kind of matching. Simply recognizing that a filesystem is
supported or not ought to be enough for it to decide if a fresh filesystem is
appropriate for the little activity /boot gets.

> So honestly I pretty much consider most multiboot configs more trouble 
> than they're worth, but what I'm not understanding from any of the 
> descriptions so far is what actual value you get from sharing a 
> partition mounted at /boot between multiple distributions?

I provided no use case for sharing a /boot partition among more than one / on
a multiboot system. I objected to eradicating non-conflicting subdirectories
located on a filesystem proposed for use as /boot, and provided reasons
supporting my objection.

> The point of the partition mounted at /boot *to a Linux distribution* 
> is that it's where it should install its kernels and things to. 

Right, but I recall nothing in FHS that says an admin should have no right to
store other things that do not conflict with what is expected to live there,
rather like /mnt or /media.

FWIW, something is putting "theme" files in /boot even though what the theme
is for is not installed. Why aren't theme files for the bootloader among the
places other things that use themes expect to find them?

> Nothing I've seen so far actually seemed to indicate any situation 
> where it was useful for one distribution to be able to see another's 
> kernels.

Neither I.

> All the setups discussed so far seem to be based on the design where 
> you have a 'master' bootloader which chainloads each distro's own 
> bootloader. OK, but then what's the point of sharing or reusing a 
> /boot partition?

Creating extra trouble potential?

> I don't actually see, in your description, where you need to reuse a 
> /boot partition. The first OS install creates it fresh, then 

In my scenario, the OS installation does not create a filesystem on a /boot
partition. I first create partitioning, then format partition for bootloader,
put bootloader on partition, and only afterward install the first operating
system.

> subsequent installs don't use it - they have their /boot directories 
> on their root partitions. You don't actually seem to re-use the 
> partition you call 'realboot' in a later OS installation at all, do 
> you? Or am I missing a step somewhere?

Maybe you skipped over #2, #3 & #4 in my list? I don't re-use *as* /boot. Use
as /boot only ever happens here for the first OS installation. But, I do on
occasion have use for the content I put on it both before and after the first
OS installation, as well as while the first is the only, regardless of where
it's mounted.

For "before" it might have a rawhide directory with network installation
kernel and initrd, which I would expect to use again later if I abort the
installation before completion, or it aborts itself when the network goes
down for several hours. I can't be the only one doing network installs
without using removable media or PXE.

It *does* already have a bootloader on it, and since I don't ever allow Grub2
to be installed except to a *buntu installation, Anaconda wiping mine would
mean no booting HD at all, and me having to redo everything I did to get
Anaconda started in the first place, after backing up what Anaconda put
there, and afterward putting it back.
-- 
"The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant
words are persuasive." Proverbs 16:21 (New Living Translation)

 Team OS/2 ** Reg. Linux User #211409 ** a11y rocks!

Felix Miata  ***  http://fm.no-ip.com/