How can I boot an iso with grub4dos?

[Scooby]

How did it go for der-schutzhund( what does it mean anyway? shit-dog?)

The system booted off Grub4Dos in sda1.

Partition sda2 contained a number of Puppy ISOs.

The menu.lst entries for Puppy were

And if you are a Lazy-dog like me you use the Easy2boot automatic version.
No editing of menu.lst file. Just copy an ISO file to a specific folder and it will show up on next boot.

try Easy2Boot by steve at

rmprepusb.com

or

HOWTO create easy multi-boot USB Puppy from Linux
HOWTO create easy multi-boot USB Puppy from Windows

Does this work well?

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kernel /vmlinuz psavemark=2 

maybe I try to incorporate it somehow in Easy2Boot automatic version?

[rcrsn51]

@Scooby:

Thank you for providing the key line to make ISO booting work.

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partnew (hd0,3) 0x00 (hd0,1)/precise-372.iso

Does Easy2Boot always start by chainloading?

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chainloader (0xff)

The advantage of a manual approach is that you get to customize the kernel arguments.

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kernel /vmlinuz pmedia=usbflash psavemark=2
initrd /initrd.gz

[Scooby]

@Scooby:
Thank you for providing the key line to make ISO booting work.

you're welcome

Does Easy2Boot always start by chainloading?

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chainloader (0xff)

The advantage of a manual approach is that you get to customize the kernel arguments.

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kernel /vmlinuz pmedia=usbflash psavemark=2
initrd /initrd.gz

Yes it does but it can be altered.

What is the difference?

What will happen with config file onboard iso? Will it be ignored?

What will happen with other ISO's I mean like Ubuntu or Mint Linux live cd's.
will they start this way too?

if that is a problem I guess you could have a folder "puppy" from which
puppy linux isos boots automatically with pmedia=usbflash psavemark=2

Or it could be a menu item to somehow acttivate/deactivate and set psavemark to desired number.

For an Experienced user like you it is of course easier to just edit menu.lst but I want to
make a solution that is very easy for novice users maybe windows ones that are not
used to editing config files

[rcrsn51]

Does Easy2Boot always start by chainloading?

Yes it does but it can be altered.What is the difference?

It's the difference between booting off a Puppy Live CD versus doing a hard drive install. In the first case, you always have to go through the splash screen with its five-second pause.

What will happen with config file onboard iso? Will it be ignored?

Yes.

How do you envision Easy2Boot? As a way to test out Linux distros without having to burn a CD? Or as a way to run them on a day-to-day basis without having to do any kind of install? My manual instructions above show how to set up the latter. But you may not want to incorporate them into Easy2Boot. They were just a "proof of concept".

What will happen with other ISO's I mean like Ubuntu or Mint Linux live cd's. will they start this way too?

The most reliable way to boot a Linux ISO will be through chainloading because it simulates using the physical CD.

if that is a problem I guess you could have a folder "puppy" from which puppy linux isos boots automatically with pmedia=usbflash psavemark=2

There isn't a problem. Lots of people routinely boot Puppy off the CD and type in any extra options.

BTW, on a USB drive, it's probably going to be "psavemark=1"

Or it could be a menu item to somehow acttivate/deactivate and set psavemark to desired number.

When I was testing this, I found that trying to keep save files in the same partition as the ISOs made it more likely to create a "non-contiguousness" problem.

[Scooby]

How do you envision Easy2Boot? As a way to test out Linux distros without having to burn a CD? Or as a way to run them on a day-to-day basis without having to do any kind of install? My manual instructions above show how to set up the latter. But you may not want to incorporate them into Easy2Boot. They were just a "proof of concept".

I already use Easy2boot on a day to day basis(and have done so for quite some time now) with archpup which work without psavemark.
I like to be able to quickly test new Linuxes and work in another puppy also.

With help from steve who created Easy2boot I conjured up a way to boot one Linux iso by default after 5 seconds.
Before countdown is finished you can choose another Linux iso.
Thats how I prefer it since 90% of the time I work with archpup

For my version of Easy2Boot I will only do USB support.
I will not install to internal drive so I cannot test or develop.

I want it very novice user friendly. Easy to set up on both puppy and windows.

The most reliable way to boot a Linux ISO will be through chainloading because it simulates using the physical CD.

So I will give the user the option to choose then!

There isn't a problem. Lots of people routinely boot Puppy off the CD and type in any extra options.

OK, me myself wouldnt be happy with this. I would want it automated

BTW, on a USB drive, it's probably going to be "psavemark=1" savefile resides

yeah, I know about psavemark and how it works, I've used it plenty.
So perhaps a folder called puppy for puppy linux ISO's with psavemark=1 and another folder for chainloading?

I will test around with ither menu options or folder approach

When I was testing this, I found that trying to keep save files in the same partition as the ISOs made it more likely to create a "non-contiguousness" problem.

So defrag em!?

[Scooby]

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title Lupu 528 ISO
partnew (hd0,3) 0x00 (hd0,0)/lupu-528.iso
map  (hd0,0)/lupu-528.iso (0xff)
map --hook
root (0xff)
kernel /vmlinuz psavemark=2
initrd /initrd.gz

I just wanted to add that if you put this in a .mnu file and together with lupu-528.iso
put the two files in folder _ISO/Linux on a USB stick set up with Easy2Boot
it would show up on menu and be bootable.

the two files needed
_ISO/Linux/lupu-528.iso
_ISO/Linux/lupu-528.mnu


I forgot since I dont use it so much myself but steve already implemented a scalable way of adding menu.lst items.

This way the .mnu files can be made by an "Expert" and just copied by a "Novice" to a folder to work.
Steve offers some .mnu files on his site Easy2Boot at the bottom.

Observe the lupu-528.mnu at Easy2Boot is a version were you have to extract main sfs and not the same as above

[sunburnt]

Each type of boot device ( HD, CD, USB ) requires different boot parameters. Put this inside the ISO file.

So make Easy2Boot look inside the selected ISO file for the .mnu file that`s for the device that`s booting.

Using an ISO file as a "universal" O.S. container is a great idea. The idea just needs to be completed.

This not only simplifies booting, but also unifies it into a "one method does all".

[rcrsn51]

Each type of boot device ( HD, CD, USB ) requires different boot parameters. Put this inside the ISO file.

????

So if I wanted to try out Ubuntu, I would have to download its ISO, then remaster it?

[sunburnt]

You misunderstand, did you master it originally? No... Of course not.

But those that you do could be self-contained without the need of external files specific to it.
The menu.lst and other such generic boot files must be on a partition.

[Scooby]

Each type of boot device ( HD, CD, USB ) requires different boot parameters. Put this inside the ISO file.

So make Easy2Boot look inside the selected ISO file for the .mnu file that`s for the device that`s booting.

Using an ISO file as a "universal" O.S. container is a great idea. The idea just needs to be completed.

This not only simplifies booting, but also unifies it into a "one method does all".

I created a script for editing ISO's configfiles

it worked for me and can set whatever boot parameters you like for example
pmedia=cd

There is no sense to put the .mnu file in ISO since there is already a config file for boot
in Puppy ISO's. For most puppies its isolinux.cfg.

However Easy2Boot/Grub4dos can override this config file should you not want to edit the ISO.

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title Lupu 528 ISO
partnew (hd0,3) 0x00 (hd0,0)/lupu-528.iso
map  (hd0,0)/lupu-528.iso (0xff)
map --hook
root (0xff)
kernel /vmlinuz psavemark=2
initrd /initrd.gz

the line

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kernel /vmlinuz psavemark=2 

can be changed to whatever you want in the .mnu file to suit your needs.

for example

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kernel /vmlinuz pmedia=cd psavemark=1 fix=fsck  psubdir=precise 

In Easy2Boot the AUTO feature will serve general needs and the .mnu file is a way of customize and specialize booting,

[trueriver]

... Easy2boot is essentially Grub4dos ...

That is not quite how I would describe it. I'd prefer to say that easy2boot is a set of powerful extensions to grub4dos; or that it is a friendly front end for it: e2b does everything g4d does, but handles many things in a much more user friendly way.

grub4dos as downloaded from sourceforge relies on static menu files (*.lst). You have to know what the isos will be when you write the .lst file.

What easy2boot adds is the user-friendly facility to build those menus dynamically. The *.mnu files facility comes from easy2boot, and so does the awesome facility to dynamically build a *.lst file from the .../AUTO subdirectory.

Think of Newton and his comment about standing on the shoulders of giants - e2b stands on the shoulders of g4d.

River~~

[nooby]

Hi,

can anyone tell how the menu.lst should look for grub4dos to boot an ISO from the hard drive?

Several Isos are on the HD in the / ISOS /

Greetings

Wolfgang

Guys I do love this thread. But as you may guess
I barely get what you guys write about.

The title of the thread and the first post
is a bit misleading how the thread gets into
Easy2boot that allow iso boot on USB
but not on HD if it is ntfs?

The OP is about booting from HD
Very good taht E2B boot iso from USB
mimicking how DVD drive can boot a live iso.

So could the OP maybe add to the title USB
and easy2boot so the search works better

No criticism this is a very important thread and
I love that you guys sort all the possibilities so
a lot of people can use it later. Excitign indeed
but AFAIK Barry have told us there is not in the
script a possibility for Puppy to boot from HD
without first sifting out linuz and initrd so the script
find it. E2B can do it on USB then? But not on NTFS HD?

[sunburnt]

Scooby, nooby, and trueriver; I think the end purpose will be to post a menu.mnu.

HD PATA, SATA, or USB is the same, Flash media cards and USB are different, and CD.

A boot profile for Puppy on a HD, one for flash, and one CD-DVD.
In addition to this, 3 more profiles for booting to ram for the above.
And 3 more rescue profiles to boot without a Save file.

So 9 basic profile templates, only the drive paths need be changed.


# I realized I said for a boot handler to look for a .mnu file when it should be external.
I ment a profile file for a boot manager to find and use.
Kinda like FreeDesktop`s .desktop menu files, a boot menu would be made from them.

[Scooby]

Excitign indeed
but AFAIK Barry have told us there is not in the
script a possibility for Puppy to boot from HD
without first sifting out linuz and initrd so the script
find it. E2B can do it on USB then? But not on NTFS HD?

I tried the Easy2Boot Grub4Dos method with a hard drive and it worked for me. I mentioned it in the other Easy2Boot thread.
Les

Easy2Boot apparently works on HD as well!

I tried it partly and can verify it.

If you have Grub4Dos installed on your HD then if you add Easy2Boot to root it will
boot to grldr and then menu.lst. For auto feature just copy a puppy linux ISO to
_ISO/Linux/AUTO

[nooby]

Scooby much appreciated. I need to read up on what it is
and download that program then. Are you sure you tested
on NTFS and not a ext2 or ext3 partition? Would be cool if the OP
could confirm it worked for him too

How did it go for der-schutzhund( what does it mean anyway? shit-dog?)

Meine Deutch? ist nicht da My German does not exist Is not there anymore.

i tried to learn German at school for three semesters double speed so
it is 6 such terminen But it was gone in a few years due to me knew
none to practice it with and me did not travel abroad and too lazy
to practice at home .

Let me guess der-schutzhund = The Watch Dog.

So I ask Google translate it for me. the protection dog
So maybe it is a special version of such dogs trained
to be good at knowing whom are aggressive and whom
are not aggressive? I just guess.

[nooby]

Although the instructions here are for USB drives, they should also work with a hard drive partition, provided that it is contiguous. So you would need a clean FAT32 partition, then copy the ISO's into it.

However, this method will not work with Puppy ISO's.

You know such things much better than me so
that is why I am skeptical to if it help the OP at all.

Maybe a new thread will better so many more can find out about
what Easy2Boot really can do. I would want to boot a lot of isos
that now only boot from ext2 and using grub2 so if that could be done
using E2B that would be cool.

Have you really booed Puppy on NTFS using only iso
and using the E2B and on the internal HT What code?

[rcrsn51]

Although the instructions here are for USB drives, they should also work with a hard drive partition, provided that it is contiguous. So you would need a clean FAT32 partition, then copy the ISO's into it.

However, this method will not work with Puppy ISO's.

Since I made that statement last week, there have been some new developments regarding booting Puppy off ISOs. So I have updated this.

But my procedures still do not work with NTFS.

[nooby]

thanks I got into this dreaded Error 60 the file need to be
contiguous and I have no wine so does not puppy has
some program or a trick that can make a file contiguous
on fat32 if one move it to and fro or something?

[rcrsn51]

@nooby: I tested ISObooter from here on a fresh NTFS-formatted flash drive and it worked with both Slacko and Xubuntu. So it should work on a hard drive, assuming that there are no issues with discontiguity..

If you want to look more at this, please post a message here.

[nooby]

Here is what I remember but I fail to get what Puppyluvr writes

http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 041#510041

The "Copy to/ Copy back" method does a perfect defrag.

So what am I supposed to do?