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Install Multiple OSes from a Single USB Stick

posted by LaminatorX on Tuesday October 21 2014, @01:31AM   
from the tricks-of-the-trade dept.

Hairyfeet writes:

Working on PCs since the days of The Shat selling VIC 20s with his TJ Hooker hair you learn that its the little things that can make your day sooo much easier. From WSUS Offline allowing you to update any version of Windows via DVD or flashstick (as well as having your own Windows Update on a network drive) to Ninite allowing you to install most of the "must have" third party software without any toolbars and fully unattended by simply checking the boxes, its the little tools that really take out the drudgery. Tools like Driver Booster to get rid of the always "fun" driver hunt for old or weird hardware drivers or Comodo Cleaning Essentials to get rid of bugs take out the work for the Fixit guy or those that end up stuck doing the job for their family.

With this in mind allow me to introduce a tool many here may not have heard of which can be extremely nice to have, WinSetupFromUSB or as I like to call it "Every OS in my pocket". Do not let the name fool you, this tool works with not only Windows but also Linux ISOs and even preinstall environments like BartPE or the Linux based recovery environments used by many disc imagers like Paragon B&R Free. So with this one tool you can install OSes, run different Live CDs, restore backups using recovery CDs, all from a single flashstick, VERY handy.

So I hope these little tools help somebody out there stuck doing the "family IT GUY" role and I hope to learn in return what tools do YOU use to make your life easier? What tricks and little pieces of software do you use to make your day run smoother? I'm sure with as many different walks of life represented here we can make this a most enlightening and informative post!

• multi-Porteus in 8 steps (with Debian or other) (Score: 1) by dueckuwanga on Tuesday October 21 2014, @10:27PM

  by dueckuwanga (4615) on Tuesday October 21 2014, @10:27PM (#108448)

  I wanted multiple Linuxes on one USB flash drive in order to robustify my desktop OS (cheap and easy to clone despite that I barely know how to `dd bs=4096 if=/dev/sdX of=/dev/sdY`) and give me some separation of environments (one for web browsing, one for money/communication matters, one for regular work). The following worked for me with a 16GB USB 3.0 stick I got for $12; there are drawbacks; it's convenient and maybe someone will benefit, so here goes (critique this setup to my delight!):

  From some Linux:

  • I used build.porteus.org to download some precompiled images with some options to my taste.
  • I downloaded a Debian Live DVD, to give GRUB2 a home. (I used the Debian ‘Rescue’ Live DVD, to save space while providing some omgwtf utilities).
  • I used GParted to make some ext4 partitions on the USB flash drive, plus a swap partition and a partition for files. For config convenience, I gave the partitions memorable labels (‘PrivatePorteus,’ ‘PublicPorteus,’ and ‘DesktopPorteus’)
  • I unpacked the Porteus images each into their respective partitions.
  • In each Porteus partition, I found the .sgn file and gave it a memorable name (‘DesktopPorteus.sgn,’ etc.).

  Booted into the Live DVD:

  • I installed Debian to the first partition. *** WHEN INTALLING DEBIAN I CHOSE TO SPECIFY THE GRUB INSTALLATION PARTITION TO BE SURE IT WAS INSTALLED TO THE DEBIAN PARTITION RATHER THAN INSTALL TO THE FIRST HARD DRIVE (BTW if you overwrite your boot sector you might find Boot-Repair-Disc handy).

  I booted into the Debian install on my USB stick:

  • I opened /etc/grub.d/40_custom and added a menuentry for each of the Porteus builds. When I saved, I changed the name to ‘06_custom’ so that those entries appear at the top of the GRUB menu. Here’s some of my 06_custom:

    #!/bin/sh
    exec tail -n +3 $0
    menuentry ‘Desktop Porteus’ {
        search --no-floppy --set=root --label DesktopPorteus
        linux /boot/syslinux/vmlinuz nomagic zram=30% noauto timezone=Canada/Mountain login=guest sgnfile=DesktopPorteus.sgn changes=/porteus
        initrd /boot/syslinux/initrd.xz
    }

    I made a similar entry for each of the Porteus installs. The --label and the sgnfile= options must be unique.

  • From a command line I entered ‘update-grub.’
    After hair-tearing and rebooting and reading internet, I found my typo in 06_custom and am now happily multibooting from USB stick.

  If you want any of the Porteus installs to become more or less “read-only,” you can add the option ‘changes-ro’ to the options in the 06_custom menuentry line that begins with ‘linux.’ One more thing I liked: the XFCE version has a checkbox in the logoff screen to change your mind about saving the session!

  tl;dr

  1. Downloaded .iso’s from build.porteus.org gave me some .iso’s
  2. Downloaded a Debian Live DVD.
  3. GParted the USB stick with GPT partition table, an ext4 partition for each OS, a swap partition, and an ext4 partition for files.
  4. Unpacked the Porteus .iso’s into their respective partitions.
  5. Gave the Porteuses’ .sgn files a unique name each.
  6. Installed Debian from Live DVD into the first partition; installed GRUB2 into that same partition from the Debian installer.
  7. Booted into the installed Debian and edited /etc/grub.d/06_custom like above.
  8. Entered update-grub and rebooted to see a GRUB menu with my custom entries.