How setup copied partition to boot properly?

[Nils Kassube]

giovanni_re wrote:
> What modifications are necessary to a (K)Ubntu 904 partition, to make
>  it properly bootable when copied to a different partition?
> 
> ==  BACKGROUND:   sda5 -> sda7
> I have a KU 904 install that boots fine. Preparing to do a 910
>  install & upgrade, I copied the 904 partition from sda5 to sda7

How did you copy the partitions?

>  (sda6 is the swap).  I then did a 910 install on sda8.  The install
>  properly found the 904 linux kernels on sda5 & sda7, & added them to
>  the grub boot menu, stored on the MBR.  Both the 910 on sda8 & the
>  904 on sda5 boot properly.
> 
> ==  PROBLEM:  BOOTING SDA7 USES SDA5 AS / (ROOT)
> When I boot, & select sda7 from the GRUB boot menu, trying to boot
>  into the sda7 904 copy from sda5, the system boots fine, but the
>  'mount' command shows that it is sda5, not 7, that is mounted as
>  root.  Further, it is also using info from my home directory on sda5
>  (not sda7, as it should).
> 
> I'm guessing that during boot up, either
> a) it starts booting from sda7, but then from sda7 finds some info
>  that tells it to mount sda5 as root, or, b) less likely I suspect:
>  Although GRUB shows the linux kernel on sda7 as an option (which I
>  select), it is somehow actually booting from sda5, not 7.

I think your version a) is what happens. Probably you have copied the 
fstab as well, where the designated mount points are defined. On your 
sda7 partition change the file /etc/fstab and make the UUID for the root 
partition match the UUID of /dev/sda7.


Nils