re-install

[Basil Chupin]

On 19/03/13 15:21, Ric Moore wrote:
> On 03/18/2013 10:38 PM, Basil Chupin wrote:
>> On 19/03/13 06:00, Ric Moore wrote:
>>> On 03/18/2013 12:35 PM, Colin Law wrote:
>>>
>>>>
>>>> I can see that if you want to do that then a separate partition is a
>>>> necessity.  I hope we are not going to fall out over this :)
>>>
>>> The main reason I use /opt on a separate partition and do my /home
>>> backup as links to there, is that only SOME things, like your email
>>> and browser settings can be safely re-installed intact, and some other
>>> dot-files should not be, as just maybe there has been an upgrade in
>>> the configs that you ~want~ to happen. It takes "discernment", as in
>>> it's better if you decide when to NOT use the upgrade dot-files.
>>>
>>> When jumping from 10.4 to 12.4, there is sure to be some major changes
>>> to the /home/user dot-config files/directories. Me, from my own
>>> perspectives, the only thing I attempt to restore is my thunderbird
>>> dot-directory. I use the backup/export features of programs like
>>> firefox, save those files to /opt and restore/import back after a
>>> fresh install. I have done this for some time, as I rarely have
>>> problems doing it this way. Just blindly re-installing a 10.4
>>> /home/user directory back to a 12.04 version system has got to create
>>> a few headaches. But. that's just my two cents, Ric
>>
>> What you wrote should be worth a lot more than 2 cents - it worth a LOT
>> more.
>>
>> I have a folder on my second HDD which contains the .thunderbird,
>> .mozilla and other folders such as Documents, Downloads etc and which
>> are all symlinked from my /home to this folder on the second HDD.
>>
>> I have no need to worry about copyng anything back when I do a new
>> install of the OS (and I never do an upgrade)  - I simply create the
>> symlinks in the newly created /home. No stress, no worries, no angst, no
>> agonlising, no loss of sleep.
>>
>> The only "worry" I have here is to remember to do a backup of that
>> folder on the second HDD to the USB memory stick and to the external 2TB
>> drive.
> You and I know full well, there is always something forgotten! I guess 
> that's why I am a human and not a computer. I also use the trick of 
> using links in my user directory for the universal directories, like 
> Video / Desktop / Documents and the rest, to /opt/myuser so I just 
> re-create my links.

You have mentioned your use of the /opt directory for what you are doing 
and this has always intrigued me because /opt is one of the directories 
which is overwritten when a new installation is perfomed. In fact the 
whole of the partition containing the current installation is formatted 
during a new installation - unless what YOU do is never to reformat the 
partition but to simply install the new version into the existing 
partition. If you don't this then I am puzzled and you will have to give 
me the way you do your trick (with the /opt directory) - and NONE of 
that "Waving the chook leg all about, man!" thing :-) .

BC

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