[Bootcd-user] is it possible to install a custom initramfs USB bootable system?

[Todd Robinson]

I'm not sure why you would need to remove the USB Flash Drive. If your 
not adverse to leaving it plugged in these solutions already exist:

If you are determined to copy into RAM then it would be much easier to 
use a Live persistent Slackware variation such as GoblinX, Zenwalk Live, 
GUFI, Slax which can load into RAM and maintains the ability to save 
changes on a USB drive:
http://www.slax.org - or you can roll your own using the Linux Lived 
Scripts (http://www.linux-live.org).

On the Debian side, I'm still working on getting 5.0 to work with a 
persistent loop file on a USB Flash drive (hopefully I'll get a chance 
to play with it this coming week). However, I have had great success 
with Ubuntu updated editions:
http://on-disk.com/product_info.php/products_id/648


I hope this helps,
Todd


Miernik wrote:
> Hello,
>
> I have a computer with 10 GB of RAM, but no hard disks. I want to
> install Debian to make it work this way:
>
>  1. Debian is installed in RAM (maybe from PXE netboot)
>
>  2. with some command a compressed squashfs image is created of the
>     current system, and saved on an USB flash stick
>
>  3. the next time the system needs to be booted, it is booted from this
>     USB flash stick, fetched and uncompressed totally into RAM, and then
>     this flash stick is removed (it should not be needed for this stick
>     to stay inserted while the system works, only for boot)
>
>  4. when (after) the system is upgraded (in live initramfs), a command
>     (from point 2.) is run again to update the compressed squashfs image
>     on the USB stick
>
> Something similar to
> http://www.gentoo-wiki.info/HOWTO_VERY_small_Portage_Tree_with_SquashFS_and_UnionFS
> for Gentoo portage tree (but for the whole system).
>
> How can I achieve this setup?
>
> I've seen http://wiki.debian.org/DebianLive/Howto/USB
> http://lists.alioth.debian.org/pipermail/debian-live-devel/2007-September/002133.html
>
> Is RAMboot something I need to use?
>
> I would also like all programs to be executed in place (with XiP) and
> not copied into another portion of RAM for execution (which would be a
> waste of memory and time).
>
> Pointers for the most efficient way to go apprecieated.
>
>
>
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