A typical partition of a Linux installation. Click to enlarge
This tip can save you some time and a little bit of frustration as you grow with Linux.
I’ve used Linux for over six years now. I’ve installed and run many different Linux distributions. These include Linspire, Freespire, Kiowa, PCLinuxOS, Ubuntu, Mandriva, Linux Mint, and few others that escape my memory at the moment. After running so many, it became a routine operation to install Linux to my system’s hard drive. Mostly because, Linux distributions come with a very easy step-by-step menu on its installation disk. Just read the directions on screen and click the “next” button. Linux does the rest.
However, during those earlyyears when I was learning Linux, I was installing everything to one main partition on the hard drive. The root directory (where the OS resides, also designated by “/”) and the home directory(where all my personal files reside, designated by “/home”) were always installed on the same partition. This means, whenever I upgraded my Linux system, I had to overwrite everything on that partition (hard drive).
The goal is to keep personal files, folders, and data intact and only upgrade the Linux operating system.
The solution is to simply do the following: Before you install Linux, partition the hard drive into three pieces. One for the root directory (which contains the actual Linux operating system), one for the home directory (this is where you keep all your personal files, data, and stuff you work on), and one small partition for swap (swap is extra memory for Linux).
At some point, if you need to upgrade or reinstall Linux, and because you have the hard drive divided into these three pieces, you’ll only need to install to the root directory partition. All your personal files and data on the home directory partition will remain intact. (but it’s always a good idea to back up all your files before upgrading or reinstalling any operating system).
Most Linus installation disks come with a partitioning utility. You can use it to partition and format the hard drive. You can get more information on how to partition a hard drive and see a step by step tutorial on installing Linux here.
