On Wed, 17 Feb 1999, MacKenzie, Andrew wrote: > My question is when I install Linux stuff, I might want to put some on the > vfat drive. Are there any issues with this? Can I move say /usr/local to > the vfat mount? How?
There are, unfortunately, fatal issues with this. The vfat filesystem doesn't store ownership or permission information. This means that, as far as Linux is concerned, all the files on the vfat drive have the same owner and permissions. For storing data (e.g. sounds, mp3's, graphics) that you don't plan to edit regularly, this might work, but for executable programs it's a wash. I can think of three alternatives. First, you can repartition and give Linux more of that extra space. FIPS and Partition Magic are two programs that can usually shrink a partition without losing data. Second, you can use the "umsdos" filesystem, which uses hidden files to store ownership and permission information. This is supposed to be pretty slow but workable. Third, you can try using a "loopback" filesystem. You create a file on the vfat drive, and then mount the file as a filesystem. You need to compile in kernel support for this. This works, and gives you a "real" ext2 filesystem. However, if you're running Windows and something overwrites that file, you're hosed. Hope this helps... Sincerely, Ray Ingles (248) 377-7735 [EMAIL PROTECTED] "Suffering is good for the soul, but it is usually best to wait until the body has no choice in the matter." - Stephen Donaldson
