USB on knoppix running out of space(home/knoppix)

[fenzda]

I put knoppix 6.2 on a usb stick. Works great, but /home/knoppix runs out of spaces. I get
the same amount when I reboot. I tried apt-get clean/autoclean. Neither one works. Is there
a way other than reflashing? Its the full version of 6.2 on a 8GB stick and 3GB left on it. If I get
a 16GB stick, is there a way to save iceweasel bookmarks, cups stuff, etc with a new format?
I didn't set up a swap file, but I don't know if that would help. I have enough memory(reported
3GB).

Kind of frustrating since I like knoppix. I was able to get flash to work and I installed google
chrome. I need to install ICAclient for Citrix, so if any needed to do that, it would be helpful.

[fenzda]

/etc/apt/apt.conf.d/70debconf has the double quotes in it. I'm confused after searching the web. Quotes or not??

[Capricorny]

Have you checked posts in this forum about increasing size of persistent store?
And, sudo apt-get clean won't "work" if you have already purged the package cache. It has already done its job.

Not only new installs, but all upgraded packages plus apt's database will take up space in the persistent store, which is why ca 1 GB, which it seems you have set off, is way too little once you start using the system more regularly, with several extra programs.

[fenzda]

Would a re-flash(without format) at least get me to a point where I could remove google chrome and other packages I don't use. Right now Synaptic package manager doesn't even work because lack
of space. What is persistent storage? I would hate to have to reformat, since my iceweasel book marks would be gone.

I've searched the web and the knoppix forum seems to be the best place to try and get answers to these kinds of things.

I found this from Klaus:
http://lists.debian.org/debian-knopp.../msg00027.html
which I am not sure is what I need.

Thanks Guys

[klaus2008]

I would suggest that you read the thread "resizing knoppix-data.img".

[fenzda]

Thanks! I'll give it a try!

[fenzda]

I was almost at 4GB. I removed Google Chrome and now I have 250MB of free space(it says total 1032.1MB). Are there any others I can remove that aren't really needed?

[Werner P. Schulz]

Is there a way other than reflashing?

No! Have a look at principles of recombine. If you delete some packages within a flash disk installation, you'll get only a delete-marking but all remains on the stick.

If I get a 16GB stick, is there a way to save iceweasel bookmarks, cups stuff, etc

You can try the way I described for "Backup". Create a '...tar.gz' from persistent memory content of the 8GB stick and integrate it within the persistent memory of a new 16GB Stick.

[fenzda]

Removing Chrome actually made it worse after rebooting. My original menus are all gone. I don't even see the 'extra' free space on the stick. At this point I'm a little frustrated.
If I could save just the bookmarks for mozilla and just reflash(reformat too), I'd be content to at least start from square one. And have a bigger persistent image to work with!
Can't be stupid with a command line OS like Linux. Gotta know the guts, which I am learning. I would like to be able to help someone else in the future as well!

[Capricorny]

You have made it very difficult for yourself, and the basic problem is in fact all yours:
1. Why would you work without a backup of your personal files, bookmarks etc? You could just have a couple of backup flash media, and use something like

rsync -axu ~ /media/sdc1/home-bu

every now and then.

2. Why didn't you exploit the real great strength of Knoppix, the "large compressed basis + small (relatively) modifications" concept to your advantage, and turn it into a problem instead?
Again, you could have used (for example) the Install Knoppix to flash media function to make a backup to a couple of sticks/cards, and then every now and then issued an rsync command similar to the one above, something like:

 sudo rsync -axu /mnt/system/ /media/sdc1

Normally, that would just backup knoppix-data-img.

3. The simple system copy above allows for very safe experimenting. Keep track of disk use by issuing the df command often. (You have used that, right?) When modifications start to fill up persistent store, keep one unfilled copy as a backup - you will always be able to return to that point, if things get messed up. And you have separate backups of your home directory, so you should always be able to reconstruct most of your personal stuff when backtracking.
Always be prepared for backtracking!

4. When the Debian package tools have lost track, or you suspect they have, be very careful to use them, in particular for deleting packages. Try if you can get them to work properly, for instance by giving them the disk space they need, and if necessary, backtrack. And ALWAYS start install or delete operations with package database update, for example

  sudo apt-get update

5. Get to know knoppix-data.img. It is simply an ordinary file with an ext2 (or maybe ext3) file system setup on it, and loop-mounted. You can always mount that outside the native Knoppix instance (for example, from another Knoppix instance) and do whatever backup, cleanup, modification is needed. Just be aware that you should restrict writing/deleting, as then unionfs-mounting with aufs may get disturbed. Be particularly careful about deleting stuff you don't know what is. If you have a Knoppiix instance on /media/sdc1, something like this should be possible

sudo mkdir /tmp/persist-sdc1
sudo mount /media/sdc1/KNOPPIX/knoppix-data.img /tmp/persist-sdc1 -o loop=/dev/loop7
df
ls -alt /tmp/persist-sdc1/home
sudo rsync -axu /tmp/persist-sdc1/home/ <somewhere to place a backup of home disctory>

6. If you like to work minimalistic, practice resizing of persistent store so you can do that with no fuzz. Myself, I have been very much on the defensive side, always starting with a 3.5-4GB persistent store and never filling that up (thus having no experience with your problems, in spite of years of Knoppix use). But it may be better to start out with smaller store, and resize as needed. Will also make backup of the whole file run faster.

Have a lot of good luck!