Theoretcially YES!
But personally I think you did it the safest way! (I would have probably done the same)
It might have been faster not from the boot Cd since more memory means it writes more at once but the important thing was it worked !

p.s. it was John B who posted it, not me!

however, Ill try and find some good links for you on native linux tools.
The O'Reilly powertools book (linux or UNIX) is great for some stuff like this! Her's a sample from my bookmarks becuaase I never remember the exact syntax
http://www.linuxdevcenter.com/pub/a/...lpt/18_16.html


Hmm, I guess I wasn't so far off with the 2 hours then.
It might not be fast but its reliable!