dslreports logo
 
    All Forums Hot Topics Gallery
spc
Search similar:


uniqs
1419
me1212
join:2008-11-20
Lees Summit, MO
·Google Fiber

me1212

Member

Linux on external hard drive?

I'm looking to purchase an external HDD to put linux on so I can use it on any computer I want to. My question is, is there a best distro to do that with? Im thinking I'll use Ubuntu, its my favorite, but I also like linux mint too. But if there is a better distro than one of those to use I'd rather use that.

graysonf
MVM
join:1999-07-16
Fort Lauderdale, FL

graysonf

MVM

I'm pretty sure that just about any mainstream distribution these days can be made to work, so long as the hardware supports booting from an external drive.

As to being as portable as you would like, that's going to depend on the capabilities of the machines you take it to; something not easily predicted.

PottyPants
@reliablehosting.com

PottyPants to me1212

Anon

to me1212
Mint is based on Ubuntu, Ubuntu is based on Debian, so any Debian-eske GNU/Linux distribution would likely suit you well if this is what you prefer.

Mainly you need ensure your BIOS is capable of booting a USB device.

Brano
I hate Vogons
MVM
join:2002-06-25
Burlington, ON

Brano to me1212

MVM

to me1212
Your only problem may be with HW specific drivers should you plug the disk in some exotic or too new machine. But generally speaking you should have little to zero problems.
grazed
join:2006-10-15
Havertown, PA

grazed to me1212

Member

to me1212
I wouldn't expect the external hard drive to last very long if you plan on running an OS off of it.

The amount of heat build up you'll generate (almost all externals lack fans) will degrade the stability of the drive rather quickly.

If you're planning on using a flash memory type drive, then I'm sure you already know about the limited read/writes they provide, which also will not last long.
pablo
MVM
join:2003-06-23

pablo

MVM

said by grazed:

I wouldn't expect the external hard drive to last very long if you plan on running an OS off of it.
Oh I'm not sure about the above. I run a `nekid' HDD using my handy-dandy `USB 2.0 to IDE or SATA Adapter Cable'

Cheers,
-pablo

graysonf
MVM
join:1999-07-16
Fort Lauderdale, FL

graysonf to grazed

MVM

to grazed
said by grazed:

I wouldn't expect the external hard drive to last very long if you plan on running an OS off of it.

The amount of heat build up you'll generate (almost all externals lack fans) will degrade the stability of the drive rather quickly.
I disagree with this also. I have several external SATA and IDE drives in fan-less cases. Yes, they run warm, but they are on more or less all the time and have been running fine for years.
grazed
join:2006-10-15
Havertown, PA

grazed

Member

said by graysonf:

said by grazed:

I wouldn't expect the external hard drive to last very long if you plan on running an OS off of it.

The amount of heat build up you'll generate (almost all externals lack fans) will degrade the stability of the drive rather quickly.
I disagree with this also. I have several external SATA and IDE drives in fan-less cases. Yes, they run warm, but they are on more or less all the time and have been running fine for years.
Oh, no. I'm not saying fanless externals don't last long.

I'm saying that running an OS off of one isn't the same as using it for storage. Running an OS would constantly write / read far more than as if you were using it to store files. Firefox caching this and that while browsing, swap memory, system files being read, etc etc.

The heat buildup would just be much higher. Much, much higher. Also don't forget that most externals spin down after x amount of activity. Spinning back up (in this case super often) is another source of major wear and tear.
pablo
MVM
join:2003-06-23

pablo

MVM

Hi,

Yes, I understand what you're saying and I still politely disagree. An external HDD, the disk itself, isn' anything special one way or another. In other words, it's not more fragile than other disks. I've monitored my external HDD's temperature and it's only one or two C's warmer than my internal drives. I had it configured (via `hdparm') to not spin down.

Is your data anecdotal? Or where did you hear this information?

Cheers,
-pablo

jdong
Eat A Beaver, Save A Tree.
Premium Member
join:2002-07-09
Rochester, MI

jdong to me1212

Premium Member

to me1212
I've done fine with disk longevity and running extremely intensive tasks off external drives. The only gotcha/annoyance is severe performance compromise of the machine under heavy IO due to interrupt storming if you're using USB. But eh as long as you're not running a peak-capacity mailserver off your external Linux install, you should be fine

Johnny5
@205.255.240.x

Johnny5

Anon

Not to sack grazed but I don't see longevity issues with USB attached storage devices either though I do recommend noatime or relatime to NAND storage. I've used RAID-1 mdraid USB drives in a mirror with heavy I/O (scheduled rsync backup every 10 minutes) with no ill effects or abnormal temperature ranges on those drives.

I think the root issue is the enclosure and 3.5" versus 2.5" drives -- the 2.5" tending to far better in extreme temperature ranges due to their prevalent usage in laptop devices.
grazed
join:2006-10-15
Havertown, PA

grazed to pablo

Member

to pablo
Just my own experiences while working at Best Buy back in 2001-03. We would have a significant amount of people come in with fried units. Usually the slim models. Also saw a LOT of maxtor drives.

We would always ask what they were doing with the drive and how it was stored before giving an exchange. A good handful of these guys said they were running an OS.

Perhaps the quality of heat control has improved since then? To be honest, I haven't been keeping current with them. I'm still using a custom built enclosure with a fan that I made about 5 years ago.
pablo
MVM
join:2003-06-23

pablo

MVM

Hi,

A potential problem with an external drive and a lay person is they don't understand the gyroscopic effects of spinning platters.

I wonder how truthful people are with returns. Do they really admit to `baby' deciding to use the external drive as a toy?

Cheers,
-pablo

FiReSTaRT
Premium Member
join:2010-02-26
Canada

FiReSTaRT

Premium Member

Think it's a pretty good idea to have a persistent setup with fully updated AVG. Great for field-servicing of virus-infected winblows boxes.