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Re: [Sheflug] Mandrake Linux 9.1 Problems
Hi Steve,
Steve Fisher wrote:
> 1>. How do I force a disk check.
It depends on the filesystem you're using. If you're using ext3
(usual choice these days), The program to use is called fsck, and you
have to do the checking with the filesystem unmounted (you need to
boot in single user mode). I found that this is not usually necessary,
as every so often (say, after 6 months or 30 reboots, a check is
performed). See man tune2fs.
Unless, of course, you want to scan the disk for bad blocks (a
physical check). You can do that with the badblocks program.
> 2>. How do I defrag the drive? (when the time comes)
I don't know :-) The fs you're using is quite well tuned for
efficient access, so defragging is not usually needed. There is some
extra information on a recent uk.comp.os.linux post:
<ttp://tinyurl.com/wtqf>
> 3>. What should I backup?
It depends, but usually I back-up /etc, /var, /home, and
/usr/local. I don't know whether Mandrake provides a machine useable
list of all installed packages. I have one of these, so that if the
computer breaks, I install based on that list, and throw in the
aforementioned directories.
Regarding the permissions on your windows drive (sorry, deleted
far too much of your message), it is unwise to write to it if you are
using NTFS. Rather, install one of the ext2/3 (if that's what you're
using) programs in windows and copy the files across from windows.
I use re-writeable CDs.
Hope it helps
José
--
José L Gómez Dans PhD student
Tel: +44 114 222 5582 Radar & Communications Group
FAX; +44 870 132 2990 Department of Electronic Engineering
University of Sheffield UK
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