copy root to new device

cp -dpRx /* /mnt/target/

preserve all except context and xattr. useful when moving a running system to a new partition.

-1

By: unixmonkey24812

2011-08-22 14:22:01

cp Filesystem backup root

2 Alternatives + Submit Alt

copy root to new device

Clone a root partition. The reason for double-mounting the root device is to avoid any filesystem overlay issues. This is particularly important for /dev. Also, note the importance of the trailing slashes on the paths when using rsync (search the man page for "slash" for more details). rsync and bash add several subtle nuances to path handling; using trailing slashes will effectively mean "clone this directory", even when run multiple times. For example: run once to get an initial copy, and then run again in single user mode just before rebooting into the new disk. Using file globs (which miss dot-files) or leaving off the trailing slash with rsync (which will create /mnt/target/root) are traps that are easy to fall into.
This is sample output - yours may be different.
1

mount /dev/root /mnt/root; rsync -avHX /mnt/root/ /mnt/target/

jharr · 2011-08-24 14:29:17 5
copy root to new device

cloning root filesystem without suffering to possible interruptions. useful when moving a running system to a new partition. also works as a solid backup solution.
This is sample output - yours may be different.
0

rsync -aHux --exclude=/proc/* --exclude=/sys/* /* /mnt/target/

unixmonkey24812 · 2011-08-22 14:26:56 5

What Others Think

Won't preserve symlinks (use `-a' instead of `-p').

h3xx · 685 weeks and 5 days ago

yes it preserves symlinks. see '-d'

unixmonkey24812 · 665 weeks and 5 days ago

rahimhh21 · 111 weeks and 2 days ago

Perfecthomepugs · 102 weeks ago

pugpuppies95 · 64 weeks and 1 day ago

yeneba6574 · 17 weeks and 5 days ago

What do you think?

Any thoughts on this command? Does it work on your machine? Can you do the same thing with only 14 characters?

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