Hello!
After extensive testing with the old or new version of Navigatrix, I still can not edit the files "casper" and "home" and to adapt them to my USB (8 or 16GB).
I tried deleting the files, and then at boot by typing "fix", they are always rebuilt with 100 and 700MB.
Another test, but I do not know what happens exactly, by typing "FR16" from the boot once to configure Navigatrix depending on the USB drive (see file "syslinux.cfg"), it works, Navigatrix is OK, but then what?
Sorry, I like to understand and not to thank you for a program or a computer that crashes when you need it ...

Another remark related to the question above: If I want to install another program on the key and I in return "not enough space" when my key is important, how to overcome this limitation? Apparently Navigatrix is designed and built for 4GB.


For Moe, Yvon goes well, he is very happy and is definitely past the right side of the Force!

The casper and home are not 'edit-able'

You are correct about modifying the syslinux.cfg file.

The one you have is the partial French version....but the process is the same.



by changing "root_size" and "home_size you change the size of those files and effectively the 'partition' that they are mimicking.

Now, 'off the shelve' Navigatrix is for 4GB media. There has been some fudging with the ability to go beyond that without too much drama.

As you will notice there are a few directories that pre-exist. (Charts; Gribs; Library; Pictures; Downloads; Videoa; blah, blah, blah....)

These are sort-of tacked on and referenced to home and root via sybolic links and therefore do not count in the size of root (casper), or home files.....and should, at least in theory allow expansion for data storage on the stick.

However, if you install an additional package on the stick; data from that package will be placed in either casper (root) or home media. This is where the size limitation occurs and this is where most of the confusion occurs because the stick will show, e.g., 1.2GB free, but casper(root) at 100MB, or home at 500MB is chalk full....but it doesn't show. This is generally where you run out of space even when there is space available. It's just not allocated in the right areas.

To correct this you must change the root_size or home_size to suit your needs.

Navigatrix on the stick, or most linux distributions on a stick are really a "LiveCD", which is what they are called, and not a small cheap hard drive. Thinking of it as a hard drive creates more confusion because it has a different file structure. Unfortunately my explanations sometimes create as much confusion.

okay so if I decide to install to a hard drive will it still have a 4GB limitation? I am looking at some 32gb SDHC cards that fit in a slot on my laptop. My Win desktop shows them as additional drives on my PC..

I was hoping to add some extra apps and all my charts and some more stuff.. sure to exceed 4gb into what I hoped would be a 32gb EXT2 partition. Or would I need an additional partition(s) for the added stuff. And would Navigatrix pull up apps from those additional partitions and run them? I intended to also make the usual Linux swap partition.

Now my Linux knowledge lies way back with the old stuff like RedHat and Slackware and i am really foggy on all the new Linux distros and methods.

The only 4GB limitation is on the Widows VFAT32 filesystem (which is a per file limitation. If you install on a hard disk you would be using a filesystem that does not have that limitation....hopefully.

The big question, if I understand your intention, is if SD cards can be bootable devices on your machine. It depends how they are physically connected to the machine hardware.