I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

[Kouy]

So I was running Kubuntu 7.10 when I tried updating to 8.04 Alpha 4 I have a really slow, bad wireless connection so I was like three hours into to getting the packages with a few hours left when I lost my connection and it stopped updating. I tried starting it again from the command line and it gave some error, which I can't exactly remember but something about being only partially done and couldn't continue. So I went to my package manager it said I like a thousand packages to update so I figured that must have been the same as what it was doing before and just had it update those.

After a few more hours it finished and then I restarted my computer. It started up saying it was Hardy Haron but when I got to the desktop first of all my wireless internet couldn't connect, not like it couldn't find the connection but it couldn't get the wireless drivers(?) or something. So I tried opening up synaptic and got this error saying it couldn't connect and that I needed to run dpkg --configure -a so I did, and after about a half an hour some more errors came up that said Amarok needed to be reinstalled but it couldn't do it, and because of that nothing else would work and I couldn't find any way to reinstall or remove Amarok.

So I'm on my live cd now, and not sure where to go from here. I have been having a few problems with my installation for a while and wouldn't mind just reinstalling it however I have a few questions about partitioning. Right now I have one 60 GB hard drive with Windows taking 20 GB and Kubuntu taking the other 40. I'm only using about 20 GB of my Kubuntu partition right now. So I want to make a new partition with the last 20GB for my new installation of Kubuntu and then transfer my files over from my old Kubuntu and then delete that one. Am I going to be able to resize my new partition to take open 20 GB so that I have 40 on my new Kubuntu? I know I had some problem like this before like it can only resize to the right and not to the left? So I don't want to have 20 GB just sitting there unused.

Now if it would be simpler to just fix my old installation that would be fine with me but I really have no idea how to go about it since I can't access synaptic or adept and it won't let me remove Amarok from the command line either and I can't go any further. Even within this option I have two choices of trying to get Haron to work to finding a way to downgrade myself back down to Gibbon.

I really don't care/mind which route I go I just want my Kubuntu back up and running! So whatever's would be the easiest for someone to help me with would be great!

PS. Sorry if I sound grumpy or unthankful but It's now 9:11 AM and I didn't sleep last night because I was staying up trying to get this working the whole time! I would very much appreciate any help from anyone and thank you in advance.

[Fintan]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

Okay I won go into to trying to fix this. There are just too many variables and will take ages to figure out.
If you want to reinstall do this:

Get yourself the gparted live cd:
http://gparted.sourceforge.net/download.php

this will come in handy and there is a lot ofvery good info on partitioning on that page.

Now use that cd to resize your kubuntu partition to about 25GiG.This will take time and remember to resize towards the back of your Disk so that you have space between your win Finishand your new Partition. Now create a new partiition and format it as ext3.

Now boot into your kubuntu live cd (provided you have one) and follow these instructions:

On the live cd go toKmenu->system settings->advanced->Harddisks&Files->administratopn mode now you will see all the partitions on all the harddisks that are "seen" right click on the partitions you wish to edit/ acitvate /your new partition and your Kubuntu partition) choose edit and give it a mount point like /media/home and then /media/kubuntu for your old kubuntu.
Now you can activate them and they will show up in konqueror under /media/home and /media/kubuntu respectively which should be in the root (top) folder.
I haven't done this for a while on a live CD so yo may have to fool around with konqueror for a while.
Now you can move the files and folders in /home of your kubuntu install over to your newly created partition. DO NOT move the /home folder itself as a whole. This will screw things up later on.

Now (we are getting close ) boot up your gparted cd again.
delete the Kubuntu partition (Make sure you are deleting the right partition!!!!!!) and resize your new "home" partition leaving about 12gigs free at the end of the disk. Format that space with ext3 (this will be the home of your new kubuntu).

Install as usual but choose manual in partition mode (after the language/keyboard layout stuff) here you will be able to choose the partitions for /home (do not format!!!!) and / (format).
Finish installing as usual and you should be done.

Now you can update (hopefully) without interruption.


I hope this helps

[Kouy]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

Thanks for the help but there are just a few problems. First I don't have a kubuntu cd, I have an ubuntu cd and no blank discs. The disc does have gparted though so I'm not sure why I would need the live cd. Secondly, uhm: http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c1...g?t=1202064888 Am I doing something wrong here because I don't see a resize it to the right option?

[Snowhog]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

You can't resize 'to the right' - resizing is always from the from the 'end of the selected partition.' If one wants to 'move' a selected partition, gparted can do that, but you have to have space in which to move the selected partition. In your image, this can't be done unless you resize the selected partition to make it smaller.

[Kouy]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

You can't resize 'to the right' - resizing is always from the from the 'end of the selected partition.' If one wants to 'move' a selected partition, gparted can do that, but you have to have space in which to move the selected partition. In your image, this can't be done unless you resize the selected partition to make it smaller.

This is where I think I had the problem before because I don't think that ext3s can be moved, so before I was stuck with with it in the middle then the third one only had the remaining space and the space in the middle was just sitting there unusable by my new partition.

[Snowhog]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

ext3 partitions can be moved. I've done it myself using Gparted. Again, you have to have the space in which to move a selected partition.

[Kouy]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

I don't mean to be argumentative or anything, I just really don't want anything to go wrong. And yes I do realize that there needs to be space. However gparted does say that ext3s can't be moved(http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/9...enshot1md0.png) and I just want to be positive before I end up risking 20 gb of my hard drive space.

[Snowhog]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

You're not being argumentative - just 'cautious.'

Here's what you need to know about copying/moving partitions using Gparted, from Gparted themselves: HOW TO "MOVE / COPY" PARTITION

[Kouy]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

I have it here(http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/6...enshot2ob6.png) and it's not moving.

[Snowhog]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

You can't move a partition into unallocated space. The unallocated space has to have a partition established first. This new partition must be no smaller than the size of the partition you wish to copy/move into it.

[Kouy]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

Oh wow. See this was probably the same problem I had last time but the friend of mine that I asked never told me that. So thank you. Now time for the next stupid question. >.<

http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/2...eenshotlp7.png I've selected the first one and copied it but paste is greyed out on the new partition, I even added some extra room to see if that would be extra help but nope.

[Snowhog]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

Your picture show two pending actions - resize and create primary. You need to apply these two changes first. Once that is done, then select the partition you want to move and tell Gparted to move it. You'll be asked where to move it.

[Kouy]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

Isn't that just terrific. http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/8...eenshotha3.png

I've known there were errors on there all along and I don't know how to fix them, that's the whole reason I was trying to make a new partition. I don't think I'm going to get any sleep in these next few days.

[Snowhog]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

Not a real problem. Just quit Gparted (none of the operations will have been taken). Reboot your system. If /dev/hda2 isn't checked, you can do so after you are at your desktop. Open a console and type:

fsck -AR

This will force a filesystem check based on the entries in your /etc/fstab file except for the mounted root file system.

[Kouy]

Re: I'm in a weird position and don't even know where to start.

# /etc/fstab: static file system information.
#
# <file system> <mount point> <type> <options> <dump> <pass>
proc /proc proc defaults 0 0
# /dev/hda2
UUID=40692e21-c33b-4e9c-bade-d51d547bb8e4 / ext3 defaults,errors=remount-ro 0 1
# /dev/hda6
UUID=68d07786-7d91-4c1e-b018-22d2519a16bb none swap sw 0 0
/dev/hdc /media/cdrom0 udf,iso9660 user,noauto 0 0

Is that right?