Rebooting using unetbootin

Hi,

I am a novice with Linux to say the least, the last Live update complete knacked my Aspire One and I need to reboot it somehow. I have downloaded an .iso file which I have on a 4GB USB stick. Do I need to use unetbootin to install the OS?

Also does this method erase all of my personal data? This would be a disaster for me, I admittedly should have backed it all up knowing how unreliable this machine is. My AAO has an SD card, am I right in assuming this holds all of the documents, pictures, videos directories etc. and therefore would not be touched during the rebooting?

Cheers,
Ryan.

 

To reboot: turn the power off, wait 15 seconds, then turn the power back on.

I'm guessing you think you need to reformat the system drive and reinstall the operating system. That may, indeed be true.

You should have backed up your data for several reasons, among them:
1. You think the hardware is somewhat unreliable
2. You've been a forum member since April, and have seen that updates sometimes hose the system
3. You're a Linux novice and therefore likely to unwittingly hose your system

As for your SD card, it may contain data which may be recoverable even if you need to reformat. You haven't provided enough information for that determination to be made, and, as a novice, you may not know what information you should provide. No problem, I'll just start asking:
1. Which model Aspire One do you have?
2. What operating system is on it? If it's the operating system that came on your Aspire One, it's Linpus Lite)
3. What happens when you turn on the power?

 

You will need something to write the .iso to the USBstick in such a way the USB stick becomes bootable and has quite a few files on it, and not merely an USB stick with a .iso file on it. Unetbootin is indeed an application that can do that for you; but many others exist.

It will erase all the data on the internal harddrive/SD drive. It will not touch the data on the SD card - especially if you remove that before starting the recovery

It will contain *part* of your files. Most likely the overwhelming majority. But some may be on the internal drive.
Can you not check the card in another computer ?

One possible solution that may allow you to recover all your files is making an Ubuntu Netbook Remix USB stick instead of a linpus recovery one. Instead of immediately wiping all your files and installing itself like Linpus does, Ubuntu simply runs itself from the USB stick and gives you a fully functional desktop - without deleting the contents of your Ones hardrive/internal SD drive or installing anything on it until you explicitly tell it to. You might well be able to access your data and safely back it up on another medium from there.

If you like the look of Ubuntu netbook remix better than Linpus, you can then choose to install it. Choosing install WILL wipe your harddrive - so backup first

http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/download-netbook

Good luck

 

Thanks for the advice both of you, very helpful. I'm gonna try the Ubuntu Netbook Remix USB first and see if I can back up my files then either install that re-install Linpus.

I'll post with how it goes...