Klaus Knopper answers your Linux questions

Ask Klaus

Article from Issue 190/2016
Author(s):

New fdisk behavior, booting Knoppix from USB, and using PHP mail() in Apache.

New Linux fdisk Partitioning Tool

I've read your article about repartitioning the hard disk using the famous fdisk command-line tool. I tend to partition a disk in a way that starts and ends partitions at cylinders, in order to adapt to the mechanical specs of the disk. However, the newer versions of fdisk that come with Knoppix 7.7 no longer show the disk geometry in cylinders and heads; all settings are based on sectors of 512 or 4096 bytes, depending on the disk's physical sector size.

Do I have to install an old version of fdisk in order to restore the old, cylinder-based behavior?

To illustrate what happens, start an fdisk session. Unless you quit fdisk with the w command for "write," nothing will be changed or saved on disk, so make sure you quit with q when leaving the program (unless you really want to change the disk's partitioning).

[...]

Use Express-Checkout link below to read the full article (PDF).

Buy this article as PDF

Express-Checkout as PDF
Price $2.95
(incl. VAT)

Buy Linux Magazine

SINGLE ISSUES
 
SUBSCRIPTIONS
 
TABLET & SMARTPHONE APPS
Get it on Google Play

US / Canada

Get it on Google Play

UK / Australia

Related content

  • ASK KLAUS!

    Klaus Knopper is the creator of Knoppix and co-founder of the LinuxTag expo. He currently works as a teacher, programmer, and consultant. If you have a configuration problem, or if you just want to learn more about how Linux works, send your questions to: klaus@linux-magazine. com

  • Professor Knopper's Lab – Hybrid Image Mode

    As DVD drives disappear from modern notebook computers, Knoppix offers a hybrid image mode that works for both DVDs and flash drives.

  • Top 10 Knoppix Rescue Tricks

    The Knoppix Live Linux distro is packed with powerful tools for fixing broken systems. We ask Knoppix creator Klaus Knopper for his favorite Knoppix rescue tricks.

  • Ask Klaus!

    Klaus Knopper is the creator of Knoppix and co-founder of the LinuxTag expo. He currently works as a teacher, programmer, and consultant. If you have a configuration problem, or if you just want to learn more about how Linux works, send your questions to: klaus@linux-magazine.com

  • Ask Klaus!

    Klaus Knopper answers your Linux questions.

comments powered by Disqus
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters

Support Our Work

Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

Learn More

News