BT4 USB installation noob-proof [TUTORIAL]

[JoeleZ]

Just use Unetbootin you can find it on sourceforge....

hxxp://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/

I don't think it gets much easier than this....Hope you guys find it helpfull

great for No0bs!!!

try not to use unebootin, a lot of people get eror with unebootin. if you have bt4 beta installer, here is the easy way. it's my way installing usb live.

In bt4 beta
Format the usb with minimal 4gig become 1500MB vfat, and the rest using ext3 format. you can look "how to format" with googling. make first 1500MB bootable (using fdisk when you format the usb, code : a )

after that make format so your usb can be read.

mkfs.vfat -F32 -n <name you want> /dev/<your first partition 1500MB>
mkfs.ext3 -b 4096 -L casper-rw /dev/<your second partition on usb>

after that mount the usb, then:

rsync -avh <bt4prefinal data> <your target usb first partition 1500MB>

after all the data copied,

grub-install --no-floppy --root-directory=/mnt/<your usb first partition 1500MB example sdb1 sdc1 sda1> /dev/<your usb example sdb sdc sda>

after that run nano or kate or something else you like, read the /mnt/<your usb first partition 1500MB>/boot/grub/menu.lst

change default 0 to default 4 and look at start persistent Live cd, append vga=0x317 at the and on line that starting with kernel.
It will look like this:

title                Start Persistent Live CD
kernel                /boot/vmlinuz BOOT=casper boot=casper persistent rw quiet vga=0x317
initrd                /boot/initrd.gz

save and boot with that usb, there is your usb live persistent.

Regards,
JoeleZ

[mfBaranian]

Please read.

This thread, I must say again, was started as a tutorial on how to install BT4PF ona a USB stick using the Ubiquity installer.
Please don't think that I disapprove of the vast useful input regarding the alternative ways of installing BT4PF on a USB. I am in fact very pleased and thankful to all that got involved in testing the distro and working on this subject.
It's just that during the process this thread became long and uneasy to read, to the point where participants of this thread started to provide info that was already there. (I mean no disrespect writing this, and I'm not trying to discourage you to help and be useful to the community)
The support I was giving (and still am) regarding this tut is more focused on the ubiquity and not the other methods of installation (I'm modifying the ubiquity and will see what I will come up with - I do hope that the mods approve and they will be the first to know if I come up with anything useful) . The linked offensive-security.com videos (1, 2) on the matter are pretty basic and self explanatory, and combined with the input of participants has created the motherload of info on the USB installation.

So without further adieu, I'm going to edit the first post to include all the relevant info from this thread, and make a request:

PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE THREAD BEFORE POSTING.

[Joker]

This is a video using unetbootin. (Probably will fail for 4 GB USB too so use a larger one)

I can confirm that the Unetbootin installation worked on my SanDisk Cruzer 4GB

[triplex]

(this should be obvious but I did say noob-proof).

Hi, very much thanks for the guide -some feedback, I am obviously a noob, and as such I herby can vouch for that its not noob-proof. I just messed up my mac-laptop MBP bigtime, and its all my fault... I think somewhere along step 4... Here is a description of what the end result for me was.
"A flashing question mark appears when you start your Mac" as explained in Apple KB TS1440

I remember clearly going back to meny 4 first time, and saw that it was the prefilled-default values was back instead, and not the one i changed to. So i changed it to something else, that was wrong of course I have since then just spent some hours to reinstall my complete OS X system.

However if there is fellow noobs out there experimenting with this, i managed to figure out that to fix the problem of now a very crippled system, i had to load and go into the installation leopard CD using diskutility -and then choose the partition meny.
Apparently i managed to write down the 1st partition table, overwriting my HD, instead of the USB drive... (But my 16GB san-disk USB stick strangely also lost some of its boot functionality as well in this experiment, and wont boot from the bios meny anymore...) Perhaps it restore/reinstall tip might help anyone that gets lost as i did.
...Next time (now) i will try this guide in a parallels WM environment instead.

[dougbott]

simple and easy

[apache]

Hello, I need help. I have my Backtrack 4 on one 4 GB SanDisk, and the Grub menu so changed.

# By default, boot the first entry.
default 5

# Boot automatically after 20 secs.
timeout 20

splashimage=/boot/grub/bt4.xpm.gz

titel                 Start Persistente Live CD 
kernel                /boot/vmlinuz BOOT=casper boot=casper persistent rw quiet vga=0x317 kernel / boot / vmlinuz boot = casper boot = casper persistent rw quiet vga = 0x317 
initrd                /boot/initrd.gz initrd / boot / initrd.gz

It does not store, however, any data!

Help me please.

Dear greetings from Germany

[mfBaranian]

The kernel line is too long. Probably because of accidental paste.

kernel /boot/vmlinuz BOOT=casper boot=casper persistent rw quiet vga=0x317 kernel / boot / vmlinuz boot = casper boot = casper persistent rw quiet vga = 0x317

You don't need the part in red.

[triplex]

...Next time (now) i will try this guide in a parallels WM environment instead.

Does not work in Parallels. so I tried and did the guide again (ready to re-install everything). Reboot the Mac (with the burned BT4 iso in the CD drive) holding down the C key to boot from the DVD. Some strange meny appears where it halts, pressed esc to get to the BT selection meny. Redid all steps, sucess this time

[orange_moon35]

I have a problem over here,
I did everything as in the video (BackTrack USB install video) and my usb thumbdrive works fine on the laptop I used to create it, but when I boot into it on my other laptop it gives me this:

grub>_

what went wrong ?!
is it possible that the usb thumb I created works only on the computer I used to create it ?

[Revoluzifer]

Hi there guys!
So here's another "this-turorial"-related post

I did install bt4 exactly the way it's shown here and almost everything works fine on my 8GB USB-Stick.

But the one thing that just won't work is persistence...

So for example every time I reboot I have to change my Keyboard-layout to german.

Does anyone know what could cause this?

Thanks in advance...