USB full install

[gaudium]

Hi

I have tried to do a full bt2 install to my usb drive following the instructions from the offensive security website:

heichteeteep://
wawawa
.offensive-security.com/documentation/backtrack-hd-install.pdf

I have done as follows:
created 3 partitions
-sda1: 50M Boot ext3
-sda2: 512M Swap
-sda3: 7Gb ext3

I then created boot and bt2 dir in /tmp and mounted sda1 to /tmp/boot and sda3 to /tmp/bt2

Then ran bt installer (2700 MB) with these parameters:
source: /boot
install to: /tmp/bt2 and
write MBR to: /dev/sda

That was the end of the instructions and when I tried to boot from the USB the system just says attempting to boot from usb and nothing happens.

I tried a couple of other permutations in the back track installer as follows:
write MBR to: /tmp/boot
/dev/sda1
I also tried just copying the boot dir from the live cd to the sda1 partition after doing the full install.

I have tried each time to put my drive in both the front and back usb ports.

I know there are quite a few posts along this vein each with a slightly different approach and I was just wondering if I had missed something obvious with the tutorial I followed.

Cheers

[Yauof]

I had the same problem and could not solve it until today (look at my posts). I gave it up because I think it's impossible to make a real install using a new laptop, might be a driver problem (SATA, SCSI).
But now I think no one needs the real install. Take the howto from ziplock to make the live install and make your own changes by adding one or more .lzm modules in the directory /bt/modules. You can look here in the forum for .lzm modules or on the slax site and search for modules (ending ...mo), convert them to .lzm (using mo2lzm) an drop them into /bt/modules.

If you want to store your personal settings use the command:
dir2lzm /mnt/live/memory/changes changes.lzm
and move the changes.lzm to /bt/modules
For more changes use a new name (e.g. changes1.lzm).

[shamanvirtuel]

I had the same problem and could not solve it until today (look at my posts). I gave it up because I think it's impossible to make a real install using a new laptop, might be a driver problem (SATA, SCSI).
But now I think no one needs the real install. Take the howto from ziplock to make the live install and make your own changes by adding one or more .lzm modules in the directory /bt/modules. You can look here in the forum for .lzm modules or on the slax site and search for modules (ending ...mo), convert them to .lzm (using mo2lzm) an drop them into /bt/modules.

If you want to store your personal settings use the command:
dir2lzm /mnt/live/memory/changes changes.lzm
and move the changes.lzm to /bt/modules
For more changes use a new name (e.g. changes1.lzm).

you can also merges the changes.lzm with directory /memory/live/changes/
it will produce a new changes.lzm.....no need to store more than one file

im working on another way to do it with a bt cheatcode i discover few days ago...see my post in Backtrack2 section

[gaudium]

Thanks for the reply. I was coming to the same conclusion! I think the positive point is that I have learnt a lot of new things trying to get it sorted (even though it isn't working) as I am a complete linux novice