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homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2016 6:09 pm
by yop
I never understood, what good is file: /live/boot-dev/antiX/homefs
it has many
disadvantages:
1. huge
confusion about disappearing files if persistence options are changed.
2. why have a size
limit ? Just store everything below file:///live/boot-dev/mySANDISK/non-disappearing-home
there, there is no size limit other than the size of thumbdrive. Why go lower than that size? (it is poss. on
ext4fs but not on fat32, but fat32 - however - is a
poor choice anyway)
3. all stuff below /home/demo/* is just kept in rootfs and no possible second location, leading to confusion as to where is what.
CONCLUSION: drop the option "persistent home" with no replacement for that at all. drop the file "homefs" without replacement.
Everyone will be better off. 
you can manually achieve it already today, if you never ever create a
homefs and never use the option: persist HOME (and neither: "persist ALL"), which has
no benefit at all.
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2016 6:14 pm
by yop
Occam's razor says: "drop it !"
it's no good but leads to confusion unecessarily.
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2016 2:38 am
by Eadwine Rose
I'd say: go in there and sort it out.
Can someone provide him with the URL to the source code so he can rework this thing and upload it for us all? I have no clue where to find that since I have ZERO knowledge of the coding and programming bits.
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2016 5:05 am
by anticapitalista
He knows where the code is.
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2016 5:17 am
by Eadwine Rose
Ah good :)
*waits for homefs-less version*
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2016 9:37 am
by dolphin_oracle
there is at least one major advantage to the homefs file. You can have an ext4 filesystem that preserves permissions data on top of a fat32 formated usb stick, which I generally use for compatibility with windows systems, and uefi systems.
unless you make the usb device with the new live-usb-maker, an ext4 formated usb stick will not boot on a pure uefi system.
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2016 9:48 am
by yop
like u pointed out, the new maker fixes that. so it is not a MAJOR adv.. it may be nice for some "windows people" ...
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2016 9:50 am
by dolphin_oracle
yop wrote:like u pointed out, the new maker fixes that. so it is not a MAJOR adv.. it may be nice for some "windows people" ...
and for any linux system without our live-usb-maker.
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2016 9:52 am
by yop
you must also weigh that "advantage" against the disadvantage of your HOME-files being in a container file that is difficult to handle, whereas /live/boot-dev/mySANDISK/non-disappearing-home/* are just plain files posing no difficulty at all.
Re: homefs has more disadvantages than benefits - let us drop it for good!
Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2016 10:09 am
by dolphin_oracle
yop wrote:you must also weigh that "advantage" against the disadvantage of your HOME-files being in a container file that is difficult to handle, whereas /live/boot-dev/mySANDISK/non-disappearing-home/* are just plain files posing no difficulty at all.
I hear ya, and its a good point. That's one reason for the "Live-Storage" link. I have to admit, I don't keep files other than settings in my /home. I store everything somewhere else.