UBCD V5.2b1 available for download

[Victor Chew]

UBCD V5.2b1 is available for download:

http://ubcd.mirror.fusa.be/ubcd52b1.iso
http://linuxfreedom.com/ubcd/download.html
md5sum: 070acf7ee3131bec5d94122208320611
sha1sum: 45d3cad8a9260dd3515e1e25199cb688b9f7000b

Changelog:

- Updated UBCD FreeDOS to V1.48. This version uses an enhanced superfloppy image supplied by ady.
- FDUBCD: Fixed AUTOEXEC.BAT at ady's request.
- FDUBCD: Updated bin\7za.exe to 9.20.1 at ady's request.
- AleGr MEMTEST re-added to FDUBCD because it can be started with "/ignorexmm" parameter. Thanks to ady for pointing this out.
- Updated Parted Magic to 2012_12_25.

The updated index page is available here:

http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/v52/index.html

[ady]

For the purpose of easier tracking of changes and for documentation, the fdubcd.img superfloppy image in UBCD 5.2b1 has the following characteristics (among others):

Code: Select all

Sectors_Per_Cluster: 8
Sectors_Per_Track: 63
Heads_Amount: 16 (0-15)
Cylinders_Amount: 32 (0-31)
Total_Sectors_Amount: 32256
Sectors_Per_FAT: 12
Amount_of_FATs: 1
Root_Directory_Sectors: 3
Max_Root_Directory_Entries: 48
Clusters_in_data_area: 4030

[ady]

In ubcd52b1, the file

Code: Select all

pmagic/boot/syslinux/isolinux.boot

is not needeed AFAIK.

(Well, in fact several of the files in there are not really needed, but they simplify: A_ the building process of UBCD's images; B_ the pmagic's update procedure for customization.)

***

Although I am not necessarily suggesting this next step for the release of UBCD 5.2, there is one boot entry that should be eventually reviewed. Currently, UBCD and pmagic use the same version of Syslinux for the boot menu (not necessarily true for the included version in pmagic itself). If pmagic upgrades its Syslinux modules to version 5.0x, the current boot entry from UBCD to pmagic will still work, but some boot entries in pmagic's menu might fail (as they would use a different version of Syslinux modules than the boot loader's version). There are two possible workarounds.

The first possibility would be to edit

Code: Select all

/pmagic/boot/syslinux/syslinux.cfg

to point to the same Syslinux modules as UBCD already uses,

Code: Select all

/boot/syslinux/

, but that complicates the pmagic's update procedure for customization.

The other possibility, much more complicated, would be to chain to

Code: Select all

/pmagic/boot/syslinux/isolinux.bin

, but that only would work on optical media. For other types of media, a script would be necessary (to chain to ldlinux.bin, specific for that media) and the use of whichsys.c32.

Again, I'm not saying this is a priority at all and it is not even a current concern as pmagic is still using Syslinux 4.06 as UBCD does, but at some point some user might update to a pmagic version using Syslinux 5.0x. At that point, the customization procedure would need to be adapted, so to change the paths in

Code: Select all

/pmagic/boot/syslinux/syslinux.cfg

so to point to

Code: Select all

/boot/syslinux/

instead of pointing to

Code: Select all

/pmagic/boot/syslinux/

.

I am posting this now, not for UBCD 5.2 itself, but for users interested in future customizations.

***

Victor,

On another matter, just before the final release, whenever it happens (and I don't know whether there will be some more betas or not), please don't forget to update pciids (and to rename it) http://pciids.sourceforge.net/.

TIA,
Ady.

[ady]

Where "COM32 linux.c32" is used in the Syslinux boot menu, it should be corrected to "COM32 /boot/syslinux/linux.c32" and then the rest of the line.

To be clear, there are other ways to make the paths work in the boot menu(s). The above correction just follows the current method used for every other Syslinux module in the boot menu.

[Victor Chew]

In ubcd52b1, the file pmagic/boot/syslinux/isolinux.boot is not needeed AFAIK.

I try not to modify/remove any files from the Parted Magic distribution.

On another matter, just before the final release, whenever it happens (and I don't know whether there will be some more betas or not), please don't forget to update pciids (and to rename it) http://pciids.sourceforge.net/.

Definitely. Thanks!

Where "COM32 linux.c32" is used in the Syslinux boot menu, it should be corrected to "COM32 /boot/syslinux/linux.c32" and then the rest of the line.

In the next release, I was actually planning to remove all those references to /boot/syslinux from all the other entries (memdisk, menu.c32 etc.) since syslinux from look for them in /boot/syslinux anyway. Any downside to that?

[ady]

In ubcd52b1, the file pmagic/boot/syslinux/isolinux.boot is not needeed AFAIK.

I try not to modify/remove any files from the Parted Magic distribution.

Actually, you already modified at least one file (syslinux.cfg). I am not saying that you should "control" anything coming from pmagic, but adding what is already known to be unnecessary files doesn't make much sense to me. If someone that wants to customize the release adds such unnecessary file, that's up to the user, but what's the point on releasing UBCD with unnecessary files?

IMO, there should be a script in UBCD, using the same type of techniques already used in other scripts (under "tools"), so to copy "all but the unnecessary" files from a certain "pmagic-extracted" directory into "ubcd-extracted/pmagic/", and then used "sed" in the script so to change the content of any *.cfg file in "/pmagic/boot/syslinux/". The "unnecessary" files are known, and the changes in the relevant cfg file are also known. I could provide more details, if this is of any interest.

Where "COM32 linux.c32" is used in the Syslinux boot menu, it should be corrected to "COM32 /boot/syslinux/linux.c32" and then the rest of the line.

In the next release, I was actually planning to remove all those references to /boot/syslinux from all the other entries (memdisk, menu.c32 etc.) since syslinux from look for them in /boot/syslinux anyway. Any downside to that?

Sorry, I don't understand what you intend to do. If you want to reduce the paths (or their length) in cfg files, then a different CWD shall be used (I actually use a different CWD in my customized UBCD, including for pmagic), or you would need to change the whole structure of UBCD. If you want feedback about this question, please clarify your plans / intention.


EDIT:
If what you mean is that you want to change from:

Code: Select all

 /boot/syslinux/

(including the first space character) to use just a space character in all "/ubcd/menu/syslinux/*.cfg" (and in subdirectories too), then there shouldn't be any problem in syslinux itself (except maybe that the "syslinux2grub4dos" scripts should be adapted too). Some paths will use absolute notation and "/boot/syslinux/" will be used in relative notation. BTW, there are other alternatives too.

TIA,
Ady.

[Don Manuel]

Any downside to that?

As you keep ldlinux and isolinux.bin in the same folder too, this shouldn't be a problem for these two.

[Victor Chew]

If what you mean is that you want to change from:
Code:
/boot/syslinux/
(including the first space character) to use just a space character in all "/ubcd/menu/syslinux/*.cfg" (and in subdirectories too), then there shouldn't be any problem in syslinux itself (except maybe that the "syslinux2grub4dos" scripts should be adapted too). Some paths will use absolute notation and "/boot/syslinux/" will be used in relative notation. BTW, there are other alternatives too.

No, as in:

Code: Select all

LABEL -
MENU LABEL BIOS
COM32 menu.c32
APPEND /ubcd/menus/syslinux/bios.cfg

Notice the lack of paths in "menu.c32".

[Victor Chew]

Actually, you already modified at least one file (syslinux.cfg). I am not saying that you should "control" anything coming from pmagic, but adding what is already known to be unnecessary files doesn't make much sense to me. If someone that wants to customize the release adds such unnecessary file, that's up to the user, but what's the point on releasing UBCD with unnecessary files?

I try to minimize changes to the stuff I add to UBCD, including deletion of files. If there's a way to avoid changing syslinux.cfg (within Parted Magic), I would.

Don't think this is a right/wrong question. Just a matter of taste, like the antivirus database issue we discussed previously...

[ady]

<snip>
No, as in:
<snip>

Actually, you mean "Yes, as in...". That change (avoiding the "/boot/syslinux/" absolute path) is exactly what I just said .

I try to minimize changes to the stuff I add to UBCD

But if you already know that there is no reason to add a group of files, then simply don't add them ; just as you edit pmagic's syslinux.cfg (you are in control of it). If a user, when customizing, wants to re-add them (or doesn't know how to avoid them), that's another matter.