On 23/09/2025 01:40, Tim MCCONNELL wrote:
However I didn't have a working Linux system to perform those steps with. I ended up just putting the iso I had onto a 16GB USB stick to get my computer working again.
If you can extract files from an .iso image and UEFI boot is enabled on your machine (BIOS legacy boot is not used) then you may avoid repacking of ISO images. It is less straightforward than writing an image, but with some experience it is doable. Essentially it is enough to copy files to a stick (remove existing files at first to avoid conflicts).
If you are going to extract files using 7zip then be careful, it may trim long file names. Unsure if current Debian images are affected, but earlier I have seen issues with nvidia drivers in Ubuntu images.
Another warning is concerning symlinks, e.g. kernel and initrd files in Debian live images. Ensure that file copies have the same names as symlinks in ISO images.
It some cases it might be necessary to adjust file paths in grub configuration. An example is stripping /cdrom prefix in kernel and initrd paths in Ubuntu images. I am just unsure if it is required for Debian DVD images.
Of course, a flash drive should be formatted as FAT, not as exFAT, but with 8Gb drives it should be an issue.