Re: Is it possible to fully reinstall the base system without affecting /home?

[Dalios <dalios@eumx.net>]

On 02/22/2016 06:36 AM, Kynn Jones wrote:
> My system is badly damaged, and it looks like the only way to fix it
> is to do a full re-install.
> 
> I figure I will have to back everything up to an external drive,
> reformat the hard drive, and install everything from scratch.
> 
> But I thought I'd ask if there's anything close to this that would not
> require backing up everything and reformatting the hard disk.
> Wouldn't it be possible, for example, to boot the system up from a
> live CD, and reinstall the base system, leaving /home untouched?  (I
> should mention that the hard disk in question is just one big
> partition, including /home and everything else.)
> 
> Thanks in advance!
> 
> kj
> 
> 

You can certainly do it but I am not sure you want!

First of all you would have to move your /home to a new partition (to
the same disk or another) and you would need to start from a Live CD/USB
in order to do this step. Of course if you don't have another HD
available then you would have to partition the disk which is risky for
your data which you would have to backup elsewhere etc

Next is the new installation procedure where you will eventually connect
the new system with the old /home.

However let me note that some of the problems of your current
installation may live inside /home which means that you will still have
to deal with them. The /home folder contains not only your data but also
various settings files for your applications.

So, as I said, you can certainly do it but I am not sure you want!

Another approach would be to start a new thread (or more!) on this
helpful list in order to try to solve your system's problems. Of course
you can always re-install and start from scratch but how can you be sure
you will not end on the same position after a while.


Dalios