From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: "Thomas Schmitt" Subject: Re: ISO installer image: GPT versus MBR partitions Date: Fri, 26 Apr 2019 15:57:11 +0200 Message-ID: <1826267778279542774@scdbackup.webframe.org> References: <87k1fim4c7.fsf@gnu.org> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Return-path: Received: from eggs.gnu.org ([209.51.188.92]:60024) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1hK1JP-0000ma-4r for guix-devel@gnu.org; Fri, 26 Apr 2019 09:54:48 -0400 Received: from Debian-exim by eggs.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1hK1JO-0006bi-4X for guix-devel@gnu.org; Fri, 26 Apr 2019 09:54:47 -0400 In-Reply-To: <87k1fim4c7.fsf@gnu.org> List-Id: "Development of GNU Guix and the GNU System distribution." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: guix-devel-bounces+gcggd-guix-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Sender: "Guix-devel" To: bug-xorriso@gnu.org Cc: guix-devel@gnu.org Hi, Ludovic Court=C3=A8s wrote: > > I lost track of the discussion. You=E2=80=99re looking at a MacBook-s= pecific > > issue, right? Florian Pelz wrote: > As I understand it, Thomas=E2=80=99 work is about > - making a correct ISO image and The grub-mkrescue ISOs are correct but also sometimes inconvenient on USB stick. So rather: - Making ISO images which are more digestible for partition interpreters when presented unchanged on real storage devices. Especially for partition editors by which the user wants to add a read-write data partition to the USB stick. > - making it work on more machines. In this case it's about the Macbook EFI and mformat's partition table entry. Exotic but also typical for firmware quirks. =2D--------------------------------------------------------------------- In general my proposal is about getting control over the GRUB-produced files before xorriso packs them up, and over the arguments of the xorriso run. Danny pointed out that Guix ISO production software does not aim for becomming expert for iso bootloaders. But the Macbook EFI behavior and the Linux partition table complaints do not demand deep knowledge of bootloaders. The remedies just need the opportunity to make small adjustments to the work of grub-mkrescue. Where such remedies come from, is a different question. Count on frustration-tolerant users and curious bystanders. The shell script implementation is somewhat questionable. We could use it for exploring the best variation and then implement that variation in a less tolerant programming language with less outer influences. I asked Danny, whether the download servers could offer two partition table variations of the ISOs: GPT and MBR (both with APM/HFS+). Goal would be to gain experience with MBR and to finally replace GPT by that layout. He expressed the hope that other members of Guix could answer this. Have a nice day :) Thomas