not enough space to download tar

[chrisduck]

hey. I installed gentoo and am having to reinstall it. I used the mk2fs commands to format the partitions that I am going to install gentoo inside of again.

I have followed the directions and I am downloading the stage3 tar file off of lynx and links 2. On each one, I am given the message that there is not enough space for the file.

DOes anyone know what is wrong, or how I can free up the proper amount of space?

[Steven Robertson]

The root partition of the CD is mounted in tmpfs; i.e. it's a ramdisk. You only have as much space as half of your physical RAM. Two options.

One: Assuming you've mounted your partitions according to the Gentoo install guide, cd to /mnt/gentoo _before_ you download. This'll put the downloaded tbz2 on your hard drive, which (hopefully!) has enough space.

Two: If you're feeling bold, and have more than, say, 1.5 times the size of the tbz2 you're downloading in physical RAM + swap (swap must be ACTIVE), then issue the following command:

[chrisduck]

yeah, I've been cd /mnt/gentoo each time before I go to perform the download.

I'm pretty sure I'm stuck this time.
something else pretty tricky is that even though I used mke2fs to format the linux partitions, GRUB is still active and attempting to command the boot process.

I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to give up and repartition the whole thing with a windows install.

[Steven Robertson]

Well, GRUB doesn't touch the partition table, and vice versa; GRUB stage1 resides in the MBR of the drive.

But anyway, why are you using e2fs? ReiserFS is, in my experience, a superior option. Try it.

To install a Windows XP bootloader on the MBR of the drive, boot to the install cd, go to the recovery console, and use the command 'fixmbr'. Won't touch your linux partitions.

Are you absolutely sure the partitions are being mounted, though? Try using df or /proc/mounts to check.

[chrisduck]

OK, I will now use Reiser fs, thanks for the advice.