Version: 0.10, Date: 2006 March 24

To: Mark 5 Computer Users and Owners

From: Dan Smythe

Re: Disk-to-Disk Back-up of Mark 5 Systems

The memo summarizes the steps for doing a disk-to-disk back-up with
a mark 5 system.  This backup will make a clone of your system disk on 
another disk drive with equal or greater capacity.  The backup disk 
drive can be in a removable CRU carrier like the one installed (but not 
necessarily connected) on the side of most of the first 22 mark 5 
units.  If your mark 5 unit does not have a removable carrier, you can 
install one; or you can temporarily attach the back-up disk to the 
secondary IDE connector on the mother board.  You can make the back-up 
without removing the cover from your mark5 unit, but you will need to 
remove the cover and disconnect power to the primary disk in order to 
test the copy.

IMPORTANT:  This procedure requires that your primary system disk be 
connected as the primary disk.  If it is connected as the secondary 
disk, this procedure will over-write the data on your system disk.  
Some mark 5 units have the primary system disk connected to the 
secondary connector.  You can check by running 'df' at a linux command 
prompt.  If it says

/dev/hda etc.,

then your system disk is primary.  If it says

/dev/hdc etc.,

then your system disk is secondary, and you need to move it to the 
primary IDE connector on the mother board, or follow the instructions 
in mk5buc.txt.

This procedure is based on l3bu.txt "Disk-to Disk Back-up with the 
Debian Linux 3 Rescue Floppy" by Himwich, Mujunen, and Gonzalez (1999 
Jun 07).

The steps are:

1. With the power off, install the backup drive in the
   computer. 

2. Turn the system on.

3. You should eventually see the red hat GRUB screen,
   with its 10-second countdown.  Within the 10 seconds type 'e' to
   edit.

4. Select the line that starts with kernel and
   type 'e' to edit the line.

5. Go to the end of the line and type 'single' as a separate word
   (press the [Spacebar] and then type 'single').
   Press [Enter] to exit edit mode.
   (Try 'emergency' if 'single' does not work.)

6. Back at the GRUB screen, type 'b' to boot into single user mode.

7. To copy the primary (hdc) disk to the back-up (hda), at the shell
   prompt type:

   # cd /dev
   # dd if=hdc of=hda bs=16k (if=hdc of=hdd for SATA drives)
   # sync;sync;halt

   Notes:

   (1) Be very careful with the dd command. If you exchange "hdc"
       and "hda", you will overwrite the primary system disk.
   (2) The dd command will take hours to complete depending
       on the size and speed of your disks (about a minute per GB).
   (3) "hda" is Primary Drive 0 (master) hard drive.
       "hdc" is Secondary Drive 0 (master) hard drive.
   (4) If you get an error message from the 'halt' command,
       try 'exit'.

8. Remove the power after the "System halted" message appears.

9.  (Optional) It is recommended that you verify that the back-up disk
    boots correctly.  You will need to remove the cover and disconnect
    power to the primary disk in order to test the copy.

    (a) Move the ATA connector from the primary disk drive to the back-up disk.
    (b) Restore power and boot with the back-up disk.
    (c) Login as oper and check that Mark5A runs OK.
    (d) It is also a good idea to verify that there is some new
        information on the back-up disk, perhaps a script or data file
        that would not have been present on the back-up disk before the
        most recent copy was made.
    (e) Shutdown the back-up disk in an orderly fashion, as root:
        "halt" or "shutdown -h now".
    (f) Turn off the power switch after the "System halted" message appears.

10. Remove the back-up disk and store it in safe place.

11. Re-connect the primary disk, restore the power, and reboot.