Is it possible to boot a Linux installation on an SDHC card?

Posted by NoCatharsis on Super User See other posts from Super User or by NoCatharsis
Published on 2010-05-21T23:57:04Z Indexed on 2010/05/22 0:02 UTC
Read the original article Hit count: 259

Filed under:

sdhc

|

usb-flash-drive

|

linux

|

ubuntu

|

boot

I tried to find a previous question on SU pertaining to this, but I'm surprised this has not been asked before.

I have seen some deals lately for really cheap SDHC Class 4 cards, and would like to know whether these are a feasible alternative to USB flash drives for running an OS.

© Super User or respective owner

Related posts about sdhc

How to use the 4-in-1 card reader on my Lenovo x100e?

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
My Lenovo x100e laptop has a "4-in-1" card reader that's supposed to handle SD/SDHC, MMC, Memory Stick and MS Pro, but I can't insert my SDHC card (a "SANDISK SECURE DIGITAL EXTREME SDHC 16GB 30MB/S"). It enters a bit and looks lite it will fit, but then it doesn't get any further in (and yes, I've… >>> More
How to rescue from an SD (SDHC) card that I can't reformat (possible hardware failure)

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
I have a transcend 16GB SDHC card and a lot of photos on it that I'd like to recover. When I plug it into the SD card reader, it takes a while for the Mac to even recognize that there's a disk present, and it shows up as 1.07GB with geometry 520/64/63 (according to fdisk). First I tried file recovery: PhotoRec:… >>> More
Practically expected transfer rates for sdhc class 6

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
I went and bought an expensive SanDisk Extreme III SDHC 8GB class 6 chip. However when I dump data from the card to the machine via USB 2.0 cable, its only getting 5.0 MB/second maximum according to Windows 7 disk explorer. It still can take up to 20 minutes to dump the card when its near full. This… >>> More
Does SDHC have any write error recovery ?

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
What happen if SDHC card get write error (damaged cell / bad sector) ? Whole card is unusable (to trash, all data written to that sector now and in future will be lost) ? or rewrite sector (flash memory get corrupted when writing so maybe have any function to check if sector was written successfully)… >>> More
Does SDHC have any write (ECC) error recovery ?

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
What happen if SDHC card get write error (damaged cell / bad sector) ? Whole card is unusable (to trash, all data written to that sector now and in future will be lost) ? or rewrite sector (flash memory get corrupted when writing so maybe have any function to check if sector was written successfully)… >>> More

Related posts about usb-flash-drive

16GB Usb Flash Drive shows as 16MB and is unusable

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
i have a sandisk Cruzer 16GB usb flash drive but it started to show up as 16MB. and i cant use it , it tells me that i need to format the drive or "Please insert a disk into drive X" does anyone have any recommadation for any software so i can check the flash drive? Edit: i cant format it since… >>> More
How to boot Linux from a 16gb USB flash drive

as seen on Server Fault - Search for 'Server Fault'
I'm trying to install Linux on a single partition of a USB flash drive that's larger than 4gb. The first place I went to is http://pendrivelinux.com. I can follow these instructions for installing Xubuntu 9.04 perfectly, which unfortunately break down when I try to scale it up beyond 4gb. There… >>> More
Create a Bootable Ubuntu 9.10 USB Flash Drive

as seen on How to geek - Search for 'How to geek'
The Ubuntu Live CD isn’t just useful for trying out Ubuntu before you install it, you can also use it to maintain and repair your Windows PC. Even if you have no intention of installing Linux, every Windows user should have a bootable Ubuntu USB drive on hand in case something goes wrong in Windows… >>> More
Create a Persistent Bootable Ubuntu USB Flash Drive

as seen on How to geek - Search for 'How to geek'
Don’t feel like reinstalling an antivirus program every time you boot up your Ubuntu flash drive? We’ll show you how to create a bootable Ubuntu flash drive that will remember your settings, installed programs, and more! Previously, we showed you how to create a bootable Ubuntu flash drive that would… >>> More
How does a hard drive compare to Flash memory working as a hard drive in terms of speed?

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
Some experiment I did with hard drive read/write speed was 10MB/s write and 40MB/s read, and with a USB Flash drive, it can be 5MB/s write and 10MB/s read. Also, if I put a virtual hard drive .vhd file in a hard drive or in a USB Flash drive and try a Virtual Machine using it, the one using the hard… >>> More