3 ms·

You can convert an ext4 filesystem to btrfs using btrfs-convert.

by filmor 6y ago

symlinkk 6y ago
Is that stable?
- LanternLight83 6y ago
  Alright, so, disclaimer, I have lost data doing this but it was purely operator error! Closed my SSH session at the worst possible time. One of the podcast hosts at Linux Unplugged made the same mistake. The btrfs-convert tool hypothetically leaves the ext filesystem all but untouched, and COW's the needed filesystem metadata onto the end of it, with data modifications coming thereafter (or intelligently stored within the free space of the ext system). You wait until you feel comfortable with BTRFS, then delete the preserved ext system and run a balance, which rewrites all data to disk in the usual structure. Alternatively, the preserved system can be restored, although I don't actually see instructions for that. https://btrfs.wiki.kernel.org/index.php/Conversion_from_Ext3 https://btrfs.wiki.kernel.org/index.php/Conversion_from_Ext3 I love btrfs and would trust it but am glad to have backups of irreplaceable data.
  - AdmiralAsshat 6y ago
    I suppose I wouldn't need to worry about an SSH disconnect while working on localhost, but I'd still be a little concerned about trying it. I recently had a Pop!_OS/Ubuntu system irreparably damaged during an upgrade because the lock screen come on during the five minutes I had stepped away from monitoring to use the bathroom. The wiki also doesn't mention how well this process plays with LUKS, so, given how sensitive headers and such can be, I'll probably wait to hear from some F33 early-adopters on the conversion tool to see how it turns out. I'm reasonably happy with my ext4 system as it is, and most of my core data is on backup disks anyway, so I'm not sure how much the integrity checking of BTRFS would help. Seems like it would be more critical to have on the backup disks to make sure I'm not propagating the bit-rot.

3 ms·

You can convert an ext4 filesystem to btrfs using btrfs-convert.

by filmor 6y ago

You can convert an ext4 filesystem to btrfs using btrfs-convert.

symlinkk 6y ago
Is that stable?
- LanternLight83 6y ago
  Alright, so, disclaimer, I have lost data doing this but it was purely operator error! Closed my SSH session at the worst possible time. One of the podcast hosts at Linux Unplugged made the same mistake. The btrfs-convert tool hypothetically leaves the ext filesystem all but untouched, and COW's the needed filesystem metadata onto the end of it, with data modifications coming thereafter (or intelligently stored within the free space of the ext system). You wait until you feel comfortable with BTRFS, then delete the preserved ext system and run a balance, which rewrites all data to disk in the usual structure. Alternatively, the preserved system can be restored, although I don't actually see instructions for that. https://btrfs.wiki.kernel.org/index.php/Conversion_from_Ext3 https://btrfs.wiki.kernel.org/index.php/Conversion_from_Ext3 I love btrfs and would trust it but am glad to have backups of irreplaceable data.
  - AdmiralAsshat 6y ago
    I suppose I wouldn't need to worry about an SSH disconnect while working on localhost, but I'd still be a little concerned about trying it. I recently had a Pop!_OS/Ubuntu system irreparably damaged during an upgrade because the lock screen come on during the five minutes I had stepped away from monitoring to use the bathroom. The wiki also doesn't mention how well this process plays with LUKS, so, given how sensitive headers and such can be, I'll probably wait to hear from some F33 early-adopters on the conversion tool to see how it turns out. I'm reasonably happy with my ext4 system as it is, and most of my core data is on backup disks anyway, so I'm not sure how much the integrity checking of BTRFS would help. Seems like it would be more critical to have on the backup disks to make sure I'm not propagating the bit-rot.