4 ms·

(slightly) slower boot time. Risk of data loss if your USB fails, more complicated backup procedures.

by lugged 5y ago

SkyMarshal 5y ago
Yes, you should use a higher quality USB drive for this, or possibly an SLC NAND one with high write endurance. And make a backup copy or two and store them in faraday bags in a safe.
- deckard1 5y ago
  you're only going to write to the USB drive when you upgrade your kernel. all these worries are completely overblown. I've been using USB boot method for close to 10 years now. It's just another folder/mountpoint to backup along with your normal backup.
  - SkyMarshal 5y ago
    Anecdote != data. And unlike the other folders, if you lose this one you lose the whole system. And it's not just writes we care about, but bit flips for any reason.
    - deckard1 5y ago
      > Anecdote != data Thank you Captain Obvious. > And unlike the other folders, if you lose this one you lose the whole system Yeah, that's how encryption works. > but bit flips for any reason Way to move the goalposts. Your typical laptop/desktop does not have ECC RAM. You're also not using mirrored ZFS anyway. So not only will you never detect corruption, but you have no way to correct it either. Which, again, is totally overkill for the average user.
      - SkyMarshal 5y ago
        > Way to move the goalposts. If your entire system is vulnerable to a single bit flip and you don't care then, you may be on the wrong website. > Your typical laptop/desktop does not have ECC RAM. You're also not using mirrored ZFS anyway. So not only will you never detect corruption, but you have no way to correct it either. This is HN, not your typical computer user's website. My personal desktop workstations use both registered ECC and mirrored ZFS (along with immutable reproducible builds, among other things to enhance system integrity and reliability). And I have no compunction whatsoever about recommending on this site that people use cheap and easy methods to safeguard against LUKS header corruption, like backup USBs and faraday bags. That's an extremely cheap form of risk management that could prevent loss of your entire hard drive due to a single bit flip. If I were recommending something prohibitively expensive relative to the potential losses, your objections might be reasonable, but I'm not. > Which, again, is totally overkill for the average user. Again, this isn't a site for the average user, expect folks here to practice and recommend higher standards for computer system management.
pengaru 5y ago
There's nothing hard to replace in a kernel or initrd, it's just a matter of going back to the trusted source you originally used.

(slightly) slower boot time. Risk of data loss if your USB fails, more complicated backup procedures.

by lugged 5y ago

(slightly) slower boot time. Risk of data loss if your USB fails, more complicated backup procedures.

Yes, you should use a higher quality USB drive for this, or possibly an SLC NAND one with high write endurance. And make a backup copy or two and store them in faraday bags in a safe.

deckard1 5y ago
you're only going to write to the USB drive when you upgrade your kernel. all these worries are completely overblown. I've been using USB boot method for close to 10 years now. It's just another folder/mountpoint to backup along with your normal backup.
- SkyMarshal 5y ago
  Anecdote != data. And unlike the other folders, if you lose this one you lose the whole system. And it's not just writes we care about, but bit flips for any reason.
  - deckard1 5y ago
    > Anecdote != data Thank you Captain Obvious. > And unlike the other folders, if you lose this one you lose the whole system Yeah, that's how encryption works. > but bit flips for any reason Way to move the goalposts. Your typical laptop/desktop does not have ECC RAM. You're also not using mirrored ZFS anyway. So not only will you never detect corruption, but you have no way to correct it either. Which, again, is totally overkill for the average user.
    - SkyMarshal 5y ago
      > Way to move the goalposts. If your entire system is vulnerable to a single bit flip and you don't care then, you may be on the wrong website. > Your typical laptop/desktop does not have ECC RAM. You're also not using mirrored ZFS anyway. So not only will you never detect corruption, but you have no way to correct it either. This is HN, not your typical computer user's website. My personal desktop workstations use both registered ECC and mirrored ZFS (along with immutable reproducible builds, among other things to enhance system integrity and reliability). And I have no compunction whatsoever about recommending on this site that people use cheap and easy methods to safeguard against LUKS header corruption, like backup USBs and faraday bags. That's an extremely cheap form of risk management that could prevent loss of your entire hard drive due to a single bit flip. If I were recommending something prohibitively expensive relative to the potential losses, your objections might be reasonable, but I'm not. > Which, again, is totally overkill for the average user. Again, this isn't a site for the average user, expect folks here to practice and recommend higher standards for computer system management.

pengaru 5y ago

There's nothing hard to replace in a kernel or initrd, it's just a matter of going back to the trusted source you originally used.