[syslinux] Multiboot flash from 2 iso's

[Emilio Lazo Zaia]

Hello

I'll write a HOWTO about this topic.

My method is: GPT disklabel, extlinux/syslinux on first partition, make 
it bootable and make a nice menu to chainload all distros you want in 
your stick. Later you need to make hybrid all your iso files (with 
isohybrid.pl) and assign one partition in your GPT schema for each iso 
file (with the corresponding size depending on the .iso you will dump), 
and dump each iso onto these newly created partitions. That's it!

As you have all your images dumped like original iso files, you will not 
lose the original menu and splash screen for each distro!

Also because all filesystems are iso9660, each distro will mount its 
partition read-only, so all these distros inside your pendrive will 
never be modified with its use.

You may need to modify something, i.e. change isolinux-debug.bin to 
isolinux.bin if the distro comes with the "debug" version of isolinux 
(this debug version doesn't supports hybrid booting). Also sometimes you 
may need to modify the initrd file, for example in the case of two 
Ubuntu-based distros because all them will search for the same /casper 
folder (or /live or whatever) and the first occurrence of this directory 
will match for all Ubuntu-based distros on your stick. The solution is 
make a symlink:

/live -> /live-gparted

...and modify initrd's init script to search for /live-gparted. As far 
as I can remember:

LIVE_MEDIA_PATH=live-gpartrd

in scripts/live inside the initrd image.

I did select GPT disklabel because its advantages over MBR. I did test 
it with 12 distros on an 8GB stick.

On 11/27/2011 12:02 PM, Alexander Pletnev wrote:
> Hello,
>
> Im trying to learn syslinux and want to create a multiboot flashdrive, which will have more than one liveCD available for booting.
>
> I've installed a simple live cd (secure linux live cd disk#1) to my Fat32 partition. It boots well. Now i want to add another live CD (geexbox disk#2) to boot from the same Fat32 partition.
>
> I need to copy some files from live cd (geexbox) and add them to my current live cd installation on Fat32 partition.
>
> This is a part of default config from disk#2 wich is used for default burning.
>
> label ubnentry0
> menu label Start GeeXboX ...
> kernel /vmlinuz
> append initrd=/initrd vga=789 persistent quiet splash loglevel=3
>
> I tried to copy vmlinux and initrd files to a sub folder on disk#1 add config options to disk#1 syslinux.cfg with subfolders in path's to kernel and initrd script. But it won't work. Error was (can't find a correct root filesystem) . On disk#2 there is a file with name "rootfs" and size 64Mb, i think it's what i need. But i don't know how to add an option to syslinux config, about rootfs in a file.
>
> Can anybody understand and maybe help me?
>
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