Hey everyone, soon I will be moving to a new pc and Im wondering if there is a way to create a snapshot of your system aka all home directory, settings, extensions, gdm settings, wine data practically everything. I never had to go through such process. Can anyone help me? Can use a flash drive for this process?
Some details are needed. Are you talking about an existing install of Zorin OS? If so, you can simply use a live USB of Zorin OS and go to the "Disks" application. Use an external hard drive to make a full backup image of your existing OS install. When you are ready, simply go back to the live environment on your new PC and restore the image using the "Disks" utility again. If you need more help, come back here and ask for it. Feel free. One last thing - you need to make sure the external hard drive is the same size (or greater) than the hard drive you're looking to make an image of. (If this is not what you have in mind, please say so.) Thanks; good luck.
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yes im talking about my already existing zorin 17.3 os on my old pc
@Omnimaxus has provided you with the best way forward. Your alternative is to use Rescuezilla to image to an external drive and then restore to the new PC. The key factors are that the drives should be of the same size. If the new PC has an even bigger drive you may have to manually stretch partitions afterwards. I cloned a failing 1 Tb HDD to a new 1 Tb SSD for youngest's machine (Windows 11).
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I got a question, If I use timeshift and create a snapshot on an external flashdrive and on my fresh install on my new pc I revert from that, Will I have to install new drivers by command? What are the steps afterwards?
Got it. In that case, what I suggested will work.
I suggest you not do a new install, then restore a Timeshift snapshot from the old install to the new one. You're asking for trouble. I mean, we're talking about new hardware here. Yes, you'd need to install new drivers (depending on what the hardware is and if the Linux kernel doesn't have the drivers for it). Is there some reason why you are hesitant to simply clone your existing OS and restore it on new hardware? And as a "FYI," Timeshift (by default) does NOT back up your HOME folder/directory. The HOME folder contains all your personal settings and files. If you do a Timeshift snapshot without backing up your HOME folder/directory, it could (and will likely) be problematic. The best course of action for you to do here in your specific use case is to do a full hard drive backup using the "Disks" utility using the instructions provided. It will be the easiest and safest route. Good luck.
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I like using situations like this to do some housekeeping and make backups of important files, decide which apps I want to install on the new system, etc.
So, while it's really comfortably to just "copy + paste" your current installation on the new system, this is the perfect excuse to make sure that everything works fine and that you understand what's going on with your system.
Otherwise, I agree with the advice given here.
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Just beware that the new PC will have different hardware and therefore need different drivers. I am thinking particularly of Nvidia graphics.
Just dropping an image of your existing ZorinOS on a new machine, may still involve adjustments to suit that machine.
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The original poster didn't give any information about their new hardware.
My new hardware is an intel i5-1235U with intel iRIS Xe graphics
The Linux kernel supports your CPU and graphics chipset.
What about your motherboard? Sounds like you're using a laptop.
What is your laptop brand and model? That'll help us guide you.
Its an HP 15s laptop
When I booted from USB it asked me for bitlocker password , i entered it and it let me boot from usb, but now when I do restore from image, I get A lock icon saying 512GB Bitlocker in my ssd partions, however zorin didn't complain in the restore process
Hey guys, Sorry for not being clear about the bit locker, I formatted my ssd and now the bit locker seems to be gone
I was able to successfully install zorin os. As for the backup, I will try again tomorrow
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I deleted my earlier response about Bitlocker. I gave a response in good faith, but after you followed up and said Zorin was now installed, I re-read what you said and realized it wasn't 100% clear, and decided to delete my reply. I did not want what I'd said to mislead other people. In any case, glad to know Zorin is installed. Enjoy.
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After reverting from backup I got
Boot device not found
Please install an oparating system on your disk
Go into your BIOS and reset all your options. Save and exit. Reboot. That should do the trick. That's what has worked for me in the past. Good luck.
If using Timeshift, not DejaDup, then system files will be replaced including those in Root - /boot
I do not recommend ever restoring from TimeShift after installing with new hardware.