[CentOS] suggestions for installing CentOS 5 via USB?

[John Doe]

From: Rogelio <scubacuda at gmail.com>
> I'm having problems installing CentOS via a USB drive.

Here's how I did my USB key (minus the kickstart part) but you need a linux (in a VM or from the live CD)...
And you will have to change devices names!

1. Create a small VFAT partition, then a big linux one:

fdisk /dev/sdg

     Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
  /dev/sdg1   *           1           3       23126    6  FAT16
  /dev/sdg2               4        1023     7873380   83  Linux

mkfs.vfat -n BOOT /dev/sdg1
mkfs.ext2 -m 0 -b 4096 -L DATA /dev/sdg2

Unplug/plug => /media/BOOT and /media/DATA

2. Install syslinux on the VFAT partition:

syslinux -s /dev/sdg1
cd /media/BOOT
cp -rv /mnt/cdrom/isolinux syslinux
mv syslinux/isolinux.cfg syslinux/syslinux.cfg
rm -f syslinux/isolinux.bin
vi syslinux/syslinux.cfg

  append method=hd:sda2:/centos

3. Copy the CentOS ISOs to the linux partition (I had to use the CD ISOs because the DVD ones would get corrupt on my USB key for some reason):

mkdir /media/DATA/centos
for i in 1 2 3 4 5 6; do cp -v CentOS-5.3-i386-bin-${i}of6.iso /media/DATA/centos/; sync; done
for i in 1 2 3 4 5 6; do diff /IOL/CENTOS_repo/CentOS-5.3-i386-bin-${i}of6.iso /media/DATA/centos/CentOS-5.3-i386-bin-${i}of6.iso; done

4. Optionaly (?), to be sure that it boots:

dd if=/usr/share/syslinux/mbr.bin of=/dev/sdg

JD