[ale] how do I properly move my home folder from ubuntu to mint

[Boris Borisov]

Maybe the Mint live CD was working with non root user. So there were
problems with copying files. When I do such move ( installing new distro) I
clean all cache/tmp files and do tar backup to entire /home then move tar
file to ntfs partition.

On Sunday, May 26, 2013, Ron Frazier (ALiE) <
atllinuxenthinfo at techstarship.com> wrote
> Hi all,
>
> I just had a frustrating experience and want to learn how to avoid it
next time.
>
> Previously, I had set up all my machines to dual boot with ubuntu and
windows.  I've now decided to move to Mint since I'm disenchanted with
ubuntu.  Yes, I know they share the same core.
>
> The hdd in question had an ext4 partition which was ubuntu and an ntfs
partition which I use for data.  I booted a mint live cd, mounted the
ubuntu file system by clicking it within the file browser, and copied my
ron folder to the ntfs partition.  It complained about some files being
inaccessible, but still copied about 43 MB of data, which looked like the
right number.
>
> I then proceeded to install mint in the ext4 partition.  When I started
the installer, I selected the option to erase ubuntu and install mint.  I
eventually got mint booting and working the way I wanted.  Then, I went
back into the file browser and told it to copy the files back from the ntfs
partition to the new mint home directory and merge any duplicate folders.
 I made the mistake of using a move command rather than a copy command.  At
some point, it generated another error saying it couldn't copy some files.
 I cannot remember the exact message.  I clicked skip all.  The net result
is that about 43 MB of data was copied to my new home folder and about 387
MB of data wasn't copied.  Unfortunately, the files were removed from the
ntfs folder even though they were skipped, which I think is a design flaw.
>
> The net result is that I lost about 9/10 of what was in my original
ubuntu home folder unless I can find a backup somewhere.  I don't think
there was anything too critical, but who knows.
>
> So, can anyone please tell me the proper procedure to move the contents
of my home folder from a ubuntu install to a mint install so this doesn't
happen next time I install mint on another computer?
>
> Any help is appreciated and thanks in advance.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Ron
>
> --
>
> (PS - If you email me and don't get a quick response, you might want to
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quickly.)
>
> Ron Frazier
> 770-205-9422 (O)   Leave a message.
> linuxdude AT techstarship.com
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