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Since I'm new to Linux and Ubuntu and have messed up my computer more often than a sane man would. So I would like to try something:

To run a computer with 2 120GB disks and on each disk have an encrypted version of Ubuntu 20.04.02. So if I mess up 1 there's the other!

I installed Ubuntu on each disk separately ( taking 1 out after the other). So now I have 2 vgubuntu groups with same name. I'm not able to mount the other one. This is of course a fabulous way of protecting me from myself. The drawback is that Ubuntu makes my life exciting by surprising me with the Ubuntu on sda or sdb.

Does anyone know a way to mount both? (I've tried to find it on answertopia (The Best!) but couldn't find what I was looking for.

And point to sda or sdb as the preferred startup disk?

If I can manage that then I can copy / backup files ready to go if I screw things up...

vinlin
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  • You will get totally confused with two installations and there is no guarantee messing up one will not impact the ability to boot the other. I suggest you look at an application called TimeShift. This will take snapshots of your system and enable you to roll back to a previous working state. In my experience it works perfectly. – PonJar Apr 17 '21 at 08:11
  • Thank you! Timeshift seams to be a better idea then my plan. The configurion will change. A new much bigger SSD will replace the system disk. The other I will be system less and used as a backup disk for files under the system disk. Formatted via the system disk, as there is no data on either disks now is the time to get it right. – vinlin Apr 18 '21 at 14:33
  • I don't see why you couldn't mount both. I do have too Ubuntu root partitions on different disks and nothing prevents mounting them together. Do you have any error message from mount? Can we see the output of lsblk -f ? – Pierre ALBARÈDE Apr 23 '21 at 22:01

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There is nothing wrong in having two devices with Ubuntu. However, encryption may not be a good idea, unless you have particular reasons. Same for secure boot. On each device you can have an EFI|UEFI system partition. Which one boots is decided at firmware level on your computer.

For example, on Mac, one presses the alt key at startup and is presented with a menu including both EFI system partitions.

TimeShift is just like Mac OS TimeMachine. It will help a lot I you lost files by mistake but if your only Ubuntu system breaks down, TimeShift may or may not save you, depending on small details that are hard to predict. Two working Ubuntu systems offer better protection.

Pierre ALBARÈDE
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  • Thank you, encryption is important to me. At boot up I can select ubuntu or ubuntu in the 2 disk 2 system setup. It's a gamble which one starts. So Now there is 1 encrypted disk and 1 system and another computer... I'm not a commandline guru and it's too complicated for me. – vinlin Apr 20 '21 at 09:42
  • It is annoying if you can't choose which one boots. This depends on your computer firmware, not Ubuntu, you should check this elsewhere. You can modify GRUB configuration so that one system boots differently from the other, for example, with or without splash screen, so you know immediately which one is booting. Of course, you can also disconnect one device to make sure that only the other boots. – Pierre ALBARÈDE Apr 20 '21 at 09:49
  • Having 2 systems also means maintaining two systems, unless one is a clone of the other. If you are interested in cloning, see https://askubuntu.com/questions/1267225/how-to-create-a-bootable-clone-of-boot-disk/1333501. In my experience, sda is always internal and sdb external, independently of which one is booted. – Pierre ALBARÈDE Apr 23 '21 at 21:55