Raspberry Pi 2 on USB Stick

TommyKnocker

Pi Noob here but familiar with Linux/Unix.

I know it is possible to have the Pi boot from SD card and have the /storage directory mounted on a USB stick.

I have a Pi 2 with Openelec with a good range of addons installed, but when I go through the directories in the /storage directory they are all empty, apart from the "logfiles" directory, which has a .zip file inside. I expected to see the addons I installed somewhere in this directory. So I am wondering what the advantage of moving the storage directory out to a USB drive is? or am I missing something?

Also if I list the /storage directory I see 11 sub-directories. Do I copy these to a USB stick which has been formatted as ext4 and rename the existing storage directory before I edit /flash/cmdline.txt file?

Usually I would edit the /etc/fstab or /etc/vfstab file, but this does not seem to be the done thing on the Pi as the /etc/fstab file is empty.

Any pointers would be much appreciated.

TIA

28064212

Your Kodi directory is

/storage/.kodi

The '.' makes it a hidden directory, which is why you couldn't find it. Try "ls -a"

Why do you want to move it to USB anyway? There are advantages, but unless you have a specific reason, there's not much point

TommyKnocker

28064212 wrote: »

Your Kodi directory is

/storage/.kodi

The '.' makes it a hidden directory, which is why you couldn't find it. Try "ls -a"

Why do you want to move it to USB anyway? There are advantages, but unless you have a specific reason, there's not much point

Thanks for the response, never thought to check for hidden files

Reason for moving to USB is that I have read that SD cards can get corrupted and it is supposed to speed things up as the read/write speeds are better on USB sticks than on SD cards. Though I think that the Pi 2 is really responsive as it is, but a friend who has a Pi 1 said they noticed a good improvement when the split the storage directory to a USB stick, so I thought I would give it a try.

If any body can answer as to whether I should copy the directories in the /storage directory on the SD card to the USB stick before changing the /flash/cmdline.txt file it would be much appreciated.

TIA

Johnboy1951

IIRC, the corruption issue was resolved ... but you should check it out as I am not certain.

If the SD card is operating quickly .... some do and some do not ..... there is no real need to use a USB stick for Storage.

If your SD card is slow then using the USB stick will improve matters.

TommyKnocker

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

IIRC, the corruption issue was resolved ... but you should check it out as I am not certain.

If the SD card is operating quickly .... some do and some do not ..... there is no real need to use a USB stick for Storage.

If your SD card is slow then using the USB stick will improve matters.

Cheers for the response. I have moved the /storage directory over to the USB. It was not really needed as it was running great from the SD Card, but it was as much to see how it was done as anything else.

Access

I would have to agree with the others here...

Using a usb stick on pi2 is no real advantage at all. On the pi1 b it is a huge advantage, but not on the pi2.

When i got my pi2 all i had to hand was a class 4 micro sd and i used that and it was so slow. I was about to add a usb stick for the media data, but instead after a lot of advice on here and kodi forums, i bought a sandisk class 10 on amazon... The same type the pi store recommends and sells and did a fresh install on that.

Just by doing that small change, the pi2 is super quick between menusand give my full size htpc a major run for its money!

illdoit2morrow

Just jumping on the back of the OP's original question and your responses.

I do not know how the RPI's work inside, I just follow YouTube videos on how to do an install etc. I thought the point of a USB install was to reduce the reading and writing on the SD card and that it would help facilitate buffering when streaming.

I guess my questions are;

Is the wear and tear on SD cards not as much of an issue on the RPI 2 or would a USB install help with this?

Is a USB install better for streaming (even on a RPI2)? In the past I have got an advancedsettings.xml file which has allowed for greater caching while streaming, I thought the caching was to the USB stick.

Access

illdoit2morrow wrote: »

Just jumping on the back of the OP's original question and your responses.

I do not know how the RPI's work inside, I just follow YouTube videos on how to do an install etc. I thought the point of a USB install was to reduce the reading and writing on the SD card and that it would help facilitate buffering when streaming.

I guess my questions are;

Is the wear and tear on SD cards not as much of an issue on the RPI 2 or would a USB install help with this?

Is a USB install better for streaming (even on a RPI2)? In the past I have got an advancedsettings.xml file which has allowed for greater caching while streaming, I thought the caching was to the USB stick.

With Rpi 2 now there is no point/speed advantage at all in having any setup on USB stick.

Looking at the Rpi official forums will state the same info.

A good class 10 Sandisk micro sd card like the ones the pi hut supply with offical noobs software and similar on amazon will be the best way to go.

captain_boycott

Access wrote: »

With Rpi 2 now there is no point/speed advantage at all in having any setup on USB stick.

Looking at the Rpi official forums will state the same info.

A good class 10 Sandisk micro sd card like the ones the pi hut supply with offical noobs software and similar on amazon will be the best way to go.

Assuming you have a class 10 sd card then yes you are correct. But I have found that some old sd cards I have lying around are not up to the task and frequently crash. In such a scenario, a USB disk would definitely work better.

Access

captain_boycott wrote: »

Assuming you have a class 10 sd card then yes you are correct. But I have found that some old sd cards I have lying around are not up to the task and frequently crash. In such a scenario, a USB disk would definitely work better.

Yes, some old slow micro sd cards will not work correctly and will not allow the Rpi 2 to reach its full processing potential, but then the question has to be asked...

Why use old slow micro sd cards - you wouldn't put a 1 litre nissan micra engine in a Porsche.

For about 7 euro you can buy a SanDisk Ultra microSDHC UHS-I Class 10 Memory Card as recommended by the Pi forums online.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-SDSDQUAN-008G-G4A-Android-microSDHC-Adapter/dp/B00M55C0VU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431033876&sr=8-1&keywords=SanDisk+SDSDQUAN-008G-G4A

I would rather spend the 7 euro and have the entire OS on one Micro SD card with piece of mind, instead of farting around trying to separate the Metadata on a separate USB key.

Separating the data to a usb key was necessary for a bit of a speed increase for the Rpi 1 models but the general consensus is not any more with the Rpi 2.

captain_boycott

Access wrote: »

Yes, some old slow micro sd cards will not work correctly and will not allow the Rpi 2 to reach its full processing potential, but then the question has to be asked...

Why use old slow micro sd cards - you wouldn't put a 1 litre nissan micra engine in a Porsche.

For about 7 euro you can buy a SanDisk Ultra microSDHC UHS-I Class 10 Memory Card as recommended by the Pi forums online.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-SDSDQUAN-008G-G4A-Android-microSDHC-Adapter/dp/B00M55C0VU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431033876&sr=8-1&keywords=SanDisk+SDSDQUAN-008G-G4A

I would rather spend the 7 euro and have the entire OS on one Micro SD card with piece of mind, instead of farting around trying to separate the Metadata on a separate USB key.

Separating the data to a usb key was necessary for a bit of a speed increase for the Rpi 1 models but the general consensus is not any more with the Rpi 2.

Thanks for the link.

But for me, Rpi is all about "farting around" ... if you have stuff lying around, try and use it! Buying consensus stuff is easy if you have the dosh, but trying to use what you have handy is how you learn.

Access

captain_boycott wrote: »

Thanks for the link.

But for me, Rpi is all about "farting around" ... if you have stuff lying around, try and use it! Buying consensus stuff is easy if you have the dosh, but trying to use what you have handy is how you learn.

If i knew then what i know now about setting up a Pi and especially a Pi 2, i would pay the 7 euro rather then have a headache trying to do it the other way with a USB key.

The difference between a UHS-I Class 10 Memory Card vs a class 4/6/8 and also using a usb key on a Rpi 2 is night and day from my previous experience.

Faster menus and menu changes/faster scan times/faster load times.

I did a xbmc setup for my parents with a Rpi 1 using a class 4 and usb key a while back. Whenever i am over at their place i feel like smacking the pi with a hammer its so slow and this is while using a non resource hogging skin like quartz. Its so slow its unreal.

fish fingers

Access wrote: »

If i knew then what i know now about setting up a Pi and especially a Pi 2, i would pay the 7 euro rather then have a headache trying to do it the other way with a USB key.

The difference between a UHS-I Class 10 Memory Card vs a class 4/6/8 and also using a usb key on a Rpi 2 is night and day from my previous experience.

Faster menus and menu changes/faster scan times/faster load times.

I did a xbmc setup for my parents with a Rpi 1 using a class 4 and usb key a while back. Whenever i am over at their place i feel like smacking the pi with a hammer its so slow and this is while using a non resource hogging skin like quartz. Its so slow its unreal.

Ive an rpi in the bedroom, i just send stuff from my phone to it. The menus are too slow for me nowadays.

tommycahir

Access wrote: »

Yes, some old slow micro sd cards will not work correctly and will not allow the Rpi 2 to reach its full processing potential, but then the question has to be asked...

Why use old slow micro sd cards - you wouldn't put a 1 litre nissan micra engine in a Porsche.

For about 7 euro you can buy a SanDisk Ultra microSDHC UHS-I Class 10 Memory Card as recommended by the Pi forums online.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-SDSDQUAN-008G-G4A-Android-microSDHC-Adapter/dp/B00M55C0VU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431033876&sr=8-1&keywords=SanDisk+SDSDQUAN-008G-G4A

I would rather spend the 7 euro and have the entire OS on one Micro SD card with piece of mind, instead of farting around trying to separate the Metadata on a separate USB key.

Separating the data to a usb key was necessary for a bit of a speed increase for the Rpi 1 models but the general consensus is not any more with the Rpi 2.

How would that Sandisk card compare to the following samsung one which is a "Samsung Memory 16GB Pro MicroSDHC UHS-I Grade 1 Class 10 Memory Card with SD Adapter"?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00J29EM4K/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=15S4ZPGKA13H8&coliid=I2KMXG4T7M2AC

TommyKnocker

OP Here. I moved my data onto a USB stick more so because I wanted to see how it was done. I had purchased micro SD cards in the PC shop in the Jervis center and there was no issue at all with the speed, the Pi 2 with Kodi/XBMC was really fast compared to a friends Pi1.

Also I had heard that with the Pi1 overclocking it often corrupted the SD card, not sure if this is still an issue with the Pi2, but I would imagine possibly yes, as it seemed to be a SD card issue. So that was another reason I was interested in splitting the data onto a USB stick. So I didn't see any speed gains, but it was good to see how it is done.