partitions created/used during ubuntu install

[bruce]

Hi Robert.

Thanks for the reply.


On Wed, Jul 16, 2025, 10:00 PM Robert Heller <heller at deepsoft.com> wrote:

> At Wed, 16 Jul 2025 19:37:42 -0400 "Ubuntu user technical support,? not
> for general discussions" <ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com> wrote:
>
> >
> > Hi.
> >
> > In researching ubuntu install docs, some have said/implied that the
> > initial partitions for install are:
> >  /
> >  /swap
> >  /boot
> >
> > with optional being
> >  /home
> >
> > Am I correct in thinking that the OS is basically using the top
> > partitions, and a reinstall/upgrade would impact these dirs.
> >
> > whereas the "/home" wouldn't be touched?
>
> Yes.
>
> >
> > I'm asking, as what happens to the /var, /etc.
> >
> > IE, if once creates a webapp and uses /var/www/html/foo, should the
> > /var be in it's own partition?
>
> *IF* your intention is to create a web server, then creating a *separate*
> partition for /var/www makes sense.  It might also make sense to put
> /var/lib/mysql on its own partition. Note: '/var' itself should not be on
> a
> separate partition.
>
> That is what I have done on my system (it is not a public web server, but
> I do
> use it as a test system for web sites.  I also have a Subvirsion / DAV
> server,
> with the Subversion data on its own LVM volume.
>
> I also have things like a separate partition for my backup staging area
> for my
> cloud (Amazon S3) backups.  I am using LVM for these various partitions,
> since
> that allows be to adjust the sizes "on the fly" (sort of, or at least
> without
> having to shutdown and re-partition the disk and move partitions around).
>

    ok.  so let's say I create a test web env
     I have the /var/www and I create a partition for it, along with the
fstab file data, what does it really buy me?

     I've had servers, and systems over the years but usually others had
dealt with the admin/setup craft.

     So, I'm restarting the gray cells.

      As far as I can tell, one could do the basic partitions I mentioned
earlier, which would have "/".  This would more or less contain the entire
drive.  And if an OS update occurs, the OS update process would supposedly
not impact the
  /var/www
  /var/lib/mysql
   etc
  unless the OS needed to make changes to the dirs/files.

  wouldn't an os update have the same impact on the dirs/files even if the
above were partitions?

In researching, the "why you use partitions" for areas/dirs outside of the
OS related dirs hadn't sunk in.  I'm missing something.

  thanks

>
> > thanks
> >
>
> --
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> Deepwoods Software        -- Custom Software Services
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>
>
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