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== Rescuing a system with a damaged /var filesystem_ == Rescuing a system with a damaged /var filesystem ==

Rescuing a system with a damaged /var filesystem

Because the /var directory contains regularly updated data, it is more susceptible of corruption than filesystems containing fixed data, such as /usr. It is recommended that /var is placed into its own filesystem, to minimise damage in the event of a filesystem problem. If disaster happens, it may be necessary to rebuild the /var directory to rescue your Debian system.

Use a skeleton from a minimum working system

Obtain the skeleton content of the /var directory from a minimum working Debian system based on the same or older Debian version. Now run [dselect], and this will hopefully provide a working system.

This should provide a working system.

Obtaining a list of already installed packages

Following restore of the Debian system, the ["Package Database"] may not have the correct information about which packages are already installed. However, because each currently installed package has documentation installed in /usr/share/doc, it is possible to use this list to populate the list of packages to be installed by the package mananger:

  • ls -1 /usr/share/doc | \ grep -v '^texmf$' | \ # Ignore the texmf document tree grep -v '^debian$' | \ # Ignore debian utilities and keyrings awk '{print $1 " install"}' | \ dpkg --set-selections

The [dselect] tool can now be used to install the selected packages.