[SOLVED] Finding and Using the Gnome Disk Utility

[lhb1142]

I have installed the Gnome Disk Utility onto my PCLOS computer. It is installed, according to Synaptic (and so is libgdu-devel).

But I can't find it, much less use it.

I have tried using the Run Command program (no good), I have tried the Application Finder program (it's not there), and I have tried entering every permutation (small letters, capital letters, dashes, no dashes, abbreviations) of Gnome Disk Utility into the Terminal (even under su) that I can think of, all to no avail.

I really would like to have this program available for use. The other disk programs I have tried (the one in the PCLinuxOS Control Center and Gparted) are inferior (in my opinion) to Gnome Disk Utility. (For example, I want to refomat a hard drive, currently formatted as NTFS, into the EXT4 format with the drive encrypted. If those other programs allow this, it is certainly not as straightforward to do as when using Gnome Disk Utility.)

Can anyone help me locate this program so I can use it? Thank you.

Lawrence

[agmg]

You need to install the "palimpsest" package as well.

It will then appear in your menu (under System) or you can launch it from terminal with the "palimpsest" command.

[muungwana]

there is a program in the repository called "zuluCrypt".

This program will allow you to create encrypted partitions in hard drives as well as in files.

Most tools will give you the ability to create only LUKS volumes.This tool can create and open both LUKS based volumes as well as plain volumes.

Most other tools will not give you the option of where to mount the unlocked volumes,they create create a mount point in "/media" and you have no say in the matter.zuluCrypt gives you an option of where the mount point should be.

disclaimer:
i am the current maintainer of the project.

[lhb1142]

there is a program in the repository called "zuluCrypt".

This program will allow you to create encrypted partitions in hard drives as well as in files.

Most tools will give you the ability to create only LUKS volumes.This tool can create and open both LUKS based volumes as well as plain volumes.

Most other tools will not give you the option of where to mount the unlocked volumes,they create create a mount point in "/media" and you have no say in the matter.zuluCrypt gives you an option of where the mount point should be.

disclaimer:
i am the current maintainer of the project.

Dear muungwana,

I already have that program installed but, as far as I can determine, it does not offer the functionality of re-formatting an external drive to several different file formats of the user's choice as well as encrypting the whole drive, if the user so chooses, as does the Gnome Disk Utility.

At least I was unable to figure out how to do that.

If I am wrong, please correct me and please point me to a "User Manual" which will give me instructions.

Thank you for writing to me.

Lawrence

[lhb1142]

You need to install the "palimpsest" package as well.

It will then appear in your menu (under System) or you can launch it from terminal with the "palimpsest" command.

Dear agmg,

That did it! But I have a (very small) problem. I cannot find the command palimpsest anywhere; it, like the command for Gnome Disk Utility, does not show up in the Application Finder program nor does it appear in the menu anywhere. The only way I can launch the Gnome Disk Utility is to enter palimpsest into the Terminal or entering palimpsest into the Run Program dialog.

That's a rather tricky name for me to remember (though it's certainly not impossible).

Is there a method for manually inserting this program into the System or another section of the menu?

I should mention, just in case it makes a difference, that I am using the PCLinuxOS Phoenix Edition (the Xfce one) and the Thunar File Manager.

In any case, I want to sincerely thank you for telling me about this. I have found this forum to be the very best Linux forum I have yet found. EVERYONE here has been extremely helpful to me.

Thanks again!

Lawrence H. Bulk

[agmg]

In my 32bit test system I use Xfce 4.10 as my current DE.
I installed gnome-disk-utility and palimpsest and I have a new entry under "System" with the name "Disk Utility".
Maybe you missed the name?

The executable should be under /usr/bin with the name "palimpsest"

If it doesn't appear in your menu, you must add it manually. Unfortunately, xfce doesn't have a native menu editor.
In the official Xfce Wiki, you will find more info about how to customize your application menu:

http://wiki.xfce.org/howto/customize-menu

The easiest way (for me at least) would be to create a shortcut in your desktop pointing to /usr/bin/palimpsest
That is, of course, if the program is not already in your menu

[Just17]

I installed this on KDE ......  that palimpsest should be a dependency of gnome-disk-utility it appears.

There was no menu entry so I edited the file

/usr/share/applications/palimpsest.desktop

by adding     X-MandrivaLinux-System;    to the Categories line, so now have a launch icon in the System section of the menu.

I had not used this utility previously, but do like the way the information is presented about the various disks.

Nice one!   

[muungwana]

Dear muungwana,

I already have that program installed but, as far as I can determine, it does not offer the functionality of re-formatting an external drive to several different file formats of the user's choice as well as encrypting the whole drive, if the user so chooses, as does the Gnome Disk Utility.

At least I was unable to figure out how to do that.

If I am wrong, please correct me and please point me to a "User Manual" which will give me instructions.

Thank you for writing to me.

Lawrence

The tool does not create, delete or move around partitions.
The tool also does not create file systems on "naked" partitions.

The tool creates encrypted volumes in already existing partitions and it also give a user a choice of what file system to be used in the encrypted volume. The list of file systems is read from installed file system creation binaries.

If you already have a partition you want to create an encrypted volume and you want to create an encrypted volume in that already existing partition,then it can do so and this is how to do that.

1. start it up
2. click "create" on the menu bar
3. click "encrypted container in a partition"

A dialog box will show with a list of "non system partitions" if you start it up from a normal user account, your external drive should be on the list.

4. double click your external drive and two dialog box boxes will show up, follow their instructions and you will see a dialog box that will give you options for the following things:

1. a password to use to access the volume
2. the type of volume to create, options are "luks" and "plain"
3. file system to create in an encrypted volume, the list of file systems is read from installed file system utilities.
4 random number generator to use, you should go with the default here.

This dialog box has a title "create new volume".

[lhb1142]

I installed this on KDE ......  that palimpsest should be a dependency of gnome-disk-utility it appears.

There was no menu entry so I edited the file

/usr/share/applications/palimpsest.desktop

by adding     X-MandrivaLinux-System;    to the Categories line, so now have a launch icon in the System section of the menu.

I had not used this utility previously, but do like the way the information is presented about the various disks.

Nice one!   

Hello Just17,

Unfortunately your editing solution, which works in KDE, does not work in Xfce. I did find a menu entry for palimpsest in /usr/bin (but not in usr/share) but I can't seem to do anything with it (even running the file system as root). There appears to be nothing to actually edit.

I am using the Thunar file manager but that should make no difference; on my other computer, which runs X-----u and also uses Thunar, the Gnome Disk Utility appears in the menu as Disk Utility. But in PCLOS, neither Gnome Disk Utility (or even gdu) nor palimpsest appears anywhere in the menu (and, believe me, I've checked thoroughly).

In the Application Finder, it (palimpsest) appears only in the Commands History section, not the main portion of the finder. But that's okay, I guess, as I can launch the program from there.

It would be nice, however, to have a 'regular' menu listing (anywhere) for this program, reading either Disk Utility or palimpsest. It would even be helpful if I could create a Launcher in my panel which would run this program. But no luck in doing that either, at least for me.

Oh, well ...

As you have discovered, it is quite a good program and it allows a great deal of customization of external hard drives among its other attributes.

I hope someone around here can figure out how to create a launcher for this program which would appear in the menu on a Phoenix Edition version of PCLOS.

Thanks for writing.

Lawrence

[lhb1142]

In my 32bit test system I use Xfce 4.10 as my current DE.
I installed gnome-disk-utility and palimpsest and I have a new entry under "System" with the name "Disk Utility".
Maybe you missed the name?

The executable should be under /usr/bin with the name "palimpsest"

If it doesn't appear in your menu, you must add it manually. Unfortunately, xfce doesn't have a native menu editor.
In the official Xfce Wiki, you will find more info about how to customize your application menu:

http://wiki.xfce.org/howto/customize-menu

The easiest way (for me at least) would be to create a shortcut in your desktop pointing to /usr/bin/palimpsest
That is, of course, if the program is not already in your menu

Dear agmg,

First I looked into Synaptic to see if I had or could install Xfce 4.10 onto my computer. No luck. The highest number of everything I have installed is 4.9.3. 4.10 does not appear in my Synaptic.

Then I went to the Wiki to which you provided the link. I tell you frankly that I don't know what they're talking about! I couldn't find anything to which they referred (and yes I was showing the hidden files). Plus regarding their other instructions, I found their directions to be way over my head. So, for me, that was out.

So next, as you suggested, I created a shortcut on my desktop to palimpsest. That worked.

And then (don't ask me what I did because (1) I don't know and (2) I don't believe I could repeat it) I created a Launcher in my bottom panel (I have two panels, one at the top and another at the bottom) and I think I linked that to the desktop link of palimpsest. Actually, the first thing I did was to change the icon on the launcher to that of palimpsest and then, somehow, it seemed to know what I wanted and it filled in everything automatically. (I truthfully cannot say if it automatically linked to the desktop shortcut or to the program in usr/bin but it must have, somehow, because afterwards, I deleted the desktop link and the panel launcher still works.)

In any case, I don't care what exactly happened - I now have a launcher in my panel which launches the Gnome Disk Utility! That's all I care about and I thank you very much for your message which got me thinking about what to do. (By the way, I deleted the link on the desktop because I don't need it.)

I still do not have the program in the menu; as I indicated in a previous post here, I have checked thoroughly and it's just not there! Perhaps when PCLOS upgrades to Xfce 4.10 (which, as I'm sure you're aware, is very good) the program will show up. (I understand that an even newer version of Xfce is to be introduced next March. Am I correct?)

Thanks again for your post!

Lawrence H. Bulk

[lhb1142]

A great big thanks and a low bow to everyone who wrote to me regarding this problem. You guys are fantastic! I certainly couldn't have figured out how to access the Gnome Disk Utility on my own - and, really, I tried (I always try whatever I can think of plus I search for solutions before bothering people on this forum). Even 'Googling' the question was of no use.

So I sincerely want to thank the members who helped me. I hope that this thread may help others who may have the same question.

I have said it before but I'll say it again: this forum is the best forum of which I have ever been a member.

Lawrence H. Bulk

[agmg]

In my 32bit test system I use Xfce 4.10 as my current DE.
I installed gnome-disk-utility and palimpsest and I have a new entry under "System" with the name "Disk Utility".
Maybe you missed the name?

The executable should be under /usr/bin with the name "palimpsest"

If it doesn't appear in your menu, you must add it manually. Unfortunately, xfce doesn't have a native menu editor.
In the official Xfce Wiki, you will find more info about how to customize your application menu:

http://wiki.xfce.org/howto/customize-menu

The easiest way (for me at least) would be to create a shortcut in your desktop pointing to /usr/bin/palimpsest
That is, of course, if the program is not already in your menu

Dear agmg,

First I looked into Synaptic to see if I had or could install Xfce 4.10 onto my computer. No luck. The highest number of everything I have installed is 4.9.3. 4.10 does not appear in my Synaptic.

Then I went to the Wiki to which you provided the link. I tell you frankly that I don't know what they're talking about! I couldn't find anything to which they referred (and yes I was showing the hidden files). Plus regarding their other instructions, I found their directions to be way over my head. So, for me, that was out.

So next, as you suggested, I created a shortcut on my desktop to palimpsest. That worked.

And then (don't ask me what I did because (1) I don't know and (2) I don't believe I could repeat it) I created a Launcher in my bottom panel (I have two panels, one at the top and another at the bottom) and I think I linked that to the desktop link of palimpsest. Actually, the first thing I did was to change the icon on the launcher to that of palimpsest and then, somehow, it seemed to know what I wanted and it filled in everything automatically. (I truthfully cannot say if it automatically linked to the desktop shortcut or to the program in usr/bin but it must have, somehow, because afterwards, I deleted the desktop link and the panel launcher still works.)

In any case, I don't care what exactly happened - I now have a launcher in my panel which launches the Gnome Disk Utility! That's all I care about and I thank you very much for your message which got me thinking about what to do. (By the way, I deleted the link on the desktop because I don't need it.)

I still do not have the program in the menu; as I indicated in a previous post here, I have checked thoroughly and it's just not there! Perhaps when PCLOS upgrades to Xfce 4.10 (which, as I'm sure you're aware, is very good) the program will show up. (I understand that an even newer version of Xfce is to be introduced next March. Am I correct?)

Thanks again for your post!

Lawrence H. Bulk

Xfce 4.10 is still in testing section. I must say that so far works very well, it's speedy and very responsive which makes it up for the lack of extensive customization and effects. I use it in my test install over KDE and I have used it when I made my first steps with PCLinuxOS (using Phoenix and Phinx). I believe 4.10 will come as an update very soon, people are working on it. Just be patient

[agmg]

I installed this on KDE ......  that palimpsest should be a dependency of gnome-disk-utility it appears.

There was no menu entry so I edited the file

/usr/share/applications/palimpsest.desktop

by adding     X-MandrivaLinux-System;    to the Categories line, so now have a launch icon in the System section of the menu.

I had not used this utility previously, but do like the way the information is presented about the various disks.

Nice one!  

palimpsest is the one that should be installed in the first place.
It calls gnome-disk-utility as a dependency among others.

Code: [Select]

Palimpsest is a disk utility used for S.M.A.R.T. monitoring, benchmarking, partitioning, and software RAID

[Just17]

I installed this on KDE ......  that palimpsest should be a dependency of gnome-disk-utility it appears.

There was no menu entry so I edited the file

/usr/share/applications/palimpsest.desktop

by adding     X-MandrivaLinux-System;    to the Categories line, so now have a launch icon in the System section of the menu.

I had not used this utility previously, but do like the way the information is presented about the various disks.

Nice one!  

palimpsest is the one that should be installed in the first place.
It calls gnome-disk-utility as a dependency among others.

Code: [Select]

Palimpsest is a disk utility used for S.M.A.R.T. monitoring, benchmarking, partitioning, and software RAID

In that case it is a pity they did not name it something a user might look for  .....