In both 2006.0 and 2006.1, pushing the "Recommended Layout" button in the partitioner would show you a partition scheme that uses either the full drive, or the free space you previously allocated for it. However, in 2007.0, pushing this button wiped out my entire hard drive, without any sort of confirmation screen. In all previous versions of the LiveCD, it would show you the scheme, but not apply it until you began the install process. Now, it takes it upon itself to wipe out -every- other partition you have on that hard drive. Reproducible: Didn't try Steps to Reproduce: 1. In my case, I had a 260GB NTFS partition and 60GB free space. 2. Push the "Recommended Layout" button on the partitioner. Actual Results: Formatted hard drive, wiping out partitions I needed. Expected Results: Showed the partition scheme that would be used once the install process began. I have not tried to reproduce this yet, because I am trying to recover all the data that I lost. If I succeed in recovering my data, I can reformat to similar specs as before and try to reproduce.
Yes, it's supposed to do this. Yes, this is a behavior change from the previous versions. It tells you this in second paragraph in the help text that is *always* visible on the left side of the screen: "If you have any existing partitions, they will be deleted." In addition, there is a Yes/No dialog that pops up when you click the Recommended Layout button that says: "This will clear your drive and apply a recommended partition layout. Are you sure you want to do this?" The fact that you ignored *both* of these warnings and the installer behaved as it is supposed to is *not* a bug.
I have installed 2006.0 and 2006.1 numerous times, so moving to 2007.0 I would not expect something so severe to be added. I wouldn't expect most people who are familiar with the Live CD to re-read all of the side panel "help" each time there is a new version out. That aside, the "Recommended Layout" took upon itself to ignore the free space I had allocated for it, and wiped the entire drive instead. I an 100% positive I did -not- receive a popup dialog warning me of this. The very second I pushed the button, the installer hung for a few minutes and then came back to life.
(In reply to comment #2) > are familiar with the Live CD to re-read all of the side panel "help" each time > there is a new version out. There was no visible help in previous versions of the installer, so I'd expect someone who used 2006.0 and 2006.1 to notice that something has obviously changed and to perhaps take a look. > That aside, the "Recommended Layout" took upon itself to ignore the free space > I had allocated for it, and wiped the entire drive instead. I an 100% positive That's how it's supposed to work now...as it says on the left. > I did -not- receive a popup dialog warning me of this. The very second I pushed > the button, the installer hung for a few minutes and then came back to life. The process cannot proceed without clicking Yes on the prompt that comes up.
Rob, I am sorry that the change came as a shock to you. We put in many warnings but I can understand for those who used the installer in the past, the change in expected behavior would be surprising. Unfortunately there really isn't much we can do about it without creating a bad user experience for new users. People who use Gentoo generally don't like to be asked 5 times if they're really sure they want to do something. They expect it to just get done.
(In reply to comment #4) > Rob, > I am sorry that the change came as a shock to you. Hi Preston, Thanks for the comments. I overlooked things, which just comes from being so familiar with the previous installers. I installed 2006.0 and 2006.1 many times, and wound up overlooking something important. I don't blame anyone but myself for that one. The fact remains that I was not prompted with a warning when I pushed the "Recommended Layout" button, regardless of whether I should have or not. I explained that earlier, but was again told that I did see it. I almost wonder what the point of submitting bugs is if people are just accused of being wrong. I am positive I didn't receive the prompt, which to me, is a bug. How it was caused, I have no idea. It could be an isolated event, but it's still something I want to make sure can't be duplicated. If someone loses their Windows install because of this, they will be a unhappy camper. I am lucky that the PC in question is used primarily for testing, so I didn't risk losing anything too important. As it stands, I'll assume that I was struck unlucky and that it won't happen again. I'll re-install regardless, because I intend to write an article on the new release like I usually do. If I run into the problem again, I'll post again here. If not, then great. Thanks, Rob
The thing that surprises me about it is that the same warning box has been in place for many releases now and I don't recall ever seeing a bug report before for it not showing up. If you can indeed reproduce this please let us know.
(In reply to comment #6) > The thing that surprises me about it is that the same warning box has been in > place for many releases now and I don't recall ever seeing a bug report before > for it not showing up. If you can indeed reproduce this please let us know. > On 2006.0 and 2006.1 you don't get a warning box when pushing Recommended Layout. You may get it right before the install process begins, I don't remember. That's the way it should be ;-) I tried to re-install 2007.0 last night and did not receive the bug again, I had the confirmation box no problem. I found out that the new installer is not really for my tastes, so I will be sticking to the old one. I'll assume the bug in the new installer I stumbled on was a one time deal, at least hopefully.
