Convert ext2/3/4 and ReiserFS file systems to Btrfs without data loss - RebornOS Wiki - Reborn...

Convert ext2/3/4 and ReiserFS file systems to Btrfs without data loss

In case the partition you want to convert is your system partition you will need to perform the steps in this guide from another (GNU/Linux) operating system instance, like the RebornOS live ISO.

Do not perform this operation on data you can't afford to lose. There are reports of btrfs-convert failing, leaving behind a damaged partition.

1. Find out the device name of the partition you want to convert to Btrfs. lsblk, fdisk -l or a graphical partition manager are good ways to find the device name of the partition you want to convert.

2. If the partition is mounted, unmount it: sudo umount /dev/<device name of partition>

3. Run sudo fsck -fy /dev/<device name of partition> to check the file system for inconsistencies and repair them if possible. If issues were found, run again.

4. Run sudo btrfs-convert --uuid copy /dev/<device name of partition> to convert the file system to Btrfs. If no errors occurred, the file system should be Btrfs now.

In case the converted partition is a system partition:
5. To still be able to boot into the new Btrfs partition you have to perform the following steps:

a) Mount the system partition (sudo mount /dev/<device name of partition> /mnt), and into it also the matching EFI system partition (sudo mount /dev/<device name of ESP> /mnt/boot/efi).
b) Chroot into the system with sudo arch-chroot /mnt, then adjust the system's fstab (nano /etc/fstab) by adjusting the filesystem type to "btrfs" and removing/replacing eventual Btrfs-incompatible mount options.
c) Run mkinitcpio -P and grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg. You can now exit the chroot jail and reboot into your operating system, now on a Btrfs filesystem.

To take full advantage of the Btrfs filesystem features read the following guide: https://osdn.net/projects/rebornos/wiki/Btrfs%20system%20snapshots%20and%20rollbacks%20with%20Timeshift