Symlinks, Users Directory and Permissions.. Then subsequent problems..

[assumption]

Hey there,

I have just re-built my system after I ran into major problems with changing the home directory to a different drive other than my system SSD. Well, I say major problems, it all appeared to "work" but it must have messed up my permissions as I could no longer get iLok Manager to recognise my iLok banghead which is a rather important ingredient for me running Pro Tools and subsequently eating..

The process I went through was at first naive (the old adage "a little bit of knowledge = A LOT of danger" springs to mind) as I copied my entire Users directory from my SSD to another drive (SATA3, 2TB HD) where I wanted to store and use it in the future as a means of saving valuable space on my system SSD (which I'm sure most of you are aware of) I run pro audio programs on my mac/s and am very aware of using separate drives for doing different things (mainly from Pro Tools experience) and that got me thinking.. I investigated the file structure of OSX and realised that it was a little more difficult to separate where OSX 'wants' things to be and where I 'want' them to be..

I tried changing the location of my home directory using advanced options in "Users and Groups"

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This 'worked' on the surface.. I did lose most of my settings which started to worry me.. I set things back to my preference and continued on in ignorant bliss..

Upon booting Pro Tools, I realised that something had gone wrong.. It asked for an authorised iLok, which mine is.. I was unable to repair my disk permissions (I thought it might have been a longshot, but gave it ago anyway) to enable it to work again..

I then tried and re tried 'repairing' my iLok from the device's own management tool.. But to no avail.. I guess what saved my sanity was having a "real" macbook pro (and one that I hadn't messed around with the user directory on) at my disposal. I was able to establish that my iLok is working correctly and the problem was obviously due to the fact that I moved something I shouldn't have (users directory) that holds valuable information that the iLok requires to authenticate and work correctly..

That led me to trying to re store my system from a time machine back up (which worked, but being a bit of a perfectionist I wanted to optimise and slim down my system, so I elected to re-install from a newly partitioned ((erased)) SSD) And here I am..

I haven't installed anything other than tuning my set-up with MultiBeast and tweaking system preferences.

I am trying to establish an efficient and stable way of moving my users directory to my preferred HD so I can keep my SSD free from unnecessary abuse (thanks OSX architecture)

I realise I have some options..

FUSION DRIVE:Great idea, I have the hardware available to do it, but I also worry that it will not be stable enough for pro audio work.

SYMLINKS:Good option, just have to get my terminal on.. Still worried that it won't be quite as neat.

PERVIOUS WAY: Move everything before I install everything and hope for the best..

I write this with hope that it saves someone else the effort and frustration I have just experienced if they are thinking of doing things along the same lines..

I also hope that someone slightly more versed in this area would be able to give me a couple of pointers or suggest a better way of achieving what I would like to happen..

Many thanks


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[PJALM]

Is there a reason you moved your user folder? This is a real bad practice and I really don't understand why people do it. It will cause major issues one being if OSX don't see that drive one boot the OSX will be totally messed up and you won't even be able to log in. The permissions issue is also very common when u do this.

Avoid tis practice of moving the user folder or even using symlinks that point to a different drive.

 

[assumption]

Is there a reason you moved your user folder? This is a real bad practice and I really don't understand why people do it. It will cause major issues one being if OSX don't see that drive one boot the OSX will be totally messed up and you won't even be able to log in. The permissions issue is also very common when u do this.

Avoid tis practice of moving the user folder or even using symlinks that point to a different drive.

Thanks for your prompt reply,

I moved my users folder so I could save space on my SSD in an attempt to achieve a faster and more stable system. Also I was slightly worried about all of my downloads going to that drive and the subsequent over-use of my SSD. I may also harbour a slight fear of the un-known when it comes to life span of SSD's and didn't want to be constantly writing data to it. (I guess I just have to be more diligent with my file structure and move things as and when, or bite the bullet and do things the easy way and re-driect my downloads in my browser)

I just thought that there may have been a solution that was a little more elegant however..

 

[PJALM]

Again I don't understand the need to move the user folder. Downloads don't _need_ to download to the 'Downloads' folder, documents don't _need_ to be in the Documents folder, music doesn't _need_ to be in the 'Music' folder. See the pattern here?

You can save files and apps to any folder, on any drive. Moving the user folder just causes unneeded grief and issues.

Once again, why do u _need_ to move the user folder? is it for a specific app or just because you read in in some thread in the forums?

As for SSD lifespan, they do include 3+ years of warranty these days and are not like they use to be. I hav 2 SSDs running in my Mac Pro 1,1 for 3+ years now and I don't move the user folder or any other funny tricks trying to save SSD lifespan.

 

[assumption]

Yeah, I guess it was from just mis-information read on forums.. I do have a bit of an issue in trying to find difficult ways of doing simple things.. Thanks for the re-assurance on the SSD stuff too

Will just have to be a little more diligent with my file and folder structures..

I'm starting to believe more in the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" idea..

Thanks again

 

[PJALM]

you can use symlinks and such if u really want just not on System files and folder. Don't mess with important system stuff and you should be fine.

I keep all my data, apps, games, documents, downloads, music, pictures, etc etc all on a 'Data' drive too to save SSD space but again all you have to do is either dave those files there or just drag & drop them there. Also make sure the 'Data' drive is GUID/HFS+J or again you will have issues.

 

[Craigrox]

If you wish for a correct step-by-step way to move the home directory, I wrote this and illustrated with screenshots
http://www.tonymacx86.com/general-help/56671-guide-how-move-home-directory-users-os-x-lion.html

 

[PJALM]

Craig I just finished saying how bad this is, did u not read?

There is absolutely no good reason to move a System file or folder to a different driver specially the user folder.

I want you to follow your guide then unplug then drive you moved the user folder to then try and boot. See what happens.

 

[assumption]

If you wish for a correct step-by-step way to move the home directory, I wrote this and illustrated with screenshots
http://www.tonymacx86.com/general-help/56671-guide-how-move-home-directory-users-os-x-lion.html

Hey man, Cool guide.. (I didn't use yours or see it until now)

Yeah, I pretty much did this, but I found that it seriously messed with some hidden permissions needed for iLok authorisation and no matter what I tried to do to fix it, I had to re-install..

Like I said in my original post, It all appeared to "work" until I tried using Pro Tools which led me to believe that I may have inadvertently deleted something important that was hidden in there somewhere..

I like the idea of being able to access everything from the sidebar, which you can just drag new links to from different places also.. I think I was just aiming for perfection because I wanted the icons to be the same as what is in the sidebar already..

The curious side of me wants to see if I can make it work if I do it as the first thing after my fresh install, but I am very dubious as to the inner workings of iLok authorisation stuff and don't want to mess with it as I need to use it, as it is my bread and butter (literally and metaphorically)

I guess bottom line of my post was to illustrate possible issues that other people may encounter trying to do the same thing if they run any software requiring iLok authority and see if there was any answers..

Many thanks

 

[Craigrox]

Craig I just finished saying how bad this is, did u not read?

I did read that, but I was thinking that if he does wish to pursue moving it for whatever reasons he has - I would rather him follow a guide that I know works and will not bug up his system.

Of course the system will hang if I unplugged the drive, that's why I wouldn't do that? For safety I would have the data drive in a raid setup anyway