I have an Ubuntu installation on my netbook and after trying it out on a bootable USB I have decided to switch to Mint Linux. If I run the Mint installer from the USB will it totally trash my home directory? Or will it be equivalent to an upgrade where the systems files that need to be replaced will change leaving the users folders as is.
(Yes, I plan to backup the important files in the /home folders before hand...)
It won't trash your home directory... but there are some things you may wish it had trashed.
When you switch distributions, you are likely to get different (possibly older) versions of applications that have saved configuration or state in your home directory. I believe you would be better off by creating a new home directory, and then after installation restoring any "data" files that you wish to preserve... rather than preserving/copying all of the dot files.
The systems are very much the same but..
A fresh install will follow the normal new install path.
Ask you which partitions you want, ext 3, etc.
Tell you that there is an operating system and that you are going to over write it or remove it.
To save documents, etc for transfer to new install save(copy) to an external storage disc and copy back into mint documents after mint install.
You should be able to copy Home Folder to external disc-rename as Home Folder-2 and copy to the desktop of new finished mint install, test it as is and see if it works ok, then close or hide home folder-1.
A backup will write over(if it can be reinstalled to mint)
I could not fined anything in the mint forums and have not been able to try this myself.
Hope this is of some helps
