Skip Navigation
Linux for Leftists @lemmygrad.ml redtea @lemmygrad.ml

Swap memory: SSD or HDD?

Hello Comrades,

Thanks for all your advice about setting up Linux. It was a success. The problem is that I'm now I'm intrigued and I'd like to play around a bit more.

I'm thinking of building a cheap-ish computer but I have a few questions. I'll split them into separate posts to make things easier. Note: I won't be installing anything that I can't get to work on Linux.

Question about storage and swap memory.

I plan to install an SSD of maybe 128–256GB for the system files and a larger HDD for storage. I would partition the SSD so that I could install a few different distros without losing any installation. This way I can commit to some longer experiments before deciding which distro to use.

The question is: should I have the swap partition on the SSD (with the OS partition) or (separately) on the HDD?

And if I install multiple distros, do I need a different swap partition for each one? For example, if I install 16GB RAM, do I need a 16GB partition for, say, Mint, Debian, and Ubuntu? Or can I let them 'share' the swap partition?

Are there any additional security/privacy risks of installing more than one distro on the same SSD card?

21

You're viewing a single thread.

21 comments

  • I second all the SSD recommendations but I'd also like to point out that if you're using one of the more heavy desktops like GNOME, they'll probably still freeze if you go over your 16GB. Swap is still very useful, but don't make the same mistake that I made with going for an SSD with only 4GB of RAM. Linux is usually very lightweight so you're likely not going past 16GB unless you're doing some severe data processing though.

    Are there any additional security/privacy risks of installing more than one distro on the same SSD card?

    I wouldn't say that there are more risks, just that now you have all the risks of all installations in a single machine at the same time. If any OS becomes compromised it'll have access to every other partition unless they're properly encrypted (and even then encryption is not bulletproof, since they can either brute-force or just install a keylogger and wait). That also extends to having installations on a different device that is connected, so installing one on the HDD and one on the SSD would not solve it unless you physically disconnect them.

    But unless you're executing unknown binaries or forgetting security updates I don't think it would be much more problematic. I think it's basically as risky as just having two different machines on a single network, which is very little compared to running Windows ever.

    • This is helpful, thanks.

      Out of interest, do you know if it's possible to run two or more storage drives on a single machine that are controlled by a manual switch? So that neither drive can read the other(s) because the manual switch only ever allows one drive to connect to the mother board at any one time? One option would be to physically swap the connected drive but those slots aren't built for frequent changes; surely someone's thought of an easier way? This is pure curiosity unless it's possible and cheap/easy.

      • You definitely can't do it with a NVME/PCI Express SSD because it gets slotted within the board, but technically I think something is possible with a SATA HDD. I have never seen anything like this and I bet it would have some risks of damaging the HDDs if misused. You'd still be having to open the PC and fumble with cables and I don't think it'd that much better, since SATA cables are very cheap. If you do get 2 or more SATA HDDs, I think you could just disconnect the power only from the HDD and just switch them that way.

        Though what I actually recommend you do in case you want to do something like that is to get a couple of cheap USB drives (possibly even the "portable hdd/ssd" types that go up to 500GB but depends on your intent) and install your other OS's in those. They are on par in speed with a modern HDD and will be less of a hassle if you want to keep some of them having separate physical access to the rest. They also have the extra benefit of being easy to use in different machines if needed. Just remember to encrypt their root partition in case they have sensitive data since they're also easier to steal.

        P.S. I just remembered I had a lot of trouble when trying to figure out which SSDs are compatible with my board because store sites are not very consistent, and it wouldn't hurt to warn. Be sure to check the device interface before you buy.

21 comments