A package update strategy for rock solid LMDE installation

[dd058]

Ok, this is not a problem that needs solving. I just want to discuss my package update strategy related to using a rolling distribution like LMDE. And I am talking about a 'production' machine that I cannot work without. Spare time to fix things is non-existent.

I installed LMDE back in February and in late April I decided to stop updating my packages for a while. I thought I should wait until the new testing release of Debian (jessie) settles a bit (was due to enter LMDE repositories in early May) before updating my machine. By that I mean becoming a bit more solid. Is this a common approach or am I too conservative? What do others think?

Now (late September) I run 'aptitude update' and I get ...Current status: 36833 new [+35297]. Correct me if I am wrong but this means 36833 updated packages, isn't it? It's not that I didn't expect it but we really mean moving from debian wheezy to debian jessie in one go. I am tempted to wait and do the update the last month before the next update pack of LMDE is out. Does anybody think the same way? Any objections? And do we know when the next LMDE update pack is due?

Thanks
dd058

[DrHu]

I think that if a specific update isn't that important to you, for example an updated application, that waiting for the shakeout is a reasonable idea.
--and will help avoid some disturbing issues, such as the desktop no longer logging or some features (needed) failing to work correctly.

As to Debian updating, I would refer to their methods..
http://www.debian.org/doc/manuals/debian-faq/ch-uptodate.en.html

• 9.4 How can I keep a log of the packages I added to the system? I'd like to know when which package upgrades and removals have occured

--that may prove useful on a production maching to backtrack in case of any problems..

Probably a good method is to mirror the respository site, so that you can monitor the quality of any updates
--you need a spare machine or partition to manage that

The advantage of a rolling release is the continuous updating availablke, however you would have to deal with any issues that come up because of such updating (no one is necessarily checking updates vs a specific release level (your initial or previous update status for your OS)
--so a wait and see approach is safer; except one has to pay attention to OS security or application security updates, as they may come available

• Carefully or just reading the changes being included with specific updates (OS, security or apps) will alert you to any items you need to pay extra attention to.

Code: Select all

aptitude update

--just gets the repositorie's latest package list, application OS + security updates that can be done into your system

• upgrade actually does that update (of that set of packages, assuming you have a match of a package installed on your system and an available package that can be installed: no match would obviously mean no installation of such package..

[dd058]

Thanks for the reply.

How about pointing my current LMDE installation (changing my sources.list) to the Debian stable repositories and start updating from there? The LMDE machine I am talking about was last updated in late April, so it is actually still running wheezy, the current Debian stable release. I read that LMDE is 100% compatible with debian testing repositories. Is it also compatible with Debian stable ones?

I am guessing that this would be a smaller jump to the unknown. Better update a wheezy machine with Debian stable (wheezy) packages rather than with jessie (essentially Debian testing) packages. Your opinion?

Thanks
dd058

[kurotsugi]

that message tells that there are approx 38.000 new/update packages in the repository. your system only use approx 3000 package and you only update approx 1800 of them. you can run 'aptitude' to see more details and how many packages will get upgraded.