What is going on with these level 5 updates?

[sdibaja]

side topic... I did not want to start a new thread, and the gurus are here
I use LMDE, but I believe it is the same with Mint.

I started taking the level 5 updates a few months ago, in near blind ignorance.

this shows 3.16.0 is getting updated, but it is still 3.16.0 ... what is going on here?

Kernel updates.png

thanks

[xenopeek]

this shows 3.16.0 is getting updated, but it is still 3.16.0 ... what is going on here?

Security fixes.

[Moem]

side topic... I did not want to start a new thread, and the gurus are here

[mod note]
So I've done it for you. Please do not add a new topic to another thread, especially one that another user has started; it's called hijacking. A new question deserves a new thread.

[cb474]

this shows 3.16.0 is getting updated, but it is still 3.16.0 ... what is going on here?

But if you look at the old version and new version columns you can see it's going from 3.16.39-1 to 3.16.43-2. I personally find it confusing that the package name does not change when the kernel has a minor version upgrade. Other distros treat this differently and would just rename the package after the precise kernel version.

Anyway, as xenopeek says, these are probably security fixes.

Mint, as far as I understand, also has a policy to rank package upgrades based on how likely they are or not to affect the stability of your system. In other words, could the update introduce a bug that makes your system not work properly. That's what the "5" reflects on these kernel updates. So Mint prioritizes, as far as I understand, stability issues no matter how small, over security issues no matter how large.

I find this a little baffling with LMDE, since it is based on Debian Stable, which is widely considered to be one of, if not the most stable distros. It's hard for me to imagine a Debian Stable security update breaking something on someone's system. But I guess perhaps on some more obscure hardware? I don't know.

I think if Debian Stable is working on your system, which it is if you are running LMDE, then it's hard to imagine how any security updates for it are going to break your system. But on the other hand, security updates are really important, in this era in which hacking becomes ever more commonplace. I just would not forego a security update to the kernel, over the tiny risk that it might cause some stability problem. I've never once had this happen (frankly even simply running whatever is the latest version of the kernel--as I do with another system running Manjaro).

So I have always been a bit baffled why the security updates to the Debian Stable kernel are always labeled "5" ("dangerous updates"). In fact, it was some of the "1" ("certified updates") updates to Mint specific packages that recently broke things on a lot of people's systems, which is the only time I've ever had a problem with LMDE updates (since it changed to Debian Stable).

Obviously, no update sytsem is prefect. But if you were running plain Debian Stable, you'd take the security updates to the kernel without a second thought and would be considered to be running one of the most stable systems you could. So I think it doesn't make a lot of sense to treat them as "dangerous" in LMDE, which is essentially Debian Stable. To me, not taking the security updates seems much more dangerous.

[sdibaja]

side topic... I did not want to start a new thread, and the gurus are here

[mod note]
So I've done it for you. Please do not add a new topic to another thread, especially one that another user has started; it's called hijacking. A new question deserves a new thread.

Pardon me, I have been properly chastised. I do understand I was rude.

However, your topic header does not actually reflect my question about the nature and content of kernels. My fault, the question was not properly phrased. I have started a new thread for that.

The nature and "safety" of the levels in the Update Manager does need to be discussed, especially considering the broken systems this last week with a big slug of Level 1 Updates

Update Levels.png