What is the experience of upgrading in Linux Mint

[francis129]

My question is: How safe and reliable are the upgrades in Linux Mint?

I am now running 20.1. If I upgraded to 20.2 in the next couple of months, then 20.3 when it comes out, and then 21, would I be risking any loss of data or having some of my settings and/or applications breaking? I plan to do each upgrade as it comes out, so I will not be doing any large jumps (e.g. 20.1 to 21).

Also, I am a complete noob, so excuse my ignorance, but, aren't these upgrades, in essence, just the same as the regular updates I get from the Update Manager for other applications, but are simply just bundled and mixed in with applications that are more linked to the OS' functionality (Cinnamon, etc.)? Any general information or links you could provide me with would be immensely helpful.

[Larry78723]

My method has always been upgrades within a series (20.1 - 20.2 - 20.3) and clean install when moving to a new series (20.x - 21) after backing up personal data. It ensures that there's no conflict between versions of software and dependencies.

[kc1di]

Hello francis129,
Welcome to Mint.
I always recommend two things when upgrading. 1. make a backup of all your important data. (mistakes do happen.)
2. upgrades within the the same version series work well and do not present many if any problems. But I prefer to do a new install when the series changes.
in other words you should have no problems be 20.1 through 20.3 but I recommend you do a fresh install when 21 comes out. Others will tell you they have no problems going from 19 to 20 etc. but I like the clean install.

In any event enjoy!

[zcot]

My question is: How safe and reliable are the upgrades in Linux Mint?

It's generally safe an reliable with minor versions. -the X in 19.x, 20.x. But with a major version change(19-20-21), although with most users it works without any problem, there is certainly the opportunity for there to be issues(and plenty of users have experienced that).

I plan to do each upgrade as it comes out, so I will not be doing any large jumps (e.g. 20.1 to 21).

Any jump from one major version to another is major. One simple example is if you have installed program foo and yet on the next newer major version foo is not even available, -hasn't been developed to work on that version, or has become broken on that version.

But, if you check the Upgrade instructions, always posted in the Announcements section here, you will see that when doing minor "large" jumps it's possible to work, and those shouldn't be any more problematic than incremental minor version upgrades.

The key point is about the major version number change. Sometimes it might not be all that different in your experience, other times it might be the biggest headache you've had yet. Judging by the feedback on the IRC channels and the forum here it seemed like going from 18.x to 19 wasn't that big of a deal, but going from 19.x to 20 was(for certain people, like when you're adding a lot of 3rd party ppa's or otherwise customized software).

[francis129]

Thank you everyone for your answers.

I have concluded that I will be performing the minor upgrades from the Update Manager without any worries (especially considering that I have timeshift set up). However, for the major updates, I will be doing a full clean installation of the new major version and then carefully and manually migrating my data and settings (without copying entire folders, e.g. home folder.). I think that performing a clean installation is good for two reasons. The first and obvious one is that I will have a new, fresh, and fully functional system and not risk any carry-over issues. Secondly, since the major releases come every two years, they will be an opportunity for me to go over my whole OS and scan through for what I want to get rid of and what I want to take with me to the future. It will be an opportunity for me to kind of look after my own mess and clean it up for my next 2-year journey. Well, at least, that is the plan for now. I don't know what the future brings. However, it is a plan satisfactory enough to keep my anxiety over loss of data and progress at bay

[JesseRBassett]

Personally I have had zero issues in upgrading Linux Mint. Even from one version to the other. Its very straightforeward and easy IMO.

[Boca]

Hi,

as a relative newbie, I've now upgraded several times ( i started on17.1) and my experience/approach is.

I've had no issues upgrading from X.1 to X.2 etc using Update Manager.

For a major change ( eg 19.3 to 20.0),

• I evaluate if the work involved in changing is worthwhile, is my current version still in Long-Term Support? Are there features in the new release which I desire/need?
  I double double check that my routine data backups are up to date ( even though the data is on a separate partition!)
  I check that I have a current Timeshift on a separate drive ( in case I need to go back to the "old" install")
  I do a clean install
  It then takes me a couple of hours to install progs, perform customisations and make recommended optimizations such as Pjotr's https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.c ... -mint.html ..... ( I keep a checklist of all these in a spreadsheet)
  I also use TI58C's script to routinely generate a re-install script of software I have installed ( see viewtopic.php?f=90&t=300378), the Backup Tool does similar.
  I saw a recommendation ( but cannot now find it) to wait for x.1 before making a major change... just in case there are issues with x.0.

Hope this helps.