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NoOp | 20 May 06:06
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Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

Having a Karl moment (no offense intended Karl :-) and decided to test
how best to backdown to hardy from jaunty on one of my test systems
while preserving the /home folders. I failed as I tried to accomplish
this from the hardy alternate CD & just ended up reinstalling over the
drive.

The question of reinstalling/downgrading seems to come up every few
months, so I'm offering to play guinea pig on a test system for
suggested methods. So if you have a favorite/workable solution I'd like
to hear about it. In the end, I'd like to test & document a
reinstall/downgrade Ubuntu while preserving /home for Dummies set of
instructions. Note: yes I know that I can do this with a separate /home
partition, but in the end many/most users don't do this upon
installation (nor are there easy prompts in the installers to do the
same), so I'd like to keep to the 'preserve /home' theme.

There are several blueprints & ideas on how to accomplish this:
https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/ubiquity-preserve-home
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbiquityPreserveHome
http://brainstorm.ubuntu.com/idea/14021/
[Alternate CD: reinstall Ubuntu over existing partition while preserving
/home ]
http://ubuntutip.googlepages.com/reinstall
[How to reinstall Ubuntu]
http://brainstorm.ubuntu.com/idea/5390/
[Offer to create a separate /home partition and use existing ones]

I don't mind testing the above and any other solutions folks have to
offer (it's a slow week in client land). I'd very much like to figure
out how to easily do this with the Alternate CD(s).
(Continue reading)

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Bret Busby | 20 May 18:40
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Re: Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

On Tue, 19 May 2009, NoOp wrote:

> 
> Having a Karl moment (no offense intended Karl :-) and decided to test
> how best to backdown to hardy from jaunty on one of my test systems
> while preserving the /home folders. I failed as I tried to accomplish
> this from the hardy alternate CD & just ended up reinstalling over the
> drive.
>
> The question of reinstalling/downgrading seems to come up every few
> months, so I'm offering to play guinea pig on a test system for
> suggested methods. So if you have a favorite/workable solution I'd like
> to hear about it. In the end, I'd like to test & document a
> reinstall/downgrade Ubuntu while preserving /home for Dummies set of
> instructions. Note: yes I know that I can do this with a separate /home
> partition, but in the end many/most users don't do this upon
> installation (nor are there easy prompts in the installers to do the
> same), so I'd like to keep to the 'preserve /home' theme.
>
> There are several blueprints & ideas on how to accomplish this:
> https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/ubiquity-preserve-home
> https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbiquityPreserveHome
> http://brainstorm.ubuntu.com/idea/14021/
> [Alternate CD: reinstall Ubuntu over existing partition while preserving
> /home ]
> http://ubuntutip.googlepages.com/reinstall
> [How to reinstall Ubuntu]
> http://brainstorm.ubuntu.com/idea/5390/
> [Offer to create a separate /home partition and use existing ones]
>
(Continue reading)

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NoOp | 20 May 22:02
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Re: Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

On 05/20/2009 09:40 AM, Bret Busby wrote:

> 
> It is probably not what you want, but, from memory, what I did (in 
> upgrading from 8.10 to 8.04) was to make a partition on an external 
> storage device, copy the /home directory (as much as was allowed, due to 
> privilege) to the external partition, install 8.04 as a new installation 
> on the 8.10 partition, then copy the contents of the copied home 
> directory, back to the newly installed 8.04 /home directory, which seems 
> to have worked.

Thanks... I'm looking more on how to use the existing commands/tools
provided on the install CD's. For example, sometime back I actually
managed to reinstall while keeping the home intact using the alternate
CD - unfortunately I don't remember how I did that. Plus the
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbiquityPreserveHome &
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/partman-target/+bug/174619
indicates that this is available, but I've yet to find instructions to
do this for hardy, intrepid & jaunty. Still searching :-)
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Rashkae | 20 May 22:14

Re: Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

NoOp wrote:

> 
> Thanks... I'm looking more on how to use the existing commands/tools
> provided on the install CD's. For example, sometime back I actually
> managed to reinstall while keeping the home intact using the alternate
> CD - unfortunately I don't remember how I did that. Plus the
> https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbiquityPreserveHome &
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/partman-target/+bug/174619
> indicates that this is available, but I've yet to find instructions to
> do this for hardy, intrepid & jaunty. Still searching :-)
> 
> 

The best way would be to copy the home folder somewhere else, either
with cp -a or tar, re-install, then restore the /home.

In a pinch however, you could delete every other folder *but* home, then
Install ubuntu, providing you are careful during the installation to
*not* format the / drive.
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NoOp | 21 May 00:35
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Re: Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

On 05/20/2009 01:14 PM, Rashkae wrote:
> NoOp wrote:
> 
>> 
>> Thanks... I'm looking more on how to use the existing commands/tools
>> provided on the install CD's. For example, sometime back I actually
>> managed to reinstall while keeping the home intact using the alternate
>> CD - unfortunately I don't remember how I did that. Plus the
>> https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbiquityPreserveHome &
>> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/partman-target/+bug/174619
>> indicates that this is available, but I've yet to find instructions to
>> do this for hardy, intrepid & jaunty. Still searching :-)
>> 
>> 
> 
> The best way would be to copy the home folder somewhere else, either
> with cp -a or tar, re-install, then restore the /home.
> 
> In a pinch however, you could delete every other folder *but* home, then
> Install ubuntu, providing you are careful during the installation to
> *not* format the / drive.
> 

Well... I got it to install using the hardy liveCD while maintaining
home. It preserved the tempdir folder that I'd placed there & the gnome
desktop settings. Before I post how I did that I want to repeat a few
times (install jaunty, then back to hardy back to intrepid etc) to make
sure that it sticks. Then I'll try the same with the alternate CD.

Note: AFAIK using this method only preserves /home. So if someone has a
(Continue reading)

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Rashkae | 21 May 01:11

Re: Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

NoOp wrote:
>
> 
> Well... I got it to install using the hardy liveCD while maintaining
> home. It preserved the tempdir folder that I'd placed there & the gnome
> desktop settings. Before I post how I did that I want to repeat a few
> times (install jaunty, then back to hardy back to intrepid etc) to make
> sure that it sticks. Then I'll try the same with the alternate CD.
> 
> Note: AFAIK using this method only preserves /home. So if someone has a
> lot of added data/packages in /opt /usr/ etc., this excercise does them
> no good without backups of those directories of course. But preserving
> /home is the main goal here, so I'm happy on the first successful
> attempt. I of course have an alternate motive for getting this right...
> I have a college student that I gave one of my 'Ubuntu Christmas'
> systems to & I'm scheduled to give her a faster system in a few weeks
> following graduation & want to make the transition as easy as possible.
> I'll of course back up her entire drive before the swap, but this may
> make things go a little faster with the actual install part.
> 
> 
> 
> 

Trying to preserve anything but home is asking for trouble, if you end
up intermixing files that are not binary compatible, things break in
subtle ways, and god save you from the wrath of devs if someone spends
hours trying to debug a problem your having only to find that it's some
left over file.
(Continue reading)

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NoOp | 21 May 01:35
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Re: Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

On 05/20/2009 04:11 PM, Rashkae wrote:
> NoOp wrote:

>> Note: AFAIK using this method only preserves /home. So if someone has a
>> lot of added data/packages in /opt /usr/ etc., this excercise does them
>> no good without backups of those directories of course. But preserving
>> /home is the main goal here, so I'm happy on the first successful
>> attempt. I of course have an alternate motive for getting this right...
>> I have a college student that I gave one of my 'Ubuntu Christmas'
>> systems to & I'm scheduled to give her a faster system in a few weeks
>> following graduation & want to make the transition as easy as possible.
>> I'll of course back up her entire drive before the swap, but this may
>> make things go a little faster with the actual install part.

> 
> Trying to preserve anything but home is asking for trouble, if you end
> up intermixing files that are not binary compatible, things break in
> subtle ways, and god save you from the wrath of devs if someone spends
> hours trying to debug a problem your having only to find that it's some
> left over file.
> 

Ah... Good point!
BTW: Just did my second reinstall on hardy over hardy. It worked.

***DISCLAIMER****NOT FINISHED TESTING YET***

Here is what I have so far:

Dual drive system - 40GB drives:
(Continue reading)

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NoOp | 21 May 05:53
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Re: Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

On 05/20/2009 04:35 PM, NoOp wrote:
...
> 
> ***DISCLAIMER****NOT FINISHED TESTING YET***
...
> Need to:
> 1. Boot to jaunty drive to see if if survives grub following sda hardy
> tests.
> 2. Install jaunty on sda1 and see if it keeps hardy test /home.
> 3. Reinstall hardy on sda1 to see if it keeps jaunty /home.
> 
> 

 Install jaunty on sda1 and see if it keeps hardy test /home.

6:25 PM.
Working...
Seems to think that my 8 char password is less than 8 chars and nags me
to enter a more secure password stating that my
password is less than 8 characters (it is exactly 8 w/alpha and numerals
mixed).
6:27 PM - installing.
Crapped with warning that the CD may have had issues. However it
actually completed with a jaunty screen. Unfortunately, the /home from
hardy is
gone, so I'm checking cd integrity (perhaps it was burned too high of
speed - burning a lower speed at 8x just in case).
Original CD check shows 'no errors found'.

Reboot & find hardy again in grub menu. But get "Server Authorization
(Continue reading)

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Karl F. Larsen | 20 May 13:35
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Re: Reinstalling/Downgrading Ubuntu

NoOp wrote:
> Having a Karl moment (no offense intended Karl :-) and decided to test
> how best to backdown to hardy from jaunty on one of my test systems
> while preserving the /home folders. I failed as I tried to accomplish
> this from the hardy alternate CD & just ended up reinstalling over the
> drive.
>
> The question of reinstalling/downgrading seems to come up every few
> months, so I'm offering to play guinea pig on a test system for
> suggested methods. So if you have a favorite/workable solution I'd like
> to hear about it. In the end, I'd like to test & document a
> reinstall/downgrade Ubuntu while preserving /home for Dummies set of
> instructions. Note: yes I know that I can do this with a separate /home
> partition, but in the end many/most users don't do this upon
> installation (nor are there easy prompts in the installers to do the
> same), so I'd like to keep to the 'preserve /home' theme.
>   
    To use the same /home on many versions of Ubuntu you MUST put your 
/home in a partition not used by other system. This means you need to 
know how to make a partition, and how to cause /etc/fstab to load it 
automatically on all the Ubuntu's you have on that computer.

    These two steps are not easy for a just converted Windows user.

Karl

> There are several blueprints & ideas on how to accomplish this:
> https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+spec/ubiquity-preserve-home
> https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbiquityPreserveHome
> http://brainstorm.ubuntu.com/idea/14021/
(Continue reading)

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Gmane