The "Linux questions (and other stuff)" thread

[MoodyBlues]

It did, once. Then I couldn't get it to come back.

Please post, as specifically as possible, exactly what happens when you try following those instructions. I definitely can't help you--I use neither wine nor ADE--but someone else probably can.

 

[MoodyBlues]

I'm thinking about upgrading my System76 laptop. But I'm unsure about jumping straight from Kubuntu 14.04 to either 18.04 or 18.10, which are the most recent versions available.

When I used to actually update my computers, it was one version up each time--not FOUR.

Should it go smoothly? Would it be better to step up first?

Keep in mind, I'm the one with one PC still running 6.10 (I think), and 9.10 on another desktop. Upgrading lost its appeal somewhere along the way. There's really no good reason to do this upgrade...or not--that I know of. So what do you think?

 

[kate]

I'm thinking about upgrading my System76 laptop. But I'm unsure about jumping straight from Kubuntu 14.04 to either 18.04 or 18.10, which are the most recent versions available.

When I used to actually update my computers, it was one version up each time--not FOUR.

You can upgrade from one LTS to another, 16.04 to 18.04, but I don't think it's possible to go from 14.04 directly to 18.04. You'd have to upgrade to 16.04 first.

If you're not big on upgrading I'd stay on 18.04 until 20.04 is released.

 

[bcrichster]

You can upgrade from one LTS to another, 16.04 to 18.04, but I don't think it's possible to go from 14.04 directly to 18.04. You'd have to upgrade to 16.04 first.

If you're not big on upgrading I'd stay on 18.04 until 20.04 is released.

Agreed, I'd stick w 18.04 also since it's reliable and 19.04 is one I consider to not really be ready to build with since it's so new. I usually wait about 6mo to a full year after release before even consider updating the whole distro to give their Developers time to work out the bugs anyways

 

[GameTheory]

I agree with kate and bcrichster. You should go with 18.04 as I think 18.10 is only supported for 9 months(rolling release). 18.04 is currently at its 2nd point release(18.04.2) so it's very stable. When upgrading to the latest LTS you should always wait for the 1st point release(ie. 18.04.1) as initial bugs are sorted by then. If you keep up with upgrades, they are painless and only take like 10 minutes.

As mentioned by kate, you'll have to do an upgrade to 16.04 first, then 18.04 next, but well worth it.

 

[bcrichster]

I agree with kate and bcrichster. You should go with 18.04 as I think 18.10 is only supported for 9 months(rolling release). 18.04 is currently at its 2nd point release(18.04.2) so it's very stable. When upgrading to the latest LTS you should always wait for the 1st point release(ie. 18.04.1) as initial bugs are sorted by then. If you keep up with upgrades, they are painless and only take like 10 minutes.

As mentioned by kate, you'll have to do an upgrade to 16.04 first, then 18.04 next, but well worth it.

Absolutely! That way you can keep the older Javas.. You can't easily get Java 6 & 7 easily anymore and upgrading the versions will be your only chance to keep them, if you so desire. Ubuntu 18.04 comes with java8 (I think) and the older ones are totally unavailable for installation from there

 

[Deleted User]

There's really no good reason to do this upgrade...or not--that I know of.

Security patches?

 

[Dngrsone]

Security patches?

That's assuming the machine spends any time online.

 

[Dngrsone]

Okay, got ADE working in Linux. Now all I need is the DRM key.

 

[MoodyBlues]

Security patches?

Eh... I have everything pretty much locked down, from WiFi to my network, and everything in between, like each individual computer. Even the 6.10 box has never had any sort of foul play, and its security patches are 13 years old--and it's been continuously connected to the Internet all along.

Yes, of course, there's always a first time. But I've got that covered, too, including multiple off-site, current backups and freezes at the three main credit bureaus. I'm not worried. *shrug*

 

[MoodyBlues]

Okay, got ADE working in Linux.

Excellent! I'm really happy to hear that.

Now all I need is the DRM key.

No help from me, sorry.

 

[Deleted User]

Eh... I have everything pretty much locked down, from WiFi to my network, and everything in between, like each individual computer. Even the 6.10 box has never had any sort of foul play, and its security patches are 13 years old--and it's been continuously connected to the Internet all along.

Yes, of course, there's always a first time. But I've got that covered, too, including multiple off-site, current backups and freezes at the three main credit bureaus. I'm not worried. *shrug*

Sounds like you're on the ball there. But I do like to stay bang up to date, because these days, web browsers can be a significant security hole in your system. They do suffer from security flaws, which are exploited, and regular patches can minimise that risk. If your system's not up to date, it won't be receiving any security patches, including for the application packages which are installed. These days I wouldn't want to be browsing the web with an old browser.

 

[MoodyBlues]

Sounds like you're on the ball there.

Thanks. Yeah, I am. I've really thought it out from all angles. I MIGHT give props to some dude who actually manages to get in. Like, wow, you're GOOD! (After the shock and worry subside.)

But I do like to stay bang up to date, because these days, web browsers can be a significant security hole in your system. They do suffer from security flaws, which are exploited, and regular patches can minimise that risk. If your system's not up to date, it won't be receiving any security patches, including for the application packages which are installed. These days I wouldn't want to be browsing the web with an old browser.

That's very true, and although I do update SeaMonkey much more frequently than I do Kubuntu...it's still not current.

 

[Dngrsone]

Now that I have ADE straightened out, I have to get Kindle for PC in and I won't have to boot into WIndows but once a month or so.

Meanwhile, I have a computer to build-- for my son.

 

[MoodyBlues]

You know that upgrade that seemed like such a good idea? From 14.04 to 16.04, first, then 18.04? Well...let's file this under the heading "things that should have been left alone."

I finally clicked the "version upgrade" button, which said it would install 16.04. Brilliant, I thought! Just what I need.

It started cranking away, and I watched happily as everything went as smooth as can be, from start to finish. Then it prompted me to restart the computer.

This isn't Reddit, right--so I can't freely drop f-bombs everywhere? Too bad, 'cause they're called for.

After getting the pretty Kubuntu logo, I got a blank screen where lines of text started appearing. Something about CIFS...error connecting to socket...aborting operation...failed with return code -115. Mount operation failed. A bunch of USB-related errors, ending with 'unable to enumerate USB device.'

And that's where it hung. Retried several times. Checked its boot and setup options; everything was normal.

My Kubuntu buddies have since let me know there had been major problems doing version upgrades from 14.04 to 16.04--and that it was not recommended. I--having been in a cocoon for awhile--had no clue. And after umpteen *nix OS upgrades under my belt, starting with 5.25" floppy drive installation media, I can't honestly say I even thought about checking first. I mean, who knew?!

I've reinstalled 14.04 and will finish cleaning up/tweaking things tomorrow.

I'm glad I'm as rigid and set in my ways as I am, because in this case wiping / and reinstalling the system there was all I needed to touch; my /home and /data partitions are sitting pretty with no data loss.

I'm pissed at myself for not researching this--even though, in my defense, I'd never encountered problems with system-offered version upgrades. First time for everything!

I am NOT pissed off at anyone else. I'm a big girl and take full responsibility for this fiasco.

 

[Deleted User]

In truth I'm always wary of doing O/S upgrades, because I've also been bitten like this before. I can't remember what upgrade it was, but I ended up with a non-bootable system, and booting with the emergency recovery disc to do a backup of my user partition data, and a complete fresh install of the new O/S version. Ever since that, I hesitate when the upgrade dialog pops up.
As always with computers, the golden rule is backup your stuff before doing any kind of upgrade.

 

[Dngrsone]

You know that upgrade that seemed like such a good idea? From 14.04 to 16.04, first, then 18.04? Well...let's file this under the heading "things that should have been left alone."

...

I'm pissed at myself for not researching this--even though, in my defense, I'd never encountered problems with system-offered version upgrades. First time for everything!

I am NOT pissed off at anyone else. I'm a big girl and take full responsibility for this fiasco.

We've all been there, luv.

Bob knows, I've vented enough on this forum about breaking my own stuff over the years...

 

[lunatic59]

Let me tell you about the time I was trying to run some updates via VNC when, silly me, I applied an update to the VNC server itself and it broke my connection ... and then to prove to the world that idiocy knows no boundaries, i connected via SSH and forced a reboot before the updates were completed. did I mention this was on a production server? .

Needless to say, I excreted enough masonry to lay the foundation for the Great Pyramid. It could have been worse, though. Even though the server wouldn't boot, this was over a weekend so it wasn't completely incapacitating. And, after driving to the data center on a Saturday and finding the machine in a state of kernel panic, I was able to get it to boot to the previous kernel and complete the updates from the terminal.

 

[GameTheory]

Well this is all interesting. I'm surprised you guys have had such horrors with upgrades.

I used to do fresh installs when upgrading up until 12.04. From 12.04 and on I've been doing upgrades instead and have always gone smoothly. No issues here. In fact, I'm so confident in how well upgrades work that I don't backup anymore when upgrading.

Imagine if you couldn't do upgrades, how does the linux community expect for linux to be a viable OS in the desktop market place. Imagine telling a windows user, hey switch to linux, but be aware that your system might not boot after an OS upgrade.

Upgrades on linux work just as good as any other OS (ie. Mac, Windows). You just have to keep up with your package updates. If you don't keep up with updates, then some packages can end up held back over time and and that's where the problems start when time comes for an OS upgrade.

 

[MoodyBlues]

I've also been bitten like this before. I can't remember what upgrade it was, but I ended up with a non-bootable system...

I hadn't. System-offered version upgrades have gone smoothly for me. But, like I said, there's a first time for everything. Live and learn!

As always with computers, the golden rule is backup your stuff before doing any kind of upgrade

Oh yes! As noted, everything was backed up off-site. Well, almost everything. I realized after the fact that there were a few things in non-automatically backed up directories that I hadn't manually backed up lately. But I just kept reassuring myself that only the system's partition was affected, and my data partitions were fine. And they were. But it serves as a good reminder to stay mindful of backing up the odd file that isn't automatically.

This may sound weird, but I'm kind of glad this happened. I think you all know that I've [slowly] been recovering from a near-fatal illness. When I think that just months ago, I still wasn't up to being active online, and now, daily, I'm typing my fingers off on two sites, that's awesome enough. But with this little unexpected bonus, I've had the chance to brush off my command line skills as I put things back in order. So it's all good.

 

[MoodyBlues]

Let me tell you about the time I was trying to run some updates via VNC when, silly me, I applied an update to the VNC server itself and it broke my connection ... and then to prove to the world that idiocy knows no boundaries, i connected via SSH and forced a reboot before the updates were completed. did I mention this was on a production server? .

Oh no you didn't! You did? Oh my goodness...

Needless to say, I excreted enough masonry to lay the foundation for the Great Pyramid. It could have been worse, though. Even though the server wouldn't boot, this was over a weekend so it wasn't completely incapacitating. And, after driving to the data center on a Saturday and finding the machine in a state of kernel panic, I was able to get it to boot to the previous kernel and complete the updates from the terminal.

I can REALLY imagine...the whole scenario.

Whenever I made changes on the servers at my jobs, I did them on weekends, so at least if I borked it, I'd have time to fix it before Monday. At my last job, we were in an office complex, and virtually NO ONE was there on weekends. The parking lot was basically empty. We were ≈2 miles from Parkland Hospital, so not THE greatest part of Dallas, and it was common to see...well, questionable people hanging around. Little Freddie--my 182 pound black Great Dane--went to work with me all the time anyway, but on weekends it was a must! With him by my side, I felt super safe.

 

[lunatic59]

We are in an interesting location, part residential, part industrial park, part retail. There are all kinds of warehouses and traffic around so it's common to see just about any vehicle any time of day. My boss had a trailer that he uses to transport his classic 'vettes to car shows that was stolen from one of his properties. Luckily it was empty at the time! In any case, we are heavily alarmed and camera'ed with mag-lock security on every door and motion detectors. I have set off the alarms more than once when doing weekend work. Fortunately, if I call the central station with the "safe" word before the cops show up, there's no harm.

I've only had to go in three times in the past 13 years. Once for my upgrade debacle described above. Once when a terminal server hung on reboot after an MS update. and once when our email server supposedly had croaked, because they couldn't get it to boot and they ... and I quote ... "Tried everything". And they did try everything ... power button, reset button, power switch, unplug, reseat RAM and processors and a few other things. And, I would have been impressed, except for one thing. IT WAS THE WRONG #$%^ing SERVER they were doing this to. Luckily the box they THOUGHT was the email server was a new box that was to become the new email server eventually, but had not yet been deployed.

 

[MoodyBlues]

We are in an interesting location, part residential, part industrial park, part retail. There are all kinds of warehouses and traffic around so it's common to see just about any vehicle any time of day. My boss had a trailer that he uses to transport his classic 'vettes to car shows that was stolen from one of his properties. Luckily it was empty at the time! In any case, we are heavily alarmed and camera'ed with mag-lock security on every door and motion detectors. I have set off the alarms more than once when doing weekend work. Fortunately, if I call the central station with the "safe" word before the cops show up, there's no harm.

I've only had to go in three times in the past 13 years. Once for my upgrade debacle described above. Once when a terminal server hung on reboot after an MS update. and once when our email server supposedly had croaked, because they couldn't get it to boot and they ... and I quote ... "Tried everything". And they did try everything ... power button, reset button, power switch, unplug, reseat RAM and processors and a few other things. And, I would have been impressed, except for one thing. IT WAS THE WRONG #$%^ing SERVER they were doing this to. Luckily the box they THOUGHT was the email server was a new box that was to become the new email server eventually, but had not yet been deployed.

You know what? I miss working! Even the ridiculous "I've tried EVERYTHING, but it's dead, just dead!" "Yeah, because you didn't see that the power plug had come loose, you BLANKING moron!"

(No, that never actually happened to me, but it's a handy IT story/myth/legend/lore to pull out to make a point.)

One day, when I was working from home, my boss--the only person above me, the owner of the company--called in a tizzy. She was trying to do...some THING I cannot recall now, on her computer. Her window$ computer.

I swear our conversation sounded like an Abbott and Costello routine! It started when I told her to go to "My Computer"--I'm laughing so hard as I write this--and she asked why I wanted her to go unlock my office to get to *MY* computers. (Excuse me while I ROFLMFAO for a moment...) "No, not MY computer, 'My Computer' on YOUR computer..."

I absolutely assure you that in that moment, it was anything but hilarious. A task--and phone call--that should've taken two minutes ended up wasting...I don't remember...but a lot of time, precious time I needed to be spending on my project. But how do you tell the owner to BLANK off?!

(I loved her, by the way. We became great friends and confidants. And when I got Freddie Mercury and his sister, Queen (Great Danes), it was her idea that I could bring Little Freddie to work.)

I miss working. Cherish each moment, even the crappy ones, because one day--which could come unexpectedly soon, as for me--those memories are all you'll have left.

 

[lunatic59]

and she asked why I wanted her to go unlock my office to get to *MY* computers.

Which is exactly why I have remote agents on ALL work PC's and a persistent VPN tunnel between my house and the office. I can take control at any given point, from my phone or tablet if I have to.

 

[MoodyBlues]

Which is exactly why I have remote agents on ALL work PC's and a persistent VPN tunnel between my house and the office. I can take control at any given point, from my phone or tablet if I have to.

We were still on 9600 baud dialup modems at the time.

Trust me, TODAY I'd do what you're doing!