On 8/20/2022 3:48 PM, John Boxall wrote: > I created an upgrade script based on something I found a few years ago > that indicated the steps to follow to upgrade from one version of Debian > to another (e.g. Buster 10 to Bullseye 11). As I am going to need to run > this script at some point (I am still running Buster/10 on my systems), > I thought I'd ask the Debian user brain trust to comment/critique the > scripted steps. So here they are: > > > ############### Start > apt -y install aptitude > aptitude search \'~o\' > apt update > apt -y upgrade > apt -y full-upgrade > dpkg -C > apt-mark showhold > # > Update sources.list > # > Update files in sources.list.d > (I don't even have this part started yet....didn't know I needed it the > last time I ran it) > # > apt-get check > apt update > apt list --upgradable > apt-get check > apt -y upgrade > apt -y full-upgrade > aptitude search \'~o\' > ############### End > > Thoughts/critique/criticism/flames/etc >
Hi John, here are my suggestions: You can use apt, apt-get, or aptitude to run the commands that do most of the work, and in your script you chose apt for that task. I recall reading that they do not all use the same algorithm to determine which packages to upgrade and in what order, at each stage of the upgrade. I think I read somewhere that aptitude has the best algorithm, but apt-get is more suitable for a script. I don't remember if there are advantages or disadvantages to using apt. So you should do a little research to try to find the most up-to-date information about the pros and cons of the different apt related tools. The Debian wiki has a page on that, I think. Also, you might want to make sure you record the upgrade session in a logfile so you can examine what the script actually did in case there are problems. And of course, backup or take a snapshot beforehand so you can restore the system back to a working state in case things get broken badly. HTH, Chuck