Tips for upgrading Ubuntu
Directly upgrading Ubuntu from the internet can take a lot of time and internet bandwidth, so many people prefer doing a fresh install by downloading the ISO or by ordering a CD. Having to again install all your favourite applications on your new system can be a nightmare. Here are some tips that will make your life easier.
1) Backup all files in /var/cache/apt
Whenever you install a new application, all packages are downloaded to this location. Simply copy all files and folders in this location to some other place, and copy them back again after installing the new version of Ubuntu. When you try to install the same applications again, the packages in this folder will be used by apt instead of re-downloading them. It will save a lot of time and internet bandwidth. Also useful for installing packages when you are not connected to the internet.
Note: If you are connected to the internet and newer versions are available, then the newer packages will be downloaded and installed.
Note: Instead of doing this manually you can use an application called AptOnCD which will automatically burn these packages on a CD/DVD for you. Type apt-get install aptoncd in a terminal window to install it.
2) Create an installation script
Creating an installation script is very easy. After installing a fresh copy of Ubuntu simply connect to the internet and run the script. All your favourite apps will be downloaded and installed automatically. For example, consider the following script:
sudo -i
apt-get install sun-java6-bin sun-java6-jre
apt-get install ubuntu-restricted-extras
apt-get install rar p7zip-full gnochm
apt-get install gparted cups-pdf sensors-applet aptoncd
Save it to a file named update.sh in your home folder and run it by typing the following in a command window:
sh update.sh
It will take some time and effort to identify the package names for all your favourite applications and to create the script. But once the script is created it will make your life a whole lot easier the next time you reinstall your OS.
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