how to remote update 4.10 -> 5.3?

[Brooks Davis]

On Wed, Dec 29, 2004 at 09:49:10PM +0100, Palle Girgensohn wrote:
> 
> 
> --On onsdag, december 29, 2004 12.36.01 -0800 Brooks Davis 
> <brooks at one-eyed-alien.net> wrote:
> 
> >On Wed, Dec 29, 2004 at 09:30:37PM +0100, Palle Girgensohn wrote:
> >>Has anyone managed to update a 4.10 system to 5.3 remotely, i.e. without
> >>console access, and without spare disk partitions?
> >>
> >>I have a bunch of 4.10 machines that are too far away for me to actually
> >>do  the update hands on. I've tried it on a test machine, it fails half
> >>way  through installworld, and really needs single user mode to succeed.
> >>The  install procedure fails since it starts using the newly installed
> >>stuff,  things like sh(1) and test(1), and they cannot find their
> >>libc.so.5, I  guess...
> >>
> >>One idea I have is copying / and /usr to some other place and set
> >>ldconfig  and PATH=some/other/place and when building and installing.
> >>Haven't tried  it yet, thought I'd hear anyone on this list has a better
> >>suggestion?
> >>
> >>Optimally, there would a couple of gigs on a separate spare disk
> >>partition  so I could just install everything there and use it upon
> >>reboot. Problem  is, there is no such space. :(
> >
> >In general, my suggestion would be, don't do that.  Do you really need
> >to upgrade?  Remember, 4.11 is likely to be supported for security
> >upgrades into early 2006 so if your machines are working and you don't
> >really need the new functionality, I'd suggest avoiding an upgrade.
> 
> Well, I need wide char support, as in iswlower and the likes. Maybe I could 
> use some portability lib or similar...? Ideas?
> 
> BTW, do you mean that 5.3 is not stable enough, or just that it is a 
> nuisance to upgrade? While I agree that 4.10 is very stable, a lot of 
> things have improved with 5.x...

If you need the improved wide char support, then you will probably have
to upgrade.  5.3 is generally stable, but I personally think upgrading
for 4.x by any method other then a new install is a bad idea.  It's
certaintly possiable, but not trivial.  I believe the instructions in
UPDATING should work, but I've never tried them remotely.

-- Brooks

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