Re: Debian SID questions and answers
Posted: 2019-12-06 17:07
Well, in the end it turns out that SID is still a usable system.
That may depend on what parts of it you wish to use. Some parts may not be usable at all for some time. It isn't a stable system; that's why it's called "unstable." It's meant to be a quarry for "testing"where packages are subsequently tested for security, stability and compatibility with all the other packages.zoli62 wrote:Well, in the end it turns out that SID is still a usable system.
"sid" is subject to massive changes and in-place library updates. This can result in a very "unstable" system which contains packages that cannot be installed due to missing libraries, dependencies that cannot be fulfilled etc. Use it at your own risk!
Nevertheless, kudos to all intrepid users who run sid as their main system despite the warnings.Please note that security updates for "unstable" distribution are not managed by the security team. Hence, "unstable" does not get security updates in a timely manner.
I think I'm brave and experienced enough to run Sid and similar systems on a daily computer. Because my machine also serves test purposes.kedaha wrote:That may depend on what parts of it you wish to use. Some parts may not be usable at all for some time. It isn't a stable system; that's why it's called "unstable." It's meant to be a quarry for "testing"where packages are subsequently tested for security, stability and compatibility with all the other packages.zoli62 wrote:Well, in the end it turns out that SID is still a usable system.
These are the two reasons I don't use it for my workstation:"sid" is subject to massive changes and in-place library updates. This can result in a very "unstable" system which contains packages that cannot be installed due to missing libraries, dependencies that cannot be fulfilled etc. Use it at your own risk!Nevertheless, kudos to all intrepid users who run sid as their main system despite the warnings.Please note that security updates for "unstable" distribution are not managed by the security team. Hence, "unstable" does not get security updates in a timely manner.
There are several ways of getting the "fresh" releases of apps like Firefox running on Stable--getting Firefox is one of the most common questions asked and answered here, in fact. Most of the answers involve either a backported version, or something like a flatpak or AppImage.zoli62 wrote:I've been using Debian for a long, long time. I respect your opinion, but the fresh, crunchy packages of popular applications cannot be found in the official repositories of the Debian stable release, just a simple Firefox browser, for example. That is why I think it makes sense to use at least testing instead of stable release.
Ignore the bit about avoiding dist-upgrade (or apt full-upgrade). This will eventually break something if you don't do it regularly.zoli62 wrote:This is also a strategy for running Debian Sid. https://linuxconfig.org/how-to-run-debi ... ely-safely
That's a piss-poor "guide", the author doesn't even know what a FrankenDebian is...zoli62 wrote:This is also a strategy for running Debian Sid. https://linuxconfig.org/how-to-run-debi ... ely-safely
Thanks for sharing this link. I am running current testing thinking that was the best way to run on newer code. Seems there is an even better way.kedaha wrote:If I want any more up-to-date software, which is not often, I follow the recommendations given in Newer_Software_For_Debian_Stable. The stable distribution is what sets Debian apart from any other distro, something I think which isn't always fully appreciated. However, I take my hat off to anyone who wants to make either sid or testing their main operating system and who doesn't mind "the life of eternal updates", specially if they take the trouble to debug "broken functionalities" and submit bug reports and the like.
Good to answer your own question - answer is no -- https://wiki.debian.org/SystemDowngradejwrober wrote:Can I downgrade from testing to Buster or would I have to start all over?
Yes you are right.Head_on_a_Stick wrote:zoli62 wrote:This is also a strategy for running Debian Sid.
That's a piss-poor "guide", the author doesn't even know what a FrankenDebian is...
https://wiki.debian.org/DontBreakDebian ... bad_adviceUnfortunately there's a lot of bad advice on the Internet. Tutorials found on blogs, forums and other sites often include instructions that will break your system in subtle ways. Don't simply follow the first advice you find, or the tutorial that seems the easiest. Spend some time reading the documentation and compare the difference between tutorials.