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Re: Changing distributions



Hi,

Daniel Baum wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I am thinking of replacing my Slackware 3.0 system with RedHat 2.1 (or 
> possibly some other distribution, I would go for Debian, but the system 
> is not yet ELF)
>
> I like the idea of RedHat's upgradability, and the variety of packages 
> available under RedHat seems better than under Slackware (particularly 
> for Tcl/Tk, BTW), as well as better configuration programs.
>
I'm rather doubtful if it's worth the effort. Besides, consider the fact that Slackware is more widespread and will probably have some upgrade mechanism in the future. Some people (even here on the list) had a rather frustrating experience while trying
 
> However, my Slackware system works very well, is fully configured, and I 
> have added all kinds of programs to it (in /usr/local) over the last 
> couple of years. I just find it inflexible when it comes time to upgrade 
> it from one version to the  next, which I have done twice.
> 
> The question is this: is it worth it? I understand that you have to 
> format your disk during installation, meaning I can't preserve my current 
> /home and /usr/local directories as they are except by backing them up 
> and restoring the backup. Is this going to cause all kinds of unforeseen 
> problems? Am I letting myself in for unnecessary trauma by fixing 
> something that isn't broken?

Next time, build your system to be more upgradeable:
* Create seperate partitions for /usr/local, /home and /. This way, you only
  have to format the root partition, maintaining all your data.
* Before upgrading, tar all the directories under / which you have changed, like /etc. After the updgare, just untar them, overwtiring the installation defauls  and regaining the system configuration you had before.
* Another option is to upgrade the relevant pacakges manually (not good if you 
  need major upgrade like switching to ELF). 

Gilad Gam.