[kwlug-disc] ubuntu: why do newer kernel packages sometimes get held back on upgrade?

[Paul Nijjar]

On Thu, Jul 01, 2010 at 08:51:21AM -0400, Robert P. J. Day wrote:
> 
>   (normally, i'd ask this on the ubuntu users mailing list but i'm
> getting kind of weirded out by how so many people there don't seem to
> understand questions.)
> 
>   when i do a normal apt-get update/upgrade combo, why is it that
> three kernel-related packages sometimes get held back?  as i read it,
> i can, if i want, run:

I think it depends on the situation and the packages in question. 
The apt-get manpage says about "upgrade": 

"Packages currently installed with new versions available are
retrieved and upgraded; under no circumstances are currently installed
packages removed, or packages not already installed retrieved and
installed. New versions of currently installed packages that cannot be
upgraded without changing the install status of another package will
be left at their current version."

I could see several of the above situations applying in your case, but
without knowing the packages in question it is hard to tell. 

>   $ sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
> 
> to pull them in.  is that the recommended way?  thanks.

If you are not doing crazy things with your APT sources (pinning,
mixing releases, ...) then doing dist-upgrade is pretty safe. The
default is set the way it is for paranoid systems administrators who
fear all change in the systems they administrate. If this is a
personal machine like your laptop, you probably need to worry a lot
less. 

- Paul

-- 
http://pnijjar.freeshell.org