Which do you prefer, upgrade or clean install?

[pi.boy.travis]

When dealing with new releases, do you prefer to upgrade or do a clean install, and why?

[lukjad]

Clean install with a few choice hidden folders for profiles, game scores, etc.

[tuxxy]

Next time intrepids getting fresh install

[zmjjmz]

Whichever works better.

[Shazaam]

Clean install after testing/tweaking with VMware/VirtualBox.

[RiceMonster]

Clean install, but since I use a rolling distro (Arch), neither is necessary :D.

[Foster Grant]

Upgrade. I've spent a lot of time making Ubuntu look and behave the way I prefer and I don't want to have to go through all that again.

[agurk]

Upgrade has worked fine for me on this laptop since Dapper (4 upgrades). On other machines I have used fresh installs to get rid of old cruft that I didn't fancy removing manually.

[Yuki_Nagato]

I can usually stretch my important files across online storage and flash drives.

And then Clean Install.

It is a great excuse to "clean out your desk" and remove lots of the clutter.

[RiceMonster]

I can usually stretch my important files across online storage and flash drives.

And then Clean Install.

It is a great excuse to "clean out your desk" and remove lots of the clutter.

Yeah, I like the clean and fresh feeling I get after a new install. It feels like there's a lot less crap on my computer

[Vitamin-Carrot]

Clean install after running a VM to create the settings and profiles i want to import from usb flash drive.

[Foster Grant]

Upgrade has worked fine for me on this laptop since Dapper (4 upgrades). On other machines I have used fresh installs to get rid of old cruft that I didn't fancy removing manually.

I've set up Synaptic to remove orphaned packages. Cleans things up nicely after an upgrade.

[pi.boy.travis]

I've set up Synaptic to remove orphaned packages. Cleans things up nicely after an upgrade.

How did you go about doing that?

Very interesting answers. . . :popcorn:

[Foster Grant]

How did you go about doing that?

This way:


You can do this with Synaptic, too.

1. Install deborphan.
2. Create a custom filter in Synaptic. (Settings->Filters->New).
3. Give it a name ("Orphaned packages" for example).
4. Uncheck all the checkboxes on the right except "Orphaned".
5. Click "OK".

There you are. You can now click "Coustom" in the lower left of the window and select your newly created filter.

Original topic here (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=43851).

[dizee]

i've done both in the past, i had no real difference in experience apart from having the clutter of programs that i had rarely used being installed. this isn't there with a nice fresh install. however there is the small extra time penalty of setting up stuff the way you want it again.

[kk0sse54]

clean install

[wolfen69]

Yeah, I like the clean and fresh feeling I get after a new install. It feels like there's a lot less crap on my computer

almost sounds like a feminine hygiene advertisement. anyway, i've never done an upgrade. never will. i keep all important files on other partitions/drives, so wiping it out and re-installing every few months is no big deal. i also like that "fresh" feeling.

[y6FgBn)~v]

Clean install.

[-Phi-]

I usually upgrade but do a clean install every few releases (with a saved /home partition). I find that work-arounds I do sometimes end up getting solved by developers in upgrades, and it's nice to use the clean "official" solutions.

Then I get back to recustomizing it just the way it was :p

- Phi

[DigitalDuality]

d

[hansdown]

For the most part, my mantra is,"a clean install solves all." Only because I'm not as technically adept as some of our members.

[chris4585]

clean install. period.

[Canis familiaris]

Clean Install

[pi.boy.travis]

This way:



Original topic here (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=43851).

Thanks!

I usually do a clean install myself, because I almost always have done some hacking and tinkering. 8.04 worked really well out of the box though, and I haven't done anything like that so far. I suppose I can only decide once I try 8.10.

:)

[dominiquec]

Clean install, but it's a bad habit I picked up from Windows many, many years ago. :-(

I might try an upgrade next time.

On the other hand, I've found that it really helps to keep / and /home directories in separate partitions. When I have to reinstall, my data in /home is intact. Most of my personal settings are in my /home directory anyway.

[dizee]

Clean install, but it's a bad habit I picked up from Windows many, many years ago. :-(

I might try an upgrade next time.

On the other hand, I've found that it really helps to keep / and /home directories in separate partitions. When I have to reinstall, my data in /home is intact. Most of my personal settings are in my /home directory anyway.
i reinstalled without /home being on a separate partition and if you make sure the box to format the partition isn't ticked, it keeps your home directory intact. probably still safer to use a separate partition though, and you should always have a backup either way.