How To: Make Your Own Ubuntu Repository DVDs

[BobSongs]

Oh Yeah, by the way, the APTonCD works great until you run(sudo apt-get clean), then I guess the cache file is gone......like most things, I learnt it the hard way.

I think you hit upon my first "Huh?" with APTonCD: the need to never clear your apt cache. On a larger drive that's not a problem. For smaller drives though, hmmm.

Still: it's a clever idea. I just think that APTonCD's fine for the "user", the original downloader of all the files that'll be burned to CD. However, friends might not find any of those files useful. So handing them all the repositories on 5 DVDs is a whole lot cooler.

That's my opinion and that's why I pursued this tutorial and I keep it nice and polished.

[greentree-sa]

Hi all, Please move this if needed!!

I have gone to the trouble of downloading from ftp.leg.uct.ac.za, the 5 repo DVD's and 1 CD of Hardy 8.04. ( silly I Known...)

Now the big question: How do I convert those DVD's to a local mirror on a harddrive, and then updating my local mirror over time?

I have a Ubuntu server with samba etc, and I would like to dump the mirror on it in order for me to update/install "stuff" to other Ubuntu boxes from it.

All I can find is How2's to make DVD's from a mirror.....and I need the sequence to do the exercise the other way round...

All feedback would be GREATLY appreciated...

Thanks in advance
Christiaan

[BobSongs]

Hi all, Please move this if needed!!

I have gone to the trouble of downloading from ftp.leg.uct.ac.za, the 5 repo DVD's and 1 CD of Hardy 8.04. ( silly I Known...)

Now the big question: How do I convert those DVD's to a local mirror on a harddrive, and then updating my local mirror over time?

I have a Ubuntu server with samba etc, and I would like to dump the mirror on it in order for me to update/install "stuff" to other Ubuntu boxes from it.

All I can find is How2's to make DVD's from a mirror.....and I need the sequence to do the exercise the other way round...

All feedback would be GREATLY appreciated...

Thanks in advance
Christiaan

Sadly, your request is outside the range of my knowledge. I've never setup up a series of Ubuntu PCs with one as a server. So I'm at a loss as to how to answer this question.

I understand that having a server serve the files is the most efficient way of serving these files. So if anyone wishes to contribute to this answer, please: feel free.

This thread appears to have the answer your looking for. If not, it's a start that may lead you in the right direction.

Sorry.

[linuxmilk]

I really like the idea about having a local copy of all the ubuntu repositories on my harddrive. So thanks goes to people how made this tutorials possible. Some info about my laptop: MacBook Pro laptop with 120 GB harddisk. Half the size goes to MacOS Leopard. I also have external usb harddrive with 250 GB for backup purpose. I made a separate home partition for easy ubuntu install on 28 GB. I have downloaded the entire ubuntu repositories about 23 GB. Unfortuntly i have a lack of space in my harddrive because i keep a lot files in there. I was forced to move the downloaded files to my external harddrive while downloading. Later I added them as a source i Synaptic. It works well.

PS: I don't want to create dvd's. I just want to keep them as they are in their folders.

Questions:

* But how can i update the Ubuntu, Canonical and MediBuntu repositories since it no longer is in my home folder?
* If i restart step 3 in your tutorial again how can it "read" the ubuntu repositories on my external harddrive?
* Can i download a new repository directly to my external harddrive?


Thanks, Kim

[k3lt01]

I have a similar system to what you have and want, my repos are on my 500 GB Seagate external drive. I have a folder on that drive called Repositories with a txt file for all the repos I download. I double click in the txt file it gives me the option to open in a few things, I click the terminal option and it opens the terminal and downloads everything into the Repositories folder creating the relevant Ubuntu, Canonical, and Medibuntu folders.

Then you just set up your Synaptic as you have already done.

[linuxmilk]

Okay, but how does that text file look like?

kim

[k3lt01]

Open Text Editor and cut and paste in the appropriate text in the first post in this thread. Name and save that file (I use names like Hardy-Ubuntu, Hardy-Medibunti, Hardy-Canonical) to your Repository folder on your external hard drive, and that's your text file.

[RageAgainstThis]

Everything worked fine with your tutorial except medibuntu and commercial. It is asking for the public .gpg key. I should have written exactly what it said, but I completely forgot until I got to work. The computer using these files has no connection to the internet what so ever.

All I did was download and dpkg-scanpackages, to produce the appropriate packages.gz. My sources list kind of looks like this deb file:/media/REPOS/Medibuntu media as I had no idea what to put after the location of the packages.gz. For big repo an example is given, I have no idea if this is my hold up or not.

Any help or direction would be greatly appreciated.

[BobSongs]

Everything worked fine with your tutorial except medibuntu and commercial...

Mm. OK. I'll give it a look-see.

I've only had problems with it when they've changed critical locations. But thanks for the "heads up".

Let's see what I can do for you.

[BobSongs]

...Any help or direction would be greatly appreciated.

OK: I just tried Canonical and Medibuntu. Did you copy the entire command line? It's a bit long and part of it is hidden on the right of the box. I'm bound by forum rules to publish each command in a [ code ] box even if the formatting sorta sucks.

Here's the code outside the box:

debmirror --nosource -m --passive --host=www.medibuntu.org --root=repo/ --method=http --progress --dist=hardy --section=free,non-free --arch=i386 ~/MediBuntuRepos --ignore-release-gpg

If your code is any shorter than that, be persistent and try again.

Again: I copied my text and gave it a whirl. It worked perfectly. So perfectly I've got to go erase those files now.