How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

[kyonides]

I know that in Adept or Synaptic there's some Cancel button that may allow you to cancel a download / installation / update, but how can I do the same thing while using apt-get on Konsole?

[flarson]

Re: How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

Ctl-c

[GreyGeek]

Re: How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

Ctl-c

On the download phase that would stop the update/upgrade. But, once the packages are being installed interrupting the process could leave your distro/desktop in a mixed, unstable state.

[flarson]

Re: How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

You are right about that. It is better to think before you start. It is almost certainly true, though, that dpkg --configure -a will straighten out most of those problems and aptitude install will fix any leftovers.

[GreyGeek]

Re: How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

You are right about that. It is better to think before you start. It is almost certainly true, though, that dpkg --configure -a will straighten out most of those problems and aptitude install will fix any leftovers.

Really? "--configure -a" will work only on unpacked but unconfigured packages.

--configure package...|-a|--pending
Reconfigure an unpacked package. If -a or --pending is given instead of package, all unpacked but
unconfigured packages are configured.

Configuring consists of the following steps:

1. Unpack the configuration files, and at the same time back up the old configuration files, so that
they can be restored if something goes wrong.

2. Run postinst script, if provided by the package.

That would usually be only one or a few packages. In an update like some of the recent ones, where 65 or 95 packages are being updated at once, using Ctl-C inn the middle of that would be a total mess. About the only way to clear it would be to "untask" the current desktop, task a prior version, and then retask the current one. Reinstalling would be an option IF the release was recent and 800MB of updated didn't have to be installed.

[flarson]

Re: How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

What do you mean "untask the current desktop".

The packages do install a few at a time. If you stop it while it is installing something (admittedly taking a chance) a package or two will be left in a partial state and dpkg --configure -a will take care of those. Others will not be installed but dpkg will know what is and what is not installed. You will still be able to run a full-upgrade at any time and pick up where you left off. It is true that you might find yourself with a package that is installed and something it depends on is not installed but "aptitude install" should fix that even without an upgrade. It will certainly not be necessary to uninstall and reinstall your whole system. If a package did require reinstalling you could so it simply with "aptitude reinstall package".

[GreyGeek]

Re: How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

Some repositories contains "task-xxx", a link which contains all the necessary sublinks to fully add or remove a package OR a desktop. Unfortunately, JJ's repository doesn't have those.

[flarson]

Re: How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

If you are talking about tasksel it is in Jaunty.

[GreyGeek]

Re: How do I cancel an update / upgrade in CLI?

If you are talking about tasksel it is in Jaunty.

That's the puppy!

In Mandriva they have "task-kde3" and "task-kde4" for switching between those two desktops. Apparently, "tasksel" does the same thing. That's nice to know.