Upgrade to Kubuntu 9.04: a nightmare! (Part 1)

Surely you've read in a lot of the blogs out the first May of the new version of Ubuntu, the 9.04.

Same day Canonical has also updated the versions of Ubuntu, including Kubuntu, which replaces Gnome with KDE. As one who reads me some time surely remember, I am a happy user of both the Kubuntu laptop and the desktop of the office, both of.

After reading some "exciting," reviews the 9:04 version I decided to update both systems: in particular all seem to agree on the best performance (equal to `hardware) and the use of hard disk (thanks to ' introduced as a new format for the ext4 file system) that use the video card (thanks to the new version dell'Xserver).

I then downloaded the Alternate CD via BitTorrent: of course I could do the upgrade online, but since I had to update two systems more surely some other machine in the office, the alternate CD was the best route.

`I will tell you briefly my experience, trying to make you" relive "the nightmare that I lived and I'm still living.

Upgrading laptop

The first update I did on the laptop: a hardware level is the machine that has more problems, especially for the WiFi card, among other things is the only machine where I dual boot with Windows XP is configured and running the risk of the update was minimal.

The first problem is arising during the process of configuring the new packages from option CD (which I had installed directly from a USB stick instead of burning it). After finding some of the conflicts in the configuration file is given me the possibility to choose what to do: take my side, take the new version of losing my changes, try to do a "merge" Automatic differences. `` More for curiosity than anything else I've tried to choose this third option .. Despite the message was clear enough (this functionality is in beta and might not work) I never expected that not only generate an error but interrompese whole process of upgrading! Fortunately again raising has picked up where he left off, allowing me to find myself still end up with a completely updated 9:04.

Everything seemed to be going well, except that the first reboot the WiFi refuses to connect to my network: to put all the card is enabled (the little light turns on WiFi on the laptop), but a scan for available networks does not detect no network. I recall an issue of network manager (knetworkmanager): I read in the release notes that with the new version has been added a "plasma" (an "active" components to be placed on the desktop of KDE) for the network manager, but this does not starts automatically after an upgrade.

Unfortunately, even passing a command line and trying to enable the WiFi hand, the results were the same, no network found. After a moment of despair I had a boot in Windows XP to try to find some information on the Internet: anything that goes really well, just a message on a forum that should install wicd to configure the network. Certainly was not my problem as a command line things did not work.

Remade a boot Kubuntu, after a dozen trials scanning command line, I came is strong doubt that it was a rights problem .. I tried it then do the scanning as superuser e.. voila `the list of network finally available! I tried then to launch knetworkmanager by super user: surprise, asks me to log on to KWallet! The KWallet is a system for ensuring the safety of KDE. In practice is a collector of security information (username password) that other applications can use only if authorized by the superuser. Belonging that I had already authorized to access knetworkmanager KWallet, the strange thing is that after upgrading the system at 9:04 I had more stefani la main password KWallet: This is usually done when you start KDE to open KWallet for the first time (in reality would be more correct to say that you make the first time an application requests access to information).

Problem identified and then, for some strange reason doing the update knetworkmanager has lost its association with the KWallet. Not only that, the same user (one system) seems to have lost the right to do scanning WiFi card.

I was already ready to start reconfiguring the rights when I remade yet another reboot, and miracle of miracles comes on screen KWallet main password and the network card to connect! That it has released the cast as superuser? I do not know what to say, remains a mystery ..

After about 4 hours + 1 hour for the procedure for updating your laptop is back online!

But of course the problems are over, after upgrading compiz does not start more. The strange thing is that it seems completely disappeared fusion-icon! Trying to reinstall it from the repository can be seen quite clearly that something bad must have happened to the database apt-get, because the installation fails with an error about some files that do not exist phyton!

X is also one that looks like a slow snail but a penguin! And this without even compiz .. a small check and everything is immediately explained, with the move to 9:04 the system does not use more proprietary NVidia drivers for your graphics card. Of course, before the upgrade I was using the proprietary drivers with good performance and compiz working perfectly.

Here I stopped the installation on the laptop is a testing ground, I have no major problems to start from scratch and reinstall a clean 9:04 .. hoping to have better luck!

To sum up, the cost of '(attempted) upgrade laptop: 6 hours and then still having to reinstall everything after this first experience, the advice is: avoid the update if you're an expert user, or if you can not afford to lose a number of hours!

(continue with the upgrade on desktop)

Tags: Kubuntu, Ubuntu
Categories: linux
5 Comments »

5 Responses to "Upgrade to Kubuntu 9.04: a nightmare! (Part 1) "

Alex - Microsmeta wrote a comment on May 9, 2009

Andrea, I think it is once again the fault of KDE 4!

I installed Ubuntu 9.04 (Gnome) on 3 PCs. A P4 3.06 NVIDIA MX 440, a Notebook Athlon XP 2800 + ATI Radeon Mobile 9200, and an Athlon XP + 200th NVIDIA MX 440. Everything old hardware. I have both feeds running Ubuntu version Plus 2, which installs, on VirtualBox and Wubi and I work all: Internet, LAN, wifi, Compiz (but not on Virtualbox) and I'm writing from a PC running Ubuntu 9.04 where potentially worse GOOD. Even on the notebook running XP in 2008 we do a virtualboxcon a total of 1.256 K available. I tried several times to install Kubuntu 4, 4.0x, 4.1, 4.2, and I always had too many problems io.Ti encourage you to try (even) Ubuntu 9.04, maybe even from a live CD. In addition to the fragmentation of 20th distributions there are also factions KDE / Gnu and is difficult to switch from one barricade to another, but for me Ubuntu (although with different problems all solved firtunatamente) works fine. I'd like to hear the opinion of Charles TA, in Mapo, The One Electronic, SilviaKittys and all of your readers / listeners to have as much evidence as possible ... I think you know more than you, but if I can help you (I wrote a lot of post about it, you know where to find me )

The Nissardo wrote a comment on May 9, 2009

Dear Alex, I always read with great interest all your articles about the various distributions Canonical. In the second part of this post (which I hope to finish in a couple of days) you will see that the problems I had with the desktop are much more serious and, unfortunately, also confirmed on Ubuntu.
Almost all the problems I had are related to having upgraded existing systems and highly personalized; the desktop has never been reinstalled from 7.04, to date, and every upgrade I had big problems (the best was 7.04 -> 7.10). And do not talk about old hardware or very confusing.
Once solved the problems all the machines work great, so my way is not a criticism of Linux .. surely there is a problem at Canonical about the cycles of QA. The problems I had can not be tolerated in a distribution that has the objective "Linux on every desktop." If what is happened to me had happened to an inexperienced user of Linux would be pain! I've gotten myself well, even if the desktop in the end I only lost time, data or anything like that ever .. but time costs, if a company had a 20in machine and decided to update them with the same problems that I had, the cost in terms of time man would be equal (if not superior) to a license from Microsoft.

As I read on a blog pro-Linux, if Microsoft had released an update so catastrophic as to Canonical for ATI cards (this mostly will talk `in the next post) he would have spoken on the news all over the world. Fortunately we are not yet Canonical at these levels, Linux users are still the "experts" and get away if they know well. But before we can bring Ubuntu / Kubuntu as an alternative to Windows for all it has to flow of water under the bridge.
This from one who is installed the first version of Linux using floppy 7

Lapo wrote a comment on June 14, 2009

I admire guys that open source but I have broken the xxxxxxx!
I can not be upgraded to nine and not part of the primary video driver ati, so needless to recover from fixsever mode! but it is possible there are always problems one can not stand to lose days !!!!!

The Nissardo wrote a comment on June 15, 2009

As I understand! I have not had time to write part two of this post, but I just talked about the problem you've had!
One thing I agree .. nothing to do with open source, but Canonical, a company that is beautiful and good