Discussion, talk and tips
https://forum.puppylinux.com/
I have Puppy (bionic pup 64bit 8.0 uefi) installed as guest on a win10 system, installed to a harddrive image partition so its not just running from the cd image. The updater downloads the Bionic64fix.zip and then nothing happens, each time I run it, it downloads again. Anyone know what is going on? Stuff like Palemoon which has its own updater updates fine.
It might be that the update was completed and since then no new updates using this method are available. Or there is connectivity problem but I am guessing the first thing is more likely happening.
Looking at Quickpet installed bugfixes.txt no recent bug fixes were applied, last one was from 2020, so not sure whats going on.
So I was wondering if there were a way to manually apply it, i couldn't find the zip file on the system.
Looking at Quickpet installed bugfixes.txt no recent bug fixes were applied, last one was from 2020, so not sure whats going on.
Please understand that this is not a system update tool that updates completely everything to the present moment and reports about it.
They are more or less bug fixes that appeared after the final ISO release. And the last necessary bug fix was probably in 2020.
If you would like a newer version of Puppy based on Ubuntu, try fossapup64.
The quickpet updater runs /usr/local/quickpet/bionicupdate
which downloads http://distro.ibiblio.org/puppylinux/puppy-tahr/quickpet/bionic64fix.zip
which has date 2020-Jul-14 13:58:22
Ah ok, will look into fosspup then, thanks
I just want to clarify that Fossapup64 is built on newer version of Ubuntu, i.e. it has newer components.
But the principle of updating in quickpet is the same as in Bionicpup64.
Ah ok, I have a feeling ubuntu base will be more resource hungry though, so maybe less useful.
@Enermax I think you will find Fossapup64 runs very well in VirtualBox machines and is not as "heavy" as a regular Ubuntu.
Give it a try out
Before you try Fossapup64 consider this and ask yourself what are your objectives:
Puppys are modular by design. Its components consist of:
(a) initrd(.?g) --the initial RAM disk which is loaded into RAM containing instructions as to which other components to copy or mount in RAM;
(b) the kernel group: vmlinuz, zdrv_XXX.sfs and sometimes fdrv_XXX.sfs. vmlinuz is the 'engine, and drive-train' of a Linux operating system, for and upon which the other components are constructed and by which they are powered. zdrv_xxx.sfs are drivers [of a computer's hardware] which must be compiled against vmlinuz. fdrv_xxx.sfs is the firmware also required to communicate with a computer's hardware, but can be used with any vmlinuz. [Devs publishing Puppys or 'hughe-kernel' packages sometime package both firmware and drivers in the zdrv.sfs].
(c) Puppy_XXX.sfs --this is the 'body' of the system. It includes the file-manager and window-manager; those applications the 'average' User will want to perform tasks such as browsing the web, writing a letter, draw a picture, listen to a music collection; and the infra-structure to 'link' those to the kernel-group.
(d) adrv.sfs and/or ydrv.sfs --optional additional applications the Puppy's developer thought some users might want. If present adrv.sfs and ydrv.sfs will always be copied into RAM on boot-up. Anyone can package together any group of applications as a adrv.sfs or a ydrv.sfs. These are just 'squashed-file-systems' initrd instructs to make use of if present. [And Puppys can make use of other file-systems --packaged as SFSes, or as AppImages-- which need not be loaded on boot-up].
Because the 'kernel-group' is independent of the 'body', it is easy to 'swap' the kernel-group which came in the Fossapup64 ISO for that which came in the Bionicipup64 ISO; thus 'upgrading' Bionicpup64. Or look here for even newer 'kernels' or even older ones if a newer kernel-group does not provide the drivers required to communicate with an older computer's hardware. viewforum.php?f=65.
With two exceptions applications a User employs to 'do stuff' never have to be 'updated/upgraded'. The latest 'fire-fox' will happily run OOTB under Xenialpup which was released 5 years ago. Tahrpup-era (published 7 years ago) LibreOffice will happily run OOTB under Fossapup.
One exception is that the User needs the 'bells and whistles' only available in a newer version of an application. That exception often comes with a price. Newer applications may have as dependencies Qt5, gtk3 and similar 'new-fangled' infra-structures while older application required the older, smaller and less RAM-demanding analogs Qt, gtk2 and similar.
Usually if a Puppy does not include the infra-structure required by an application, that infra-structure can be installed.
The above explains why Bionicpup64's Quickpet does not provide anything newer than 2020. Once Ubuntu 'fixed' any latent bugs in Ubuntu Bionic Beaver and those fixes had been incorporated into Bionicpup, there was no reason to 'update' or 'upgrade' the base system. Specific software upgrades are a choice left to the User's needs and discretion.
The other exception is more limiting. Security demands and graphic possibilities by Google, Mozilla and Websites require that Web-browser be constantly updated to provide or comply with that security or permit the proper rendering of content.
Puppys can not always be retro-fitted with the ‘infra-structure’ required by currently acceptable web-browsers. Without getting into specifics, the infrastructure of 5 year old Xenialpup is just barely acceptable while that of Tahrpup may not be and could not be retro-fitted to comply with Google’s demands. I think it can still run current ‘Mozillas’. [I no longer have my computer setup to boot into Tahrpup so I can’t easily check].
Bionicpup64 Quickpet->Info->Bionicpup updates has nothing to do with anything that happens to Ubuntu Linux.
It is used by the developer of Bionicpup64 8.0, as a way to easily provide bug fixes or improvements, he may want to provide, after the Bionicpup64 8.0 ISO was released.
Nothing new has been needed since 2020.
So all it will do is download the last update from 2020.
A fresh new install of Bionicpup64 8.0
Will not have those updates. They are not in the ISO.
So it is good idea to run Bionicpup updates after doing the new install.
Fossapup64 9.5 is basically the newer release of what was Bionicpup64 8.0
It has mostly newer everything.
Plus all the improvements to Puppy Linux, at the time of Fossapup64 9.5 release.