Did the X11 update do this?

[clemens at dwf.com]

> On Tue, Apr 12, 2005 at 11:52:36AM -0600, clemens at dwf.com wrote:
> > > Unless maybe they're running apt out of cron? Apt sometimes tries to
> > > remove packages to get the system into a state it likes.
> > Wow...
> > Yes this apt WAS run from cron.
> > Can you give more details on your statement or point me to some reference.
> > Now Im REALLY scared...
> 
> I imagine that you're using "dist-upgrade" instead of "upgrade" so that the
> automatic apt-get will pull in new dependencies, parse "Obsoletes:", and so
> on. The further impact of this is that if a new package conflicts with
> something on your system, it will try to remove packages until it gets
> things into a non-conflicting state.
> 
> Make this not happen *and* still have automatic updates work reliably gets
> complicated. If you look at the man page for apt_preferences you'll find one
> approach. Alternately, you can look at /etc/apt/rpmpriorities -- packages in
> Essential or Required won't be removed even with --assume-yes -- they
> require a special extra prompt.
> 
> Alterately, you could use yum, which endeavors to be safer and will never
> remove packages as part of an upgrade (while still pulling in new
> dependencies and solving obsoletes).
> 

Your analysis is right on.
I have a number of machines, and they live behind a firewall that I do not
control (which is to say, they make changes and never tell you what they did
till you scream).  In any case its simpler to run a script that sucks things
into my own repository, and update from there.

I have an apt-get that runs from cron to update the various machines.

So, it looks like Ill be changing from apt-get to yum.   I had considered
that once before but dont think I found enough documentation on yum to
convert the repository.  Guess Ill look again... I see the man page,
and a short README, will have to see if thats enough to do the deed.

Thanks again, having things just dissapear is upsetting to say the least.


-- 
                                        Reg.Clemens
                                        reg at dwf.com