Re: How pull packages from unstable to a Woody system? (kghostview bug fixed)
tluxt <tluxt@yahoo.com> wrote:
The subject of "pinning" has been discussed several times late last year
on this list and on the Debian-Users list. There were several different
alternatives offered, and I don't have any idea if one is better than
the other. I chose one and implemented it here, and it has worked ok
for me. Here is what I did:
1. Add the "unstable" lines to your /etc/apt/sources.list file. An
easy way mfor me to do this is to duplicate your existing "testing"
lines via a "copy & paste" and then edit the new lines by changing all
instances of "testing" to "unstable". I find this minimized my typos.
2. Create an empty /etc/apt/preferences file if it isn't already there
(touch /etc/apt/preferences), and populate it with the lines below. Or
you can paste in an already pre-made file you got from somewhere via
E-Mail or FTP. The bottom line is you want to have a
/etc/apt/preferences file that look something like this:
Package: *
Pin: release a=testing
Pin-Priority: 777
Package: *
Pin: release a=unstable
Pin-Priority: 333
3. I suggest you read the docs to get a feel for what all this means
and the other commands available. (man apt_preferences) This is a bit
of a heavy read, but it is worth it.
4. Run "apt-get update". This will now get the lists from BOTH
"testing' and "unstable" on your machine.
5. If you run a "apt-get upgrade" it will just upgrade all packages
from "testing" and whatever packages from "unstable" you have already
installed.
6. If you install a new package with "apt-get install <package name>,
it will ALWAY install the "testing" version.
6. If you want to install a SPECIFIC package from "unstable" just run
"apt-get -t unstable install <package name>". In the case of
installing kghostview from unstable the command would be "apt-get -t
unstable install kghostview".
There are other methods and other recommended "Pin-Priority" numbers
discussed in the previously mentioned messages. You might want to
review them to see all your options. All I can say is this particular
method has worked quite well for me during the last 2-3 months.
Cheers,
-Don Spoon-
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