Bug#1124838: release-notes: 5.1.2. Reduced support for i386: provides incorrect information
ke 7.1.2026 klo 12.52 Justin B Rye (justin.byam.rye@gmail.com) kirjoitti:
>
> Martin-Éric Racine wrote:
> > Release notes for i386 currently state:
> >
> > "The i386 architecture is now only intended to be used on a 64-bit (amd64) CPU.
> > Its instruction set requirements include SSE2 support, so it will not run
> > successfully on most of the 32-bit CPU types that were supported by Debian 12."
> >
> > "Users running i386 systems should not upgrade to trixie. Instead, Debian recommends
> > either reinstalling them as amd64, where possible, or retiring the hardware.
> > Cross-grading without a reinstall is a technically possible, but risky, alternative."
> >
> > The second paragraph is especially problematic since 32-bit hardware
> > cannot run 64-bit binaries.
>
> It doesn't say they can; it's talking about systems currently running
> Debian's i386 arch, which may include 64bit-capable machines. The PC
> I'm writing this on, for instance, was running a 32bit OS when I first
> got it many years ago, but now runs 64bit trixie. Hence the advice
> that users should switch "where possible".
It does imply that they can. "where possible" is too vague.
Additionally, i386 on amd64 hardware is a corner case. Whoever does
this already knows what they're doing. They don't need separate
instructions, let alone a whole section written under the assumption
that if someone is still running something on the i386 port, they do
so on amd64.
What's instead needed is a section that emphasizes what users with
real i386 hardware need to know: Don't upgrade, since your hardware no
longer is supported, except maybe if it's Intel Core or newer, and,
even then, we don't ship any kernel, so you're have to track Bookworm
kernels. What we instead recommend is retiring your 32-bit hardware.
> Still, if this is unclear, maybe we ought to rephrase it. Would it
> help if the second paragraph said something like "Users running the
> i386 version of bookworm should not upgrade to trixie"?
It wouldn't help by much.
Martin-Éric
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