Re: Verification of apt-get config for mixed system.

[Dale Hair <dale@meridian-electric.com>]

On Thu, 2003-01-23 at 06:32, Lloyd Zusman wrote:
> I'd like to maintain a "testing" system, with only one program (and its
> dependencies) coming from "unstable".  I think I understand what to do,
> but I'm hoping that someone here could confirm that my guessed-at setup
> is correct ... before I start making lots of "apt-get install" runs with
> this configuration and then possibly mess up my system.
> 
> What I want to do is always just enter "apt-get install <package>",
> without having to use the "-t distribution" parameter.  This way, I
> don't have to keep remembering when to use and not use "-t ...".
> 
> So ... here's what I have:
> 
> In /etc/apt/apt.conf ...
> 
>   APT::Default-Release "testing";
> 
> In /etc/apt/preferences ...
> 
>   Package: mplayer*
>   Pin: release a=unstable
>   Pin-Priority: 700
> 
>   Package: *
>   Pin: release a=testing
>   Pin-Priority: 650
> 
>   Package: *
>   Pin: release a=unstable
>   Pin-Priority: 600
> 
> In other words, all packages come by default from "testing" except
> "mplayer", which comes by default from "unstable".
> 
> My desired results are:
> 
>   apt-get install mplayer-686     => installs latest from "unstable"
> 
>   apt-get install other-package   => installs latest from "testing",
>                                      unless "other-package" only exists
>                                      in "unstable", in which case it
>                                      installs from "unstable"
> 
> Do I have it right?
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> 
> -- 
>  Lloyd Zusman
>  ljz@asfast.com

This should work but I don't pin individual packages on mine just the
distributions.  Once a package is installed from unstable apt-get
upgrade or dist-upgrade will upgrade those from unstable and testing
will follow testing.  My preferences file contains 

Package: *
Pin: release a=testing
Pin-Priority: 600

Package: *
Pin: release a=unstable
Pin-Priority: 550

I always use the -s option for apt-get dist-upgrade to show me what will
happen before I actually perform the upgrade.  I use gnome from unstable
and for the past week dist-upgrade wants to remove gnome and a few
others so I used apt-get upgrade.

-- 
Dale Hair <dale@meridian-electric.com>