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Re: Installing Sarge problem

On Monday 13 August 2007 13:44:52 Bob Middaugh wrote:

I'm installing Sarge, installation completes, reboot, set timezone, root
pwd, Apt config pick http and debian.lcs.mit.edu.
After that, I get the ominious message about overwriting the kernel I'm
currently running and how this can be potentially disasterous.
I'm prompted y or n, do I want to remove the running kernel image?
What can I do here to get past this.  At this point, I don't care what
kernel version I'm running.


And Joe Said:
I question why you're installing Sarge in the first place... Etch is the
current stable version of Debian.
That being said, no it is a not a good idea to remove the running kernel.
Install a new one, boot into it, and when you're sure it's working ok, then 
if you wish, remove the old one.
Personally, I always have two kernels available to boot in, just in case. But 
then again, my kernels change quickly and frequently the new one is not
better than the old one.
If you are starting from scratch (i.e. you are running fdisk on everything), then it would be reasonable to continue and replace the running kernel, since you are essentially just trying to get everything up-to-date all at once during the initial installation. If it fails, you don't lose anything except time and you gain knowledge that the status of Sarge is or is not as stable as claimed...
It is odd to be using Sarge vs. Etch, but you must have reasons... ( like a bunch of servers in the field).
And like Joe said, it's always good to have multiple kernels available... I have 3 on every server in the field. 2 of the active smp based kernels (identical copies, so if one gets damaged you can boot to the other...) and 1 of the previously compiled stable kernel on the architecture. 

Enjoy!
Larry Irwin
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