# Updating. I must be doing something wrong.



## dcbdbis (Jun 10, 2010)

FreeBSD 8.0, x86, not x64

Installation and operation is peechee. I read the online docs and was able to do all that I needed.

But when it comes time to update my ports, I am following the online guide. The update process, is excruciating. Even though I pass the ports manager the -P switch, to use packages rather than source....I'm getting source files down the wire 80% of the time.

Then it's trying to build it all from source. FreeBSD is on a small NetBook with an Atom Intel proc......It's not powered for this kind of work.

There must be a way to update the installed system, staying within the 8.0 release, using binary packages for installed ports as well as the FreeBSD system, without the agony of building from source.

I have got to be missing something fundamental.....Even though I have one PC where the document is up, and I follow it line for line when working on the little netbook.

Question:

There must be a simple tool where FreeBSD goes out and updates "the world" if a new binary package is available for it. Can someone please help me understand what that is?

or put another way:

What is the easiest way to have FreeBSD update itself, ports included?


Sincerely and Respectfully,


Dave Babb

So


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## zeiz (Jun 10, 2010)

To install only packages *-PP* flag is used.
However if you get 80% from ports (source) 80% of packages are outdated.

If you want newest packages from 8-STABLE branch set environment to show pkg_add where to look for packages:

`# setenv PACKAGESITE [url]ftp://ftp.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ports/i386/packages-8-stable/Latest/[/url]`
It's unclear what exactly "online guide" do you use but it's preferable to use FreeBSD Handbook and FreeBSD wiki.


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## phoenix (Jun 10, 2010)

If you don't want to compile ports, than don't use the ports tree at all.  Instead, use the pkg_* tools (pkg_add(), pkg_info(), pkg_delete()).

You'll want to set the PACKAGESITE environment variable to use the 8-stable packages directory, so that you get updated packages.  Then just use *pkg_add -r appname* to install things.

For upgrades, install the *bsdadminscripts* package and use pkg_upgrade().  Or, install the *portmaster* package, read the man page for it, and configure your /usr/local/etc/portmaster.cf to work without a ports tree.


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## dcbdbis (Jun 10, 2010)

*Additional Information*

The documents I was referring to is the online handbook and the wiki.

And the utilities mentioned in the various posts have all been used.

Zeiz's comment though is enlightening.....It essentially means that the available pre-built binaries are older than the source code in the ports tree. This means performing an upgrade via source is unavoidable.

So...this means that I'll need to put something else on the little notebook. I had it running for 5 days, 24/7 doing source updates and it never finished. I stopped it.

But,I do appreciate the replies!


Thanks!


Dave.............


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## zeiz (Jun 10, 2010)

Not quite. From time to time we have situation when packages are of the same version as ports. I always catch such moments for expansive updates for example kde4.4.3>4.4.4 or gnome2.28>2.30 like it was a week ago.
However right now some important stuff bumped (see /usr/ports/UPDATING), but there is no packages yet built with this stuff, they will appear later so right now I wouldn't recommend massive update with packages.
If one runs updates relatively rear then *portupgrade -RP* is good choice, at least I believe so and do so but I'm on -STABLE. Being on -RELEASE set PACKAGESITE and use packages.
Indeed who said you must have bleeding edge on the notebook that is always in use? Go just 1 step behind the bleeding edge and use only packages!

Follow foenix's advise and install sysutils/bsdadminscripts, then just use *pkg_upgrade*.


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