# Convert PC-BSD to FreeBSD



## bugzeo (May 25, 2021)

Hi, I have an installation of PC-BSD before it became TrueOS. Can I just convert it to FreeBSD or must I perform a clean install?


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## George (May 26, 2021)

You can not "just convert it".


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## chungy (May 26, 2021)

Clean install.

It _might_ be possible to convert it by installing FreeBSD on top and deleting old/dangling files. This will never be a supported mechanism and it'll be far simpler to reinstall.


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## Deleted member 30996 (May 26, 2021)

bugzeo said:


> Hi, I have an installation of PC-BSD before it became TrueOS. Can I just convert it to FreeBSD or must I perform a clean install?


When I started using PC-BSD it was at Beta v.0.73, FreeBSD was at 5.x and KDE 3 came standard IIRC. I have all my disks.

I don't know when they dropped .pbi but it's pkg or ports from this point on. I chose to learn ports. pkg is much easier and a lot quicker, but I got a pocket protector in the mail from Beastie and nobody who used .pbi or pkg did.'


You don't get a Desktop Environment or Window Manager either. What you do get is a  Beginnerss Tutorial that uses ports so you aren't lost, but you can use pkg instead and still follow the outline to a Fluxbox desktop. Or the one of your choosing since nobody tells you what to do here.









						Beginners Guide - How To Set Up A FreeBSD Desktop From Scratch
					

I'm going to guide you though the process of getting a fully functional FreeBSD 13.0-RELEASE desktop up and running, complete with system files and security settings, step-by-step as if you've never used UNIX or the command line. Now let's get started:  Insert your boot media and at the Welcome...




					forums.freebsd.org
				




Or at my site. 


			Wallpapers by Trihexagonal
		


Google says my text is too small for a smartphone but I'll jump through that hoop and be back on top before cooltrainer knows what that sinking feeling was.


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## tux2bsd (May 26, 2021)

bugzeo said:


> Hi, I have an installation of PC-BSD before it became TrueOS. Can I just convert it to FreeBSD or must I perform a clean install?


Backup your /home & /root, and so you can reference your PD-BSD config files /etc and /usr/local/etc (or PC-BSD equivalent).  Plus anything else you know you should.
Get a list of your installed software so you can install that on the destination.
Do a fresh install.  Avoid making life hard for yourself (and anyone in future you ask for help).


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## balanga (May 26, 2021)

bugzeo said:


> Hi, I have an installation of PC-BSD before it became TrueOS. Can I just convert it to FreeBSD or must I perform a clean install?


Besides the basic OS have you done much with the system? I assume that PC-BSD followed the same directory structure and mainly differed in that it took you straight into the GUI. I'd suggest getting a list of the pkgs installed as you would probably need to update them. If you have nothing of value on the system, I'd keep a copy of /usr/local/ and then extract base.txz and kernel.txz  from FreeBSD-13.0 RELEASE to /.

That's what I would do anyway..


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## jardows (May 26, 2021)

Years ago, I had installed PC-BSD for my home server due to the installer having an automatic mirror option for easy setup.  Other than that, I really did not do anything the "PC-BSD" way and eventually upgraded (I think to 11.0) using freebsd-update.  It worked, but there were some oddities left over from the PC-BSD install.  Nothing that caused problems, but my server setup was very simple to being with.  I clean installed my server to 12.0, mainly due to getting all new drives (one of my mirrored drives had failed, and I needed more capacity anyway) and a chance for a clean slate.


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## Deleted member 30996 (May 26, 2021)

Nuke it and do a clean install would be my suggestion. 

I have never upgraded a FreeBSD box and never had a problem oft seen in threads associated with upgrading. But I only used pkg to install all my programs for the first time a couple months ago.

And you want a solid base to work from with no Firewall Builder remnants that break pf on boot and plans made to let go unpatched till the next revision. With "Bah" the only response given save silence to annoying objections of doing so. 
How costly the love of the root of all evil...


Beat that dead horse into the ground even after they ride off on it, Weixiong.


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## drhowarddrfine (May 26, 2021)

Can't he just start using it as FreeBSD and deinstall the pcbsd .pbi  stuff? I agree it would be better to just install a clean system and easier too


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## bugzeo (May 26, 2021)

What about this install guide?
How to Install FreeBSD 12.0 with ZFS Filesystem


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## SirDice (May 26, 2021)

How about this one: Handbook: Chapter 2. Installing FreeBSD


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## decuser (May 26, 2021)

As others have said, clean install. That said, there's no compelling reason to blow away your existing files, just mount them as something other than root and use them as references. SirDice's handbook suggestion is probably the best idea. The handbook is your friend and will serve you well on your FreeBSD journey. You didn't say what kind of system this is... if it's a server environment, the base install instructions are adequate to get you going and from there you can install and configure each service you need/want. If it's a desktop environment (KDE, XFCE or ick Gnome), the base install chapter of the handbook is still where you want to start and then read the desktop chapter you're interested in. The actual install and configuration of the desktop is pretty simple - a pkg install command and a few rc.conf changes are all that are usually needed. Getting fancy video cards to do fancy video things are a little trickier, but if you get stuck post and pretty soon someone will provide you some insight or you'll figure your way out of the mess.

I'd suggest you give us some more detail and then we can advise better .


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## Deleted member 30996 (May 27, 2021)

drhowarddrfine said:


> Can't he just start using it as FreeBSD and deinstall the pcbsd .pbi  stuff? I agree it would be better to just install a clean system and easier too


I taught myself to use ports while I used PC-BSD and was there 7 years, not counting 2 I took off to learn about computer security.  The hard way. 

I probably had .PushButtonInstaller and ports mixed and survived many learning experiences to make it here. I used pkg to install all programs on my T43 but have used ports and portmaster with it and it's running now waiting for expat update in ports to patch vulnerability before it hits pkg. 

Because I  know how to deal with the hard things from experience money can't buy and school can't teach. I advise a new usr not to fix what isn't broken and not tweak system or files that are working as intended, and don't don't fiddle with things that could potentially cause problems they do not yet have the experience to work through. 

They become unnecessarily frustrated, start to find fault in FreeBSD, lose interest and blame FreeBSD for their inadequacy because it worked with Linux and they couldn't possibly be at fault.

Unless they are willing to put in the work it takes to learn ports and the finer points of problem solving FreeBSD and doggedly driven to become smarter than anyone around them thought possible.

That's what I wanted, an upgrade, and struggled to figure it out on my own without the Handbook using Grandmaster google-fu lots of trail and errors asking stupid questions no one could or would answer. So I have only asked one questions here and the one I did ask was something about having left IPv6 checked on lynx when I didn't have IPv6 set up and felt stupid asking it.

Now I don't have problems I can't figure out, Didn't know Bo Diddly bout BSD when I started and have written a Beginners Tutorial so people who are at the skill level I was at then don't have to struggle like I did. And it never occurred to me to use pkg instead of ports in it because ports was what I had used for years. 

And I'm not going to change it past the git editing to cheat you out of the learning experience because it would be doing the budding brainiacs a disservice to do so and I think you're missing out on a vital part of knowing how FreeBSD works that can only be had from experience. 

If you want things to be easy and not willing to do your homework before asking a question, or look at that damned Handbook, I believe he said, then this is just not for you. That's where there is a place for GhostBSD and maybe you will decide you want to use Vanilla FreeBSD.

 I had never set up a desktop from scratch till I was a member here and 7 years of PC-BSD did not prepare me for it. I looked at someone else's Tutorial and it was one of the things I will always remember as an accomplishment.


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## twschulz (May 27, 2021)

I'll just add a different twist on what has already been said. You can do it, but you shouldn't.

You _can _do it. You can sync /usr/src to a newer release and upgrade from source. Keep in mind you would be upgrading from 10.3 (which I think the last PC-BSD release was based on) to 13.0. You are talking about a lot of changes, then you need configuration and everything (including pkg repos). You can do it, but it will take a lot of time and at the end you are going to end up with a mess that you have to maintain yourself because no one else will have a configuration (well, upgrade path) quite like you. Back in the day, I did it from PC-BSD 10.3 to FreeBSD-Stable (11.-Stable at the time). The hassle was not worth it at all. I can't imagine how much extra work it would be for 13.0-RELEASE.

So, the question becomes _should _you do this? And the answer is clearly *no*. Your time would probably be better spent backing up your data that you want to save and use again. This would actually be a kickstart to a backup regime. Then, you can install whatever version of FreeBSD you want, add back your data, and then set it up as you please. If you document what you do (for example as Trihexagonal, vermanden or Colin Percivel has done), you can easily do it again later. This will serve you much better than your custom upgrade from PC-BSD. With your data backed up regularly and the knowledge of how to get back your system back, you will feel much more secure in trying "strange things". If you have ZFS, you can use boot environments, which gives you even security to learn things while still getting your system back to normal.

Good luck!


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