Ubuntu

apt-get install cdrom switching media after every file

Asked by Cathy Preece

I have the Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Complete 10 DVD set. I installed it to the computer and added all of the DVDs, all the packages show up in Synaptic. However, when I install something that has dependencies on the other disks I am repeatedly asked to change the disk after every file. I reinstalled Ubuntu to a command line and added the DVDs with apt-cdrom add and tried to install packages with apt-get install, but get the same problem. So it seems to be an issue with apt.

I previously had Debian 5 Lenny on 5 DVDs, when I installed packages it would fetch everything off DVD1 and then ask for DVD2 and fetch everything from that and so on. However, with Ubuntu it fetches something off DVD1 and then asks for DVD2 and fetches something off that and then it asks for DVD1 again and so on. Not only is this inefficient and time consuming, but its liable to wear out the DVD drives tray mechanism! I'm sure that it is meant to behave like Lenny did and not do this.

I have searched the internet, but not found anything about this. I do not have broadband and I'm installing Ubuntu to a couple of old PCs, so using the online repositories is out of the question.

Thanks for any help.

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actionparsnip (andrew-woodhead666) said : 		#1

Submit a bug

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Cathy Preece (wyrd-howling) said : 		#2

Sigh! Have submitted a bug. I spent about 12 months setting Lenny up and got fed up of having to constantly fix things. Tried Ubuntu 9.10 Live and it all seemed to work with my system. So I went and spent £23 on the 10 DVD set. Do I look a schmuck now? Would be nice if there was a simple fix ...

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actionparsnip (andrew-woodhead666) said : 		#3

it's not that expensive and may come in handy later in life. Why not just hook the system up to the WWW and you can install stuff from the online repo for free, there will also be updates too as your DVDs only contain the latest debs at the time of burning so security updates will not be available to you.

I completely agree with the DVD drive wear though and a logical copying process makes a tone more sense rather than getting the debs off the media you have in the order they appear on the screen.

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Cathy Preece (wyrd-howling) said : 		#4

Thanks for your help. Broadband access is patchy in the UK, and downloading lots of stuff takes forever on dial-up!

Do you think apt from Lucid and all of its dependencies will fix or break Karmic?

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actionparsnip (andrew-woodhead666) said : 		#5

I'm from the UK (Leeds west yorkshire) and it is far from patchy

installing stuff from lucid in karmic will need lucid deps, which will in turn need lucid deps, you will essentially get a big tangled mess

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Cathy Preece (wyrd-howling) said : 		#6

Thanks, I feared as much having once broken Etch by installing something from Lenny (on the advice of someone on a Dazuko forum). Yes I have been trying to get away from Windows for a long time!

I didn't mean to make the UK sound like some backwater. However, there are patches in the UK where there is no broadband access, places where the broadband speed is very slow or unreliable. Also most companies place download limits on their users. Presumably this is why authorised resellers provide a complete set of DVDs containing the repositories. However, this is a waste of money when apt cannot use these DVDs correctly. There must presumably be people in other countries with very little or no broadband access who could benefit from open source software. So I don't feel that this bug is unimportant.

It seems my only other options are to purchase a USB drive to store them all onto. Or wait for apt to get fixed for Karmic (is this likely to happen?) or wait for Lucid to be available as a DVD set and hope that it is all fixed in that.

It is a pity as Karmic seemed so promising compared to Lenny.

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Cathy Preece (wyrd-howling) said : 		#7

Can anyone confirm whether or not this bug has been fixed in Lucid? I don't want to waste another £23 on DVDs I can't use.

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