Ubuntu

Probs with ubuntu 7.10 wish to uninstall and reboot using CD from canonical

Asked by John Muir

Hi, since i installed ubuntu 7.10 using the inst contained in Webuser mag I have had numerous problems (of my own making) and have become frustrated to say the least. I use webmail and cannot transfer my bookmarks over I also forgot to move over various other programmes and have come to the conclusion that if I wish to continue with 7.10 as a partition on my present PC I really need to uninstall and reinstall using the CD I have received from canonical. I have looked at various forums advising and my conclusion is this is the one most likely to solve my problem. I may add that I am not the most technical minded person so would appreciate the idiots guide type of advice. Ta

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Allen Chemist
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Allen Chemist (alchemist) said : 		#1

Hi John,

I'm a little confused as to what exactly you are trying to do. When you installed Ubuntu for the first time, did you forget to transfer files? Are you trying to transfer them now?

Do you want to back up your files, then do a complete re-install? For this, you will need some sort of storage to put the files on, such as a USB hard drive, thumb drive, blank CD to burn them to, etc.

What exactly are the "numerous problems of your own making" -- perhaps we could fix those, if you would expand on what exactly is going wrong.

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John Muir (muir744) said : 		#2

Hi Allen, thanks for the prompt reply:
  Yes I did forget to transfer some files and programmes and I have tried to transfer them via a 4GB usb disc, I managed to download them with the exception of the bookmarks onto the disc but just couldn't fathom out how to move them into 7.10 even though they were being shown on the ubuntu screen when I tried to dowbload them.

  I think what I'm hoping to do is erase the present ubuntu partition completely and then reinstall from the canonical disc which I was sent from the IOM once I have learnt and understood how I must proceed to correctly get the files and programmes transferred across.
  This of course may be the long-winded way and maybe you a better solution.

  As I said I have a USB disc and I can also burn to a CD but I just couldn't understand how to manage the bookmarks I was advised by the Webuser mag that Webmail was awkward. I looked at most of the "help" advice on the ubuntu but the more I looked the more I became confused,I even thought about reverting from webmail back to OE6,but I couldn't even manage that.

  So there is nothing really wrong with the transfer and ubuntu is up and running great,and I'm pleased with it, I can go onto the web write and answer emails etc and use my bookmarks if I do it manually but its tiresome,as I do have a few.

  Grateful for any help. John

Allen Chemist <email address hidden> wrote:
  Your question #23425 on Ubuntu changed:
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/23425

Status: Open => Needs information

Allen Chemist requested for more information:
Hi John,

I'm a little confused as to what exactly you are trying to do. When you
installed Ubuntu for the first time, did you forget to transfer files?
Are you trying to transfer them now?

Do you want to back up your files, then do a complete re-install? For
this, you will need some sort of storage to put the files on, such as a
USB hard drive, thumb drive, blank CD to burn them to, etc.

What exactly are the "numerous problems of your own making" -- perhaps
we could fix those, if you would expand on what exactly is going wrong.

--
To answer this request for more information, you can either reply to
this email or enter your reply at the following page:
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/23425

You received this question notification because you are a direct
subscriber of the question.

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Best Allen Chemist (alchemist) said : 		#3

Hi John,

Below I describe how to erase your entire hard drive, and start fresh. Be sure to understand it before you begin, and post back any questions or concerns you have.

With your bookmarks, are they the ones from Internet Explorer or Firefox from long ago, or ones that are currently in Ubuntu in Firefox? I don't really understand what you mean when you say "use the bookmarks manually". Do you have a file called "bookmarks.html" that you must open and click a link? If so, in Firefox you can go Bookmarks -> Manage Bookmarks, then File -> Import. Choose this html file, and your bookmarks should be restored.

Also, I am still curious to know if the problems you are experiencing are fixable without a reinstall. A reinstall is a lot of work if you have any amount of data or customizations to be backed up first, though the work is straightforward. Many problems can be fixed fairly easily, due to the open-ness of Linux (there are no hidden secrets anywhere, like the windows registry)

In any case, the process of reinstalling is fairly straightforward. There is an extra two steps to do, if you have a lot of programs that you installed yourself (i.e. ones that are ubuntu programs, but are not installed by default).
(1.a Create a list of installed programs)
1. Backup your "home" folder(s)
2. Re-install Ubuntu
3. Restore certain files from your "home" folder backup (your documents, bookmarks, etc)
(3.a Re-install all the custom programs from 1.a)

Steps 1a and 3a involve the command line, and create a list of programs to be moved from the old installation to the new. You can probably ignore this paragraph if you don't have any programs you installed yourself. The following commands are typed into a Terminal window, which can be found in Applications -> Accessories -> Terminal. You don't need to worry about exactly what is happening1a is:
dpkg --get-selections > SaveMe.txt
Then copy SaveMe.txt which will be in your home folder (Places -> Home folder) to a floppy, external hard disk, usb key, etc to be carried to your new system. Once 1 and 2 are done, copy the SaveMe.txt from your cdrom, usbdisk or whatever back to your home folder. Then type:
cat SaveMe.txt | sudo dpkg --set-selections && sudo apt-get dselect-upgrade

Below are the main steps:
1. Back up your "home" folder(s)
If you are the only user on the system, great, you will only have one folder to back up. Contained in this folder is all of your documents, bookmarks, custom settings, etc. Click on "Places" then "Home Folder". Navigate up one folder, and you should see a single folder with your username on it. Right click on that, and choose "Properties". Will all of this fit on your hard drive? A burnt CD? Copy all of this to a safe location. Verify that all your stuff is copied to the CD/Hard drive, because in 2 you will erase the hard drive.
2. Boot off the ubuntu CD, and install the OS. When asked about partitioning, instruct the installer to use the entire drive (erase everything).
3. Copy your files from step 1 back to your new home. You should be careful here, since some of the problems you created may be 'backed up', and a restore of the file will restore one of the problems you were having before (NOT what you want to do!). The best way to restore from the backup is to have two windows side-by-side: One is your home folder, and one is the backup from your old computer. Be sure that you are viewing all files (View -> Show Hidden Files). Things you may wish to copy over:
Desktop -- all of the files on your Desktop
Documents -- all files which you have created in openoffice (and save to the "Documents" folder)
.evolution -- if you use the Evolution mail client, this is all of your account settings, mailboxes, etc.
.mozilla -- all of your firefox settings, bookmarks, extensions, etc
.mozilla-thunderbird -- if you use mozilla thunderbird to read your mail, all of the mailboxes in thunderbird
SaveMe.txt -- this is your list of installed programs if you did step 1a above. It will need to be in your home folder for 3a (these are the optional steps!)

Revision history for this message
John Muir (muir744) said : 		#4

Hi Allen, I am now completely and utterly confused after trying to make sense out of your very detailed answer to my request. I have therefore come to the conclusion that I should leave the installed ubuntu 7.10 I have and forego any changes and or uninstall I hoped for and just get on with what I have to work with, maybe after a few trials and tribulations I will eventually come to understand how to make it work for me. Thanks for your help John