moving from yum to apt/synaptic
 

I've been using yum for updates. I would like to use synaptic, but I've never switched before --- some machines I use apt on, some I use yum.

What is the best way --- or is there a way --- to move to apt from yum? I've updated sources.list and did an apt-get update, but when running synaptic I have many broken packages. Obvioulsy, this is something I know little about.

thanks much!

brad

You don't have to switch, I have both as some sites are more apt to have something than yum others. :)

They keep different dBs, don't they? If so, then it would be a pain to keep track of packages and their dependencies.

brad

They do keep different directories in /var/cache/apt and /var/cache/yum but you don't have to track dependencies as that is one thing both programs are very good at.

If you are having problems with synaptic, it has an option to fix broken packages. If you still can't get them to fix, maybe try yum remove apt-get. Then remove /etc/apt and /var/cache/apt
Then reinstall apt-get / synaptic and run the command apt-get update.
Also, in the synaptic program, I always use smart upgrade so it doesn't try to load stuff which I don't want.

Thanks for the msg!
Ok, so I'm lost

I understood that they keep different dBs. For instance, if I used yum to install pkgA and pkgA depended on pkgB yum would install pkgA and pkgB. Fine so far.

If I then used apt-get to install pkgC and it depended on pkgB - apt-get would not know that it had already been downloaded and installed by yum.

Is that true?

----
AFA about synaptic: I basically did what you said. I installed synaptic with yum (which, of course, installed apt). Then I: apt-get update. After starting synaptic, I had 616 broken packages. This doesn't seem right, does it?

3rd question: are you suggesting to start over? yum remove apt and synaptic. Delete the dirs /etc/apt and /var/cache/apt and just start over?

I appreciate your help!

brad

If you run apt-get update it will update it's database so it will know what is already installed. Therefore, pkgC will install with no problem because pkgB has already been accounted for.

Before you remove apt-get try to fix the broken packages with the command:
apt-get -f install
I can't imagine how you got so many broken packages. :(

Ok, when I do that I get the serious message:
"You are about to do something potentially harmful
To continue type in the phrase 'Yes, do as I say!'"

I see that a couple of kernel's will be removed --- one is the one I'm using currently!
Video card driver libs -- one that I'm using currently!

And, a whole lot of other packages and "essential" packages.

This doesn't seem right, does it?

brad

NO, do not do that! and no that doesn't seem to be right.

Have you tried the command: yum update

Yeah, I do that quite often. I just did another one and I have some updates - rpm being one., rpm-build another.

I thought there may be hope with the updated packages, but:

Now, when I do apt-get update I receive warnings about multiple versions of a lot of packages. Doing apt-get update once again I receive no warnings.

Synaptic report 617 broken packages (gee, I added one!)

apt-get -f install _seems_ to be reporting the same: essential packages will be removed, etc.. Although, the essential packages list seems less: still, kernel is in there, rpm is there (it says: "because of apt)


(Hey, you know, maybe there is a particular problem in this instance because I'm on an AMD64, so the vast majority of my libs are 64bit -- but I bet not all. (this is the first AMD64 machine I've built. I'm running FC2 on it. The other linux machines that I have are all pentiums with different flavors of redhat - ES3, RH8, FC1/FC2))

brad

I actually have the same problem. Is start Synaptic up and it tells me i have 23 broken packages, but it doesn't make sense because i use all the packages for instance gaim, and they work fine. I also have some Xorg files wanting to be removed.

Those files get me scared so im not doing it quite yet. I have tried what htey said above, yum remove synaptic but when i try to do it to apt-get. i get:

Setting up Remove Process
No Packages marked for removal

but i know its there because i do

apt-get update

and I get
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 328 removed and 0 not upgraded.
Need to get 0B of archives.
After unpacking 2625MB disk space will be freed.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n]

so im just running it normal and not doing anything about it. its just on the back burner because everything is running just fine.. but it is annoying to think about.

any thoughts? Thanks.

~bryon