Tell me more ×
Ask Ubuntu is a question and answer site for Ubuntu users and developers. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 4 down vote favorite
2

If I have installed a lot of programs/games on my computer(desktop) and now buy a new laptop and I have installed a Ubuntu 11.10 on it too then,how to move all installed programs on my desktop to my laptop instead of installing them again on my laptop ???

share|improve this question
IMO reinstalling all of your games on your laptop would be easier than trying to "move" them over from your desktop. What is your reason for wanting this? Are you trying to preserve configuration and save data, avoid having to re-download, or what? – WarriorIng64 Nov 26 '11 at 21:18
Avoid reinstall, avoid re-download, avoid power consuming, and enhance battery life – Naruto Nov 26 '11 at 21:43

4 Answers

up vote 0 down vote accepted

1)open nautilus with sudo nautilus command , go to var/cache/ apt/archives select and copy the folder with packages u have downloaded .(if it gives error , just click on skip and Dont worry )

2)paste it to a external drive . also copy and paste your home folder . 3)copy and paste both folders in your second pc. 4)install synaptic package manager in second pc , click on add downloaded packages from menu and point to the location u copied archive folder. it will add them and mark them automatically . if it gives error for broken packages , update cache with update manager or reload and click on 'fix broken packages' from menu . 5)click on apply . u will have to download only if there is new version available for something . 6)after installation copy the home folder to your home. restart your system.

by following this procedure u will have clean system and u will have to download least .

share|improve this answer
But i haven't found apt directory in var(do i have to install synaptic, i haven't installed synaptic on my desktop) – Naruto Nov 26 '11 at 22:05
mmm, this directory contain a lot of .dep packages is there any way to add all installed programs and games in one executable file – Naruto Nov 26 '11 at 23:38
here u don't need to do that, coz all the packages will be marked automatically for installation as soon as they are added. – techvish81 Nov 27 '11 at 3:08
Sorry, i need it and it is the only way to do the job (what is the meaning of coz) – Naruto Nov 27 '11 at 18:26
coz is because . and when u click on 'add downloaded packages' in synaptic menu , and when they are added after the process , you Dont need to mark them individually , they all get marked automatically and you just have to click on apply to install everything . if you Dont want to install everything you downloaded , then you will have to manually unmark packages you Dont want to install . – techvish81 Nov 27 '11 at 20:26
up vote 5 down vote

Best way to do that is a full backup of your system and then restore it the the new disk.

You have basically 3 choices:

  • Full manual system installation, all programs and configurations done one by one or using any automated process of installing the packages that you had. Configuration of those packages will probably be necessary after installation, with a bit of luck you will be able to "move" all your programs configuration by copying your home folder from the old computer to the new one;
  • Full system backup done with backups tools such as deja-dup which will then be restored to the new system;
  • Disk cloning from the old system to the new. An image can be made from your old system and then restored to the new one leaving your system identical as the previous one. You can use dedicated applications such as clonezilla or a more simple approach suck as dd;

In the end its options 2 and 3 will make the all process faster and no (mostly no) downloads needed but option 1 will leave you with a cleaner system.

share|improve this answer
up vote 1 down vote

It is important to remember that as long as you copy your home directory onto the new computer, all your apps will be automatically configured and ready to use when you install them. You don't have to reconfigure anything.

share|improve this answer
but i have re-download them and reinstall them – Naruto Nov 26 '11 at 21:45
up vote 0 down vote

As techvish81 said you just have a copy of your hard disk. If you didn't find the .deb packages just search for it in Nautilus if you don't like the command-line approach.I'm sure you will get it.

And then place all the .debs you want in a folder and run the following command

sudo dpkg -i *.deb

See here

share|improve this answer

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.