How can I upgrade my Dell mini from version 8.04?

Question

I have a Dell mini with version 8.04. I can not figure out how to upgrade it to any version of Ubuntu I have bought. I can not even boot from a disc. The upgrade manager tries, but always fails. My system works great. You might say if it works, leave it alone, but still why not?

Answer 1

I'm assuming you have the Dell Mini 9 which came pre-loaded with 8.04 from Dell which was a customized image to fit the small SSD.

There is a very good answer on Ubuntu Forums that should help you fix the issue but to summarize;

Issues to bear in mind:

1. The original Dell Ubuntu 8.04 was an "lpia" version, which is no longer supported on 10.04.

2. Dell Ubuntu 8.04 uses a special Dell / lpia repository, which does not have USB "Startup Disk Creator"

3. Dell Ubuntu 8.04 has proprietary Fluendo codecs for mp3 etc.

What this means to you:

1. You can't upgrade by sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade

2. You can't create a USB bootable image on your Mini

3. You may want to consider backing up your codecs to reinstall after a fresh install of 10.04: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.p...09#post9224709 (I didn't do this myself - but apparently it does work)

So - how do you actually achieve the upgrade (fresh install)?

1. Backup your files you want to keep, or just backup the entire /home directory to restore if you want to keep all application settings etc.
2. Backup fluendo codecs, if you want to (see above).
3. Create a bootable USB startup disk from your iso you downloaded using any other computer (i.e. not your Mini). Or from unetbootin.
4. Turn off Mini, and plug bootable USB in.
5. Press 0 on the first boot screen after turning Mini on and select USB as boot device.
6. Follow instructions to install...
7. Restore files or /home and/or codecs as you wish.
8. Restore wifi with: http://www.ubuntumini.com/2010/04/br...-in-lucid.html

Source