Why does the kernel not get updated when using a persistant Live USB?

Question

I have created a live usb of Ubuntu 12.04 with a 4GB persistence file. Firefox and other software get updated when running update manager. However, the linux kernel will not update and I am unable to install synaptic package manager, ubuntu tweak, etc. Is there a fix for this. Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

i found this solution also on askubuntu and i apply it and worked for me and i share again here:

gksudo gedit /etc/kernel/postinst.d/zz-update-grub

**

Comment out line 15

**

BEFORE

*/postinst.d/*:|*/postinst.d/*:configure|*/postrm.d/*:|*/postrm.d/*:remove)
    exec update-grub
    ;;

AFTER

    */postinst.d/*:|*/postinst.d/*:configure|*/postrm.d/*:|*/postrm.d/*:remove)
#       exec update-grub
        ;;

Run the configuration script:

$ sudo dpkg --configure -a
(lots of debugging)
$

You should see a lot of debugging, and NOT the error line at the end.

To be sure, re-run the configuration. It should end immediately without any logs:

$ sudo dpkg --configure -a
$

Now, you can restore the zz-update-grub file, just in case you want to install an other kernel later and Grub start to work with overlayfs...

Answer 2

This is apparently a common question no one replied correctly to.

None of the existing ISO9660-based live operating systems provide a kernel update feature: the kernel and the initrd are the only components that a live operating system cannot update, because they lay outside of the data persistence partition (if any) and the system partition is, as said, ISO9660-formatted.

After some years of asking me why, I found the liveng whitepaper on Read the Docs.

The full aim of the liveng project is to give the Community a set of best practices in order to turn a common Debian Linux live into a live(ng) operating system which features:

native encrypted persistence;
kernel update (on a live ISO 9660 filesystem!);
UEFI, with UEFI Secure Boot compatibility, with a real efi partition.

Tails is another example of live system with kernel update facility, but its filesystem is FAT, not so-good for a live...