Update Ubuntu: 8.10 to 10.04

Wanted to install Android SDK, but it required LucidLynx (10.04) or later on Ubuntu Linux. Checked out my version, realized that it was Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex), and it was no longer supported (EOL Release).

Decided to take the upgrade route to 10.04 LTS rather than a fresh clean installation, as I did not want to lose my existing configuration. Besides, I just wanted to give it a try, as I thought upgrading would not be that simple :) Its still Linux, right! :D

Am noting down, what I had to do to get my system updated (steps, issues & tricks which worked for me); hope it helps someone else too.

Do be informed that:

1. If you choose to upgrade Ubuntu to the latest version, you need to take all the interim releases and update your system one by one till the latest release release. So it was a long way to go for me.
2. Depending on your net connectivity & bandwidth, it can take anywhere between 1 hour and 5 hours for each upgrade.
3. It is always recommended to backup your current installation before attempting these upgrades (however, I did not have the time for this)
4. Latest release available is 10.10; however, I have decided to upgrade the system only till 10.04 LTS (which has got Long Term Support).

Upgrades Required: 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) > 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope) > 9.10 (Karmic Koala) > 10.04 (Lucid Lynx)

Upgrade 1: 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) > 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope)

Wanted to take the command line route.

Followed the instructions word by word given here; faced no issues.

Summary below
1. Edit /etc/apt/sources.list (Content as shown in the link above)
2. sudo aptitude update && sudo aptitude safe-upgrade
3. sudo do-release-upgrade
4. lsb_release -a

Showed 9.04

Alternatively, you could also follow instructions on this page.

Upgrade 2: 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope) > 9.10 (Karmic Koala)

Went for Update Manager this time. Followed the instructions given here; lucky this time as well - no issues faced.

And finally,
benoy@palazhi:~$ lsb_release -a

No LSB modules are available.

Distributor ID: Ubuntu

Description: Ubuntu 9.10

Release: 9.10

Codename: karmic

Upgrade 3: 9.10 (Karmic Koala) > 10.04 (Lucid Lynx)

Update Manager again. The instructions were available here; but did have a few hiccups (issue & solution detailed below).


On clicking, "Check" & "Install Updates" buttons in the 'Update Manager'; the system showed the following error:

W: GPG error: http://archive.ubuntu.com karmic Release: Unknown error executing gpgv
W: GPG error: http://archive.ubuntu.com karmic-updates Release: Unknown error executing gpgv
W: GPG error: http://archive.ubuntu.com karmic-security Release: Unknown error executing gpgv


Came across this:
Tried the following steps:

benoy@palazhi:~$ sudo -s -H
benoy@palazhi:~$ apt-get clean
benoy@palazhi:~$ rm /var/lib/apt/lists/*
benoy@palazhi:~$ rm /var/lib/apt/lists/partial/*
benoy@palazhi:~$ apt-get clean
benoy@palazhi:~$ apt-get update


This did not work as expected; but it showed that error had got something to do with libreadline.so

Then came across this. Tried the following steps:
benoy@palazhi:~$ su
benoy@palazhi:~$ mkdir tempbenoy@palazhi:~$ mv /usr/local/lib/libreadline* tempbenoy@palazhi:~$ ldconfigbenoy@palazhi:~$ apt-get update

This did work for me. Once the error was resolved, followed the steps detailed here.

Finally,
benoy@palazhi:~$ lsb_release -a

No LSB modules are available.

Distributor ID: Ubuntu

Description: Ubuntu 10.04.1 LTS

Release: 10.04

Codename: lucid

End of Upgrade! :)