Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

maxmoon · 2017-12-15 20:30:12

After updating my Arch system it happens that something is not working. And the solution always costs a lot of time. Sometimes I am even afraid of typing in "yaourt -Syu", because I know something gets broken, even if I don't know it exactly after the update. But in many cases it is something with the webserver, because the websites don't work anymore.

To avoid those blocking issues, I would like to have some kind of button, which roll back everything to the point I pressed "Please start from here if I press the button"... some kind of snapshot of a virtual machine.

Does a simple solution exist? Because it would save a lot of time if I could press a button before updating the system and press another button to discard all changes done since the last button was pressed.

An important part would be that it could survive a reboot. Does something similar exist?

Thanks a lot for your help and tips.

jasonwryan · 2017-12-15 20:37:48

maxmoon wrote:

Sometimes I am even afraid of typing in "yaourt -Syu"

Yaourt is not your package manager.

Moving to NC...

maxmoon · 2017-12-15 21:11:58

jasonwryan wrote:

maxmoon wrote:
Sometimes I am even afraid of typing in "yaourt -Syu"

Yaourt is not your package manager.

Moving to NC...

You don't say! But yaourt -Syu is magically doing the same thing like pacman -Syu... Starting an offtopic discussion isn't nice of you!

Back to topic...

I use Arch Linux for years but I couldn't figure out a solution for those time wasting broken updates, so is it really a question for the newbie corner to get answers for it?

jasonwryan · 2017-12-15 21:16:58

If you think that yaourt is your package manager, I am not surprised that you find that your updates are problematic. My point was not offtopic, it was that the issue is fundamentally operator error, not Arch. That's why it was moved to Newbie Corner.

Lone_Wolf · 2017-12-15 21:46:17

But in many cases it is something with the webserver, because the websites don't work anymore.

If you are using AL on a server, you should have a test system where updates are being tested before they get installed on the server.

a few options to save system states :

- create disk images before an after changes
- btrfs snapshots could also be used
- use Virtual Machines for the servers. many hypervisors have excellent rollback/snapshotting features

seth · 2017-12-15 22:26:36

https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Btrfs#Snapshots
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Ar … cific_date
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Do … Automation

Sometimes I am even afraid of typing in "yaourt -Syu"

You're probably running some arch derivate, but if you're "afraid" to update, you're using the wrong distro for sure.

Roken · 2017-12-15 22:51:07

As for the "sandbox" - what you mean is a recovery solution. Yes there is. https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/System_backup

Last edited by Roken (2017-12-15 22:51:30)

2ManyDogs · 2017-12-16 00:38:31

seth wrote:

You're probably running some arch derivate, but if you're "afraid" to update, you're using the wrong distro for sure.

Exactly this. If Arch breaks in critical ways for you on a regular basis, and you are afraid to update, you might be happier with Debian stable.

If you decide to stay with Arch, rather than looking for some pushbutton rollback solution, try to understand how and why things break, and fix them. Breakage will become less common as you learn more. With a pushbutton rollback you will never learn anything.

Last edited by 2ManyDogs (2017-12-16 00:40:44)

positronik · 2017-12-16 08:49:38

And as a last resort I guess one can always use the Arch Linux Archive to go back to a working configuration.

ngoonee · 2017-12-18 05:35:28

A filesystem level snapshot will get you most of the way there. However judging from the nature of your question I'd say that may cause you more problems than it would solve.

As others have said, Arch users need to be fairly familiar with their system to the point that 'not knowing what has gone wrong' isn't common at all. Debian is better for other users.

Arch Linux

#1 2017-12-15 20:30:12

Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#2 2017-12-15 20:37:48

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#3 2017-12-15 21:11:58

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#4 2017-12-15 21:16:58

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#5 2017-12-15 21:46:17

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#6 2017-12-15 22:26:36

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#7 2017-12-15 22:51:07

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#8 2017-12-16 00:38:31

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#9 2017-12-16 08:49:38

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

#10 2017-12-18 05:35:28

Re: Is there some kind of efficient sandbox solution for Arch Linux?

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