Arch Linux

jaap aarts

Member

Registered: 2017-09-04

Posts: 31

[SOLVED] Why dont arch packages specify min version numbers for debs

I just updated sway on a slightly outdated system, and it ended up locking me out of the GUI.
After trying to start it from the terminal it indicated that libwroots.so.8 was missing. Of course this was the outdated wlroots (and glibc) on the system.

But this sparked the question, why dont package specify minimum versions? I looked at a couple packages and none specify minimum versions.

I get that you should always keep your version up-to-date, but it seems like an oversight to not include (at least some untested) minimum version for dependencies. Or maybe force updating dependencies? It might not be clean but it is a way to make sure systems dont become unusable.

Last edited by jaap aarts (2021-05-19 15:17:44)

Slithery

Administrator

From: Norfolk, UK

Registered: 2013-12-01

Posts: 5,776

Re: [SOLVED] Why dont arch packages specify min version numbers for debs

Because partial upgrades are unsupported.

Running pacman -Sy and then not upgrading your system is a sure fire way to break things. This is just common knowledge.

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No, it didn't "fix" anything. It just shifted the brokeness one space to the right. - jasonwryan
Closing -- for deletion; Banning -- for muppetry. - jasonwryan

aur - dotfiles

jaap aarts

Member

Registered: 2017-09-04

Posts: 31

Re: [SOLVED] Why dont arch packages specify min version numbers for debs

The same problem would occur when, for example, I had wlroots already installed at an older version, and then installed sway. This would also leave me with a broken system.
This quickly evolves into having to update the whole system when you install any package.

And just because it is not supported doenst mean it would be great to have. Many people wont update the whole system before installing a package.

V1del

Forum Moderator

Registered: 2012-10-16

Posts: 25,334

Re: [SOLVED] Why dont arch packages specify min version numbers for debs

Then those many people are incompatible with how Arch operates and the only way to reliably fix that is switch to a distribution that does allow for such an usecase, Arch is not that distribution.

Scimmia

Fellow

Registered: 2012-09-01

Posts: 13,729

Re: [SOLVED] Why dont arch packages specify min version numbers for debs

Then they should pick a distro that supports that.

Slithery

Administrator

From: Norfolk, UK

Registered: 2013-12-01

Posts: 5,776

Re: [SOLVED] Why dont arch packages specify min version numbers for debs

Many people wont update the whole system before installing a package.

Nor do they have to, that's a perfectly acceptable situation.

The same problem would occur when, for example, I had wlroots already installed at an older version, and then installed sway.

Only if you had updated the package database without without updating your system (the very definition of a partial upgrade). Otherwise the correct older version of sway would have been installed.

---

No, it didn't "fix" anything. It just shifted the brokeness one space to the right. - jasonwryan
Closing -- for deletion; Banning -- for muppetry. - jasonwryan

aur - dotfiles

jaap aarts

Member

Registered: 2017-09-04

Posts: 31

Re: [SOLVED] Why dont arch packages specify min version numbers for debs

Only if you had updated the package database without without updating your system (the very definition of a partial upgrade). Otherwise the correct older version of sway would have been installed.

That is a very good point I had not considered yet, I did update the database for this. In a normal situation (just installing a package) you would install the _old_ version of the package that matches the rest of your systems packages. So version dependencies would not have been necessary!

Thanks for explaining it to me, even though I had already marked it as solved.

Last edited by jaap aarts (2021-05-19 18:32:12)