[mythtv-users] rsync?

[Mark Wedel]

On 7/24/22 14:13, Daryl McDonald wrote:
> My myth-box is a dual boot Ubuntu 20.04/22.04. Mythtv and various other things are all working on 20.04, and 22.04 is a fresh install.
> 
> Can "rsync" be used to bring all the files that I have added to 20.04 over the years and write them in their respective locations onto 22.04?
> 
> Regular exclusions, I expect, like the full OS backup:
> https://ostechnix.com/backup-entire-linux-system-using-rsync/ <https://ostechnix.com/backup-entire-linux-system-using-rsync/>
> and maybe a few more exclusions like /home/daryl* ?
> 
> Or should it be written in an inclusive format, and what would that look like?

  copying everything (/usr, /lib, etc) will effectively downgrade your 22.04 system to 20.04, or otherwise leave it in an inconsistent state, as it will add libraries and binaries that the package manager has no idea about, and my overwrite programs or libraries that were installed as part of 22.04 with 20.04 versions.  IIRC, rsync uses modification time, so there may not be a huge danger of 20.04 files overwriting 22.04 ones, but you may still end up with a bunch of effectively orphaned files (old versions of libraries)

  Whenever I install a new system, I just copy the files over that I know I need (home directory, /usr/local which does include some custom (non package managed) files, other directories).  I see it as an opportunity to clean up cruft and old files that got left behind.

  I usually have an idea of what other stuff I may need to move over, or will figure it out sometime soon (other services running on my host that I need to install and configure appropriately).  Unless you need the space used by the 20.04, you can just keep that partition around for quite a while and copy things over as you find you need them.  I find for myself, that after about 6 months, it is pretty unlikely I'll find something that I missed that I actually want.