Upgrade to 16.04 - Not enough free space?

Support & Help Requests Raspberry Pi
1

Hi, I am currently using Ubuntu Mate 15.10.

How would I go about updating to version 16.04. ?

I got a notification to update via Software Updater however it says I don’t have enough free space available. I have 1.7GB free on the sd-card however it still says I need 300 or so more MB when it gets to the packages installation step and then aborts.

Also, would I have the same amount of space free (1.7GB) after updating or would it leave me with no space at all ?

Thanks

2

Upgrading the distribution on the Raspberry Pi isn't really recommended, since it's not supported, could take a really long time, or yes, it could run out of space.

It's likely to miss out the new kernel too, which is upgraded separately:

sudo rpi-update

A fresh install ("flash" / restore to the SD card) is recommended where possible.

If you'd like to upgrade anyway, you'll need plenty of space. Running out during installation will likely bork the system. I recommend installing BleachBit from the :ubuntu_mate: Software Boutique to clear out junk files. :clear:

After an upgrade, there would be cached packages, which can be cleared using BleachBit or the terminal:

sudo apt autoremove
sudo apt autoclean
sudo apt clean
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3

Hi, thanks for the info. If it’s not recommended then I’ll rather avoid it. So the only proper method is to format the card and load 16.04 fresh ?

Thanks

4

Yep, that's the recommended option. The Raspberry Pi version is slightly different to the desktop version.

Some users have had success upgrading their Pi's, but insufficient free space will highly likely bork the system.

There's also some info. here:

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