| Documentation / 3.3. Keeping the System Up-to-date | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 3.2. Removing Software | Chapter 4. Accessing the Internet |  | |
| Documentation / 3.3. Keeping the System Up-to-date | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.2. Removing Software | Chapter 4. Accessing the Internet | | |
openSUSE offers a continuous stream of software security patches for your product. The updater applet informs you about the availability of patches and lets you easily install them with just a few clicks.
The openSUSE community also provides updates to newer versions of software packages. The updater applet optionally keeps a list of all programs installed on your system and informs you whenever newer versions are available. Whats more, the updater can also search for and install new drivers when new hardware is attached.
![[Note]](admon/note.png) | Patches vs. New Versions |
|---|---|
The patches offered by openSUSE either fix security holes or serious errors in the software. A patch normally does not upgrade to a newer version and does not offer additional functionality. A new program version offered by the community may offer fixes, too, but primarily adds new functionality. | |
The updater applet resides in the system tray of your panel depicting the head of the SUSE mascot (Geeko), which changes depending on the availability and relevance of patches and the status of the updater. Whenever the icon changes, a tool tip displaying the current status is shown, too. The applet is started by default. Choose +++ from the main menu to manually start it.
No patches available. When new versions are available, a tool tip appears when the mouse is moved over the icon.
The updater applet is busy (for example checking for updates, installing software).
Security patches available.
Important patches are available.
Trivial patches are available.
An error occurred.
No update repository is defined. When you click the updater applet in this state, you are asked whether to check for updates. If you agree, the YaST module is started.
Whenever the updater icon shows the availability of patches, left-click
to open the software installation window. It lists the number of
Security and Recommended patches
available. While the security patches are installed by default, you can
choose whether to install the recommended ones as well. Some patches,
such as new kernel versions, require to restart your computer. Check
to skip
these updates for now. Start updating your system by clicking
.
A click on opens the Available
Updates window which shows a detailed list of all patches
and allows you to alter the selection of packages that will be
installed. Apart from the patch name the
(Security, Recommended or Optional), a short
and the patch version number is shown. Patches are sorted alphabetically
by default—change this by clicking on a column headline
(, ,
, ,
, or ). Click
to proceed.
You will be prompted for the
root password after
having proceeded with . The updater performs
the installation of the patches. See the system tray (KDE) or the
notification area (GNOME) for status messages and a progress meter.
The YaST Online Update offers advanced features to customize the patch installation. Please refer to Chapter YaST Online Update (↑Reference) for more information.
New software versions are available from software repositories provided
by the openSUSE community. By default, no such repositories are
preconfigured. To add a repository, right-click on the updater icon and
choose . You need to enter
the root password to start the module. A list from which you
can choose popular community repositories is already preconfigured
(+), for even more community
repositories refer to
http://en.opensuse.org/Additional_YaST_Package_Repositories.
![[Warning]](admon/warning.png) | Trusting External Software Sources |
|---|---|
Before adding external software repositories to your list of repositories make sure this repository can be trusted. openSUSE is not responsible for any potential problems arising from software installed from third party software repositories. | |
The updater applet does not monitor repositories for new software
versions by default. To enable this feature, open the configuration
window as described in Section 3.3.1.3, “Configuring the Updater Applet” and tick
the check box check box. When the updater icon indicates the
availability of updates, click on the icon to launch the software
installation window. Click on and then on the
tab to open the list with new software
versions. Either select single packages by checking the box in front of
an entry, or click .
starts the installation of the selected
software packages. You will be prompted for the root password. See
the system tray (KDE) or the notification area (GNOME) for status
messages and a progress meter.
By default the updater is started on login, checks for updates every 24 hours, shows recurring notifications every 60 minutes and only monitors the availability of patches. To change this behavior, right-click the applet icon and choose .
The configuration dialog also offers to change the following settings:
Choose between different back-ends. The is used by default. If you prefer the , make sure the package
kde4-kupdateapplet-zypp is installed.
Activate this option when you prefer the detailed patch view that lists all patches available with short summaries rather than the simple view.
Prohibits checking for updates when running on batteries in order to save power. This option is activated by default but only affects mobile computers.
Prohibits checking for updates when the system is under heavy load. This option is activated by default.
Provided a repository offering appropriate drivers, the updater can automatically install drivers for hardware such as USB devices.
The updater applet resides in the notification area of your panel. It's icon changes depending on the availability and relevance of patches and the status of the updater. The applet is started by default, choose +++.
| Icon visibility |
|---|---|
By default, the updater applet icon is only visible in the notification area, if patches are available. | |
The updater is busy (for example checking for updates, installing software).
Security patches available.
Recommended patches are available.
Optional patches are available.
An error occurred.
Whenever the updater icon shows the availability of patches, left-click
the icon and choose . Provide the
root password. The patches avaiable will be installation in the
background.
Alternatively, left-click the updater icon and choose to open the Software Update Viewer. In the overview it shows the number of patches available per category. Click on to open a detailed view where all patches sorted by category are listed. Security patches are displayed first, trivial patches last. Click on a patch to see details, such as a description, version number, repository, and—if available—a link to bugzilla, the Novell bug tracking system.
By default all patches are marked for installation. Uncheck the checkbox in front of a patch to prevent a patch from being installed.
You will be prompted for the root password after having proceeded
with or . The updater performs the installation of the patches.
After having finished the installation, choose whether to
or whether to
the Software Update Viewer.
The YaST Online Update offers advanced features to customize the patch installation. Please refer to Chapter YaST Online Update (↑Reference) for more information.
To configure the updater applet, either right-click the updater icon in the panel and choose , or start the confuguration dialog with +++ to manually start it.
The configuration dialog offers to change the following settings:
Choose how often a check for updates is performed: , , , or .
Configure whether patches are installed automatically or not (default). Automatic installation can be chosen for either security patches only or for all patches.
Choose how often a check for major updgrades is performed: , , or .
Determine whether and when to show the updater applet icon in the panel with this options.
