Re: Linux Update Experience

On 28.05.2020 9:59, Zwettler Markus (OIZ) wrote:
>
> We are running PGDG Postgres 9.6 and 12 on RHEL7.
>
> Our Linux team does global Linux updates on a quarterly basis (yum
> update).
>
> We are hitting more and more update problems.
>
> Some troubles this time:
>
> + Postgis24 has been updated to Postgis30
>
> + Postgres 12.2 has been updated to Postgres 12.3 claiming missing
> requirements:
>
> Error: Package: postgresql12-devel-12.3-1PGDG.rhel7.x86_64
> (imx_product_3rd_party_postgresql_repository_postgresql12_rhel7_x86_64)
>
> Requires: llvm-toolset-7-clang >= 4.0.1
>
> Question: How to you handle your Linux update cycles? Not updating
> anymore?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Markus
>
Hi Markus,

we are using PGDG on Debian / Ubuntu trying to update Linux as frequent
as possible. I do not remember many issues if any. I would not expect:

* problems between postgres minor version upgrades (12.2 -> 12.3). We
have PG 12.3 & PostGIS 3.0 on Ubuntu Bionic and do not remember any
update problems.

* major upgrades when keeping same Linux distribution version. Our older
Ubuntu Xenial keeps PG 9.6 & PostGIS 2.3.

So from my perspective: linux updates should not trigger major DB
upgrades (or postGis), minor DB upgrades should be smooth -> it is
possible to update Linux continuously. Major DB upgrades have so be
triggered manually (on same Linux distro version or newer). On that
Ubuntu Bionic server, we started on PG10 upgrading DB together with
PostGis every year with dump / restore procedure to fresh new DB.

--

Jiří Fejfar