End User wrote:So a fresh install of 14.04 Server in a VM is a bust? Now I've got to start with a 12.04.0 or 12.04.1 point release and update to preserve the precise kernel and X stack?
14.04 is the latest Ubuntu beta, and it's using a totally different software set then 12.04. If you want the 12.04 software stack, you'll need to install 12.04. If you want a specific kernel and X server combination, you'll want to install the revision with that particular kernel and X server and not do a dist-upgrade.
just brew it! wrote:Yes, installing new systems from an older ISO may be somewhat painful since there will be a lot of updates to apply. In my case the pain is mitigated by the fact that I maintain a local mirror of the entire 12.04 repository; so getting caught up on updates is very quick.
I've switched to netinstalls via HTTP. Red Hat distros have an ISO called netinstall, and it's just a stub installer which will launch the regular installer after it's pointed to an accessible network location. I just have to dump the ISOs when a new version comes out, and I'm up to date. I'm not sure what the process is for Ubuntu.
My next step is to create a local repo. I don't see this paying off at home, but it would be nice at work.
Glorious wrote:What they are saying is that there isn't any point to getting these backports if you are running 12.04 in a VM. That's because all these backports have to offer is newer/updated drivers, and the VM is offering a virtualized set of hardware that 1) doesn't change and 2) is likely very old and very standard anyway. So using them would accomplish nothing besides the remote chance of a regression.
The Ubuntu VM or cloud kernels are special kernels. They have a lot of stuff stripped out of them, and most of the big VM players have support for their hypervisior mainlined. Generally, VMs are doing server like things rather then desktop/laptop like things, and server like things aren't going to benefit from a newer X stack. Hypervisors are software too which means it's better to lag a little bit while they catch up. (I should say while admins catch up on patches, updates, and upgrades for the hypervisor.)
VM drivers are rather stable. They aren't old; just stable and standardized. VirtIO and the VMware FOSS drivers are active.