Upgrading to Lubuntu 25.10 is giving me problems.
Running:
sudo do-release-upgrade -d
Results in:
Checking for a new Ubuntu release
Please install all available updates for your release before upgrading.
OK, fine, I run an update/upgrade/autoremove cycle for my systems.
It gives the following output:
2 packages can be upgraded. Run 'apt list --upgradable' to see them.
Not upgrading:
firefox occt-misc
Summary:
Upgrading: 0, Installing: 0, Removing: 0, Not Upgrading: 2
Summary:
Upgrading: 0, Installing: 0, Removing: 0, Not Upgrading: 2
That leaves me in an infinite loop. So how to proceed here? I’m at my wit’s end.
I do not expect you need the -d to release-upgrade to 25.10; as it’s a supported upgrade path; the -d now refers to the development release of resolute (26.04). It was required in the early days after 25.10’s release, allowing users to force upgrade rather than waiting, you have waited and shouldn’t need to force it.
There are cases (esp. if you add some other sources to your system) where apt full-upgrade is required, and not just an apt upgrade. Providing full output of that command maybe helpful, as we’re limited to details you provide
I’d check you’ve not put a HOLD on either package, as that would cause the situation you’re in for example; I’ve seen some deb install instructions for firefox doing just that. Any holds you have any place may show with apt-mark showhold but sometimes pinning and other methods can be used by third party instructions that can conflict with Ubuntu’s release-upgrade tool.
For the two packages it does mention, have you explored those?
eg. apt policy firefox
The result I’d expect for that is 1:1snap1-0ubuntu7 and for your other occt-misc package 7.8.1+dfsg1-3 with universe needing to be enabled for one package; if you’ve disabled that I’d hope you’d detect that when running apt update command by the missing lines in that output.
Did you run the apt list --upgradable command your responses suggested; providing that output in your question may also help us to help you.
@guiverc, Thank You very much for your help.
One thing to know about my installation is, that I’ve killed snaps and snapd with them. I don’t know if it makes a difference.
sudo apt-mark showhold gives no output.
Your reference to universe I don’t know what to do with, I’m in over my head there.
Running apt full-upgrade still refuses to upgrade those two packages.
Lubuntu is community flavor of Ubuntu, and we store all our packages in the universe repository; it is enabled by default on all flavor installs as its mandatory for our packages. Unless you’ve disabled it, it should be enabled.
When I run apt update on my box, I scan the output and look for errors etc, and I see the following which confirm universe is present here (showing only a single line from output)
That will make your situation different, and may create a problem for you.
Back on Lubuntu discourse, a user posted a method to removesnapd. I wasn’t really comfortable with it on the site unless it was tested, so I tested it out on a [then] recent QA test install, and kept it awhile; and replied with my thoughts on the thread. I did mention potential release-upgrade issues in that post (probably using the analogy of a minefield being left), and actually did test that for a specific release too (to the next release). The release-upgrade process, whilst mostly the same for all release upgrades IS still unique for a specific upgrade (ie. 25.04 to 25.10 is unique, even if the bulk of what occurs may have been the same as 24.10 to 25.04). We don’t have access to that site, so I can’t refresh my mind as to what I did by reading what I wrote (currently I mostly recall the box that I did that testing on; it was to my left of my current sitting position, but don’t recall the specifics of releases and what I discovered)
All Quality Assurance testing performed will NOT had snapd disabled/prevented from install. As Lubuntu allows install of a system without snapd being installed; that is tested for; but as we don’t prevent its not a problem anyway. If you’ve made changes to your system so it won’t install, those maybe creating your problem with release-upgrade.
You need to read the full logs for clues, and using that and with the knowledge of what changes you’ve made to your system when you removed/disabled snapd you will hopefully know how to reverse your changes until the release-upgrade has been performed.
I’m confused now.
My updates generally refer to “main”, although I’ve seen a few with the “universe” or “restricted” name.
So Lubuntu is not “main”?
And a Lubuntu install without snapd is possible?
That’s all news to me, and I wish I’d known that earlier.
The remove snaps script I’ve been running is this one:
and it’s given me no problems until this update.
The 24.04 to 25.04 upgrade was impressive, I must say. Spectactularly unspectacular, ran for about an hour with no problems. Good work!
The snap free install was introduced late in 2023, but unless users were installing dailies it wasn’t available until [Lubuntu] 24.04 LTS. An example of posts about it can be see by reading https://debugpointnews.com/lubuntu-24-04-snap/ It was talked about on Lubuntu Discourse back then too (December 2023 thru to release of 24.04)
That change was done using the calamares installer, which three flavors have used for [Ubuntu] 24.04 thru [Ubuntu] 25.10, so three flavors offer a minimal or snapd free install.
The test I used in Quality Assurance testing on minimal installs was entering the command snap list where the expected result was NOT that no snap packages were installed, but the command snap would create the error!, and I’d get a message telling me how to install it.
I don’t have the time, nor interest in looking at what that script does sorry, the testing I did in the past was because a user posted a howto type post on the Lubuntu Discourse, and thus I wanted to provide a response in relation to ~effects long term for users. I’ve done the same for various methods written about by Ubuntu members and developers (seen via Planet Ubuntu) and mentioned a number at the Lubuntu Discourse when they were “news” (we mentioned some in UWN too when from Ubuntu members/developers). If that script works follows advice as from Ubuntu *developers, you only need to reverse some changes and release-upgrade should happen; but all my testing was on prior release-upgrades, and software does change.
Thank You for the explanation, that makes it much clearer.
I did try the “minimal” install once, but it’s so minimalistic that it doesn’t even have a web browser, which leaves you stranded after the install.
I’ll execute my " plan B" instead, which is reverting to 24.04 LTS (easy, as I have a Timeshift backup). 25.10 wouldn’t have solved my issue anyway, which was getting Wayland.
We did explore using deb based alternate browsers many cycles ago, but testers always reported a number of websites where they got a less than ideal experience, thus we stuck with firefox. The firefox browser is packaged as a snap, thus if snapd isn’t included (which minimal doesn’t include) the firefox browser is gone too.
First, it’s no problem at all to install Firefox as deb package.
But then, it’s not only a web browser that’s missing. Everything is missing. Office, graphic tools, I’m even not certain that the file manager was there. The terminal was, OK. Back to basics.
No the “minimal” install for avoiding snaps is not an option, sorry.
Why does snap have to stuffed down everyone’s throat? But OK, different subject. Let’s leave it here.
LXQt uses pcmanfm-qt to handle much of the desktop we see/use, PLUS it doubles as a file-manager (in the same way pcmanfm did the same for LXDE), so if you’re logged into a LXQt session, then pcmanfm-qt or the file-manager will be there.
The minimal install was intended to be the base Ubuntu system, plus LXQt desktop and that’s all, ie. minimal as users requested (often) we provide it.
Well, as I just pointed out, it’s public, not internal. Ubuntu does development in the open. (don’t confuse Ubuntu with Canonical, they are not one in the same).
Yes, I understood that after trying the “minimal” install, and it’s a super thing for eg, embedded systems.
But as a solution for avoiding snaps it’s not good.
Let’s leave it at that, I’ll wait for 26.04 and enjoy my restored 24.04.
Merry Christmas and Thanks for all your efforts. I like the (x)Ubuntu world with it’s quirks.