Arco Linux is a rolling release which means that updates come in on a daily basis. Because of that, the first install will need a huge update to get the installed software up to date. This is normal and should be one of the first things you do after finishing the install and configuring the firewall.
How to update Arco Linux
PLEASE do not upgrade until you read this paragraph!
The main menu has an entry under System > Add/Remove Software but there is a faster way to open pamac. Your panel has a red icon which, when you click it, loads pamac for you.
If you want to install or remove software, then pamac is the way to go. Upgrading the system should never be done with pamac because it might break your install. Instead, do this:
Use the terminal for all updates
Arco Linux makes updating the system as easy as typing update into your terminal and finalize the command by pressing enter. Provide your password and press ENTER again and you are all set.
Once the script evaluates the new packages, it will show you how much it has to download and asks for confirmation. To proceed, press Y which means YES.
“update” is an alias which was set up by the developers so that you don’t have to type the full command which would be: sudo pacman -Syu (press ENTER, enter your password and press ENTER again).
Just to be clear. Typing update or sudo pacman -Syu does that same thing. Use which ever one you like.
Update one more?
Because the first update is most likely a big one, it can be necessary to repeat the update and let it run a second time. Installed software packages have dependencies and to satisfy those, the installer needs a certain version to continue the update. If it does not find what it is looking for, it will skip the package which means that not everything will get updated on the first run.
Again, this only happens during the first update. All the other daily updates will update just fine by running one of the commands once a day.
Here is what a typical daily update looks like. Note that my terminal background is set to be transparent which I explain in the wallpaper section
That is all you need to know to keep your system up to date.
I will revisit this article once I have completed other entries because this topic reaches across many other topics. Go back to the main index page