Ubuntu should provide update packages for download and use for offline users

[Usama Akkad]

Hi,

offline users should be able to download an update package from Ubuntu website to update the software list
in
/var/lib/apt/lists/ and /etc/apt/sources.list.d/

then they can run synaptic and chose mark all updates and what ever program they want to install
after that a user can easily generate download script from synaptic and have an offline system fully updated

related:
Synaptic's Generate download script does not update package lists
Bug #251378

[Martin Erik Werner (arand)]

whoops, wrong bug, sorry for noise.

[Robert Collins (lifeless)]

I'm not entirely clear on what you mean here. Do you mean a GUI for configuring apt-mirror (or similar) so and writing the result to a cd ?

[Usama Akkad (damascene)]

ok,
.
1. a user want to update his system, he have no internet connection.
2. the user go to ubuntu website and update download a deb file, double click on it ,install it. now the folder /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ has a new list of available packages
3. the user run synaptic, select what ever package he want to install or just press the "Mark all updates" buttons if he wants to update.
4. the user go to "generate download script" option in the file menu. and generate the download script.
5. the user takes the links from the script to use it on Windows or use it on another Linux system which has internet connection and download the packages.
6. the user will have now all the packages needed for updating or installing new software. that he may take back to his system
7. the user go "add downloaded packages" from file menu in synaptic and chose the files location and it's done.

[Nicolas Valcarcel (nvalcarcel)]

For step 2. we need to find a way to ship the repositories Packages.gz/Sources.gz/* in a file format the software center can read it (i.e. a tar.gz of those files) that the user can use in step 3 to "update" his apt information.
On step 4. it needs to be a self-compiled multi-platform script (or give the user the option that generate the script for X platform). This needs to be a script that should be run in a default platform (i.e. out of the box windows machine)

[Emmet Hikory (persia)]

I believe aptoncd was written for this specific purpose. I would not be surprised if some hinting was required to make this work cleanly with software centre, but it oughtn't require the development of new technology.

[Usama Akkad (damascene)]

@Nicolas Valcárcel
I've created a ditailed wiki page about that please look here
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/damascene/offline%20update#Should%20it%20be%20a%20script

@Emmet Hikory
please look here https://wiki.ubuntu.com/damascene/offline%20update#Alternative

I've collected many informations here:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/damascene/offline%20update

[Dan Trevino (dantrevino)]

I suggest you check Keryx. Its been made specifically to solve the offline issue.

http://keryxproject.org/

https://launchpad.net/keryx/+download

[ceg (ceg)]

You searched the wiki for "offline update"?

[shankao (shankao)]

Thank you for taking the time to make Ubuntu better. Since what you submitted is not really a bug, or a problem, but rather an idea to improve Ubuntu, you are invited to post your idea in Ubuntu Brainstorm at http://brainstorm.ubuntu.com/ where it can be discussed, voted by the community and reviewed by developers. Thanks for taking the time to share your opinion!

[Usama Akkad (damascene)]

I've discussed this issue in #ubuntu-devel many times and no one said it should be in brainstorm. it still an important issue