Why the Old --releasever Method No Longer Works

In my previous guide, I showed how you could upgrade openSUSE Leap releases with:

sudo zypper --releasever=16.0 dup

That used to work reliably in earlier Leap versions. However, with SLE (SUSE Linux Enterprise) 16, SUSE introduced major backend and repository format changes. The new openSUSE Leap 16.0 release merges more closely with SLE infrastructure, which means the repositories and release metadata formats have changed significantly.

If you try to use the --releasever flag now, you’ll likely see repository or GPG key errors during the upgrade. That’s because the old repository layout no longer matches Leap 16’s new structure.

The New Official Method: opensuse-migration-tool

Instead of manually changing repositories, Leap 16 introduces a dedicated migration utility designed to handle all the details for you. The tool automatically adjusts your repositories, resolves new dependencies, and manages system configuration changes.

Step 1: Install the Migration Tool

First, fully update your Leap 15.6 system:

sudo zypper refresh
sudo zypper up

Then install the new migration package:

sudo zypper install opensuse-migration-tool

Step 2: Run the Migration Process

Start the migration utility:

sudo opensuse-migration-tool

The tool will analyze your current system, identify obsolete packages, and suggest repository transitions for Leap 16.0. The system prompts you to confirm before proceeding with the distribution upgrade.

You’ll want to select openSUSE Leap 16.0 with the arrow keys on your keyboard, select OK and hit Enter.

You will probably encounter the following screen about disabling third-party repositories:

This happens because Leap 16.0 changes how repositories are structured. You can simply hit Enter to confirm.

The upgrade process will then start! Wait a few minutes, then reboot into Leap 16.0 once the process finishes.

Step 3: Reboot into Leap 16.0

After the migration completes, simply reboot:

sudo reboot

You’ll now be running openSUSE Leap 16.0 with the updated repository structure.

Troubleshooting Tips

• Do not use zypper dup --releasever=16.0. It may break dependencies.
• If you encounter repository signature errors, remove or rename old .repo files in /etc/zypp/repos.d/ before re-running the migration tool.
• Ensure your disk has sufficient space and that all third-party repositories are disabled before starting the upgrade.

Final Thoughts

The openSUSE team has streamlined the upgrade path to make system migrations more reliable and aligned with SUSE’s enterprise ecosystem. While older zypper --releasever methods are now deprecated, the openSUSE Migration Tool simplifies the process and ensures compatibility with the new Leap 16 architecture.

The post Upgrade openSUSE Leap to 16.0 from 15.6 appeared first on TechOpt.

A key advantage of using Btrfs on openSUSE is its integration with Snapper, a tool that automatically creates snapshots before critical system changes, such as package installations through YaST or zypper. This allows users to quickly rollback openSUSE if something goes wrong.

While openSUSE is known for its strong Btrfs integration, the filesystem is not exclusive to it. Other Linux distributions, such as Fedora, Ubuntu, and Arch Linux, also support Btrfs, though the level of integration varies.

In this guide, we’ll explore how Btrfs works in openSUSE, how automatic snapshots function, and how to manually create and restore snapshots when needed.

Automatic Snapshots in openSUSE

openSUSE, through Snapper, automatically creates Btrfs snapshots before major system changes. These snapshots act as a safety net, allowing you to rollback openSUSE to a working system state if something breaks.

For example, when installing or updating software via YaST or zypper, a snapshot is taken before the changes are applied. This means that if an update causes issues, you can easily revert to the state before the update.

To list all available snapshots, run:

snapper list

You’ll see a list of snapshots with IDs, timestamps, and descriptions of what triggered them.

Creating a Manual Snapshot

While automatic snapshots provide great protection, there may be times when you want to create a manual snapshot before making significant changes.

To create a new snapshot manually, run:

sudo snapper create --description "Before major change"

This will create a snapshot that you can revert to if necessary. You can confirm its creation by running snapper list.

Rollback openSUSE to a Snapshot

If something goes wrong after an update or system change, rolling back to a previous snapshot is straightforward. You can do this in two ways: using Snapper or from the GRUB boot menu.

Method 1: Rollback via Snapper (Live System)

To rollback openSUSE to a previous snapshot while still inside your running system, first identify the snapshot ID from snapper list, then run:

sudo snapper rollback <snapshot-ID>

For example, if you want to rollback to snapshot 20, you would run:

sudo snapper rollback 20

After rolling back, reboot your system to apply the changes:

sudo reboot

Method 2: Rollback via GRUB

If your system becomes unbootable after an update or change, you can rollback openSUSE from the GRUB menu:

1. Reboot your computer.
2. In the GRUB menu, select Advanced options for openSUSE.
3. Choose Start bootloader from a snapshot.
4. Select a snapshot from the list and boot into it.
5. If the system works fine in this snapshot, you can make it permanent by running:sudo snapper rollback sudo reboot

This will set the selected snapshot as the new baseline.

Btrfs and Snapper Make a Rollback in openSUSE so Easy!

Btrfs, combined with Snapper, provides openSUSE users with a robust and reliable way to manage system changes, and rollback if necessary. Automatic snapshots ensure that package updates and system modifications can be easily undone if needed, and manual snapshots give users additional control over their system state.

Although Btrfs is especially well-integrated in openSUSE, it is also available on other Linux distributions like Fedora and Ubuntu. However, openSUSE’s implementation with Snapper makes it one of the most user-friendly and reliable choices for those looking to take full advantage of Btrfs.

The post Rollback openSUSE with Btrfs: A Filesystem with Snapshots appeared first on TechOpt.

Thankfully, since version 15.3, there’s a super easy way to upgrade to a new major version of Leap. These instructions are specific to upgrading openSUSE Leap 15.5 to 15.6.

Only upgrade to the next major version one step at a time. For example, go from 15.5 to 15.6, or from 15.4 to 15.5. Avoid skipping versions, like going directly from 15.4 to 15.6; upgrade to 15.5 first to avoid problems.

Upgrade openSUSE Leap With Zypper

To upgrade to the latest major version of openSUSE Leap, we can simply use the --releasever flag with zypper dup.

To upgrade openSUSE Leap 15.5 to openSUSE Leap 15.6, open a terminal and run:

sudo zypper --releasever=15.6 dup

Let the magic happen! This will both refresh the repositories to use the 15.6 repos, and upgrade the system to 15.6 at the same time.

You’ll probably want to reboot your system to complete the upgrade once it’s finished by running sudo reboot.

Remarks

• You should only upgrade to the next major version of openSUSE Leap (ex. 15.5 to 15.6, but you shouldn’t do 15.4 to 15.6).
• Using the --releasever flag with zypper dup makes upgrading to the next version of openSUSE Leap super quick and easy.
• If your original installation predates openSUSE Leap 15.3, you may not be using the releasever variable in your repository URLs. In this case, you should manually update your repositories to use the releasever variable before upgrading.
• The fate of openSUSE Leap after 15.6 is still yet to be determined as of this post, with several changes happening at the openSUSE organization. Stay tuned for more news about the transition!

The post Upgrade openSUSE Leap from 15.5 to 15.6 appeared first on TechOpt.