Hello! I’m a newbie and i have installed OpenSuse 11.4 only to find out that it is obsolete and I have to upgrade to more recent one. Please can you explain me how it is done? Shall I remove the current OS an install a new one or is there a way to upgrade it? Either way, I would be very grateful if you explain me the necessary steps, for I am an ex-Windows-user and afraid to mess things up.
Grab the 13.1 dvd/cd which ever you prefer, It will be much easier if you’re coming from a windows background. That 11.4 you can install in a vm and if you’re bored enough and you have time enough to kill then you can play/experiment on howto update it to the latest release (if it is even supported) ;).
IMO it would be better to just install fresh. 11.4 is pretty old now and some things my just not come over. If you are very good with Linux you may be able to fix things but if you are a beginner better to start fresh.
Note that if you did a standard install you can keep your desktop settings and personal data. At the install be sure that you do NOT format the home partition but just mount it as /home. You will need to select the the advanced or expert setting for partitioning when you create the partitioning scheme. Also be sure that the install uses the current root partition and it IS formatted and mounted as / And of course you need to be sure the swap is pointing to the correct partition. ie don’t totally rely on the installer to make the correct setup. You have to tell it what you want it to do and be in charge.
On 2014-05-01 22:56, flounder4130 wrote:
>
> Hello! I’m a newbie and i have installed OpenSuse 11.4 only to find out
> that it is obsolete and I have to upgrade to more recent one. Please can
> you explain me how it is done? Shall I remove the current OS an install
> a new one or is there a way to upgrade it? Either way, I would be very
> grateful if you explain me the necessary steps, for I am an
> ex-Windows-user and afraid to mess things up.
Heh. 
People here know that I like and defend system upgrades. However, it is
not a procedure I recommend to newbies. It is preferable that you
install fresh, with 13.1.
You can tell the installer to use the same partitions and user
passwords, if you want. And take the opportunity to change things that
you do not like from the first install.
–
Cheers / Saludos,
Carlos E. R.
(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” at Telcontar)
And, especially in this case, when flounder has only just installed it fresh, and hasn’t even really run it yet, it would be silly to bother with upgrading, or even keeping anything at all from that unfinished system.
Instead, full fresh install is recommended, no hanging onto anything.
Making the passwords, and anything else done during the install, really amounts to “nothing” when installing again.
And, I think novices do a better job on the next install, now that they are familiar with the process.
On 2014-05-02 02:26, Fraser Bell wrote:
> And, especially in this case, when flounder has only just installed it
> fresh, and hasn’t even really run it yet, it would be silly to bother
> with upgrading, or even keeping anything at all from that unfinished
> system.
Yep
> Making the passwords, and anything else done during the install, really
> amounts to “nothing” when installing again.
I mentioned that because there is a somewhat hidden option in YaST, when
installing fresh on an old partition, to read the passwords and a few
more things and reuse them. For just one user it may not matter, but if
not, as home is not reformatted, you ensure all of the users can use
their old homes 
–
Cheers / Saludos,
Carlos E. R.
(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” at Telcontar)
Yes.
And, it is one more trick for the newcomer – and anyone else reading this thread – to know, which in itself is a good thing.
So I just write the image of 13.1 to a DVD, and install it from the disc without prior formatting of my hard drive, or any such preparation, and it will fit just over my older version? Is that the way it’s done?
Yes, that’s about it. After burning the DVD make sure to check the md5 checksum. The installer will format the partitions you tell it to format. If you already have got customized settings in some applications you want to save, you may follow gogalthorp’s advice not to format /home but just to mount the existing partition.
Just in case you don’t have a separate home partion, it IS recommendable to put /home (i.e. all user data) on a separate partition for exactly this reason. You may also check the wiki:
http://en.opensuse.org/Portal:Installation
Thank you very much!
As I said before do not rely on the installer to read your mind. You will most likely have to tell it what partitions to use and the mount point you want that partition it have. Be sure that these are correct. If you do not understand something ask here before you simply guess.