Update the system (apt)

Outdated packages expose your HolyCloud Linux VPS to known vulnerabilities. On Debian and Ubuntu, apt manages installation and updates. This guide covers a safe manual cycle, automatic security updates, and reboots after kernel updates.

Prerequisites

• HolyCloud VPS Ubuntu 22.04/24.04 or Debian 12
• sudo or root access
• Snapshot or backup before a major version jump (e.g. release-upgrade)
• Maintenance window if critical services run (databases, e-commerce)

Tip: run apt update && apt upgrade at least weekly on an Internet-exposed server.

Step 1: current state and mirrors

cat /etc/os-release
uname -r
apt-cache policy

Refresh the package list:

sudo apt update

If apt update fails (slow mirror), check /etc/apt/sources.list and connectivity:

ping -c 2 deb.debian.org

Step 2: see available updates

apt list --upgradable

Security updates only (preview):

sudo apt upgrade --dry-run
grep -i security /var/log/apt/history.log | tail -5

Step 3: apply updates (standard method)

sudo apt upgrade -y

To include recommended dependency changes (new packages, removals):

sudo apt full-upgrade -y

Remove unused packages:

sudo apt autoremove -y
sudo apt autoclean

Step 4: automatic security updates (unattended-upgrades)

Installation:

sudo apt install -y unattended-upgrades apt-listchanges
sudo dpkg-reconfigure -plow unattended-upgrades

Check configuration:

cat /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/50unattended-upgrades | head -40
sudo systemctl status unattended-upgrades

Dry run:

sudo unattended-upgrade --dry-run --debug

Step 5: kernel and reboot

After updating linux-image-*, a reboot loads the new kernel:

uname -r
ls /boot/vmlinuz-* 2>/dev/null | tail -3
[ -f /var/run/reboot-required ] && cat /var/run/reboot-required

Schedule reboot:

sudo reboot

After SSH reconnect:

uptime
uname -r

Step 6: minor version upgrade (optional)

Ubuntu LTS to next point release:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y update-manager-core
sudo do-release-upgrade

Debian (stable → next stable): read Debian documentation before do-release-upgrade; prefer a new HolyCloud instance for major production jumps.

Step 7: logs and rollback

apt history:

grep -E 'Start-Date|Commandline' /var/log/apt/history.log | tail -20

HolyCloud snapshot or Borg/rsync backup before major full-upgrade — on regression, restore from the panel.

Verification

sudo apt update
apt list --upgradable
[ ! -f /var/run/reboot-required ] && echo "Pas de reboot requis" || echo "Reboot requis"
systemctl is-active unattended-upgrades 2>/dev/null || echo "unattended-upgrades non installé"

All critical packages up to date: apt list --upgradable should be empty (or only voluntary backports).

HolyCloud help

• E: Unable to locate package: wrong sources.list or EOL distribution — provide lsb_release -a
• dpkg was interrupted: sudo dpkg --configure -a then sudo apt -f install
• Disk full during upgrade: df -h, sudo apt clean
• HolyCloud support: apt update output, df -h, OS version before/after incident