Chapter 23. Updating and Upgrading FreeBSD

Restructured, reorganized, and parts updated by Jim Mock.
Original work by Jordan Hubbard, Poul-Henning Kamp, John Polstra and Nik Clayton.
Table of Contents
23.1. Synopsis
23.2. FreeBSD Update
23.3. Updating the Documentation Set
23.4. Tracking a Development Branch
23.5. Updating FreeBSD from Source
23.6. Tracking for Multiple Machines

23.1. Synopsis

FreeBSD is under constant development between releases. Some people prefer to use the officially released versions, while others prefer to keep in sync with the latest developments. However, even official releases are often updated with security and other critical fixes. Regardless of the version used, FreeBSD provides all the necessary tools to keep the system updated, and allows for easy upgrades between versions. This chapter describes how to track the development system and the basic tools for keeping a FreeBSD system up-to-date.

After reading this chapter, you will know:

  • How to keep a FreeBSD system up-to-date with freebsd-update or Subversion.

  • How to compare the state of an installed system against a known pristine copy.

  • How to keep the installed documentation up-to-date with Subversion or documentation ports.

  • The difference between the two development branches: FreeBSD-STABLE and FreeBSD-CURRENT.

  • How to rebuild and reinstall the entire base system.

Before reading this chapter, you should:

Note:

Throughout this chapter, svn is used to obtain and update FreeBSD sources. To use it, first install the devel/subversion port or package.

All FreeBSD documents are available for download at https://download.freebsd.org/ftp/doc/

Questions that are not answered by the documentation may be sent to <freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.org>.
Send questions about this document to <freebsd-doc@FreeBSD.org>.