Migrating to a new computer

Copying files

This brief guide describes steps to transfer your home files from an old computer to a new one.

On “source” computer

1. Setup ssh-server on the ‘old’ computer.

This enables the ability to copy files over the local network. Open a terminal emulator and type:

sudo apt install openssh-server

2. Obtainthe IP address of the ‘old’ machine.

Open Settings > Network > Network Settings. Note the IPv4 Address (e.g. 192.168.1.182).

On “destination” computer

3. Proceed through the normal install.

Creating users, passphrases, etc.

4. After installation and configuration, login, open up a terminal emulator and type:

rsync -avx <username>@<ip-address>:~/ ~/

In my case it was:

rsync -avx todd@192.168.1.182:~/ ~/

Note

There were issues getting gpg working on the ‘new’ computer from running rsync -avx and the .gnupg keyring directory. To successfully export/import, follow these steps: https://access.redhat.com/solutions/2115511 | https://access.redhat.com/solutions/2115511

Copying applications

This brief guide describes the steps migrate applications from one computer to another one.

Note

apt-clone is an alternative method that works within Debian GNU/Linux, but not derivatives such as PureOS.

On “source” computer

1. Create the package list

dpkg --get-selections > /tmp/selections.list
apt-mark showauto > /tmp/auto.list

2. Get the address of the ‘old’ machine.

Open Settings > Network > Network Settings. Note the IPv4 Address (e.g. 192.168.1.182).

On “destination” computer

3. Copy over the “source” computer clone files

scp <user>@<ip-address>:/tmp/*.list /tmp

In my case it was:

scp todd@192.168.1.182:/tmp/*.list /tmp

4. Update the package list before updating applications

sudo apt update

5. Upgrade to the latest base system first

sudo apt upgrade

6. Install all the packages

sudo /usr/lib/dpkg/methods/apt/update /var/lib/dpkg/
sudo dpkg --set-selections < /tmp/selections.list
sudo apt-get dselect-upgrade
sudo xargs apt-mark auto < /tmp/auto.list