The recommended upgrade method for Fedora Workstation installations is the graphical tool named gnome-software. For example, in Fedora 32 and 33 installations, it currently shows a banner for Fedora 34, all you have to do is click “Download”, wait a bit and then click “Install”…
… if it worked, because this “Install” button is usually dead, nothing happens when you click it, so the user is unable to keep Fedora up to date. Are there MATE or KDE users who have found a workaround or who’re able to keep their installation up to date with this tool?
There’s an old bug report, but it doesn’t seem like adding user feedback or error handling is a priority for Fedora: 1535744 – gnome-software does nothing when clicking "install" (UnknownMethod: Method "Reboot")
Actually, in some cases a manual reboot does initiate the upgrade process but who would reboot the system after clicking an “Install” button that doesn’t do anything.
There is a offline update variant, means it will download the necessary files and after rebooting it will make the upgrade.
But you are right at least a message should appear.
You know, not all users are comfortable with the command line, they simply won’t do that. But this question is about the recommended upgrade tool for Fedora Workstation, according to this page:
I don’t know why this one is recommended in one place and the command line tool is recommended in another place but obviously, regular users won’t use the command line to keep the system up to date and quite frankly, even experienced users shouldn’t have to. Other operating systems have graphical upgrade tools, even Fedora had PreUpgrade which worked until it was deprecated and for the last couple of years, we’ve had gnome-software with the dead Install button. I don’t see why Fedora couldn’t at least patch it to show a message “dear user, please reboot to initiate the upgrade”.
OK, then your title is a bit confusing. If you have a workstation version and the mate desktop installed after you have to change back to gnome-shell to do the update.
OK, then your title is a bit confusing. If you have a workstation version and the mate desktop installed after you have to change back to gnome-shell to do the update.
I don’t see how the title can be confusing but feel free to suggest a better one.
And no, installing another desktop environment just because this core component is apparently unable to initiate a reboot is not an option. Have you even tried it?
Mate desktop not uses the same software as Fedora Workstation (Gnome-Shell). Mate uses DNFDragora as the name says DNF. Dragora is just a graphical interface.
The screenshot in the Manual is the Software application from Gnome-Shell!
The official Fedora Linux version is Workstation alias Gnome Shell.
The rest are Spins. Spins are not official and are made and maintained from enthusiasts who love this Desktop variants. That’s why you find primarily the Workstation or Server version on get.fedoraproject.org
Now to your Argument that regular users not use the Terminal is also true. But such regular users generally use not Fedora, they use a Linux Mint or Ubuntu where is specifically made for users who want a Linux experience like Windows. And there you find the Click and Go variant you asking for.
The main objective of Fedora Linux is being an upstream opensource-community where is sponsored to drive the RH Enterprise Linux.
Well, Mate is a Gnome fork but even if it wasn’t, this graphical tool appears to be the only graphical upgrade tool. I don’t think upgrading is possible with DNFDragora. Since everyone is talking about alternatives, I take it that this tool doesn’t work for you guys either (in Mate desktop, that was the question).
I’d like to point out again that Fedora used to have a working upgrade tool (a graphical one) - PreUpgrade. I know users who have chosen Fedora because it can be upgraded easily (at least back then) and while upgrading, it doesn’t ask interactive questions like some other systems do. Now, that tool isn’t available anymore and the new one - the only graphical one - does everything except initiate the reboot. I don’t see why this simple operation shouldn’t be possible in the Mate desktop or why a dead Install button would be acceptable at all. I believe a simple help message would be enough as a first step to not leave users in the dark.
Don’t you guys care about a graphical upgrade tool, wouldn’t you want it to work as it should?
Fedora is community based! Anybody who wants can contribute. Contribution does not mean hacking code, in this case a really valueable contribution would be to fix the inconsistencies in Documentation.