Downloading updates while installing is off by default

This is not a critical thing for a release, its a convenience, and a potentially dangerous one at that. The implications need to be discussed with legal before it goes forward, due to redistribution implications of certain lisencses when combined with other licenses.

The user does need to explicitly select what they want to combine on their system.

I've moved this to Oneiric, given that we're now in beta freeze. It's better than we implement it at the start of that cycle, as to properly support this we should finish the wireless configuration page and better handle the case whereby the user is trying to proceed with an option that requires internet access, but they haven't connected.

@Evan; who is the best person to assign this change for 12.10?

@JohnLea

All decisions with respect to install has been justfied in the Installer design document were we can track the history of all decisions made and also keep notes as to why we did what when.

With respect to "Downloading updates" checked by default the current Install design specifcation says.

http://bit.ly/17SBZ1J

"""
The download available updates checkbox will never be made to install updates as well. For much the same reason behind not pivoting into the installed system without rebooting, we need to start the user in a known good state. This means not installing package updates that could potentially break the system. Equally important is that it's difficult to debug the installer when we do not have a clear picture of the end state.
"""
Can you please comment on how this technical reasoning should be resolved?

And what are we trying to achieve here? A secured system with updates upon first boot or no "update window" upon first boot? For example installing Precise using the pressed release image in 12.04 will results in significant amount of updates, possibly even more than CD size to be downloaded.

Instead, for example we can pre-download the updates while performing the OS installation, but not apply them, and instead apply them after we boot for the first time. And work from there.

I think I got this wrong. The checkbox only downloads the updates by default.

So if the checkbox is unchecked, soon after you restart you get the Software Updater window showing updates that need downloading and installing.

If the checkbox is checked, soon after you restart you'll get the Software Updater window showing updates that are (mostly or entirely) downloaded already, but not installed yet.

Is that right?

(If this change is made, that the checkbox is "insensitive if you did not set up an Internet connection" should also be changed to "insensitive and unchecked if there is no Internet connection".)

@mpt
Correct.

This can't be High importance, because the checkbox has had no effect for the past five Ubuntu releases (bug 761094).

Specification updated.

Sorry, Dmitrijs, I replaced your questions without answering them. :-)

"Does the software updater download updates in the background by default as well?"

It does for security updates, if you choose "Download automatically" in the "Software & Updates" settings. An equivalent setting for non-security updates would make sense too. I've just reported that as bug 1173208.

"Both the installer and software updater should be consistent with respect to pre-downloading updates in the background..."

The number of updates available when you are installing is probably much greater than on any occasion when Software Updater appears -- because you're probably installing more than a week after release day, while Software Updater opens about weekly. Therefore, downloading updates while installing saves you more time than downloading updates during normal Ubuntu use would. That doesn't mean we shouldn't have the latter option, just that it's arguably less important.

"...as otherwise software updater will pop up and still say that downloading is required."

That doesn't matter. We aren't promising to finish downloading *all* available updates during installation. It's fine for Software Updater to show updates regardless of whether they are completely, partly, or not at all downloaded.

This release of Ubuntu is no longer receiving maintenance updates. If this is still an issue on a maintained version of Ubuntu please let us know.

This issue has sat incomplete for more than 60 days now. I'm going to close it as invalid. Please feel free re-open if this is still an issue for you. Thank you.