System update destoryed everything that is not in /home

[Mr.I]

I just updated my SteamOS on my deck, and I lost all my system-level customizations. Anything that is not in /home are gone. I thought it'd just be like running

pacman -Syu

in Arch Linux.

I finally learned the difference between Arch Linux and SteamOS, and the cost is everything. 😭

[Haruspex]

Have you discovered the nature of SteamOS's immutable core file system?

While SteamOS is Arch at the core, it's not Arch. SteamOS uses an immutable file system, which means the core Linux system is read-only by default, and updating it requires a reboot, unlike other Linux systems that can be updated piecemeal.

Applications run on top are containerized with Flatpak.

This setup with an immutable core file system and containerized applications is getting more popular in lots of distros, and it's really much more secure, but I understand why it makes more old-school Linux users itchy.

To get the Pacman package manager up and working on SteamOS, the first thing you must do it disable the read only nature of the core system. This works, since at the heart of SteamOS is still Arch, but after a big update like the one we recently got on stable, yeah, you're going to lose those system-level modifications.

I recommend you leave that core system as read-only and embrace Flatpaks. It's how SteamOS was intended to be used, but ultimately it's your system to do what you want with.

[D. Flame]

Always has been.

That is how pretty much all immutable systems work. The file system always returns to zero with an update.

Steam setups up a system image, then pushes it out as their update, and basically, it completely overwrites everything.

Like the other person mentioned, flatpacks are the way to go, since they are isolated from the core OS.

[Mr.I]

Haruspex の投稿を引用：

Have you discovered the nature of SteamOS's immutable core file system?

While SteamOS is Arch at the core, it's not Arch. SteamOS uses an immutable file system, which means the core Linux system is read-only by default, and updating it requires a reboot, unlike other Linux systems that can be updated piecemeal.

Applications run on top are containerized with Flatpak.

This setup with an immutable core file system and containerized applications is getting more popular in lots of distros, and it's really much more secure, but I understand why it makes more old-school Linux users itchy.

To get the Pacman package manager up and working on SteamOS, the first thing you must do it disable the read only nature of the core system. This works, since at the heart of SteamOS is still Arch, but after a big update like the one we recently got on stable, yeah, you're going to lose those system-level modifications.

I recommend you leave that core system as read-only and embrace Flatpaks. It's how SteamOS was intended to be used, but ultimately it's your system to do what you want with.

D. Flame の投稿を引用：

Always has been.

That is how pretty much all immutable systems work. The file system always returns to zero with an update.

Steam setups up a system image, then pushes it out as their update, and basically, it completely overwrites everything.

Like the other person mentioned, flatpacks are the way to go, since they are isolated from the core OS.

Lesson learned. I thought Arch Linux and SteamOS are like Debian and Ubuntu. I didn't even realize it's something like Android when I disabled the readonly mode.

[Haruspex]

Mr.I の投稿を引用：

Lesson learned. I thought Arch Linux and SteamOS are like Debian and Ubuntu. I didn't even realize it's something like Android when I disabled the readonly mode.

Also ChromeOS, which is another immutable Linux distro.

[ReBoot]

You should put your customizations in a script you can apply at will.

[Mr.I]

ReBoot の投稿を引用：

You should put your customizations in a script you can apply at will.

I'm doing exactly that.

[MarvinR]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1675200?emclan=103582791470414830&emgid=4676514574283544994
the last section of the changelog may be of use to you.