Question regarding IPFire created ISO

Installing & Running IPFire
1

Hi all, so it is time to upgrade my IPfire hardware. I am moving to a faster, newer i3 CPU, 8GB RAM and an SSD.

My question is, the ISO that IPFire creates that contains my CURRENT setup (NOT the one that is downloaded from IPFire servers), can that be used to install on new hardware or is ONLY for re-installing on similar hardware? Would I be better off just doing a clean install and then restoring my various component backups?

Thnking you in anticipation.

2

In theory, yes—provided the version and hardware are the same.

But I would prefer using the manual method.

1 - Make a complete backup (system and add-ons) and download it.
2 - Install the new appliance using the ISO (or IMG) and reassign the same IP addresses (Green, Blue, Orange).
3 - Install the add-ons.
4 - Restore the saved backups.
Reboot

If the hardware configuration is different, it may be helpful to re-detect the sensors:
www.ipfire.org - Migrate to new hardware

Or add to /var/ipfire/backup/exclude.user

var/log/rrd
var/log/vnstat

Before the backup

3

I would do a clean install. If you don’t have a lot of additional configurations, I wouldn’t restore the backup. I think a fresh install is better; restoring may result in unnecessary junk. The backup includes both system settings and add-ons:
backups - system settings
addons - addons settings

4

@pscar13 Thank you for your reply. Your response is a bit confusing, however, so I will provide some more context.

1: My current system (the one I want to upgrade) is running IPFire CU203. So fully updated and working correctly.

2: The CURRENT hardware and the NEW, REPLACEMENT hardware are NOT the same, with the exception of my Green NIC. Is is being moved from my old box to my new box.

3: I did see that link on migrating to new hardware that you provided and I thank you for that. I will keep that in mind..

5

@alexand Thank you for your reply. I am leaning towards your solution, as I do indeed not have a lot of additional configurations. In fact, the only two add-ons I have installed are Guardian and the Reports add-on that a member wrote (I forget now who is exactly that is, old man that I am!! LOL)

So, yes, I think I will just go ahead and do a clean install and avoid any potential pitfalls. Thank you again.

6

Sorry for the confusion.
I have just tested the CU203 backup ISO.

capturejpg
capturejpg1337Ă—856 247 KB

My installation fails because of the URLFilter bug:

Not taken into account when restoring the backup from the ISO:

// src/installer/hw.c
1441: int hw_restore_backup(const char* output, const char* backup_path, const char* destination) {
1442:     char command[STRING_SIZE];
1443:
1444:     snprintf(command, sizeof(command), "/bin/tar xzpf %s -C %s "
1445:         "--exclude-from=%s/var/ipfire/backup/exclude --exclude-from=%s/var/ipfire/backup/exclude.user",
1446:         backup_path, destination, destination, destination);
1447:     int rc = mysystem(output, command);
1448:
1449:     if (rc)
1450:         return -1;
1451:
1452:     return 0;
1453: }
7

Hi all, I just wanted to provide an update. I have now moved to the new hardware, I did a clean install and a restore from backup and everything seems to have gone great. A BIG shoutout to the guys who work tirelessly to make this firewall so easy to set up and maintain and especially for an old git like me, a breeze to install and/or restore. I cannot thank all of you enough. Also a BIG shoutout to the members who are always willing to assist with even silly questions. Your patience is legendary!