Caution about downgrading

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   This has not yet been confirmed, but since a possible pattern is emerging I wanted to issue a caution to Aurora users: 

Those who have ever performed version downgrades of Aurora appear to disproportionately experience issues with future Aurora upgrades/downgrades.

A large percentage of current bug reports have not been actual bugs in the Aurora/Borealis code, but have been the result of upgrade installations which didn't install everything properly.  In many cases, rather than upgrade a particular dependancy file, the installer is replacing it with the first version ever installed on the machine (for many of you, that is 1.0.0, 1.0.2, 1.0.25, etc.).  So, after an upgrade, some parts of Aurora might move from 1.0.41 to 1.0.69, but others might drop to 1.0.0.  This can present many probelms when a dependancy drops to a version that doesn't fully support a newer Aurora feature or is lacking important bug fixes.  Aurora can not properly handle this situation and the results are unpredictable.  The solution is the "full uninstall, reboot, full install, reboot" procedure which is all too familiar lately.  

While not an exclusive problem to those who have performed downgrades (there are upgrade conditions which can also produce this condition), it does appear that the downgrade process might make these issues happen more often with future version changes.

At this time, we are recommending that users not perform a version downgrade of Aurora.  

Since it might present major issues later, do not make a downgrade your first avenue of choice in the event of issues.  Prior to attempting a downgrade, please attempt the "full uninstall, reboot, full install, reboot" procedure to make sure that it doesn't fix the installed version.  If you must downgrade ('tis the season and there are shows that must go on), please do so by fully uninstalling and rebooting your PC before installing the older version.  You must reboot your PC again before using Aurora.  Be advised that after a downgrade you may experience problems with Aurora after future upgrades/downgrades even if you follow this procedure properly.

This installation issue will be addressed in an upcoming Aurora release.

Edited by LightsOnLogan - 03 Nov 2009 at 9:44am

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LightsOnLogan Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Joined: 11 Oct 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 3187	Quote Reply Topic: Caution about downgrading Posted: 03 Nov 2009 at 9:42am
	This has not yet been confirmed, but since a possible pattern is emerging I wanted to issue a caution to Aurora users: Those who have ever performed version downgrades of Aurora appear to disproportionately experience issues with future Aurora upgrades/downgrades. A large percentage of current bug reports have not been actual bugs in the Aurora/Borealis code, but have been the result of upgrade installations which didn't install everything properly. In many cases, rather than upgrade a particular dependancy file, the installer is replacing it with the first version ever installed on the machine (for many of you, that is 1.0.0, 1.0.2, 1.0.25, etc.). So, after an upgrade, some parts of Aurora might move from 1.0.41 to 1.0.69, but others might drop to 1.0.0. This can present many probelms when a dependancy drops to a version that doesn't fully support a newer Aurora feature or is lacking important bug fixes. Aurora can not properly handle this situation and the results are unpredictable. The solution is the "full uninstall, reboot, full install, reboot" procedure which is all too familiar lately. While not an exclusive problem to those who have performed downgrades (there are upgrade conditions which can also produce this condition), it does appear that the downgrade process might make these issues happen more often with future version changes. At this time, we are recommending that users not perform a version downgrade of Aurora. Since it might present major issues later, do not make a downgrade your first avenue of choice in the event of issues. Prior to attempting a downgrade, please attempt the "full uninstall, reboot, full install, reboot" procedure to make sure that it doesn't fix the installed version. If you must downgrade ('tis the season and there are shows that must go on), please do so by fully uninstalling and rebooting your PC before installing the older version. You must reboot your PC again before using Aurora. Be advised that after a downgrade you may experience problems with Aurora after future upgrades/downgrades even if you follow this procedure properly. This installation issue will be addressed in an upcoming Aurora release. Edited by LightsOnLogan - 03 Nov 2009 at 9:44am