This file allows you to configure the availablity of archives and packages for your box. This page will show you a sources.list file for the current version of Ubuntu and how to make changes in it effective.
This is your first stop after installing Ubuntu on your machine.
Step 1, Back up your existing sources.list If you muck up this procedure, you can get rid of the mess and start over again. Always back up system files before modifying them.
$ cd /etc/apt $ sudo cp sources.list sources.list.OLD
When you first type sudo in a session, you will be prompted for your password. Enter it to gain root permissions for your terminal session.
Step 2, Get Morrison's sources.list The sources.list file you see below is also linked at the left if you want to grab the whole thing. Do this by right-clicking and selecting the option that allows you to save the file. By default, it should save in your Downloads folder. If that does not happen, just navigate there using the file dialog box and save it there. This folder is right inside of your home folder.
These commands will place the sources.list file where it is needed.
$ cd $ cd Downloads $ sudo mv sources.list /etc/apt
Optional (N00bs, avert your eyes!) This is what the file looks like. If you know how to use a text editor, you can change yours to look like this. This is not necessry if you carried out the last step.
#deb cdrom:[Ubuntu 12.04 LTS _Precise Pangolin_ - Release amd64 (20120425)]/ dists/precise/main/binary-i386/ #deb cdrom:[Ubuntu 12.04 LTS _Precise Pangolin_ - Release amd64 (20120425)]/ dists/precise/restricted/binary-i386/ #deb cdrom:[Ubuntu 12.04 LTS _Precise Pangolin_ - Release amd64 (20120425)]/ precise main restricted # See http://help.ubuntu.com/community/UpgradeNotes for how to upgrade to # newer versions of the distribution. deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise main restricted deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise main restricted ## Major bug fix updates produced after the final release of the ## distribution. deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-updates main restricted deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-updates main restricted ## N.B. software from this repository is ENTIRELY UNSUPPORTED by the Ubuntu ## team. Also, please note that software in universe WILL NOT receive any ## review or updates from the Ubuntu security team. deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise universe deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise universe deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-updates universe deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-updates universe ## N.B. software from this repository is ENTIRELY UNSUPPORTED by the Ubuntu ## team, and may not be under a free licence. Please satisfy yourself as to ## your rights to use the software. Also, please note that software in ## multiverse WILL NOT receive any review or updates from the Ubuntu ## security team. deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise multiverse deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise multiverse deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-updates multiverse deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-updates multiverse ## N.B. software from this repository may not have been tested as ## extensively as that contained in the main release, although it includes ## newer versions of some applications which may provide useful features. ## Also, please note that software in backports WILL NOT receive any review ## or updates from the Ubuntu security team. deb http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-backports main restricted universe multiverse deb-src http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-backports main restricted universe multiverse deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise-security main restricted deb-src http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise-security main restricted deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise-security universe deb-src http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise-security universe deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise-security multiverse deb-src http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise-security multiverse ## Uncomment the following two lines to add software from Canonical's ## 'partner' repository. ## This software is not part of Ubuntu, but is offered by Canonical and the ## respective vendors as a service to Ubuntu users. deb http://archive.canonical.com/ubuntu precise partner deb-src http://archive.canonical.com/ubuntu precise partner ## This software is not part of Ubuntu, but is offered by third-party ## developers who want to ship their latest software. deb http://extras.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise main deb-src http://extras.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise main
Step 3, Update, Upgrade and Re-Index To make the changes effective, execute these commands. When you execute the first one, you will be asked to enter your password, since you will be functioning as a root.
$ sudo apt-get update $ sudo apt-get upgrade $ sudo updatedb
The last command re-indexes your drive and makes it much easier to find files in your system.