using $MIRRORLIST, how to change default mirror

[Guest Adriano]

Today I got errors during update to eclipse-cdt-sdk-4.0.1-0.1.2mdv2008.1. I encountered a "rpms were found" error after there was a seemingly normal downloading action in rpmdrake. Since I have configured the $MIRRORLIST mechanism in /etc/urpmi/urpmi.cfg (by the means of EasyUrpmi website) I wondered how to switch to another mirror server.

 

I did not found any way to do this in the rpmdrake gui nore in the urpmi help description. Then I tried to bypass /var/cache/urpmi/mirrors.cache by addressing a self generated mirrorlist file by editing /etc/urpmi/mirror.config (see "man urpmi.files"). But this file wasn't even read. Neighter after removal of /var/cache/urpmi/mirrors.cache.

 

So I edited the newly arisen /var/cache/urpmi/mirrors.cache and changed the header line

 

'chosen' => 'ftp://...', ".

 

That worked finally by setting the entry 'ftp://ftp.join.uni-muenster.de/pub/linux/distributions/mandrakelinux/official/2008.1/i586'.

 

Isn't there a more convenient way to replace the mirror server that was chosen by the system?

[dexter11]

This way is very convinient: http://wiki.mandriva.com/en/Docs/Basic_tas...tions_available Of course since it's official it doesn't add the plf mirrors.

[Guest Adriano]

This way is very convinient: http://wiki.mandriva.com/en/Docs/Basic_tas...tions_available Of course since it's official it doesn't add the plf mirrors.

 

But this suggestion would have the disadvantage that a static mirror entry was made. That had been my configuration before I switched to $MIRRORLIST mechanism. The $MIRRORLIST mechanism has the advantage of a flexibility when a mirror server is not available. It would switch to a mirror which is available. At least this ist what I expect from it.

 

Such /etc/urpmi.cfg entries do not contain any URL but have the form

 

Main\ Updates {

key-ids: 22458a98

mirrorlist: $MIRRORLIST

update

with-dir: media/main/updates

}

 

The mechanism builds then a MIRRORLIST in the background, possibly optimized by performance e.g. (/var/cache/urpmi/mirrors.cache). But my problem was that the server which was chosen as prefered by the mechanism was available. But it was obiously incosistent. I was seeking for a possibility that allows changing the mirror url, which was set as prefered.

 

Sure, the cleaner way would be to appeal to the mirror administrators or distributors to adjust the defect. But that would be another topic.