On 06/03/18 05:43, Patrick O'Callaghan wrote:
As has been said, this is an ongoing debate. Linux follows Unix in
not
forcing you to reboot except when switching to a new kernel (though
rebooting if glibc changes is strongly encouraged). Running apps will
continue to use old libraries even when new ones are installed and an
old library will hang around until the last reference to it disappears,
while new processes will use the new version. Unix (and Linux) has
always worked like that. This is what some are calling 'live updating'
or 'online updating'. In an earlier time we just called it 'updating'.
The (relatively new) tracer program is designed to tell you when a
process is using libraries whose packages have been updated since the
process started (and hence that the library itself may now be
obsolete), so you can decide if you want to restart them when
convenient. In some cases it recommends that you reboot the system, but
it's up to you when you do it.
What you've said is not 100% accurate.
While the majority of time you can delay rebooting and/or logout/login I have
observed times that delaying too long after many varied updates can and will result
in an unstable system with somethings not working quite right for no apparent
reason. A reboot fixes it.
So, it is nice to think that one can run forever without rebooting after updates it
isn't always the case. Yes, YMMV. But I know I've been bitten by waiting
"too" long
to reboot after multiple updates.
Oh, and let's not forget the times (twice in recent memory) where updates to KDE
Plasma resulted in not being able to logout or even reboot from the menus. In that
case one needed to know about "init 6". :-) :-)
--
Conjecture is just a conclusion based on incomplete information. It isn't a fact.