How to update homebridge-raspbian OS itself? I have 1.0.9 and want to move to 1.0.15

[stevehoek]

A few months ago I installed homebridge-raspbian-image 1.0.9
I notice that it is up to 1.0.15 now, and I'd like to upgrade.
I know how to upgrade homebridge, homebridge-ui, the plugins, and node itself and keep those up to date
How do I upgrade the OS itself? Or do I have to reflash my SD card (and if so, how do I keep my config?)

Environment:

• Homebridge Raspberry Pi Image Version: 1.0.9
• Node.js Version: 14.15.1
• NPM Version: 6.14.8
• Homebridge Version: 1.2.3
• Homebridge Config UI X Plugin Version: 4.3.4

[oznu]

The "version" of the image is static; it's there to let us know what version you flashed if you ever run into issues.

There is no need to flash a new image when we release an update here, as it's mostly just bumping the versions of Homebridge / UI so new users don't have to update as soon as they load up the system.

[jamieburchell]

@oznu How about upgrading from Buster to Bullseye? Do we have to reflash? What is the recommended way to keep the OS up to date?

[oznu]

This image is based on Raspberry Pi OS - so it's best to follow their guidance:

https://www.raspberrypi.com/news/raspberry-pi-os-debian-bullseye/

With a major upgrade, we recommend downloading a new image, reinstalling any applications, and moving your data across from your current image. Debian major version upgrades contain a lot of changes, and it is very easy for some small tweak made somewhere in the system to be incompatible with some change you have made, and you can end up with a broken system and a Raspberry Pi that won’t boot. The easiest way to create a new SD card is with the Raspberry Pi Imager tool.

If you really want to try upgrading an existing image, there are some instructions on the forums here – but we don’t support or recommend this, so be warned: you are on your own if anything breaks! Make a backup of your SD card first so you can always go back to a working system if you need to; the SD Card Copier application in Raspberry Pi OS is a good tool for this.

You can easily migrate your Homebridge instance to a fresh install using the backup / restore feature: https://github.com/homebridge/homebridge/wiki/Backup-and-Restore