[SOLVED] Upgrade from Zorin 9.0 to Zorin 12

Longtime newbie user of Zorin 9.0, however I would like to know the best way to UPGRADE a fully updated Zorin 9.0 to latest Zorin 12 without losing my current customization (such as Compiz, Conky etc.), when upgrading the OS.
I do NOT have a dedicated or separate User or Home Partition, as I used the "Auto" Partition when first installing Zorin 9.0 way back when.
I do know I can save my "Home" and all it`s data to an external drive, and after installing Zorin 12, put back this saved data to the new Zorin 12 OS, but that would not include current settings and customization.... would it?

Hi, your settings are in the hidden files in your /home folder. I've never got compiled to work fully in 12 and I have never utilised conky in any version of Zorin. What I would do is backup all your data and hidden .application folders (Ctrl+ H to unhide) then shrink your Zorin 9 partition to create a dual boot and see how you get on with 12 or otherwise but only after trying 12 in live mode first.

Hi Swarfendor437,
In your opinion, is there any compelling reason to UPGRADE to Zorin12 from a fully UPDATED Zorin 9.0 other than it`s newer?

Well it depends on your standpoint, coupled with how your experience has been with Zorin 9 - for me the issue with 9 was the unchangeable and sometimes annoying indicator-3 applet on the far right of the panel - you would change the theme and it was stuck with a white backdrop. One thing that 9 has over 12 is better compatibility with Compiz. It is really horses for courses and as a moderator I have to keep up to speed so I can share how the new system works. Zorin 9 is supported until April 2019 so there is no immediate rush, but you may want to try 12.1 even just in live mode just to get a feel as to whether you could live with it or not. In respect of the old look, the developmental release of Zorin 11 was my all time favourite but support for that ended last July just like its Ubuntu counterpart on which it was built. I am now eagerly awaiting the release of Zorin Lite to see how that fares - I think it will be a big improvement over LXDE/Lubuntu. I have grown into liking 12 (My Windows 10 drive is sitting on the desk at the moment and has been for about 4-6 weeks) and I keep Windows 7 on a different drive to maintain my website as Web Plus from Serif does not play nicely with Wine and I am too lazy to start learning CSS etc.

My current desktop in 12 (must be due to my recent purchase of Level 42 compilation CD's! LOL!:

Thanks again Swarfendor for taking the time to answer my questions. I truly appreciate you and this Zorin forum. I think this is one of the best Distro forums out there for quick and informative replies.
I believe I will bite the bullet and UPGRADE after Zorin 9 is NO longer supported.
I enjoy showing off my Compiz and Cairo Dock (Not Conky!) config to unsuspecting Windows only people, and have built quite a nice "dual (SSDs) boot" system using default Zorin 9.0 and Win10 Pro.
My only gripe about Zorin is my ever present bootup error message! Something about "Network Service Discovery Failed"? I have looked into and posted about this, but have ended up just ignoring this message (lasts about a minute or less) cause it apparently has NO known effect on my system, and I can`t figure out how to eliminate this message. Other than this minor annoyance, I have worked through most every other problem or issue I've had (with help from you and this forum) till Zorin has become my "Go To" O.S. of choice!
I rarely use or boot into Win10, and when I do, there are so many Win Updates and new methods of tracking everything done on Windows, I just go back to trusty old Zorin, to work and surf from there!
Thanks again!

http://magnus-k-karlsson.blogspot.co.uk ... k.html?m=1

Yes, thanks, I have seen this linked page before, and could NOT get the notification message to remove!
Question:
This link is for Ubuntu 9.04. I look in my Zorin 9.0 under "Administration", and I DO NOT find "Services" to prevent autostart of Avahi Service!
I followed the two provided scripts in your link, but this made NO difference when I shutdown and restarted. "Network service discovery disabled" notification appears every time.

Hi, thought things may not have changed!

Here you go (Zorin 9 = Ubuntu 14.04):

https://askubuntu.com/questions/339702/ ... ean-for-me

Thanks again Swarfendor437 for your reply with the new link!
Unlike some of the "commentators" of this linked article, I was able to successfully (and finally) remove that annoying notification notice upon each boot up!
I followed the script changing the instructed line from a 1 to a zero in my /etc/default/avahi-daemon file. This line now reads: AVAHI_DAEMON_DETECT_LOCAL=0.
This seems to have done the trick, as when restarting I NO longer get the "Network service discovery disabled" message!
I don't understand why this has NOT worked for some others who have commented, and why it works for me?
Thanks Swarfendor, you have helped me yet again!

Pleasure to help friend!