Knowledgebase

If you are running a VPS and facing issues with regional mirrors, you can switch to a global mirror without any regional prefixes. This change ensures reliable access to software updates and installations without being tied to a specific regional server.

Why Switch to a Global Mirror?

Switching to a global mirror is useful when regional mirrors are down, slow, or unreliable. Global mirrors provide a more stable and consistent connection to Ubuntu and Debian repositories, helping maintain your system’s functionality.

Steps to Update the Repository to a Global Mirror

Follow these steps to modify your repository settings to use the global mirror:

1. Access Your Server
   Log in to your server via SSH as a user with sufficient privileges to modify system files.

2. Determine Your OS Version
   Use the appropriate command for your operating system version:

   • For Debian or Ubuntu 22.04: Update the main sources list to switch to the global mirror with this command:

     sed -i 's|http://.*.archive.ubuntu.com|http://archive.ubuntu.com|g' /etc/apt/sources.list

   • For Ubuntu 24.04: Update the specific sources file with the following command:

     sed -i 's|http://.*.archive.ubuntu.com|http://archive.ubuntu.com|g' /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ubuntu.sources

Explanation of the Commands

• These commands use sed to find and replace any regional mirror URLs (e.g., de.archive, fr.archive) with the global mirror (archive.ubuntu.com), ensuring your system uses a universal and reliable source for updates.
• The -i flag makes the changes directly in the specified configuration files.

Final Step: Update Package Lists

After updating your repository settings, refresh the package lists by running:

This step ensures that your server is now pulling updates from the global mirror.

Conclusion

Switching to the global mirror is an effective way to avoid issues with regional repositories and maintain uninterrupted access to updates. If you continue to experience problems, you may also explore other global mirrors or consult your hosting provider for further guidance.