Complete Guide to Uninstalling Linkding from CoreOS#

Linkding is a popular self-hosted bookmark manager that many users deploy on CoreOS systems. However, there may come a time when you need to remove it from your system. This guide provides detailed instructions for completely uninstalling Linkding from CoreOS, ensuring all components—including services, containers, data, and configuration files—are properly removed.

Understanding Linkding Components#

Before starting the uninstallation process, it’s important to understand the various components that make up a typical Linkding installation on CoreOS:

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graph TD
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    A[Linkding Installation] --> B[Systemd Services]
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    A --> C[Container Images]
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    A --> D[Data Directories]
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    A --> E[Network Configuration]
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    B --> B1[Main Service]
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    B --> B2[Backup Service]
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    B --> B3[Backup Timer]
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    C --> C1[Linkding Container]
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    C --> C2[Backup Container]
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    D --> D1[Application Data]
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    D --> D2[Database]
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    D --> D3[Backups]
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    E --> E1[Firewall Rules]
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    E --> E2[SELinux Contexts]

By systematically addressing each component, we can ensure a complete removal of Linkding from your system.

Pre-uninstallation Backup#

Before removing Linkding, you may want to create a final backup of your bookmarks for future use or migration to another system.

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# Create a final backup
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sudo systemctl start container-linkding-backup.service
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# Verify backup creation
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ls -l /var/lib/linkding/backup/
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# Copy backups to a safe location before removal
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sudo cp -r /var/lib/linkding/backup/ /path/to/safe/location/

Uninstallation Steps#

1. Stop and Disable Services#

First, we need to stop and disable all Linkding-related services to ensure they don’t restart automatically:

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# Stop and disable the main Linkding service
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sudo systemctl stop container-linkding.service
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sudo systemctl disable container-linkding.service
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# Stop and disable the backup service and timer
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sudo systemctl stop container-linkding-backup.service
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sudo systemctl stop container-linkding-backup.timer
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sudo systemctl disable container-linkding-backup.service
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sudo systemctl disable container-linkding-backup.timer

2. Remove Service Files#

Next, remove the systemd service files that manage Linkding:

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# Remove the service files
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sudo rm /etc/systemd/system/container-linkding.service
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sudo rm /etc/systemd/system/container-linkding-backup.service
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sudo rm /etc/systemd/system/container-linkding-backup.timer
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# Reload systemd to recognize the changes
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sudo systemctl daemon-reload

3. Remove Container Images#

Remove the Linkding containers and their associated images:

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# Remove the Linkding containers
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sudo podman rm -f linkding
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sudo podman rm -f linkding-backup
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# Remove the Linkding image
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sudo podman rmi docker.io/sissbruecker/linkding:latest

4. Remove Data Directories#

Delete all data directories associated with Linkding:

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# Remove the Linkding data directory
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sudo rm -rf /var/lib/linkding

5. Remove Firewall Rules#

If you configured firewall rules for Linkding, remove them:

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# Remove the firewall rule for port 9090
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sudo firewall-cmd --remove-port=9090/tcp --permanent
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sudo firewall-cmd --reload

6. Remove SELinux Context#

If you configured SELinux contexts for Linkding, remove them:

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# Remove SELinux context for Linkding directory
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sudo semanage fcontext -d "/var/lib/linkding(/.*)?"

Verification Steps#

After completing the uninstallation steps, verify that Linkding has been completely removed:

Check for Services#

Ensure no Linkding-related services remain:

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# Verify services are removed
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systemctl list-units --all | grep linkding

Check for Containers#

Verify that all Linkding containers have been removed:

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# Verify containers are removed
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podman ps -a | grep linkding
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# Verify images are removed
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podman images | grep linkding

Check for Data Directories#

Confirm that the data directories have been deleted:

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# Verify directories are removed
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ls -la /var/lib/linkding 2>/dev/null

Check for Network Configuration#

Ensure the firewall rule has been removed:

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# Verify firewall rule is removed
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sudo firewall-cmd --list-all | grep 9090

Post-uninstallation Cleanup#

Check for Remaining Files#

Search for any remaining configuration or data files:

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# Check for any remaining configuration files
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sudo find /etc -name "*linkding*"
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# Check for any remaining data files
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sudo find /var -name "*linkding*"

System Cleanup#

Clean up any unused container resources and logs:

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# Clean up any unused container resources
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sudo podman system prune -f
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# Clean up system journal logs related to Linkding
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sudo journalctl --vacuum-time=1d

Advanced Verification#

For a more thorough verification, check if port 9090 (the default Linkding port) is still in use:

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# Check if port 9090 is in use
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sudo ss -tulpn | grep 9090

Also, search for any running processes related to Linkding:

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# Check for any processes related to Linkding
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ps aux | grep -i linkding

Common Issues and Troubleshooting#

Service Removal Issues#

If you encounter issues when stopping or disabling services:

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# Force kill any related processes
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sudo pkill -f linkding
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# Check service status for errors
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sudo systemctl status container-linkding.service

Container Removal Issues#

If containers cannot be removed:

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# Force remove with added options
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sudo podman rm -f linkding --force
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# Check if the container is truly gone
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sudo podman ps -a --format "{{.ID}} {{.Names}}"

Data Directory Removal Issues#

If you encounter permission issues when removing data directories:

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# Check directory permissions
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ls -la /var/lib/linkding
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# Use a more forceful remove command
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sudo rm -rf --no-preserve-root /var/lib/linkding

SELinux Issues#

If you encounter SELinux-related errors:

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# Check SELinux status
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sudo sestatus
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# View SELinux audit log
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sudo ausearch -m avc -ts recent

Conclusion#

Properly uninstalling Linkding from your CoreOS system ensures that no remnants are left behind that could cause conflicts with future installations or waste system resources. By following this comprehensive guide, you’ve removed all services, containers, files, and configurations related to Linkding.

If you’re removing Linkding to install a different bookmark manager, make sure you’ve properly backed up your data before beginning the uninstallation process. The backup files can often be imported into other bookmark management systems, preserving your carefully curated collection of links.

For users who are removing Linkding temporarily and plan to reinstall it later, the backups created during the pre-uninstallation phase can be restored to pick up where you left off.