package python3 3.3.2-14ubuntu1 failed to install/upgrade: ErrorMessage: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 4

[asala]

I was upgrading from 13.04 to 13.10.

lsb_release -rd
Description: Ubuntu 13.10
Release: 13.10

 "Python3" failed to install and, well, after it, a horde of related packages (dh-python, foomatic, ...) failed too:
 python3
 python3-apt
 python3-dbus
 language-selector-common
 python3-gi
 kde-runtime
 kdepim-runtime
 libkfbapi1
 libkdepimdbusinterfaces4
 libcalendarsupport4
 libmessagecore4
 libpimcommon4
 libincidenceeditorsng4
 libksieveui4
 libmessageviewer4
 libtemplateparser4
 libmessagelist4
 kmail
 libmessagecomposer4
 libmailcommon4
 libkdepim4
 libmailimporter4
 kdepim-kresources
 knotes
 akregator
 kontact
 libeventviews4
 korganizer
 kaddressbook
 ubuntu-drivers-common
 update-notifier-common
 python3-pkg-resources
 python3-crypto
 python3-oauthlib
 friends-dispatcher
 libfriends0
 lsb-release
 ubuntu-minimal
 apparmor
 python3-commandnotfound
 command-not-found
 python3-distupgrade
 python3-update-manager
 ubuntu-release-upgrader-core
 ubuntu-standard
 ufw
 update-manager-core
 akonadi-facebook
 gnome-menus
 alacarte
 amarok

so, my system is in a mess now...

ProblemType: Package
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 13.10
Package: python3 3.3.2-14ubuntu1
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.8.0-32.47-generic 3.8.13.10
Uname: Linux 3.8.0-32-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.12.5-0ubuntu2
Architecture: amd64
Date: Thu Oct 24 13:49:06 2013
DuplicateSignature: package:python3:3.3.2-14ubuntu1:ErrorMessage: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 4
ErrorMessage: ErrorMessage: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 4
InstallationDate: Installed on 2013-06-12 (133 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 13.04 "Raring Ringtail" - Release amd64 (20130424)
MarkForUpload: True
SourcePackage: python3-defaults
Title: package python3 3.3.2-14ubuntu1 failed to install/upgrade: ErrorMessage: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 4
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to saucy on 2013-10-24 (0 days ago)

[asala (asala)]

Might be related to : Bug #1024204,
Bug #1025465, however, I'm not knowledgeable enought to ascertain it... and they are 1-year old bugs.

Some output from sudo aptitude dist-upgrade

Processing was halted because there were too many errors.
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)
A package failed to install. Trying to recover:
Setting up python3 (3.3.2-14ubuntu1) ...
running python rtupdate hooks for python3.3...
dpkg-query: package 'ubiquity-frontend-gtk' is not installed
Use dpkg --info (= dpkg-deb --info) to examine archive files,
and dpkg --contents (= dpkg-deb --contents) to list their contents.
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/usr/bin/py3clean", line 200, in <module>
    main()
  File "/usr/bin/py3clean", line 186, in main
    pfiles = set(dpf.from_package(options.package))
  File "/usr/share/python3/debpython/files.py", line 53, in from_package
    raise Exception("cannot get content of %s" % package_name)
Exception: cannot get content of ubiquity-frontend-gtk
error running python rtupdate hook ubiquity-frontend-gtk
dpkg-query: package 'ubiquity' is not installed
Use dpkg --info (= dpkg-deb --info) to examine archive files,
and dpkg --contents (= dpkg-deb --contents) to list their contents.
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/usr/bin/py3clean", line 200, in <module>
    main()
  File "/usr/bin/py3clean", line 186, in main
    pfiles = set(dpf.from_package(options.package))
  File "/usr/share/python3/debpython/files.py", line 53, in from_package
    raise Exception("cannot get content of %s" % package_name)
Exception: cannot get content of ubiquity
error running python rtupdate hook ubiquity
dpkg: error processing python3 (--configure):
 subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 4
dpkg: dependency problems prevent configuration of foomatic-db-compressed-ppds:
 foomatic-db-compressed-ppds depends on python3; however:
  Package python3 is not configured yet.

[asala (asala)]

well, after unsuccessful dpkg-reconfigure -a, apt-get dist-upgrade, etc.

 sudo apt-get install ubiquity-frontend-gtk

managed to get my dependencies and package configuration right... (hopefully, not yet rebooted).
So, this seems a bug actually affecting the installation/upgrade scripts or the above package.
I changed the python3-defaults autogenerated by apport to the ubiquity thing, hence.

[Dimitri John Ledkov (xnox)]

ubiquity-frontend-gtk must not be installed on normal running systems. Why do you have it installed?

What machine are you upgrading?

[asala (asala)]

Well, I was trying usual ways of recovering a broken installation (redoing apt-get update, apt-get dist-upgrade, dpkg --configure -a, with aptitude instead of apt-get).

After despairing, just about to overwrite everything with a fresh install from USB, I just decided that, given that the error logs showed that the 1st strange thing was:

running python rtupdate hooks for python3.3...
dpkg-query: package 'ubiquity-frontend-gtk' is not installed

I decided to give ubiquity-frontend-gtk a try and, voilà, everything solved. I am now writing this on my perfectly working 13.10 Ubuntu.

My machine is an i7-4770K with 16 GB RAM and SSD+HHD setup, bought in July. Ubuntu 13.04 was installed (fresh) when bought.
However, as the technician at the shop did it, I don't know whether he tweaked something and my machine had a particular wrong setting (he told me that he had issues with the brand-new hardware) regarding this "ubiquity" stuff or whether my set of installed packages triggered a wrong ubiquity dependence.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for ubiquity (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]