package update-manager failed to install/upgrade

[Raul Montagne]

Binary package hint: update-manager

etting up alsa-base (1.0.14-1ubuntu2) ...
rm: cannot remove `/etc/modutils/alsa': Is a directory
dpkg: error processing alsa-base (--configure):
 subprocess post-installation script returned error exit status 1
dpkg: dependency problems prevent configuration of ubuntu-minimal:
 ubuntu-minimal depends on alsa-base; however:
  Package alsa-base is not configured yet.
dpkg: error processing ubuntu-minimal (--configure):
 dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
Errors were encountered while processing:
 alsa-base
 ubuntu-minimal

ProblemType: Package
Architecture: i386
Date: Sat Apr 26 02:15:47 2008
Dependencies:

DistroRelease: Ubuntu 7.10
ErrorMessage: ErrorMessage: SystemError in cache.commit(): E:Sub-process /tmp/tmpMDjFuU/backports/usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)

NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
Package: update-manager None [modified: /var/lib/dpkg/info/update-manager.list]
PackageArchitecture: all
SourcePackage: update-manager
Title: package update-manager None [modified: /var/lib/dpkg/info/update-manager.list] failed to install/upgrade: ErrorMessage: SystemError in cache.commit(): E:Sub-process /tmp/tmpMDjFuU/backports/usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)
Uname: Linux aneide 2.6.20-16-generic #2 SMP Tue Feb 12 05:41:34 UTC 2008 i686 GNU/Linux

[Raul Montagne (montagne57)]

SOLVED (partially)
 worked around by manually removing the whole file /etc/modutils/alsa
$>rm -Rf /etc/modutils/alsa
Then I rerun apt-get install

[Daniel T Chen (crimsun)]

alsa-base.postinst needs to handle /etc/modutils/alsa not being empty.

[Matthew Paul Thomas (mpt)]

(Undoing vandalism by ~arturbryczek.)

[Marcus Tomlinson (marcustomlinson)]

This release of Ubuntu is no longer receiving maintenance updates. If this is still an issue on a maintained version of Ubuntu please let us know.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

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