update-initramfs fails due to loss of /lib/udev/firmware.sh during update

[Peter Belew]

Binary package hint: initramfs-tools

Serious problem during apt-get dist-upgrade after apt-get update:

The file /lib/udev/firmware.sh is apparently deleted during some part of an update. This file is essential to update-initramfs. It is almost impossible to continue any updates or installs to the system after this file has been lost.

This happened on 2 systems this morning (see below about that).

Is this bug in initramfs-tools, possibly?

About 10 am PST on 2010-02-10

last few lines of screen output from 'apt-get dist-upgrade'

Setting up libmono-system-runtime2.0-cil (2.4.3+dfsg-1ubuntu2) ...
Processing triggers for libc-bin ...
ldconfig deferred processing now taking place
Processing triggers for python-support ...
Processing triggers for initramfs-tools ...
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-12-generic
cpio: ./lib/udev/firmware.sh: Cannot stat: No such file or directory
update-initramfs: failed for /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-12-generic
dpkg: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (2)

And then ...

# apt-get dist-upgrade
E: dpkg was interrupted, you must manually run 'sudo dpkg --configure -a' to correct the problem.

So then I try dpkg:

# dpkg --configure -a
Setting up initramfs-tools (0.92bubuntu64) ...
update-initramfs: deferring update (trigger activated)

Processing triggers for initramfs-tools ...
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-12-generic
cpio: ./lib/udev/firmware.sh: Cannot stat: No such file or directory
update-initramfs: failed for /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-12-generic
dpkg: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1
root@lightning:~#

The locate command thinks that the script is still there:

# locate firmware.sh
/lib/udev/firmware.sh

But it isn't:

# ls /lib/udev | grep firmware
firmware

This has happened on two systems this morning. It made it really impossible to update the system! Fortunately, since I have two systems, it was possible to copy the script from the other system, and to continue the update.

After copying the file, I could complete the installation:

dpkg --configure -a
root@lightning:/lib/udev# !dpkg
dpkg --configure -a
Setting up initramfs-tools (0.92bubuntu64) ...
update-initramfs: deferring update (trigger activated)

Processing triggers for initramfs-tools ...
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-12-generic
root@lightning:/lib/udev#

#ls -l /boot | grep initrd

-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 7573322 2010-02-10 10:38 /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-12-generic

ProblemType: Bug
Architecture: i386
Date: Wed Feb 10 10:51:24 2010
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.04
Package: initramfs-tools 0.92bubuntu64
PackageArchitecture: all
ProcEnviron:
 PATH=(custom, user)
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.32-12.17-generic
SourcePackage: initramfs-tools
Uname: Linux 2.6.32-12-generic i686

[Peter Belew (peterbe)]

I am also attaching a copy of the missing script /lib/udev/firmware.sh - from the previous upgrade, copied from another system.

[Mikael Gerdin (mgerdin)]

This is apparently a bug in update-initramfs, it should be looking for the new /lib/udev/firmware file instead of firmware.sh
so you can apply the patch: http://launchpadlibrarian.net/39011493/udev-firmware.patch
or just symlink /lib/udev/firmware.sh to /lib/udev/firmware
Or wait for an update to update-initramfs

[Drutten2 (drutten2)]

I hade the same problem

Tried the symlink and worked for me.

[Peter Belew (peterbe)]

Thanks, Mikael Gerdin and Drutten2 and Gerry C.! I'll put in the symlink for the time being.

[Krzysztof Klinikowski (kkszysiu)]

You just need to make symlink to that file. File /lib/udev/firmware exist so:
sudo ln -s /lib/udev/firmware /lib/udev/firmware.sh

Solves that.

[Theo Nolte (theo-nolte)]

thanks. had the same problem and symlink works fine.

[Aram Yegenian (aramyegenian)]

symlink solves this, thanks.

[Tom Louwrier (tom-louwrier)]

"me too"
symlinking did solve it.

thanx
Tom