Technobabble in error messages when trying to update repository data or install package if another package management job is running

[Bálint Magyar]

If I open Software Sources, change some repository settings and try to close the window, I get a prompt to update the repository data. If another package manager (in my case Ubuntu Software Center) is running and I try to update the repositories, I get the following cryptic message:

Another synaptic is running

There is another synaptic running in non-interactive mode. Please wait for it to finish first

This is not only frightening to a new user, it's also inaccurate, as the other package management application wasn't even Synaptic.

I think the ideal solution would be some kind of queuing system for these kind of operations, say if I'm already installing something from Ubuntu Software Center, Software Sources would give me a dialog with an indefinite progress bar and a line of text saying that it's currently waiting for another package management operation to finish. As soon as the Ubuntu Software Center installation is done, Software Sources will automatically proceed with the repository update. I've attached a mock-up of such a dialog as an example.

ProblemType: Bug
Architecture: i386
Date: Thu Mar 11 13:21:49 2010
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.04
LiveMediaBuild: Ubuntu 10.04 "Lucid Lynx" - Alpha i386 (20100310)
Package: software-properties-gtk 0.75.7
PackageArchitecture: all
ProcEnviron:
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.32-16.25-generic
SourcePackage: software-properties
Uname: Linux 2.6.32-16-generic i686

[Bálint Magyar (balintm)]

Similarly, if a package manager is running and Rhythmbox or Totem prompts for a codec install, the same conflict produces different error messages.

"Unable to get exclusive lock
This usually means that another package management application (like apt-get or aptitude) is already running. Please close that application first."

And that after clicking OK:

"No packages installed
None of the selected packages were installed."

[Robert Roth (evfool)]

Marked aptdaemon as also affected, as that's the backend used for package operations, so the package queuing mechanism should be implemented there, and the apps should provide an interface as suggested here, showing that they need to wait for the completion of the other package management tasks to continue.
---
Ubuntu Bug Squad volunteer triager
http://wiki.ubuntu.com/BugSquad

[Robert Roth (evfool)]

Marking the Update-Manager task as Invalid, as update-manager does wait until other package management operations complete (tried Checking for updates while software-properties-gtk was reloading packages), only it displays an incorrect (Waiting for synaptic to exit) error message.

[Sebastian Heinlein (glatzor)]

Sorry for the long delay. All desktop applications use aptdaemon nowadays. Even the codec installers.