adium-theme won't install - unable to execute installed post-installation script: Exec format error

[svaens]

Binary package hint: adium-theme-ubuntu

When updating ubuntu LUCID on the 12th of March 2010, the update and configuration of the adium-theme-ubuntu failed with :

Setting up adium-theme-ubuntu (0.1-0ubuntu1) ...
dpkg (subprocess): unable to execute installed post-installation script: Exec format error
dpkg: error processing adium-theme-ubuntu (--configure):
 subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 2
Errors were encountered while processing:
 adium-theme-ubuntu
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)

This causes the failure of the correct installation and configuration of ubuntu-desktop and ubuntu-artwork.

Please let me know what other information I can provide to assist.

[svaens (svaens)]

Actually,

I decided I would try manually removing all files related to 'adium'. Figuring that if the apt-get process is failing because of an incomplete script file, then it would never get fixed by itself.

So I did a "find" over the system, and come up with a list of files, and then removed them (or at least, I moved them out of harms way).

I noticed that the post install script file was there, but empty.

Then I did a apt-get remove again, and it seemed to go through correctly this time, except for apt complaining that it couldn't find any installed files for it.
The next apt-get install worked without problems.

So maybe this was just a freak that happened during an install problem specific to my machine and/or installation.

However, shouldn't apt handle this a bit better?

Obviously it tests that certain files are there. But it doesn't test for their correctness. That is, a check against file-size, or maybe a checksum. And were it to do so, it would know not to completely fail (without recovery) when a script (such as the post install script) doesn't work.

Guys, I just wanted to leave this open until I get your opinion on this, as an apt-get bug ?

[lds (lazaro-d-salem)]

I get exactly the same problem,

sudo apt-get adiumsudo apt-get remove adium-theme-ubuntu --purge
E: Invalid operation adiumsudo
lazaro@ubuntu-hp:/usr/share$ sudo apt-get remove adium-theme-ubuntu --purge
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
The following packages will be REMOVED:
  adium-theme-ubuntu*
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 1 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
1 not fully installed or removed.
After this operation, 426kB disk space will be freed.
Do you want to continue [Y/n]? y
(Reading database ... 128395 files and directories currently installed.)
Removing adium-theme-ubuntu ...
dpkg (subprocess): unable to execute installed pre-removal script: Exec format error
dpkg: error processing adium-theme-ubuntu (--purge):
 subprocess installed pre-removal script returned error exit status 2
dpkg (subprocess): unable to execute installed post-installation script: Exec format error
dpkg: error while cleaning up:
 subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 2
Errors were encountered while processing:
 adium-theme-ubuntu
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)
lazaro@ubuntu-hp:/usr/share$ sudo apt-get remove adium-theme-ubuntu --purge
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
The following packages will be REMOVED:
  adium-theme-ubuntu*
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 1 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
1 not fully installed or removed.
After this operation, 426kB disk space will be freed.
Do you want to continue [Y/n]? y
(Reading database ... 128395 files and directories currently installed.)
Removing adium-theme-ubuntu ...
dpkg (subprocess): unable to execute installed pre-removal script: Exec format error
dpkg: error processing adium-theme-ubuntu (--purge):
 subprocess installed pre-removal script returned error exit status 2
dpkg (subprocess): unable to execute installed post-installation script: Exec format error
dpkg: error while cleaning up:
 subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 2
Errors were encountered while processing:
 adium-theme-ubuntu
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)
lazaro@ubuntu-hp:/usr/share$ sudo apt-get remove adium-theme-ubuntu --purge
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
yThe following packages will be REMOVED:
  adium-theme-ubuntu*
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 1 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
1 not fully installed or removed.
After this operation, 426kB disk space will be freed.
Do you want to continue [Y/n]? y
(Reading database ... 128395 files and directories currently installed.)
Removing adium-theme-ubuntu ...
dpkg (subprocess): unable to execute installed pre-removal script: Exec format error
dpkg: error processing adium-theme-ubuntu (--purge):
 subprocess installed pre-removal script returned error exit status 2
dpkg (subprocess): unable to execute installed post-installation script: Exec format error
dpkg: error while cleaning up:
 subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 2
Errors were encountered while processing:
 adi...