package man-db 2.5.7-2 failed to install/upgrade: debconf: DbDriver "config": /var/cache/debconf/config.dat is locked by another process: Resource temporarily unavailable while processing triggers for man-db

[Jānis Kangarooo]

Binary package hint: man-db

still some distros have bugs (even long time reported and not done) and also not so fast for old system (for what xubuntu was made for)
I did in terminal
sudo aptitude install lubuntu-desktop
then all packages were downloaded in 10 sec
then some installation started and a blue terminal screen was. I was asked about something LXDM init.d
and options were:
GDM and LXDM
but then since i didnt know what to choose and what they mean i tryd ctrl+shift+x ( and also z) and since that didnt stopped i just clicked X in window
then since update manager icon was still showing..
i loged out then loged in.
then i made the same command sudo aptitude install lubuntu-desktop
then i got this crash.
while reporting this crash installation finished without asking again about some init.d and with blue terminal screen.
What to choose in that blue screen?
Can i still use xubuntu in case something was wrong? (that ill know after restart)
Update: after restart actually still xubuntu auto logged in (couse of closing "X button" while asking about Configuring LXDM)

I also did on another comp the same but choose the second option Lxde.
lubuntu login screen started up even if in xubuntu installation ive chosen to longin automatically. Now ive seen it doesnt have so much options like xubuntu what to do to choose back that first blue screen option (GDM in blue screen asking abour configuring LXDM) and remove lubuntu-desktop?

ProblemType: Package
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.04
Package: man-db 2.5.7-2
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.32-22.36-generic 2.6.32.11+drm33.2
Uname: Linux 2.6.32-22-generic i686
Architecture: i386
Date: Mon Jun 21 23:07:44 2010
ErrorMessage: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1
InstallationMedia: Xubuntu 9.10 "Karmic Koala" - Release i386 (20091028.3)
SourcePackage: man-db
Title: package man-db 2.5.7-2 failed to install/upgrade: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1

[Jean-Baptiste Lallement (jibel)]

Thanks for your report. I'm confirming due to duplicates.

[Jean-Baptiste Lallement (jibel)]

I suspect that the debconf call "db_get man-db/auto-update" in postinst is triggering this error when man-db is called from a trigger.

[Colin Watson (cjwatson)]

Well, actually it would be the act of sourcing the debconf confmodule. But this should be a perfectly legal thing to do in a postinst, even when being triggered. I suspect a bug in the application performing the update - man-db does not seem to be directly at fault.

[Jean-Baptiste Lallement (jibel)]

Recipe to reproduce:
- Launch software-center
- Install a package that requires a debconf prompt eg. krb5-admin-server
- When the debconf prompt pops up don't answer to the question and leave it opened
- Launch a terminal
- Install a package that triggers man-db eg ntp
-> man-db failed with "config;dat is locked" error

Affecting to aptdaemon.

[Michael Vogt (mvo)]

Thanks a lot Jean-Baptiste! I can reproduce the problem now. The ps afx output shows that the one process is in "dpkg-preconfigure" state while the other one is trying to install. So its indeed broken locking.

[Michael Vogt (mvo)]

This needs to use a similar locking as apt-get (at least for maverick). apt-get keeps the lists dir locked to ensure that no other apt-get runs. It drops the dpkg lock however so that dpkg can be invoked. What happend here is that the dpkg lock is removed, but dpkg was not run yet to re-aquire it.

[agwau otim (francis-otim)]

Thanks Jean-Baptiste.

On Mon, Oct 4, 2010 at 3:39 PM, Jean-Baptiste Lallement <
<email address hidden>> wrote:

> Recipe to reproduce:
> - Launch software-center
> - Install a package that requires a debconf prompt eg. krb5-admin-server
> - When the debconf prompt pops up don't answer to the question and leave it
> opened
> - Launch a terminal
> - Install a package that triggers man-db eg ntp
> -> man-db failed with "config;dat is locked" error
>
> Affecting to aptdaemon.
>
> ** Package changed: man-db (Ubuntu) => aptdaemon (Ubuntu)
>
> --
> package man-db 2.5.7-2 failed to install/upgrade: debconf: DbDriver
> "config": /var/cache/debconf/config.dat is locked by another process:
> Resource temporarily unavailable while processing triggers for man-db
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/597017
> You received this bug notification because you are a direct subscriber
> of a duplicate bug (646836).
>
> Status in “aptdaemon” package in Ubuntu: Triaged
>
> Bug description:
> Binary package hint: man-db
>
> still some distros have bugs (even long time reported and not done) and
> also not so fast for old system (for what xubuntu was made for)
> I did in terminal
> sudo aptitude install lubuntu-desktop
> then all packages were downloaded in 10 sec
> then some installation started and a blue terminal screen was. I was asked
> about something LXDM init.d
> and options were:
> GDM and LXDM
> but then since i didnt know what to choose and what they mean i tryd
> ctrl+shift+x ( and also z) and since that didnt stopped i just clicked X in
> window
> then since update manager icon was still showing..
> i loged out then loged in.
> then i made the same command sudo aptitude install lubuntu-desktop
> then i got this crash.
> while reporting this crash installation finished without asking again about
> some init.d and with blue terminal screen.
> What to choose in that blue screen?
> Can i still use xubuntu in case something was wrong? (that ill know after
> restart)
> Update: after restart actually still xubuntu auto logged in (couse of
> closing "X button" while asking about Configuring LXDM)
>
> I also did on another comp the same but choose the second option Lxde.
> lubuntu login screen started up even if in xubuntu installation ive chosen
> to longin automatically. Now ive seen it doesnt have so much options like
> xubuntu what to do to choose back that first blue screen option (GDM in blue
> screen asking abour configuring LXDM) and remove lubuntu-desktop?
>
> ProblemType: Package
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.04
> Package: man-db 2.5.7-2
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.32-22.36-generic 2.6.32.11+drm33.2
> Uname: Linux 2.6.32-22-generic i686
> Architecture: i386
> Date: Mon Jun 21 23:07:44 2010
> ErrorMessage: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error
> exit status 1
> InstallationMedia: Xubuntu 9.10 "Karmic Koala" - Release i386 (20091028.3)
> SourcePackage: man-db
> Title: package man-db 2.5.7-2 failed to install/upgrade: subprocess
> installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1
>
>
>
> To unsubscribe from this bug, go to:
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/aptdaemon/+bug/597017/+subscribe
>

-...

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

This bug was fixed in the package aptdaemon - 0.31+bzr506-0ubuntu2

---------------
aptdaemon (0.31+bzr506-0ubuntu2) maverick; urgency=low

  * 07_fix-race-597017.patch:
    - fix race in locking by backporting the relevant bits from
      lp:aptdaemon/trunk (thanks to Sebastian Heinlein)
      (LP: #597017)
 -- Michael Vogt <email address hidden> Tue, 05 Oct 2010 18:04:52 +0200