Inconsistency in Usability of Update-Manager

[Jörn-Ingo Weigert]

Binary package hint: update-manager

Hello,

There is an inconsistence behaviour in update-manager together with network-manager integration.

Situation:
I use a internetconnection via Blueman-Manager and gnome-ppp (with wvdial in background) cause the combination of gnome-bluetooth and Network-Manager wont work with my mobile cause of lacks in the ability of setting "special" AT-Commands to establish the connection.
This works good. (It would be nicer than I could use the standard preferred way but ok...)

If I start the Update-Manager, there is a hint notice that update could be failed cause of non-existing Internet-Connection (Network-Manager cant recognize the still esablished connection)

I can still check for updates (see picture "Update with Update-Manager w. Desc.png")

After check for Updates, downloading of Update-Descriptions will be blocked cause of the non-detected Connection. Connection is still alive. (See "Update-Manager Description Download Failure w. Desc.png")

Downloading of the Updates works pretty good. (See "Upgrade w. Update-Manager w. Desc.png")

So the Solution to download the update-descriptions would be in stopping the whole Network-Manager service (with "$>sudo service network-manager stop" on terminal.
which also shutdown all other services provide by Network-Manager like W-LAN / DSL-Connections.

This is not really a great solution, a better approach should be either:

- (the best one) Network-Manager checks with a ping or a DNS-check if there is a working Network-Connection
or
- The Integration of the Network-Detection should only WARN, but NOT BLOCK any download (if its already do, when downloading the Updates, this behaviour should be also used by the download of the descriptions.)

By the way, this behaviour I still see in evolution too, Evolution went into OFFLINE-Mode if there is not a Connection handled / detected byNetwork-Manager. Worst of this, OFFLINE-Mode in Evolution cant be switched to ONLINE until the Network-Manager service is stopped.

This is a perfect bug for the "100 papercuts" :-D A small bug but great for affecting different project / packages.

Kind regards,

jiweigert

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 11.04
Package: update-manager 1:0.146.5
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.38-7.39-generic 2.6.38
Uname: Linux 2.6.38-7-generic i686
Architecture: i386
Date: Wed Mar 30 08:11:48 2011
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 10.10 "Maverick Meerkat" - Release i386 (20101007)
ProcEnviron:
 LANGUAGE=de_DE:de:en_GB:en
 LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
SourcePackage: update-manager
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to natty on 2011-03-22 (7 days ago)

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.