Use of command line installer breaks network setup in ubuntu-desktop, lubuntu-desktop

[Cefn]

I've been installing Ubuntu Command Line systems using the Alternative installer, then adding e.g. lubuntu-core, lubuntu-desktop ubuntu-desktop to wipe old machines and bring them up to date as part of a Laptop Shrimping project.

I developed this approach as a workaround for bug 424643 meaning I can roll back the install of a particular desktop if the machine has trouble with it (typically resource limitations). I assumed naively that installing Ubuntu in "install a command line system" mode followed by installing ubuntu-desktop would have the same effect as a full install. Most of the time, this seems to be the case.

I've discovered, however, that even with exactly the same packages installed in the end, the network connection is misconfigured (ping doesn't work) on some machines when following the command line route.

On two machines, (the Dell Q15R N5110 which I used to apport this bug after a successful install, and the Fujitsu Lifebook P1510 which clarebowman22 used to apport bug 1014263), this error was consistently experienced through several installs based on Precise, installing lubuntu-core, ubuntu-desktop or lubuntu-desktop in various combinations and sequences starting with a command line system, then using apt-get to bring up a desktop. Each case led to a desktop which experienced bug 1014263. Nothing but a full wipe and Ubuntu install from scratch will cure the problem (as demonstrated by the Dell which had a previously non-functional network and is now able to apport over wireless).

I've tested this by repeating the same install on the same machine with the same medium using the alternative installer for Ubuntu Precise through the two different routes - either starting from a command line install, or going for the full install mode.

To summarize bug 1014263, the desktop installed on top of a command line build through...
sudo apt-get update; sudo apt-get dist-upgrade; sudo apt-get install ubuntu-desktop
...has a wireless network which bizarrely fails to work, even though it can apparently complete a Wireless scan and handshake with a WPA network, no ping packets are exchanged with www.google.com afterward.

Coupled to this behaviour is a long timeout during boot during which Plymouth reports something like "waiting 60 seconds for network configuration". Also associated seems to be the disappearance of the networking icon in lxpanel, and the claim that the eth0 adapter is "not managed" when trying to control it through a network applet.

Something about the sequence of running a command-line system and apt-getting over ethernet, versus doing your first boot direct into a full-fledged Ubuntu desktop, must change something mysterious about the networking configuration.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.04
Package: debian-installer (not installed)
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.2.0-23.36-generic-pae 3.2.14
Uname: Linux 3.2.0-23-generic-pae i686
ApportVersion: 2.0.1-0ubuntu5
Architecture: i386
Date: Tue Jul 31 15:58:25 2012
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 12.04 LTS "Precise Pangolin" - Release i386 (20120423.2)
MachineType: Dell Inc. Inspiron N5110
MemoryUsage:
 total used free shared buffers cached
 Mem: 8175020 7724496 450524 0 146944 6996692
 -/+ buffers/cache: 580860 7594160
 Swap: 15624188 0 15624188
ProcEnviron:
 LANGUAGE=en_GB:en
 TERM=xterm
 PATH=(custom, no user)
 LANG=en_GB.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
ProcKernelCmdLine: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-3.2.0-23-generic-pae root=UUID=c9767810-263a-424a-80cd-714fd4a9afa1 ro quiet splash vt.handoff=7
SourcePackage: debian-installer
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
dmi.bios.date: 03/22/2012
dmi.bios.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.bios.version: A10
dmi.board.name: 0HVRTT
dmi.board.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.board.version: A10
dmi.chassis.type: 8
dmi.chassis.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.chassis.version: Not Specified
dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnDellInc.:bvrA10:bd03/22/2012:svnDellInc.:pnInspironN5110:pvrNotSpecified:rvnDellInc.:rn0HVRTT:rvrA10:cvnDellInc.:ct8:cvrNotSpecified:
dmi.product.name: Inspiron N5110
dmi.product.version: Not Specified
dmi.sys.vendor: Dell Inc.

[Cefn (6-launchpad-net-cefn-com)]

Please note for reference this apport was triggered from a functioning full-fledged Ubuntu system which was not based on a command line mode install, but the same machine when installed through a command line mode install has no functioning wireless network.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

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

[Chris Guiver (guiverc)]

Thank you for reporting this bug to Ubuntu.

Ubuntu 12.04 (precise) reached end-of-life on April 28, 2017.

See this document for currently supported Ubuntu releases:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Releases

We appreciate that this bug may be old and you might not be interested in discussing it any more. But if you are then please upgrade to the latest Ubuntu version and re-test. If you then find the bug is still present in the newer Ubuntu version, please add a comment here telling us which new version it is in.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for debian-installer (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]