installing updates fail for packages with conffiles questions

[Jerry Earley]

It tells me I have OS updates to install. When I hit the install button it just refreshes as if I have done nothing. It tells me the updates are needed for a few things including security. I am using Ubuntu Studio. If that helps at all.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 16.04
Package: gnome-software 3.20.1+git20160420.1.ca63436.ubuntu-xenial-0ubuntu2
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 4.4.0-21.37-lowlatency 4.4.6
Uname: Linux 4.4.0-21-lowlatency x86_64
NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
ApportVersion: 2.20.1-0ubuntu2
Architecture: amd64
CurrentDesktop: XFCE
Date: Tue Apr 26 15:06:13 2016
InstallationDate: Installed on 2016-04-26 (0 days ago)
InstallationMedia: It
SourcePackage: gnome-software
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to xenial on 2016-04-26 (0 days ago)

[Seth Arnold (seth-arnold)]

Thanks for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better. We appreciate the difficulties you are facing, but this appears to be a "regular" (non-security) bug. I have unmarked it as a security issue since this bug does not show evidence of allowing attackers to cross privilege boundaries nor directly cause loss of data/privacy. Please feel free to report any other bugs you may find.

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

Thank you for your bug report. Do you get any error if you start it from the command line? Does installation software work as it should?

[Jerry Earley (earley-jr)]

This is what I get when I run gnome-software through terminal. Opens
fine but I press the install button for the update and this is the
terminal activity as follows.

dad@TheBeast:~$ gnome-software

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: failed to open plugin
/usr/lib/gs-plugins-9/libgs_plugin_xdg_app_reviews.so:
/usr/lib/gs-plugins-9/libgs_plugin_xdg_app_reviews.so: cannot open
shared object file: No such file or directory

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update:
GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update:
GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update:
GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update:
GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update:
GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update:
GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(gnome-software:5171): GsPlugin-WARNING **: failed to load stock icon
hexter: Icon 'hexter' not present in theme (null)

(gnome-software:5171): GsPlugin-WARNING **: failed to load stock icon
applications-mail: Icon 'applications-mail' not present in theme (null)

(gnome-software:5171): GsPlugin-WARNING **: failed to load stock icon
applications-chat: Icon 'applications-chat' not present in theme (null)

(gnome-software:5171): GsPlugin-WARNING **: failed to load stock icon
qjadeo: Icon 'qjadeo' not present in theme (null)

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update:
GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update:
GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action
org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(gnome-software:5171): Gs-WARNING **: scribus.desktop changing
management plugin apt->PackageKit

(gnome-software:5171): GsPlugin-WARNING **: failed to load stock icon
qjadeo: Icon 'qjadeo' not present in theme (null)

(gnome-software:5171):...

[Shawn Matthiessen (shawnbon206)]

I believe this is caused by the lack of a "Y/I/N/O/D/Z" prompt when the package manager is trying to upgrade a config file which has been "created by you or by a script". I had this happen when I first installed Ubuntu Gnome 16.04 from scratch, I selected automatic login and so the installer edited my /etc/gdm/custom.conf to reflect that. On first boot, gnome-software showed I had updates, but it hung indefinitely after I told it to get them. I rebooted and reinstalled and answered all the installer questions exactly the same, but this time on first boot I did a dist-upgrade from the terminal (and avoided gnome-software) and I got a Y/I/N/O/D/Z prompt for a /etc/gdm/custom.conf.

Steps to reproduce:
1. Install Ubuntu Gnome 16.04 or any Ubuntu variant which comes with gdm3 3.18.3-0ubuntu1.
2. Enable automatic login (or hand edit /etc/gdm/custom.conf)
3. With gnome-software, attempt to accept software updates involving gdm3 3.18.3-0ubuntu2

Gnome-software will just sit there.

[Shawn Matthiessen (shawnbon206)]

this is the update it gets stuck on for me

[Shawn Matthiessen (shawnbon206)]

this is the same update shown from a terminal.

[Bruce Pieterse (octoquad)]

I just want to add that it also does not know how to handle held packages. I currently have the MongoDB PPA added to my system and explicitly held the 3.0.10 packages for the M102 course I just completed.

This is normally done with:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y mongodb-org=3.0.10 mongodb-org-server=3.0.10 mongodb-org-shell=3.0.10 mongodb-org-mongos=3.0.10 mongodb-org-tools=3.0.10

echo "mongodb-org hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org-server hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org-shell hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org-mongos hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org-tools hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections

sudo apt-get upgrade
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
Calculating upgrade... Done
The following packages have been kept back:
  mongodb-org mongodb-org-mongos mongodb-org-server mongodb-org-shell mongodb-org-tools
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 5 not upgraded.

If a package is held, it shouldn't really be counted as 1 update in gnome-software and possibly skipped. At the moment, it tries to update the packages, reloads then just shows them again as an update.

[Jonathan H (jhadida)]

Similar bug posted on http://askubuntu.com/q/855522/135465.

Here is the error I get trying to open ubuntu-software (which points to gnome-software):

$ ubuntu-software

(ubuntu-software:6610): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(ubuntu-software:6610): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(ubuntu-software:6610): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(ubuntu-software:6610): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(ubuntu-software:6610): Gs-WARNING **: Failed to create permission org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: Action org.freedesktop.packagekit.trigger-offline-update is not registered

(ubuntu-software:6610): GLib-CRITICAL **: g_dir_read_name: assertion 'dir != NULL' failed

(ubuntu-software:6610): Gtk-WARNING **: Error loading image 'file:///usr/share/gnome-software/featured-inkscape.png': Error opening file: Too many open files

(ubuntu-software:6610): GLib-ERROR **: Creating pipes for GWakeup: Too many open files

Trace/breakpoint trap (core dumped)