Kubuntu 11.10 beta 1: Error upgrading using muon

[Dimitris Kardarakos]

After installing Kubuntu 11.10 beta 1 in Virtualbox 4.1.2 (during installation I did not select to get updates) I tried to do a full update using muon package manager.

The download of packages completed successfully but the installation process stuck on 20 % on kate package update.

After waiting for a long time ( about 1 hour), I killed the update process.

Then, I restarted the virtual machine but my system is not functional (e.g no network, no sound, no way to perform updates).

System Information
--------------------------
Description: Ubuntu oneiric (development branch)

Release: 11.10

Architecture/Processor/Kernel
------------------------------
3.0.0-9-generic i686 i386 GNU/Linux

Muon Package Info
--------------------------
Package: muon
Status: install ok installed
Priority: optional
Section: kde
Installed-Size: 328
Maintainer: Ubuntu Developers <email address hidden>
Architecture: i386
Version: 1.2.0-0ubuntu2

[šumski (schumski-deactivatedaccount-deactivatedaccount)]

Try with sudo dpkg --configure -a
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[Jonathan Thomas (echidnaman)]

At this point, it would be dpkg hanging.

[Dimitris Kardarakos (dimkard)]

I tried two different complete upgrade approaches:

1. New installation, selecting to get updates during installation -> Installation stuck on 60%, in step: 'Checking packages to remove'

2. New installation, not selecting to get updates during installation, then perform command line upgrade (apt-get upgrade) -> Upgrade completed successfully

Thus, the problem really seems to be outside muon package.

[Raphaël Hertzog (hertzog)]

I'm afraid this has been hastily reassigned, there's no data in the bug log to decide where the problem is. There's no proof that dpkg is blocking and I'm quite sure it doesn't. However one of the packages that you are trying to install might well try to interact with you on the terminal and if you don't answer, the whole upgrade might block. You need to provide some log files like /var/log/dpkg.log and/or the muon log file (is it apt-based too? so maybe /var/log/apt/history.log and /var/log/apt/term.log).

[Jonathan Thomas (echidnaman)]

Logs in the duplicate show it hanging during a dpkg trigger for the hicolor icon theme, when a program it calls prints the following to stdout:

(gtk-update-icon-cache:12763): GdkPixbuf-WARNING **: Cannot open pixbuf loader module file '/usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/gdk-pixbuf-2.0/2.10.0/loaders.cache': No such file or directory

[Raphaël Hertzog (hertzog)]

The log in #861827 seems to indicate that it's the "postrm" of kde-window-manager that we're upgrading from that is hanging...

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

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

[FreeMinded (pascal-planetmages)]

I can also confirm this bug. Updating from console works fine, with Muon it hangs during install.
Happy to provide more information.

[Jonathan Thomas (echidnaman)]

I think gtk-update-icon-cache is suspect here, too, especially since kde-window-manager's postinst doesn't invoke gtk-update-icon-cache.

[Jonathan Thomas (echidnaman)]

Invalidating kde-workspace task since kde-window-manager lacks a postrm. The issue is with gtk-update-icon-cache when it is called in the update trigger for hicolor-icon-theme.

[Ralph Janke (txwikinger)]

This is a big problem since inexperienced users get there whole package management system stuck, because killing muon or rebooting because of the freeze causes the lock file to be retained and hence no updates are possible anymore

[Eric Lacombe (goretux)]

I can also confirm this bug with Kubuntu 11.10. The muon package manager get stucked during package upgrade (it seems to be when interaction with the user is needed, but I've not checked that for the moment).

[John Grimmett (kohoutek1)]

Is there a workaround until this bug gets fixed?

[Pietro Fontana (pietrofontana77)]

I'm facing the same problem in Kubuntu 11.10, muon stuck during installation, the packages is installed correctly but i should kill muon to get rid of it.

[Marco Parillo (marco-parillo)]

Similar for me also.
I installed two .iso images using VMware Player.
I installed Ubuntu 11.10 successfully and was able to perform all software updates.
I installed Kubuntu 11.10 successfully, but was *NOT* able to perform all software updates, and it hung at 56% Running dpkg .
I tried this solution:
http://askubuntu.com/questions/89401/first-update-after-fresk-kubuntu-install-hangs-bc-of-dpkg-now-what

Step 1: Open a Konsole and type:
ps -e | grep muon
sudo kill #### (number identified above (I had to supply my password, and now the muon-updater window closed))
exit (to close the Konsole)

Step 2: Re-boot (I used the Kickoff Application Launcher, Leave, Shut Down, Turn Off, which automatically exits VMware Player)

Step 3: Play the Virtual Machine. Failure:
Error while opening the virtual machine: A serious error occured when accessing this virtual machine: Input/output error
Configuration file: \\[path stuff here]\My Documents\Virtual Machines\Kubuntu1110\Kubuntu1110.vmx.

[Marco Parillo (marco-parillo)]

Second try.
I deleted my Virtual Machines, re-installed from the .iso, and tried this solution:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=11558447

Step 1: Open a Konsole and type:
sudo apt-get update (I had to supply my password)
sudo apt-get upgrade (It asked me if I was willing to give it space to download the updates, and I said Y. It appeared to run successfully and after some 10+ minutes of updates flying by, it gave me back my bash prompt)
exit (to close the Konsole)

Step 2: Re-boot (I used the Kickoff Application Launcher, Leave, Shut Down, Turn Off, which automatically exits VMware Player)

Step 3: Seems to work, and this time the notifier tells me only six security updates are available.
So, I cross my fingers and do the graphical update with Muon.
It appeared to be successful, and I closed Muon and noticed the System Notification Helper reported that A system restart is needed to complete the update process.

Step 4: Re-boot (I used the Kickoff Application Launcher, Leave, Shut Down, Turn Off, which automatically exits VMware Player)

Step 5: SUCCESS! No pending updates, posting this from rekonq on an up-to-date Kubuntu 11.10 in a VMWare VM.

[Malte Schmidt-Tychsen (e-launchpad-2c2-de)]

At this point I would like to confirm this bug. Updates are currently impossible after a fresh install of Kubuntu. This does not apply to the beta, but also the final version.

I had this problem on both a Thinkpad laptop and a couple Virtualbox installs (to confirm and reconfirm).

Muon will just stall at some point. You need to kill Muon and run "sudo dpkg --configure -a" on the command line.

Does this happen every time, or are there instances where an upgrade will work? Could anyone please comment if they were successful in upgrading after a first install?

[Marco Parillo (marco-parillo)]

I am sorry, I should have been more clear.
When I wrote Kubuntu 11.10, I meant a fresh install of the final version from Kubuntu 11.10 ISO to a VMware Player.
And Muon always hung at 56% Running dpkg
My work-around outlined in my comment #16 was the only one that was successful for me, and I tried half a dozen times.

[Jérôme (jerome-bouat)]

I had the same bug with a real host.

[Ivo Anjo (knuckles)]

I also saw this.
It's a pity that both Apper (Bug# 905415) and Muon are broken for system upgrades.

Shouldn't this be attributed to qapt or something like that? It seems that packages do upgrade fine with apt-get, aptitude, synaptic, etc.

[Adam Porter (alphapapa)]

Kubuntu will remain a joke as long as it continues to push out software that is broken by default. Muon may be great software, but it should not be the default as long as it's broken! How can we "evangelize" Kubuntu when it can't even update itself in a fresh install? This is the FOURTEENTH release of Kubuntu, and UPDATING is broken by default.

This is just disgraceful. Someone needs to have the AUTHORITY to step in and say, "This software is not ready for release," and either delay the Kubuntu release or keep the broken software out of the release. KPackageKit may not have been great, but it WORKED.

This is one of the pitfalls of having inflexible time-based releases. Debian wouldn't push out a release if something as basic as updating was broken. I don't care if Kubuntu 11.10 became 11.11 or 11.12 or 12.01--it shouldn't be pushed out the door until it's WORKING! It would even be better to skip a release than to push out one that's broken by default!

What's the problem? Why doesn't someone prevent the release from going out until it's ready?

[Ivo Anjo (knuckles)]

Kpackagekit also breaks with updates (see my previous comment, its latest version is called Apper) so... yeah. Not the solution also.

[Jérôme (jerome-bouat)]

Why not using Synaptic which works perfectly for many years ?

Please propose Muon and Kpackagekit when they will be ready.

Thanks.

[Jonathan Thomas (echidnaman)]

The etckeeper postinst is causing this too.

[Carlos Sang (karolinger)]

This happens to me in Kubuntu 12.04 Alpha 1

[Marco Parillo (marco-parillo)]

Where can you download 12.04 Alpha 1?
The top Google links seem broken, and I could only find daily builds on Ubuntu sites.
So, I tried installing two 12.04 daily builds (2012-01-13 and 2012-01-12) on VMware Player, and the installer seemed to go through the shut-down after the initial install, but could not come up on re-start.

[Carlos Sang (karolinger)]

Marco, the same thing happened to me. I had to go to
http://AskUbuntu.com They directed me to the daily builds

I heard there was no official release of Kubuntu 12.04 Alpha 1 because
someone on the Kubuntu team had an accident. I just feel that at least
something had be said on the official page (kubuntu.org) about this.

Yes, when you search for Kubuntu 12.04 all Google top results go to
broken links. http://Kubuntu.org show nothing related to Kubuntu
12.04.

I don't want to sound I'm whining, but I sure was lost looking for any
release Kubuntu 12.04
I'm new into testing Kubuntu, and it didn't occur to me to get a daily
build because I was expecting an official Alpha 1 release.

[Marco Parillo (marco-parillo)]

Thank you, and I am having trouble testing the daily builds (either Kubuntu or Ubuntu) in VMware Player.
https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/184650

[Ivo Anjo (knuckles)]

Marco and Carlos, I'm no moderator or anything, but please keep to the topic of this bug, otherwise this gets too confusing.

[Dimitris Kardarakos (dimkard)]

In the duplicate of this bug (861827) I had uploaded a piece of log files that indicated as suspect the "(gtk-update-icon-cache:12763): GdkPixbuf-WARNING **: Cannot open pixbuf loader module file '/usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/gdk-pixbuf-2.0/2.10.0/loaders.cache': No such file or directory" warning on apt/term.log.

I tried again today to perform a full upgrade via muon in a clean virtualbox environment (kubuntu 11.10 release). The only step that was different from my first attempt was that I installed at first the kde-window-manager - > the package on which my fist attempt stuck. Nevertheless, the upgrade process hanged in the middle. In the log files, the 'suspicious' GdkPixbuf-WARNING warning was NOT present and no errors were found at all. (apt/term.log, apt/history.log, dpkg.log).

I tried a second attempt of a full upgrade, disabling at first the nepomuk file indexer (because of the entries I found in~/ .xsession-errors). Same result - hanged in 54% . The GdkPixbuf-WARNING was not there again.

Thus, I conclude that the problem is 'somewhere' else (I have no idea where...)

SInce this bug is a stairway to hell for an unexcperienced user (following a simple intuitive step of a full upgrade clicking on a system notification, you get back a broken system ) I think that if no fix can be found, It would be better in the next release no package application that breaks the sytstem to be in the distribution.

[Ivo Anjo (knuckles)]

With the switch to multiarch, aptitude seems also to get confused, so it seems right now the safe workaround is to either use apt-get, synaptic or gnome's update-manager to upgrade your system.

[Marco Parillo (marco-parillo)]

I did not experience any update errors with Kubuntu daily build 12.01.17 on VirtualBox.

[Bug Reporter 11 (bugreporter11)]

> Does this happen every time, or are there instances where an upgrade will work? Could anyone please comment if they were successful in upgrading after a first install?

I installed Kubuntu 11.10 release four different ways (using both alt installer and Live CD) and this error happened to me every time on each different fresh installation. It also happens if you try it in the Live CD. So it appears it happens every time.

[Jonathan Thomas (echidnaman)]

Hmm, I guess dpkg just stopped clearing its stdout fd after writing to term.log.