libxml2-dev:i386 fails to install if libxml2-dev is present

[Aurimas Fišeras]

libxml2-dev:i386 fails to co-install with libxml2-dev:

apt-get install libxml2-dev:i386
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  libxml2-dev:i386
0 upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 4 not upgraded.
Need to get 0 B/763 kB of archives.
After this operation, 2.205 kB of additional disk space will be used.
(Reading database ... 296832 files and directories currently installed.)
Unpacking libxml2-dev:i386 (from .../libxml2-dev_2.7.8.dfsg-5ubuntu1_i386.deb) ...
dpkg: error processing /var/cache/apt/archives/libxml2-dev_2.7.8.dfsg-5ubuntu1_i386.deb (--unpack):
 './usr/bin/xml2-config' is different from the same file on the system
dpkg-deb: error: subprocess paste was killed by signal (Broken pipe)
Processing triggers for man-db ...
Errors were encountered while processing:
 /var/cache/apt/archives/libxml2-dev_2.7.8.dfsg-5ubuntu1_i386.deb
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)

Description: Ubuntu precise (development branch)
Release: 12.04

libxml2-dev:i386:
  Installed: (none)
  Candidate: 2.7.8.dfsg-5ubuntu1
  Version table:
     2.7.8.dfsg-5ubuntu1 0
        500 http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise/main i386 Packages

libxml2-dev:
  Installed: 2.7.8.dfsg-5ubuntu1
  Candidate: 2.7.8.dfsg-5ubuntu1
  Version table:
 *** 2.7.8.dfsg-5ubuntu1 0
        500 http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status

[Aurimas Fišeras (aurimas-gmail)]

amd64 and i386 versions of xml2-config have only one difference:

--- xml2-config_amd64 2011-10-20 08:14:41.000000000 +0300
+++ xml2-config_i386 2011-10-20 08:12:48.000000000 +0300
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 prefix=/usr
 exec_prefix=${prefix}
 includedir=${prefix}/include
-libdir=${prefix}/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu
+libdir=${prefix}/lib/i386-linux-gnu

 usage()
 {

[Aurimas Fišeras (aurimas-gmail)]

2.7.8.dfsg-5.1ubuntu1

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

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

[Hanmac (hanmac)]

the problem chould be solved to use pkg-config inside the xml2-config script

[Removed by request (removed1836289)]

This still happens on Precise Pangolin.