package postgresql-9.5 9.5.14-0ubuntu0.16.04 failed to install/upgrade: subprocess new pre-removal script returned error exit status 2 and don't let me use apt-get anymore

[Arthur Escriou]

package postgresql-9.5 9.5.14-0ubuntu0.16.04 failed to install/upgrade: subprocess new pre-removal script returned error exit status 2 and don't let me use apt-get anymore

ProblemType: Package
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 16.04
Package: postgresql-9.5 9.5.14-0ubuntu0.16.04
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 4.15.0-48.51~16.04.1-generic 4.15.18
Uname: Linux 4.15.0-48-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.20.1-0ubuntu2.18
Architecture: amd64
Date: Tue Jun 25 19:42:26 2019
DpkgHistoryLog:
 Start-Date: 2019-06-25 19:42:25
 Commandline: apt-get install -f
 Requested-By: arthur (1000)
 Upgrade: postgresql-9.5:amd64 (9.5.14-0ubuntu0.16.04, 9.5.17-0ubuntu0.16.04.1)
ErrorMessage: subprocess new pre-removal script returned error exit status 2
InstallationDate: Installed on 2017-11-11 (591 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 16.04.3 LTS "Xenial Xerus" - Release amd64 (20170801)
RelatedPackageVersions:
 dpkg 1.18.4ubuntu1.5
 apt 1.2.31
SourcePackage: postgresql-9.5
Title: package postgresql-9.5 9.5.14-0ubuntu0.16.04 failed to install/upgrade: subprocess new pre-removal script returned error exit status 2
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to xenial on 2018-09-17 (280 days ago)

[Christian Ehrhardt  (paelzer)]

Hi,
this kind of issue is often triggered by using packages from outside the Ubuntu archive.
The file you are missing is of package postgresql-client-common which is installed as dependency.

You can double check via:
root@x:~# dpkg -S /usr/share/postgresql-common/maintscripts-functions
postgresql-client-common: /usr/share/postgresql-common/maintscripts-functions
root@x:~# dpkg --verify postgresql-client-common
root@x:~# apt-cache policy postgresql-client-common
postgresql-client-common:
  Installed: 173ubuntu0.3
  Candidate: 173ubuntu0.3
  Version table:
 *** 173ubuntu0.3 500
        500 http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial-updates/main amd64 Packages
        500 http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial-security/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
     173 500
        500 http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial/main amd64 Packages

And report that back here.

If you happen to have an external postgresql-common please rest back to the one matching postgresql-9.5 from the archvie then things should work again.

If you happened to remove the file by accident a re-install of the package helps:
$ apt install --reinstall postgresql-common

[Christian Ehrhardt  (paelzer)]

Thank you for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better.

Since it seems likely to me that this is a local configuration problem, rather than a bug in Ubuntu, I'm marking this bug as Incomplete.

If indeed this is a local configuration problem, you can find pointers to get help for this sort of problem here: http://www.ubuntu.com/support/community

Or if you believe that this is really a bug, then you may find it helpful to read "How to report bugs effectively" http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/bugs.html. We'd be grateful if you would then provide a more complete description of the problem, explain why you believe this is a bug in Ubuntu rather than a problem specific to your system, and then change the bug status back to New.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for postgresql-9.5 (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]