Fatal error during do-dist-upgrade 12.04 -> 12.10 - cron apt-get upgrade disturbes dist-upgrade

[Jon Eliot]

Output towards the end of output from "do-release-upgrade -d"

Preparing to replace xserver-xorg-video-intel 2:2.17.0-1ubuntu4.2 (using .../xserver-xorg-video-intel_2%3a2.20.9-0ubuntu2_amd64.deb) ...
Unpacking replacement xserver-xorg-video-intel ...
Error in function:

A fatal error occurred

Please report this as a bug and include the files
/var/log/dist-upgrade/main.log and /var/log/dist-upgrade/apt.log in
your report. The upgrade has aborted.
Your original sources.list was saved in
/etc/apt/sources.list.distUpgrade.

SystemError: E:Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg exited unexpectedly

[Ubuntu Foundations Team Bug Bot (crichton)]

Thank you for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better. It seems that your bug report is not filed about a specific source package though, rather it is just filed against Ubuntu in general. It is important that bug reports be filed about source packages so that people interested in the package can find the bugs about it. You can find some hints about determining what package your bug might be about at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/FindRightPackage. You might also ask for help in the #ubuntu-bugs irc channel on Freenode.

To change the source package that this bug is filed about visit https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bug/1070684/+editstatus and add the package name in the text box next to the word Package.

[This is an automated message. I apologize if it reached you inappropriately; please just reply to this message indicating so.]

[Book 'em Dano (heymrdjd)]

Thanks for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better. Could you please add the log files from '/var/log/dist-upgrade/' to this bug report as separate attachments and not tar/gzipped files? Thanks in advance.

[Jon Eliot (jon-stromme)]

The entire error is a red herring, I now think.

A cron job was running that started an "apt-get upgrade" while the dist-upgrade was running. Ouch.

Edited the <package>.postinst file that subsequently crashed, stopped cron, did a dist-upgrade, then removed and reinstalled the package in question. Everything works fine. This is the first distribution in years that handles suspend/resume robustly on my laptop - many thanks to whoever fixed the kernel.

Perhaps do-release-upgrade should suspend cron processing while upgrading?
If that is the intention, then it didn't work.

I will add the files if you still think it useful.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for ubuntu-release-upgrader (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]

[Sasa Paporovic (melchiaros)]

It is not best practice to attach the logs as archive, but acceptable.

[Sasa Paporovic (melchiaros)]

@ Jon

Your suggestion is verry helpfull.

I adapt the summary to your intentnion.

Could you copy out the specific lines(polease keep the ammout small for readability) from the logs out here to the comments, so that I am able to follow completely.

best

melchiaros

[Jon Eliot (jon-stromme)]

@ melcharios

I do not really see the point in getting the details out of the logfiles. The upgrade crashed because a cron job also ran apt, and managed to hijack the lock on the apt system. It would be of little general use to see the specifics for this case - it could have been any package.

As for the best way to suspend cron while upgrading takes place, that is far outside of my competence. But I think it would be a good idea.

Best regards,
Jon