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I survived a disastrous upgrade from Ubuntu 20.04 to 22.04
Last time I upgraded Ubuntu from 18.04 to 20.04, I almost swore I will never upgrade again. I encountered a kernel issue which prevented the pc from booting up. The situation was so stressful that I did not take any note or screenshots of the error messages, but I recall vaguely that the issue was related to “too many” versions of the Linux kernel being present at the same time. I solved it by booting under recovery mode, and typing some random commands I found on StackExchange which removed the old kernel version. The relief I felt when seeing the Ubuntu splash again was huge. I learned the hard lesson to never start an upgrade without doing proper backup. Lately, I got tempted to upgrade to new LTS Ubuntu version, after resisting for too long to the Software Updater pop up window.
After doing a backup, I said to myself that nothing can go wrong. Nevertheless, the price to pay If the upgrade would not succeed was high because I would need to spend time reinstalling things and configuring all the tools, and put all my workflow on hold for a day or so. I finally gathered enough courage to click on the upgrade button. After the lengthy process has finished, the moment of truth came: rebooting. Unfortunately, the upgrade went wrong again and the screen was showing a black screen with a stacktrace. The message was mentionning something about a kernel crash or panic. What happened?
Kernel issue again:
The message I was seeing on start up looks like the following (it’s not the one I got myself as I did not take any picture at the time of the incident, but it’s very similar):
After looking up the message, I found out that I was not the only person who encountered this issue. Because I was in a “nothing to lose” situation, I decided to give the below commands a shot even if I had no idea what they actually do (the stack exchange thread can be found here). Those commands were proposed in several other write-ups, like this Geeks Warrior blog post, which was a good indicator that it might eventually be the right fix.
sudo mount /dev/sda2 /mnt
sudo mount --bind /dev /mnt/dev
sudo mount --bind /dev/pts /mnt/dev/pts
sudo mount --bind /proc /mnt/proc
sudo mount --bind /sys /mnt/sys
sudo chroot /mnt
update-initramfs -u -k 5.15.0.78-generic
update-grub
To be able to execute those commands, I had to first go through the grub advanced options menu by pushing several times the escape button when the first splash screen appears after a boot up.
As you can see, the menu allows booting Ubuntu with old kernel versions (in normal and recovery mode). Almost all the versions failed to boot up under both normal mode and recovery mode showing the same kernel crash error mentionned above. I was lucky to have only one of them boot under recovery mode.
After choosing the “drop to shell prompt”, I was able to execute the commands above. I rebooted the computer and crossed the fingers again. I was relieved to see the crash message disapear and the Ubuntu splash screen appear again. To my surprise, nothing happened after the splash screen. I was seeing a black screen with a sort of cursor on the top left of the screen (like a full screen terminal but without any prompt). What on earth was going on again ?
Packages got broken:
It felt like it was going to be a bit more complicated to find a solution this time because there was no clear message, so I had no clue what to look up. I started thinking that there are chances that the computer may not be able to recover from this upgrade. After googling “ubunu black screen terminal after login”, I saw that there was a sort of consensus (like this blog post here and this StackExchange thread here) that this issue might be caused by a broken ubuntu-desktop package. I tried rebooting under recovery mode once again and attempted to run apt update && apt install ubuntu-desktop which failed with a long list of errors:
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[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libpango-1.0-0:amd64:
libpango-1.0-0:amd64 depends on fontconfig (>= 2.13.0); however:
Package fontconfig is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5gui5:amd64:
libqt5gui5:amd64 depends on fontconfig; however:
Package fontconfig is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5gui5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of pango1.0-tools:
pango1.0-tools depends on libpango-1.0-0 (= 1.50.6+ds-2ubuntu1); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package pango1.0-tools (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5quickcontrols2-5:amd64:
libqt5quickcontrols2-5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5quickcontrols2-5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5svg5:amd64:
libqt5svg5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5svg5:amd64 (--configure):
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[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5purpose5:amd64:
libkf5purpose5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5purpose5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of qml-module-qtquick-window2:amd64:
qml-module-qtquick-window2:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.2.0) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.2.0); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package qml-module-qtquick-window2:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of kded5:
kded5 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package kded5 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5widgets5:amd64:
libqt5widgets5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.1) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.1); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5widgets5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libnux-4.0-0:
libnux-4.0-0 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.20.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libnux-4.0-0 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of qml-module-org-kde-people:amd64:
qml-module-org-kde-people:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
qml-module-org-kde-people:amd64 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package qml-module-org-kde-people:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqmobipocket2:amd64:
libqmobipocket2:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.4.0~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.4.0~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqmobipocket2:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5webkit5:amd64:
libqt5webkit5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.14.1) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.14.1); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libqt5webkit5:amd64 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.4.0); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5webkit5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of unity-control-center:
unity-control-center depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.18.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package unity-control-center (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5xmlgui5:amd64:
libkf5xmlgui5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libkf5xmlgui5:amd64 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5xmlgui5:amd64 (--configure):
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[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libadwaita-1-0:amd64:
libadwaita-1-0:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.14.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libadwaita-1-0:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libvte-2.91-0:amd64:
libvte-2.91-0:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.44.3); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libvte-2.91-0:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libayatana-ido3-0.4-0:amd64:
libayatana-ido3-0.4-0:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.20.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libayatana-ido3-0.4-0:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5textwidgets5:amd64:
libkf5textwidgets5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libkf5textwidgets5:amd64 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5textwidgets5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of zenity:
zenity depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.14.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package zenity (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libcogl-pango20:amd64:
libcogl-pango20:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.28.3-5); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libcogl-pango20:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of qt5-gtk-platformtheme:amd64:
qt5-gtk-platformtheme:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.14.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
qt5-gtk-platformtheme:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.14.1) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.14.1); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package qt5-gtk-platformtheme:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of qml-module-qtquick-layouts:amd64:
qml-module-qtquick-layouts:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.5.0) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.5.0); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package qml-module-qtquick-layouts:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libwxgtk3.0-gtk3-0v5:amd64:
libwxgtk3.0-gtk3-0v5:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.14.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libwxgtk3.0-gtk3-0v5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5iconthemes-bin:
libkf5iconthemes-bin depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5iconthemes-bin (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5waylandclient5:amd64:
libqt5waylandclient5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5waylandclient5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5multimedia5:amd64:
libqt5multimedia5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5multimedia5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libgtksourceview-3.0-1:amd64:
libgtksourceview-3.0-1:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.18.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libgtksourceview-3.0-1:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5quickwidgets5:amd64:
libqt5quickwidgets5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.10.0) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.10.0); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libqt5quickwidgets5:amd64 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.14.1); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5quickwidgets5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5waylandcompositor5:amd64:
libqt5waylandcompositor5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5waylandcompositor5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of librsvg2-2:amd64:
librsvg2-2:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.45.5); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package librsvg2-2:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5printsupport5:amd64:
libqt5printsupport5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.14.1) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.14.1); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libqt5printsupport5:amd64 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.7.0); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5printsupport5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of gnome-power-manager:
gnome-power-manager depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.18.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package gnome-power-manager (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5kirigami2-5:
libkf5kirigami2-5 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libkf5kirigami2-5 depends on libqt5quickcontrols2-5 (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5quickcontrols2-5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5kirigami2-5 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libido3-0.1-0:amd64:
libido3-0.1-0:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.20.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libido3-0.1-0:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5configgui5:amd64:
libkf5configgui5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5configgui5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of aisleriot:
aisleriot depends on librsvg2-2 (>= 2.32.0); however:
Package librsvg2-2:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package aisleriot (--configure):
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[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5declarative5:amd64:
libkf5declarative5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5declarative5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libgail-3-0:amd64:
libgail-3-0:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.44.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libgail-3-0:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5kiofilewidgets5:amd64:
libkf5kiofilewidgets5:amd64 depends on libkf5configgui5 (>= 5.92.0~); however:
Package libkf5configgui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
libkf5kiofilewidgets5:amd64 depends on libkf5xmlgui5 (>= 5.92.0~); however:
Package libkf5xmlgui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
libkf5kiofilewidgets5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libkf5kiofilewidgets5:amd64 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5kiofilewidgets5:amd64 (--configure):
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[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5globalaccel5:amd64:
libkf5globalaccel5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libkf5globalaccel5:amd64 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5globalaccel5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of gir1.2-pango-1.0:amd64:
gir1.2-pango-1.0:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (= 1.50.6+ds-2ubuntu1); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package gir1.2-pango-1.0:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5quickaddons5:amd64:
libkf5quickaddons5:amd64 depends on libkf5configgui5 (>= 5.92.0~); however:
Package libkf5configgui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
libkf5quickaddons5:amd64 depends on libkf5declarative5 (>= 5.12.0); however:
Package libkf5declarative5:amd64 is not configured yet.
libkf5quickaddons5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5quickaddons5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libgtksourceview-4-0:amd64:
libgtksourceview-4-0:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.18.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libgtksourceview-4-0:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libkf5kiogui5:amd64:
libkf5kiogui5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.2~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.2~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libkf5kiogui5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libgnomekbd8:amd64:
libgnomekbd8:amd64 depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.18.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libgnomekbd8:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of transmission-gtk:
transmission-gtk depends on libpango-1.0-0 (>= 1.14.0); however:
Package libpango-1.0-0:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package transmission-gtk (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of obs-plugins:
obs-plugins depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.2.0~alpha1) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.2.0~alpha1); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
obs-plugins depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.14.1); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package obs-plugins (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libokular5core9:
libokular5core9 depends on libkf5configgui5 (>= 5.68.0~); however:
Package libkf5configgui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
libokular5core9 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.13.0~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.13.0~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
libokular5core9 depends on libqt5printsupport5 (>= 5.13.0~); however:
Package libqt5printsupport5:amd64 is not configured yet.
libokular5core9 depends on libqt5svg5 (>= 5.13.0~); however:
Package libqt5svg5:amd64 is not configured yet.
libokular5core9 depends on libqt5widgets5 (>= 5.13.0~); however:
Package libqt5widgets5:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libokular5core9 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libqt5webengine5:amd64:
libqt5webengine5:amd64 depends on libqt5gui5 (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~) | libqt5gui5-gles (>= 5.15.3+dfsg~); however:
Package libqt5gui5:amd64 is not configured yet.
Package libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 is not installed.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libqt5webengine5:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m too many errors, stopping
Errors were encountered while processing:
libpango-1.0-0:amd64
libqt5gui5:amd64
pango1.0-tools
libqt5quickcontrols2-5:amd64
libqt5svg5:amd64
libkf5purpose5:amd64
qml-module-qtquick-window2:amd64
kded5
libqt5widgets5:amd64
libnux-4.0-0
qml-module-org-kde-people:amd64
libqmobipocket2:amd64
libqt5webkit5:amd64
unity-control-center
libkf5xmlgui5:amd64
libadwaita-1-0:amd64
libvte-2.91-0:amd64
libayatana-ido3-0.4-0:amd64
libkf5textwidgets5:amd64
zenity
libcogl-pango20:amd64
qt5-gtk-platformtheme:amd64
qml-module-qtquick-layouts:amd64
libwxgtk3.0-gtk3-0v5:amd64
libkf5iconthemes-bin
libqt5waylandclient5:amd64
libqt5multimedia5:amd64
libgtksourceview-3.0-1:amd64
libqt5quickwidgets5:amd64
libqt5waylandcompositor5:amd64
librsvg2-2:amd64
libqt5printsupport5:amd64
gnome-power-manager
libkf5kirigami2-5
libido3-0.1-0:amd64
libkf5configgui5:amd64
aisleriot
libkf5declarative5:amd64
libgail-3-0:amd64
libkf5kiofilewidgets5:amd64
libkf5globalaccel5:amd64
gir1.2-pango-1.0:amd64
libkf5quickaddons5:amd64
libgtksourceview-4-0:amd64
libkf5kiogui5:amd64
libgnomekbd8:amd64
transmission-gtk
obs-plugins
libokular5core9
libqt5webengine5:amd64
Processing was halted because there were too many errors.
Trying to make sens out of the long list of errors, I found out that all of the “is not installed” errors are related to the libqt5gui5-gles:amd64 package (the real name is without the :amd64 suffix). I decided to install it manually and I got an interesting message: error while loading shared libraries: libpng12.so.0. It seemed like libpng12, which is the old version of libpng, was missing, so the only thing left to do was to install it and this should presumably allow libqt5gui5-gles to install and unblock all the broken packages mess. However, things are not always easy as they seem. libpng12 was removed from the Ubuntu 22.04 (As a side note, libpng12 is still available in Fedora 38, which is the latest Fedora version as of the time this post is written) package repositories and therefore it cannot be installed intuitively using apt. After doing some research (this is the article that pointed me towards the right direction), I found out that it’s still possible to install libpng12 on Ubuntu 22 by grabing the .deb file manually (the link to download the deb can be found here) and installing it using dpkg:
wget https://launchpad.net/~ubuntu-security/+archive/ubuntu/ppa/+build/15108504/+files/libpng12-dev_1.2.54-1ubuntu1.1_amd64.deb
dkpg -i libpng12-dev_1.2.54-1ubuntu1.1_amd64.deb
After installing libpng12, I was able to install libqt5gui5-gles successfully, but apt update && apt install ubuntu-desktop was still failing with a different list of errors now:
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update-alternatives: error: /var/lib/dpkg/alternatives/mpi corrupt: slave link same as main link /usr/bin/mpicc
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package openmpi-bin (--configure):
installed openmpi-bin package post-installation script subprocess returned error exit status 2
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of mpi-default-bin:
mpi-default-bin depends on openmpi-bin; however:
Package openmpi-bin is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package mpi-default-bin (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libcoarrays-openmpi-dev:amd64:
libcoarrays-openmpi-dev:amd64 depends on openmpi-bin; however:
Package openmpi-bin is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libcoarrays-openmpi-dev:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libopenmpi-dev:amd64:
libopenmpi-dev:amd64 depends on openmpi-bin (>= 3.0.0-1); however:
Package openmpi-bin is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libopenmpi-dev:amd64 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libboost-mpi-python1.74.0:
libboost-mpi-python1.74.0 depends on mpi-default-bin; however:
Package mpi-default-bin is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libboost-mpi-python1.74.0 (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libboost-mpi-python1.74-dev:
libboost-mpi-python1.74-dev depends on libboost-mpi-python1.74.0 (= 1.74.0-14ubuntu3); however:
Package libboost-mpi-python1.74.0 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libboost-mpi-python1.74-dev (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libboost-mpi-python-dev:
libboost-mpi-python-dev depends on libboost-mpi-python1.74-dev; however:
Package libboost-mpi-python1.74-dev is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libboost-mpi-python-dev (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libboost-all-dev:
libboost-all-dev depends on libboost-mpi-python-dev; however:
Package libboost-mpi-python-dev is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libboost-all-dev (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of mpi-default-dev:
mpi-default-dev depends on libopenmpi-dev; however:
Package libopenmpi-dev:amd64 is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package mpi-default-dev (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libboost-mpi1.74-dev:
libboost-mpi1.74-dev depends on mpi-default-dev; however:
Package mpi-default-dev is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libboost-mpi1.74-dev (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
[1mdpkg:[0m dependency problems prevent configuration of libboost-mpi-dev:
libboost-mpi-dev depends on libboost-mpi1.74-dev; however:
Package libboost-mpi1.74-dev is not configured yet.
[1mdpkg:[0m error processing package libboost-mpi-dev (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
Errors were encountered while processing:
openmpi-bin
mpi-default-bin
libcoarrays-openmpi-dev:amd64
libopenmpi-dev:amd64
libboost-mpi-python1.74.0
libboost-mpi-python1.74-dev
libboost-mpi-python-dev
libboost-all-dev
mpi-default-dev
libboost-mpi1.74-dev
libboost-mpi-dev
Once again, I had no idea what those errors mean, but with the help of this StackOverflow thread, I was able solve it by executing the following commands:
rm -f /etc/alternatives/mpi* /var/lib/dpkg/alternatives/mpi*
apt install openmpi-bin
Finally, apt update && apt install ubuntu-desktop finished successfully. I rebooted the computer and against all the odds, it showed the usual Ubuntu login. What a relief 😅
This was the second failed upgrade in a row. It realy got me thinking about the reliability of the whole Ubuntu upgrade process. It’s fascinating to see that a simple image library package with a size of 180KB made a whole OS go down. I am wondering if this would have happened with other mainstream Linux distros like Fedora (If anyone experienced such incidents when upgrading Fedora, I’d appreciate if you can share your story through a comment below ), which I am really willing to give a try.
This near miss taught me also to be better prepared and expect the worse when going through Linux (Ubuntu at least) upgrades. For example, I am currently working on an Ansible playbook that installs and configures all the tools and packages that I need in one shot. This would make the recovery from a failure less time and effort consuming.