[Bug 365053] Re: On armel (Babbage platform), kernel image upgrading breaks if Ubiquity is instructed not to install a bootloader

[Tobin Davis]

This issue seems to have been resolved.  Marking as "Fix Released".

** Changed in: flash-kernel (Ubuntu)
       Status: Triaged => Fix Released

** Changed in: initramfs-tools (Ubuntu)
       Status: Triaged => Fix Released

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Title:
  On armel (Babbage platform), kernel image upgrading breaks if Ubiquity
  is instructed not to install a bootloader

Status in “flash-kernel” package in Ubuntu:
  Fix Released
Status in “initramfs-tools” package in Ubuntu:
  Fix Released

Bug description:
  Binary package hint: ubiquity

  If the "install bootloader" option is cleared (in the advanced options
  on the last page of the Ubiquity installer dialogs), it appears that
  no /etc/flash-kernel.conf configuration file is generated for flash-
  kernel to use.

  However, the linux image postinst script unconditionally runs flash-
  kernel to reprogram the kernel and (I think) initrd on the SD card.
  flash-kernel gets confused if there is no /etc/flash-kernel.conf; some
  shell variables remain unset in flash-kernel causing odd errors.

  This means that if the kernel image package (e.g., linux-
  image-2.6.28-11-imx51) is upgraded, the postinst script will fail,
  leaving that package half-configured. This also seems to prevent apt-
  get (probably also higher-level package managers) from working until
  the problem is resolved manually.

  This will not affect typical users who just install with the default
  configuration; however I already had a different SD card set up with a
  suitable kernel for booting purposes, and wanted to avoid clobbering
  the SD card with the live image on it so that I could use it again,
  reproducibly.

  
  Here's what happens when I try to upgrade the kernel image just after a clean install:
  (Actually, there's no newer package available, so I simulate this by reinstalling the kernel image)

  root at ubuntu-desktop:~# apt-get --reinstall install linux-image-2.6.28-11-imx51
  Reading package lists... Done
  Building dependency tree       
  Reading state information... Done
  0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 1 reinstalled, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
  Need to get 0B/8235kB of archives.
  After this operation, 0B of additional disk space will be used.
  Do you want to continue [Y/n]? 
  (Reading database ... 95002 files and directories currently installed.)
  Preparing to replace linux-image-2.6.28-11-imx51 2.6.28-11.42 (using .../linux-image-2.6.28-11-imx51_2.6.28-11.42_armel.deb) ...
  Done.
  Unpacking replacement linux-image-2.6.28-11-imx51 ...
  Setting up linux-image-2.6.28-11-imx51 (2.6.28-11.42) ...
  Running depmod.
  update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-2.6.28-11-imx51
   is not a block device
  Failed to create initrd image.
  dpkg: error processing linux-image-2.6.28-11-imx51 (--configure):
   subprocess post-installation script returned error exit status 2
  Errors were encountered while processing:
   linux-image-2.6.28-11-imx51
  E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)

  
  Poking around, I can see that there is no flash-kernel.conf (it _is_ there with sane contents of bootloader installation was enabled)

  root at ubuntu-desktop:~# ls --color=never /etc/flash-kernel.conf
  ls: cannot access /etc/flash-kernel.conf: No such file or directory

  
  Since flash-kernel.conf is just sourced as a shell script, I can artificially make flash-kernel "succeed" by this ugly hack (but it's obviously not the right solution!)

  root at ubuntu-desktop:~# echo exit 0 >/etc/flash-kernel.conf
  root at ubuntu-desktop:~# dpkg --pending --configure
  Setting up linux-image-2.6.28-11-imx51 (2.6.28-11.42) ...
  Running depmod.
  update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-2.6.28-11-imx51
  Not updating initrd symbolic links since we are being updated/reinstalled 
  (2.6.28-11.42 was configured last, according to dpkg)
  Not updating image symbolic links since we are being updated/reinstalled 
  (2.6.28-11.42 was configured last, according to dpkg)

  root at ubuntu-desktop:~# exit

  ProblemType: Bug
  Architecture: armel
  DistroRelease: Ubuntu 9.04
  Package: ubiquity 1.12.12
  ProcEnviron:
   LANG=en_GB.UTF-8
   SHELL=/bin/bash
  SourcePackage: ubiquity
  Uname: Linux 2.6.28-11-imx51 armv7l

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