[Bug 574287] Re: tasksel: forcefully removes packages when tasks overlap

[Alex Beamish]

What is going on with this bug?

I wanted to install SSH Server on my new Ubuntu 18.04 system, and so
unchecked the things that were installed already, checked SSH Server ..
and it's been busily uninstalling EVERYTHING. This is a disaster.

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/574287

Title:
  tasksel: forcefully removes packages when tasks overlap

Status in apt package in Ubuntu:
  Invalid
Status in tasksel package in Ubuntu:
  Confirmed
Status in tasksel package in Debian:
  Fix Released

Bug description:
  TEST CASE

  1. Boot Lucid LiveCD

  2. run "sudo tasksel" and select "virtual machine host"

  3. run "sudo tasksel" and deselect "virtual machine host"

  4. watch how tasksel uninstalls your system

  OBSERVATIONS

  What seems to happen is that apt vengefully removes ALL of the items
  associated with one task, including several base dependencies of other
  tasks (e.g. ubuntu-desktop)

  One illustrative example is the openssh-server task:
  This one includes the packages openssh-server, tcpd and libwrap0.
  From a normal ubuntu-desktop (e.g. ~liveCD) both tcpd and libwrap0 are already installed, and the task-install pulls in only openssh-server.
  However when the task is removed, all these three packages (openssh-server, tcpd and libwrap0) are forcefully removed.
  Since libwrap0 is a core dependency of gnome, a large part of gnome will be removed alongside the removal of the task.

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