Ugrade abortion

[Bret Busby]

On 19/01/2022, Liam Proven <lproven at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Wed, 19 Jan 2022 at 01:20, Bret Busby <bret.busby at gmail.com> wrote:
>> >
>> > After a while, the Software Updater crashed, displaying only the error
>> > message
>> > "
>> > Could not install the upgrades
>> > The upgrade has aborted. Your system could be in an unusable state. A
>> > recovery will run now (dpkg --configure -a)
>> > "
>> >
>> > Tried getting a screenshot, but the Take Screenshot application will
>> > not save the screenshot, after the abortion.
>
> You have not given us enough information.
>
> Do you have any clue why it failed? Is the disk full?
>
>> > Is Ubuntu 21.10 like Debian Experimental, by design, as well as in
>> > practice?
>
> No. I am typing on it right now. It's fine.
>
> I am using the Unity remix -- I tried MATE again recently and I don't
> like it much. There are trivial glitches in the Unity remix but the OS
> is solid.
>
> When a Linux machine has serious disk filesystem problems, it mounts
> read-only to protect your data. This is standard operating procedure
> (SOP).
>
> What you should do:
>
> [1] Boot from a USB key with the same or newer OS version (in case the
> filesystem code has changed in an update)
>
> [2] Back up your data if you haven't already. Actually even if you
> have already. You should have 3 backups, ideally.
>
> To another drive, not a different partition but another physical
> drive. Disk space is cheap. Have lots, and label them, with something
> that won't fall off. Sticky labels are good.
>
> Do you have your /home directory on a separate partition? If not, I
> recommend this in future.
>
> *Then*
>
> [3] Reboot from the key and check and repair your root filesystem
>
> [4] If this works, reboot off the key again. Check the root FS looks
> OK, and can be checked again without error
>
> [5] Boot from the affected partition. Check it starts OK.
>
> Now run the package recovery steps it lists in the error you give above.
>
> If it works, reboot.
>
> [6] Then finish the update:
>
> sudo apt install -f
> sudo apt full-upgrade -y
>
> Then reboot again.
>

I have downloaded the ubuntumate 21.10 iso and written it to a usb
drive, and booted it.

It is unusable.

It has no panel or taskbar or menu's. I can get a terminal window and
that is all.

In doing ls, it shows ubiquity and desktop, in illegible colouring
(what brightspark imposed green on white?)

Running df -h shows it has a cow in it.

It does not show the computer hard drive, and I have no idea how to
access it, as it cannot see the hard drive.

21.10 simply appears to be unusable.

-- 
Bret Busby
Armadale
West Australia
(UTC+0800)
..............