apt-get uh oh...

[bobtcowboy]

I'm running Progeny... but I want some packages in testing... so I comment out the progeny deb sources in sources.list and uncomment the testing ones for Debian.

Apt-get update, then apt-get upgrade.

download a ton of crap and install it? (y/n)

"Sure." y

Ooops. Now its stuck...

I try a apt-get -f install and it says the same thing...

Any ideas?

Bill


/var/lib/debconf/config.47319: null: command not found
xaw3dg failed to configure, with exit code 127
Calling dpkg with the following arguments...
/usr/bin/dpkg --unpack /var/cache/apt/archives/xlibs_4.1.0-6_i386.deb
(Reading database ... 65165 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to replace xlibs 4.0.3-1 (using .../xlibs_4.1.0-6_i386.deb) ...
Unpacking replacement xlibs ...
dpkg: error processing /var/cache/apt/archives/xlibs_4.1.0-6_i386.deb (--unpack):
trying to overwrite `/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/app-defaults', which is also in package groff
Errors were encountered while processing:
/var/cache/apt/archives/xlibs_4.1.0-6_i386.deb
Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)

[element-x]

Add the following to your /etc/apt/apt.conf
or in the case of the "new" apt (or what seems to be anyways)

/etc/apt/apt.conf.d/70debconf


:
DPkg
{
Options {"--force-overwrite";}
Options {"--force-overwrite-dir";}
}
:

Re-run, and you should have no problems.

[wreckd]

interesting. i had always run dpkg with force on the problem packages individually. so, when you make the change you suggest does it always call dpkg with --force-overwrites and is that ever a bad thing?

[element-x]

yes it always uses the --force-overwrite, I haven't seen it do anything bad, and I haven't heard anything bad happen because of it. I know it's regular practice with myself among a number of my friends that also run Debian.

By all means though, if you notice something that goes wrong because of this, please let me know.