Re: Bug#3226: pkg update-alternatives confusion

[Ian Jackson <ian@chiark.chu.cam.ac.uk>]

Bill Mitchell writes ("Bug#3226: pkg update-alternatives confusion"):
...
> I manually re-pointed it to /usr/bin/elvisnox, and that allowed
> him to use vi.  However, subsequent attenpts force the links to
> consistency with "dpkg --install elvisx11.deb" produce a message
> to the effect that updates to /etc/alternatives/vi are "disabled".
> 
> I haven't had time to look at the update-alternatives script
> to figure out why it wants to "disable" updates and, not being a
> perl programmer, I'm really not anxious to do that anyhow.

The message printed by update-rc.d says:

 Automatic updates of /etc/alternatives/vi are disabled, leaving it alone.
 To return to automatic updates use `update-alternatives --auto vi'.

I just reproduced your situation on my machine, and
`update-alternatives --auto vi' did indeed return vi to automatic
updates, and update it there and then (to point to nvi in this case).

The automatic updates were disabled because you modified the link in
/etc/alternatives, as you're quite entitled to do, and
update-alternatives noticed this and thought you might like it not to
replace your configuration with its own.

> Question:  How does my co-worker convince update-alternatives
> to update /etc/alternatives/vi when vi packages are changed?

Please ask your co-worker to open their eyes next time.

I'm closing this bug report.

Ian.