Re: Bug #32888: The old `base' package.

[servis@purdue.edu]

*- On  9 Mar, Santiago Vila wrote about "Re: Bug #32888: The old `base' package."
> On Tue, 9 Mar 1999, Hamish Moffatt wrote:
> 
>> On Tue, Mar 09, 1999 at 11:45:35AM +0100, Santiago Vila wrote:
>> > base was not "essential in the past".
>> > base is still essential now for people who have it installed.
>> 
>> It is only essential now because removing it would hose the system.
>> It is othrewise unimportant; base-files and base-password provide
>> the exact same functionality.
>> 
>> IMHO, it is not essential.
> 
> This is contradictory. If removing it would hose the system, then it has a
> good reason to be essential.
> 
> The fact that new systems do not have a package named "base" does not mean
> this package is not essential for systems having it installed.
> [ Proof: Remove it and see what happens ].
> 

The solution to remove base without waiting for a clean way to do it with 
a package in or in dselect is, and I quote from
http://www.debian.org/Lists-Archives/debian-user-9707/msg01109.html

      To: debian-user@lists.debian.org, eparis@ven.ra.rockwell.com (Eloy A. Paris) 
      Subject: Re: 1.3.1 upgrade: getting rid of the package base 1.1.0-13 -- dselect and downgrading dosemu 
      From: bruce@pixar.com (Bruce Perens) 
      Date: Fri, 11 Jul 97 16:45 PDT 
      References: <wjxiuyj8b0s.fsf@coelacanthe.irisa.fr> 
      Reply-To: Bruce Perens <bruce@pixar.com> 

      However, edit /var/lib/dpkg/status and remove the paragraph
      about the "base" package, and that will effectively purge it.
      Forcing dpkg to remove the package removes all of the files in /dev.
      It's my error, sorry.

           Bruce


Then remove the files /var/lib/dpkg/info/base.*

That worked for me when I did it shortly after that post by Bruce.

<DISCLAIMER>
YMMV, make backups of /var/lib/dpkg/status and
/var/lib/dpkg/info/base.*.
<DISCLAIMER>


-- 
Brian 
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Mechanical Engineering                                bservis@usa.net
Purdue University                   http://www.ecn.purdue.edu/~servis
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