Bug#45867: libc6 needs a functional perl, which pre-depends on libc6...

[Brad <lists@anomie.dhis.org>]

Package: libc6
Version: 2.1.2-3
Severity: important

As the subject says, libc6 requires perl to be installed and working
before it will install. perl-5.005-base in turn pre-depends on libc6. This
is a problem, especially when perl and libc6 happen to be updated in the
same day (so that apt unconfigures both before configuring either).

Transcript of an attempted install:
  ...
  Current default timezone: 'America/Chicago'.
     Local time is now:      Fri Sep 24 01:00:33 CDT 1999.
     Universal Time is now:  Fri Sep 24 06:00:33 UTC 1999.
  Run `tzconfig' if you wish to change it.
  /var/lib/dpkg/info/libc6.postinst: /usr/sbin/update-rc.d: Permission denied
  dpkg: error processing libc6 (--install):
   subprocess post-installation script returned error exit status 1

The permission is denied because access to the /usr/bin/perl-5.005 binary
is denied because the new perl isn't configured yet, only unpacked (mode
== 600, not executable even to root).

I suggest that the libc6 postinstallation script be changed so that it
does not depend on update-rc.d being functional. Or, somehow insure that
perl is not unconfigured during the apt update process before libc6 is
configured.

I've listed this as 'important' because a problem like this certainly
qualifies as a "bug which makes the package unsuitable for release."