Re: Buster and apt wanting to remove tons of packages...
On 7/10/18, sgarrulo <sgarrulo@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hello everyone!
> I had an installation of debian stable (stretch) which was fully upgraded
> something
> like a couple of months ago. Then I passed it to testing (buster).
>
> Now I'm facing this situation:
> * 5031 installed packages
> * 1292 upgradable packages
>
> If I do a normal upgrade, 676 packages are to be upgraded, but only the
> gtk/qt unrelated ones
> (for example, apache2-doc but none of the apache2 *real* packages, or
> vim-addon-manager and vim-doc
> but none of the vim *real* packages, and so on)
>
> And if I try to upgrade, let's say, vim-* packages, it wants to remove a ton
> of seemingly unrelated
> packages, like calibre, evolution, gir1.2-*, gstreamer things, kid3,
> libqt5-*, pidgin, vlc-*, etc etc...
>
> This happens when I try to upgrade or install apparently *anything* related
> to GUI programs (GTK/Qt related).
>
> I am worried to make an upgrade like that.
>
> What can I do to debug this situation and try to understand which package(s)
> is/are breaking everything?
>
> I have no pinned packages.
>
> Thank you in advance!
Hi.. Been there, done that, filed a bug, got fussed at, vented here at
Debian-User. Moral of the Story: I don't file ANY BUGS anymore. I
spend that time advocating important subjects related to #Life
instead. lol!
What you experienced is one aspect of the design of how package
upgrades work. As you saw in your case, overriding by manually
installing ("cherry picking") Developer-held packages can be dangerous
for the health of your current install.
Those packages have been held back for a reason. I still don't fully
grasp why those packages even show in our face. I a-sume it's just
somehow part of the system of erasing certain to-do's on a development
checklist to help keep the perpetual upgrade process moving onward and
upward.
I just deleted a bunch of other junk I wrote to instead ask an
important question that might help others help you:
What path did you take to upgrade to where you are this second?
Me? I zap mine and start over via debootstrap because it's just more
"cognitively friendly" *for me*. Others go some version of the
"apt-get dist-upgrade" route which is trustworthy and viable.
Simply changing things, e.g. /etc/apt/sources.list, to point to a
higher or lower distribution, not so much. That sometimes starts a
ticking time bomb toward almost inevitable self-destruction. ALSO been
there, done THAT a very long time ago. *NEVER... EVER... AGAIN!* :D
Cindy :)
--
Cindy-Sue Causey
Talking Rock, Pickens County, Georgia, USA
* runs with duct tape *
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