package postgresql-client-9.3 9.3.5-0ubuntu0.14.04.1 failed to upgrade: alternative pg_basebackup.1.gz can't be slave of psql.1.gz

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

This is very similar to bug 1270597, apparently the fix there still was not sufficient.

We just had such a case in our data center on precise. That has a backported postgresql-common 154 installed, postgresql-9.1 from precise, and a backported p-9.3. Upgrading 9.3 after 9.1 works ok, as p-common's _link_manpages() takes care of the transition in that direction. But upgrading 9.1 after 9.3 fails because precise's postgresql-9.1 still ships pg_basebackup.1.gz in the server package and alternative group. But at that time -9.3 will already have transitioned it to the psql.1.gz alternative group.

A quick workaround is

   sudo update-alternatives --remove psql.1.gz /usr/share/postgresql/9.3/man/man1/psql.1.gz
   sudo apt-get -f install

This will hold until you upgrade 9.3 and then 9.1 again, at which point the same workaround will apply again.

This actually doesn't affect precise's postgresql-common itself. Newer (i. e. backported) postgresql-X.Y versions also require a backported postgresql-common, so instead this fix needs to land in vivid, apt.postgresql.org, and whichever other backport sources people use. I'll update https://launchpad.net/~pitti/+archive/ubuntu/postgresql too.

Trusty SRU uploaded.

This bug was fixed in the package postgresql-common - 166bzr1

---------------
postgresql-common (166bzr1) vivid; urgency=medium

  [ Christoph Berg ]
  * pg_conftool: Fix 'remove' operation. Spotted by François Henry, merci!
    (Closes: #778243)
  * t/007_pg_conftool.t: Add pg_conftool tests.

  [ Martin Pitt ]
  * debian/maintscripts-functions: Avoid package installation failure of -9.1
    due to the pg_basebackup.1 alternative on systems which have both -9.1 and
    a later version installed in parallel. On those, pg_basebackup.1 will
    already be in the psql.1.gz group, thus -9.1 must not try to put it back
    into the postmaster.1.gz group. (LP: #1357682)
 -- Martin Pitt <email address hidden> Mon, 16 Feb 2015 12:31:20 +0100

Hello Michael, or anyone else affected,

Accepted postgresql-common into trusty-proposed. The package will build now and be available at http://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/postgresql-common/154ubuntu1 in a few hours, and then in the -proposed repository.

Please help us by testing this new package. See https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Testing/EnableProposed for documentation how to enable and use -proposed. Your feedback will aid us getting this update out to other Ubuntu users.

If this package fixes the bug for you, please add a comment to this bug, mentioning the version of the package you tested, and change the tag from verification-needed to verification-done. If it does not fix the bug for you, please add a comment stating that, and change the tag to verification-failed. In either case, details of your testing will help us make a better decision.

Further information regarding the verification process can be found at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/QATeam/PerformingSRUVerification . Thank you in advance!

As a part of the Stable Release Updates quality process a search for Launchpad bug reports using the version of postgresql-common from trusty-proposed was performed and bug 1428738 was found. Please investigate this bug report to ensure that a regression will not be created by this SRU. In the event that this is not a regression remove the "verification-failed" tag from this bug report and tag 1428738 "bot-stop-nagging". Thanks!

While bug 1428738 is a bug, it's not a regression, this part of the code hasn't changed in ages. It's mostly the act of restarting postgresql which exhibits this, which usually happens on package upgrades.

It's bug 1428738 that needed to be tagged.

As a part of the Stable Release Updates quality process a search for Launchpad bug reports using the version of postgresql-common from trusty-proposed was performed and bug 1431253 was found. Please investigate this bug report to ensure that a regression will not be created by this SRU. In the event that this is not a regression remove the "verification-failed" tag from this bug report and tag 1431253 "bot-stop-nagging". Thanks!

I triaged bug 1431253 (it's invalid).

As a part of the Stable Release Updates quality process a search for Launchpad bug reports using the version of postgresql-common from trusty-proposed was performed and bug 1432202 was found. Please investigate this bug report to ensure that a regression will not be created by this SRU. In the event that this is not a regression remove the "verification-failed" tag from this bug report and tag 1432202 "bot-stop-nagging". Thanks!

I ran the test case with version 154 from trusty and get the failure. I re-ran it with 154ubuntu1 from trusty-proposed and both -9.1 and -9.4 now succeed. This is self-verification, but as nobody else verified this in the past 50 days and the next point release will come at some point, let's get this out there to avoid further hassle.

This bug was fixed in the package postgresql-common - 154ubuntu1

---------------
postgresql-common (154ubuntu1) trusty-proposed; urgency=medium

  * debian/maintscripts-functions: Avoid package installation failure of -9.1
    due to the pg_basebackup.1 alternative on systems which have both -9.1 and
    a later version installed in parallel. On those, pg_basebackup.1 will
    already be in the psql.1.gz group, thus -9.1 must not try to put it back
    into the postmaster.1.gz group. (LP: #1357682)
 -- Martin Pitt <email address hidden> Mon, 16 Feb 2015 12:35:43 +0100

The verification of the Stable Release Update for postgresql-common has completed successfully and the package has now been released to -updates. Subsequently, the Ubuntu Stable Release Updates Team is being unsubscribed and will not receive messages about this bug report. In the event that you encounter a regression using the package from -updates please report a new bug using ubuntu-bug and tag the bug report regression-update so we can easily find any regressions.