Ubuntu
nvidia-common package

installing new kernels fails: nvidia-common postinst failed

Bug #273681 reported by Andreas Schildbach on 2008-09-23

This bug report is a duplicate of: Bug #595440: /etc/kernel/postinst.d/nvidia-common exited with return code 2 - Can't locate Debconf/Element/Dialog.pm. Edit Remove

This bug affects 4 people

Affects		Status	Importance	Assigned to	Milestone
	nvidia-common (Ubuntu)	Confirmed	Undecided	Unassigned

Bug Description

Binary package hint: nvidia-common

On a Dell Latitude X1 (containing no nvidia hardware), upgrading intrepid fails at two points (see below).

Removing the nvidia-common scripts provides a workaround for me.

Setting up linux-image-2.6.27-4-generic (2.6.27-4.5) ...
Running depmod.
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-2.6.27-4-generic
Examining /etc/kernel/postinst.d.
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postinst.d/nvidia-common
debconf: Unable to load Debconf::Element::Dialog. Failed because: Can't locate Debconf/Element/Dialog.pm in @INC (@INC contains: /etc/perl /usr/local/lib/per
l/5.10.0 /usr/local/share/perl/5.10.0 /usr/lib/perl5 /usr/share/perl5 /usr/lib/perl/5.10 /usr/share/perl/5.10 /usr/local/lib/site_perl .) at (eval 24) line 2
, <GEN0> line 2.
BEGIN failed--compilation aborted at (eval 24) line 2, <GEN0> line 2.

Can't locate object method "new" via package "Debconf::Element::Dialog" (perhaps you forgot to load "Debconf::Element::Dialog"?) at /usr/share/perl5/Debconf/
FrontEnd.pm line 68, <GEN0> line 2.
run-parts: /etc/kernel/postinst.d/nvidia-common exited with return code 2
Failed to process /etc/kernel/postinst.d at /var/lib/dpkg/info/linux-image-2.6.27-4-generic.postinst line 1002.
dpkg: error processing linux-image-2.6.27-4-generic (--configure):
subprocess post-installation script returned error exit status 2

---

Setting up linux-headers-2.6.27-4-generic (2.6.27-4.5) ...
Examining /etc/kernel/header_postinst.d.
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/header_postinst.d/nvidia-common
debconf: Unable to load Debconf::Element::Dialog. Failed because: Can't locate Debconf/Element/Dialog.pm in @INC (@INC contains: /etc/perl /usr/local/lib/perl/5.10.0 /usr/local/share/perl/5.10.0 /usr/lib/perl5 /usr/share/perl5 /usr/lib/perl/5.10 /usr/share/perl/5.10 /usr/local/lib/site_perl .) at (eval 24) line 2, <GEN0> line 2.
BEGIN failed--compilation aborted at (eval 24) line 2, <GEN0> line 2.
Can't locate object method "new" via package "Debconf::Element::Dialog" (perhaps you forgot to load "Debconf::Element::Dialog"?) at /usr/share/perl5/Debconf/FrontEnd.pm line 68, <GEN0> line 2.
run-parts: /etc/kernel/header_postinst.d/nvidia-common exited with return code 2
Failed to process /etc/kernel/header_postinst.d at /var/lib/dpkg/info/linux-headers-2.6.27-4-generic.postinst line 110.
dpkg: error processing linux-headers-2.6.27-4-generic (--configure):
subprocess post-installation script returned error exit status 2
dpkg: dependency problems prevent configuration of linux-headers-generic:
linux-headers-generic depends on linux-headers-2.6.27-4-generic; however:
Package linux-headers-2.6.27-4-generic is not configured yet.
dpkg: error processing linux-headers-generic (--configure):
dependency problems - leaving unconfigured

Revision history for this message

Alberto Milone (albertomilone) wrote on 2008-09-28:

Maybe there was a problem with Debconf when you did the dist-upgrade.

Please type:
sudo apt-get install nvidia-common

sudo apt-get install --reinstall linux-headers-2.6.27-4-generic

and let me know what happens.

If nothing happens then the problem is solved.

Revision history for this message

Andreas Schildbach (schildbach) wrote on 2008-09-28:

First, I tried

sudo apt-get install -reinstall nvidia-common

but it did not copy the nvidia-common scripts back to

/etc/kernel/postinst.d
/etc/kernel/header_postinst.d

Thus, I suppose this test is invalid. What do I need to do to get the scripts back?

Revision history for this message

Joel Cross (ukch) wrote on 2008-12-05:

I have just had my bug (https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/305526) marked a duplicate of this one. For me, the NVidia drivers and nvidia-common are already installed.

Running sudo apt-get install --reinstall linux-{headers,restricted-modules}-`uname -r` did not solve the problem, but just did the same thing it always does when I run apt-get (namely, displays the long error message and quits).

Revision history for this message

Joel Cross (ukch) wrote on 2009-02-23:

I finally managed to get the problem to go away. I did an 'apt-get purge nvidia-common', then I installed the latest kernel update, and then reinstalled nvidia-common, and everything seems to be fine now.

Revision history for this message

Milan Bouchet-Valat (nalimilan) wrote on 2009-10-13:

See duplicate bug 273681 for data about the same issue but when upgrading kernels (2.6.31-12-generic and others) in Karmic.

summary:	- dist-upgrading Intrepid failed because of nvidia-common exiting with - return code 2 + installing new kernels fails: nvidia-common postinst failed
Changed in nvidia-common (Ubuntu):
status:	New → Confirmed

Revision history for this message

Sebastian Malcolm (smalcolm) wrote on 2010-05-06:

I saw a repeat of this issue after upgrade to lucid and installing recent kernel update to 2.6.32.22.23

On my system I found that jockey-common (0.5.8-0ubuntu8) recommends nvidia-common (0.2.23).
Joel Cross's suggestion (#4) to remove nvidia-common worked for me, so I could then successfully finish installing the newer kernel packages.

Can nvidia-common be safely removed on all 10.04 Lucid Lynx systems?
Replaced by nvidia-current, nvidia-current-modaliases?

Revision history for this message

pinzia (pinzia) wrote on 2010-07-03:

similar bug on lucid https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/nvidia-common/+bug/595440