"Could not calculate the upgrade" due to multiple metapackages being installed

After removing ubuntu-mate-core I was able to start the upgrade process.

It looks like you had two metapackages installed which can confuse the release upgrade process.

2015-10-28 10:50:57,186 DEBUG MetaPkgs: ubuntu-desktop ubuntu-mate-core

Yes, Brian, as stated in my previous comment, I've had 2 core metapackages.
BUT, I think this scenario should be handled automatically by the upgrade script/program - ie if 2 metapackages are installed keep just he ubuntu-desktop one and remove the other(s).

I'm confused by this, as I too had this problem, and my two metapackages are xubuntu-core and xubuntu-desktop, which depends on xubuntu-core! So how am I supposed to resolve this?

Also affects upgrade to 16.04 from 14.04 32 bit

I too am experiencing this issue when upgrading from 16.04 to 16.10.

kubuntu-desktop was shown as broken in /var/log/dist-upgrade/apt.log, Executing "sudo apt-get remove kubuntu-desktop" solved the problem.

I think I am having this bug too (running "ubuntu-bug ubuntu-release-upgrader-core" brought me to this page). I was trying to upgrade from 14.04 to 16.04. /var/log/dist-upgrade/apt.log says "ERROR Dist-upgrade failed: 'The package 'ubuntu-desktop' is marked for removal but it is in the removal blacklist.'". It doesn't explain what a "removal blacklist" is.

The file /var/log/dist-upgrade/main.log says "DEBUG MetaPkgs: kubuntu-desktop ubuntu-desktop", which based on a comment above should mean I have two metapackages installed. I believe I run Kubuntu, and I certainly use KDE. Does this mean it's safe to remove the package ubuntu-desktop? Sorry to seem clueless!

/var/log/dist-upgrade/apt.log lists both ubuntu-desktop:amd64 and kubuntu-desktop:amd64 as Broken, whatever that means.

Having the same problem upgrading from Ubuntu 16.04 to 16.10. Using Ubuntu Mate. I don't want to uninstall Mate to upgrade :-(

I'm stuck with this too - and am alarmed to see the issue is well over a year old and not fixed

After removing all KDE dependencies worked fine for me.

On Dec 15, 2016 11:30 AM, "Georgina Hale" <email address hidden>
wrote:

> I'm stuck with this too - and am alarmed to see the issue is well over a
> year old and not fixed
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to a
> duplicate bug report (1608329).
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1510841
>
> Title:
> "Could not calculate the upgrade" due to multiple metapackages being
> installed
>
> Status in ubuntu-release-upgrader package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> Trying to upgrade from 15.04 to 15.10.
> Non-core ppas disabled.
>
> ProblemType: Bug
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 15.04
> Package: ubuntu-release-upgrader-core 1:15.04.14.2
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.19.0-31.36-generic 3.19.8-ckt7
> Uname: Linux 3.19.0-31-generic x86_64
> NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
> ApportVersion: 2.17.2-0ubuntu1.7
> Architecture: amd64
> CrashDB: ubuntu
> CurrentDesktop: MATE
> Date: Wed Oct 28 10:53:56 2015
> InstallationDate: Installed on 2014-11-27 (334 days ago)
> InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Release amd64
> (20140722.2)
> PackageArchitecture: all
> SourcePackage: ubuntu-release-upgrader
> UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to vivid on 2015-10-28 (0 days ago)
> VarLogDistupgradeTermlog:
>
> To manage notifications about this bug go to:
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/ubuntu-release-
> upgrader/+bug/1510841/+subscriptions
>

I also experience a similar/the same problem for upgrading from 14.04 to xenial. Indeed I do for several months now, always hoping that the bug would be fixed one day...
This is what pops up (in the end) when I sudo do-release-upgrade
"
Calculating the changes

Could not determine the upgrade

An unresolvable problem occurred while calculating the upgrade.

This can be caused by:
* Upgrading to a pre-release version of Ubuntu
* Running the current pre-release version of Ubuntu
* Unofficial software packages not provided by Ubuntu

If none of this applies, then please report this bug using the
command 'ubuntu-bug ubuntu-release-upgrader-core' in a terminal.
"
and here I am...

/var/log/dist-upgrade/apt.log tells me
"Broken dpkg:amd64 Breaks on software-center [ amd64 ] < 13.10-0ubuntu4.2 > ( gnome ) (< 13.10-0ubuntu9~)
  Considering software-center:amd64 -1 as a solution to dpkg:amd64 5881
  Added software-center:amd64 to the remove list" followed by a long list of this kind of broken statements and finally
"Can't install 'xubuntu-core' "

excerpt from /var/log/dist-upgrade/main.log:
2017-02-23 07:27:05,447 DEBUG Comparing 4.4.0-64 with 3.13.0-110
2017-02-23 07:27:05,482 DEBUG metapkg 'xubuntu-desktop' installed but marked_delete
2017-02-23 07:27:05,482 DEBUG none of the '['ubuntu-desktop', 'kubuntu-desktop', 'xubuntu-core', 'xubuntu-desktop', 'ubuntustudio-desktop', 'mythbuntu-desktop', 'kubuntu-netbook', 'lubuntu-core', 'lubuntu-desktop', 'ubuntu-gnome-desktop', 'ubuntu-mate-core', 'ubuntu-mate-cloudtop', 'ubuntu-mate-desktop']' meta-pkgs installed
2017-02-23 07:27:05,482 DEBUG guessing 'xubuntu-core' as missing meta-pkg
2017-02-23 07:27:05,482 ERROR failed to mark 'xubuntu-core' for install ("The cache has no package named 'xubuntu-core'")
2017-02-23 07:27:05,507 DEBUG blacklist expr 'xubuntu-desktop' matches 'xubuntu-desktop'
2017-02-23 07:27:05,507 DEBUG The package 'xubuntu-desktop' is marked for removal but it's in the removal blacklist
2017-02-23 07:27:05,616 ERROR Dist-upgrade failed: 'The package 'xubuntu-desktop' is marked for removal but it is in the removal blacklist.'
2017-02-23 07:27:05,617 DEBUG abort called

I am certainly running xubuntu. And it works, so I suppose that all necessary packages are installed. Unfortunately, just as for milvang, I do not understand what I need to do to be able to do the upgrade anyway. And I am not sure of the consequences if I remove xubuntu-desktop as proposed by rmjpraakash...

i get the same bug when upgrade from 16.10 to 17.04

Same on 17.04 to 17.10. I can reproduce on a clear install on a virtual machine.

Steps to reproduce:
1) Install regular Ubuntu 17.04
2) Install ubuntu-mate-desktop
3) Run update-manager -d

I can confirm, that on my system removing ubuntu-mate-desktop and ubuntu-mate-core resolves this issue on upgrading from 17.04 to 17.10.

I also have this problem trying to upgrade from 17.04 to 17.10.
I do not have ubuntu-mate-core or ubuntu-mate-desktop or kubuntu-desktop installed.
The file /var/log/dist-upgrade/apt.log contains 1212 lines and 145 references to "broken" but no explanation as to why it failed.

Following the instructions in this thread https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2382832 to point /etc/apt/sources.list to the moved zesty sources allows the process to resume.

Surely the upgrade script could be modified to check if the current rev sources have been move to "old" and re-point the apt sources there? Otherwise if you don't know to upgrade within set time you get hosed into mysterious upgrade fail hell

Metapackages it was for me too: After removing ubuntu-mate-core and ubuntu-desktop the upgrade process finally ran. Thanks for the info.

same issue when upgrading from 16.04 to 18.04 LTS

Same issue when upgrading from 18.10 to 19.04

Same issue when upgrading from 18.04 LTS to 19.04

Same issue when upgrading from 18.10 to 19.04

Try purging anything to do with KDE.

Troy Boatright

On Sun, May 19, 2019, 9:35 PM Marcelo Bernasconi dos Santos <
<email address hidden>> wrote:

> Same issue when upgrading from 18.10 to 19.04
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to a
> duplicate bug report (1608329).
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1510841
>
> Title:
> "Could not calculate the upgrade" due to multiple metapackages being
> installed
>
> Status in ubuntu-release-upgrader package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> Trying to upgrade from 15.04 to 15.10.
> Non-core ppas disabled.
>
> ProblemType: Bug
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 15.04
> Package: ubuntu-release-upgrader-core 1:15.04.14.2
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.19.0-31.36-generic 3.19.8-ckt7
> Uname: Linux 3.19.0-31-generic x86_64
> NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
> ApportVersion: 2.17.2-0ubuntu1.7
> Architecture: amd64
> CrashDB: ubuntu
> CurrentDesktop: MATE
> Date: Wed Oct 28 10:53:56 2015
> InstallationDate: Installed on 2014-11-27 (334 days ago)
> InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Release amd64
> (20140722.2)
> PackageArchitecture: all
> SourcePackage: ubuntu-release-upgrader
> UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to vivid on 2015-10-28 (0 days ago)
> VarLogDistupgradeTermlog:
>
> To manage notifications about this bug go to:
>
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/ubuntu-release-upgrader/+bug/1510841/+subscriptions
>

Try removing any libraries with any reference to kde.

Troy Boatright

On Fri, Oct 25, 2019, 8:00 AM Absalon <email address hidden> wrote:

> ** Also affects: ubuntu-release-upgrader
> Importance: Undecided
> Status: New
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to a
> duplicate bug report (1608329).
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1510841
>
> Title:
> "Could not calculate the upgrade" due to multiple metapackages being
> installed
>
> Status in Release Upgrader:
> New
> Status in ubuntu-release-upgrader package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> Trying to upgrade from 15.04 to 15.10.
> Non-core ppas disabled.
>
> ProblemType: Bug
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 15.04
> Package: ubuntu-release-upgrader-core 1:15.04.14.2
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.19.0-31.36-generic 3.19.8-ckt7
> Uname: Linux 3.19.0-31-generic x86_64
> NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
> ApportVersion: 2.17.2-0ubuntu1.7
> Architecture: amd64
> CrashDB: ubuntu
> CurrentDesktop: MATE
> Date: Wed Oct 28 10:53:56 2015
> InstallationDate: Installed on 2014-11-27 (334 days ago)
> InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Release amd64
> (20140722.2)
> PackageArchitecture: all
> SourcePackage: ubuntu-release-upgrader
> UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to vivid on 2015-10-28 (0 days ago)
> VarLogDistupgradeTermlog:
>
> To manage notifications about this bug go to:
>
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu-release-upgrader/+bug/1510841/+subscriptions
>