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Because of something I did during an anthropology lecture, I learned the hard way to read the "The following packages will be REMOVED" list when upgrading a package to backports in Debian GNU + Linux. (lemmy.ca)

submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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I upgraded pipewire from stable to backports (I want to know ~~if this is related to my problem~~ why essential packages were removed)

Start-Date: 2024-09-18  14:59:02
Commandline: apt install libpipewire-0.3-0/bookworm-backports
Requested-By: dullbananas (1000)
Install: libpulsedsp:amd64 (16.1+dfsg1-2+b1, automatic), pulseaudio:amd64 (16.1+dfsg1-2+b1, automatic), pulseaudio-utils:amd64 (16.1+dfsg1-2+b1, automatic), libasound2-plugins:amd64 (1.2.7.1-1, automatic), policykit-1-gnome:amd64 (0.105-8, automatic), pulseaudio-module-bluetooth:amd64 (16.1+dfsg1-2+b1, automatic), libspeexdsp1:amd64 (1.2.1-1, automatic)
Upgrade: libspa-0.2-modules:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1, 1.2.3-1~bpo12+1), libpipewire-0.3-0:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1, 1.2.3-1~bpo12+1)
Remove: pipewire-pulse:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), pipewire-audio-client-libraries:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), t2-apple-audio-dsp-speakers161:amd64 (0.2.0-1), gnome:amd64 (1:43+1), gnome-remote-desktop:amd64 (43.3-1), pipewire:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), gnome-shell-extensions:amd64 (43.1-1), gnome-shell:amd64 (43.9-0+deb12u2), pipewire-tests:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), gdm3:amd64 (43.0-3), libspa-0.2-jack:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), libspa-0.2-bluetooth:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), pipewire-jack:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), gstreamer1.0-pipewire:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), t2-apple-audio-dsp-mic:amd64 (0.4.0-1), pipewire-audio:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), pipewire-bin:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), chrome-gnome-shell:amd64 (42.1-3), task-gnome-desktop:amd64 (3.73), gnome-session:amd64 (43.0-1+deb12u1), gnome-browser-connector:amd64 (42.1-3), gnome-core:amd64 (1:43+1), libpipewire-0.3-modules:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1), wireplumber:amd64 (0.4.13-1), gnome-shell-extension-prefs:amd64 (43.9-0+deb12u2), pipewire-alsa:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1)
End-Date: 2024-09-18  14:59:35

Start-Date: 2024-09-18  14:59:43
Commandline: apt install libpipewire-0.3-modules/bookworm-backports
Requested-By: dullbananas (1000)
Install: libconfig++9v5:amd64 (1.5-0.4, automatic), libxml++2.6-2v5:amd64 (2.40.1-3, automatic), libpipewire-0.3-modules:amd64 (1.2.3-1~bpo12+1), libffado2:amd64 (2.4.7-1, automatic)
End-Date: 2024-09-18  14:59:48

Start-Date: 2024-09-18  14:59:57
Commandline: apt install pipewire/bookworm-backports
Requested-By: dullbananas (1000)
Install: pipewire:amd64 (1.2.3-1~bpo12+1), pipewire-bin:amd64 (1.2.3-1~bpo12+1, automatic), wireplumber:amd64 (0.4.13-1, automatic)
End-Date: 2024-09-18  15:00:02

I suspended the computer, and after resume, the lock screen was broken:

When I clicked on the password field, the text cursor only appeared for a split second, and I could not type in it
Clicking on the user switch button on the bottom right corner did nothing
A few times, the text "Authentication error" randomly appeared for a split second, probably for 1 frame
No way to reboot the normal way, because I could only use the power menu on the lock screen, which only has suspend

I used the power button to reboot, and instead of GNOME, there was darkness

Debian GNU/Linux 12 dullbananas-macbookpro161 tty1

dullbananas-macbookpro161 login:

I downgraded pipewire to stable

Start-Date: 2024-09-18  15:20:16
Commandline: apt install pipewire/stable
Requested-By: dullbananas (1000)
Downgrade: pipewire:amd64 (1.2.3-1~bpo12+1, 0.3.65-3+deb12u1), pipewire-bin:amd64 (1.2.3-1~bpo12+1, 0.3.65-3+deb12u1), libspa-0.2-modules:amd64 (1.2.3-1~bpo12+1, 0.3.65-3+deb12u1), libpipewire-0.3-modules:amd64 (1.2.3-1~bpo12+1, 0.3.65-3+deb12u1), libpipewire-0.3-0:amd64 (1.2.3-1~bpo12+1, 0.3.65-3+deb12u1)
End-Date: 2024-09-18  15:20:26

I ran dpkg --verify and got this output

??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.9-1-t2-bookworm/modules.alias
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.9-1-t2-bookworm/modules.alias.bin
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.9-1-t2-bookworm/modules.dep
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.9-1-t2-bookworm/modules.dep.bin
missing     /usr/share/dbus-1/services/io.snapcraft.Prompt.service
??5?????? c /etc/systemd/logind.conf
??5?????? c /etc/tlp.conf
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.8-1-t2-bookworm/modules.alias
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.8-1-t2-bookworm/modules.alias.bin
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.8-1-t2-bookworm/modules.dep
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.8-1-t2-bookworm/modules.dep.bin
??5?????? c /etc/gdm3/daemon.conf
missing     /etc/os-release.debootstrap
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.7-1-t2-bookworm/modules.alias
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.7-1-t2-bookworm/modules.alias.bin
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.7-1-t2-bookworm/modules.dep
??5??????   /lib/modules/6.10.7-1-t2-bookworm/modules.dep.bin

I reinstalled systemd (not sure if this made a difference)

Start-Date: 2024-09-18  15:48:58
Commandline: apt install --reinstall systemd
Requested-By: dullbananas (1000)
Reinstall: systemd:amd64 (252.30-1~deb12u2)
End-Date: 2024-09-18  15:49:02

I reinstalled gdm3, and immediately without me doing anything else, there was GNOME instead of darkness

Start-Date: 2024-09-18  15:51:49
Commandline: apt install --reinstall gdm3
Requested-By: dullbananas (1000)
Install: gnome-remote-desktop:amd64 (43.3-1, automatic), gnome-shell:amd64 (43.9-0+deb12u2, automatic), power-profiles-daemon:amd64 (0.12-1+b1, automatic), gdm3:amd64 (43.0-3), gstreamer1.0-pipewire:amd64 (0.3.65-3+deb12u1, automatic), chrome-gnome-shell:amd64 (42.1-3, automatic), gnome-session:amd64 (43.0-1+deb12u1, automatic), gnome-browser-connector:amd64 (42.1-3, automatic), gnome-shell-extension-prefs:amd64 (43.9-0+deb12u2, automatic)
Remove: tlp:amd64 (1.5.0-2), tlp-rdw:amd64 (1.5.0-2)
End-Date: 2024-09-18  15:52:05

End of class
I reinstalled tlp because installing gdm3 removed it
After selecting an app search result, instead of a new window opening, an existing window was focused, and this led to me discovering that my built-in extensions were gone
While writing this post, I got the idea of using the list of removed packages in the apt history log output from apt install libpipewire-0.3-0/bookworm-backports to see what packages to install again, so I did that, then I also had to uninstall firefox-esr again
I rebooted, and my built-in extensions and other stuff were resurrected, so now I have full redemption
Another Window Session Manager restored my windows in a way that pissed me off

(Failed attempts of recovery are not listed)

Edit: actually I made the mistake 1 minute before the start of class

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

If only you had timeshift and a CoW filesystem ;) rollbacks are easy peasy then!

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

Newer versions of apt now have coloured text showing what will be installed (green) and what will be REMOVED (red)

Handy feature for someone like me who also makes mistakes

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

Hard lesson to learn, I've been taught the same myself.

Some others have said it already, but I will repeat the gospel, use Timeshift!

I did nearly the exact same thing you did on my Debian laptop at a tech conference right at the beginning of an important session.

I decided to mess around with my wireless drivers. IDK why I thought that was a good idea, I don't remember what I was trying to do, but I borked my networking stack completely.

couldn't get it to reconnect, couldn't get the settings to revert or anything.

I quickly ran Timeshift and selected my most recent automatic daily restore point. 5 minutes later I was back 100% Internet was working perfectly, nothing funky, and I was able to catch up and follow the lecture again.

Timeshift is awesome too because it runs from the command line if you need it to. So even borking your GUI isn't a death sentence, you can still run Timeshift from the terminal and restore your system.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

Yet even without a WM, still better than macOS

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

It just wanted to remove French, ofc I said yes!!

But also, honestly, I always "-y".
The gamble is I'll have to use an earlier ~~bitchtree~~ btrfs snapshot.

And thx for the great commentary on point 13.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 month ago

Yes, DO AS I SAY!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

You might be interested in reading the Unix Haters Handbook. I mean, that the command to install a backport so easily allowed you to remove core packages without a... Better warning, is an old complaint

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

Been there.

[–] [email protected] 61 points 1 month ago (1 children)

1 minute before class: the perfect time to mess with Linux audio and video drivers.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

This is why I use Debian 12 with minimal backports on my main college laptop. (I just have backports kernel and firmware for the Wi-Fi card as well as backports smartctl due to a bugfix).

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Debian GNU/Linux 12 dullbananas-macbookpro161 tty1

dullbananas-macbookpro161 login:

What more do you need?!

Lol but seriously,

Remove: ...gnome-shell...

That'll do it.

You should consider setting up btrfs w/ Timeshift.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

At least you got to multi-user.target. I've done worse to my arch system that needed an entire chroot reinstall

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 month ago (1 children)

This guy doesnt use tabs

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I want the process of switching between things to always be the same

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

May use a little more memory but may be fine. How do you do this? Ctrl+N always?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Ctrl+N, and super+tab set to switch between all windows

Why more memory?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago

More memory because Firefox forks browser tab processes to save memory, and you spawn an entire separate browser with more processes apart from just the one tab.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 1 month ago

yum history undo last

There's a colossal amount of work that goes into making that command usable and reliable, and I'm glad to say the yum-adjacent distros are still putting in the effort. That may change, but so far it's been there to save my bacon when I need it.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Congratulations 🎉 Nice work figuring it out.

Gotta love the idea that when you uninstall a package all the packages that depend on it must be removed for consistency.

Out of curiosity, what were you looking to gain from the pipewire upgrade?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago

Trying to fix a crash after suspend, and log mentions pipewire being tainted (part of an "oops" if i remember correctly)

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

So I got this error alot with elementaryOS doing exactly what you did. And it was always some dependency like lightDM not initiating properly.

[–] [email protected] 35 points 1 month ago

When you do a dist-upgrade on anything but the stable main repos, you're on your own.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

This was definitely one of my least favorite things when I used Debian.

It shows that we need to think about how users are performing tasks and how to intuitively make their usage more successful. The OS should try to get out of the way and always have the ability to easily revert in the case of platform failure.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (2 children)

There should be an undo oopsies feature you can turn on and off somewhere so in terminal when I accidentally rm -f * the entire system doesn't eat it's own tail.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

This is a fascinating concept.

If files are removed from the Index it would only seem natural that they can be undeleted until their physical address is recycled and overwritten.

In fact I remember something like this pre Windows 95 era where files were crossed out. Undeleting them was like magic.

This is why the windows term "Recycle" is more appropriate because the data remains until the space is reused or zero'd out.

This is the kind of reexamining we need, does our current iteration make sense from an engineering perspective or is it just a evolution of a bunch of archaic stuff from a time that doesn't represent the present tech world at all.

I would be okay with replacing rm with recycle and shred as their function is more clear in the name.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Yes. Potentially make it wipe the undo action saved after a second reboot. As in;

1."sudo apt dist upgrade -reverttool"

2.reboot #1

3.oops bricked my dependencies

4.sudo "ah shits fucked -reverttool!"

5.reboot #2

6.-reverttool completed the reversion of "sudo apt dist upgrade"

ALTERNATIVELY

1.sudo apt dist upgrade -reverttool

2.reboot #1

3.everything worked

4.forget about the -reverttool

5.reboot #2

6.-reverttool wipes it's /tmp/revert.txt until next command.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

While that sounds good it would be extremely complex to actually implement. The only real-world feature like this is btrfs snapshots (or filesystem snapshots generally). The good thing is that snapshots only store the difference in data and so they don't have to take up much space.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 month ago

I still have to set mine up for my laptop. I'm using mine for dev use raw. No protection. Or backups

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