[Bug 593615] Re: dpkg-statoverride should not consider unknown group a "syntax error"

[mikey]

I've just had this bug on Ubuntu 11.04. It stopped me from adding or
removing packages because it couldn't find a group 'cdemu' which is
carzy.  I added the group using 'addgroup cdemu' and ran 'apt-get purge
cdemu-client' deleted the group with 'delgroup cdemu' and was still
stuck because it hadn't purged the reference to the cdemu group.  So I
found the name of the associated file 'vim /var/lib/dpkg/statoverride'
in my case it was '/usr/bin/cdemud' and got rid of it with 'dpkg-
statoverride --remove /usr/bin/cdemud'.

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/593615

Title:
  dpkg-statoverride should not consider unknown group a "syntax error"

Status in “dpkg” package in Ubuntu:
  Triaged
Status in “dpkg” package in Debian:
  New

Bug description:
  Binary package hint: dpkg

  Removal of package gnokii-cli 0.6.28.dfsg-1 left
  /var/lib/dpkg/statoverride in a corrupted state (LP#537025, debbugs
  #563317):

     $ grep gnokii /var/lib/dpkg/statoverride
     root gnokii 4750 /usr/sbin/mgnokiidev

     $ ls -l /usr/sbin/mgnokiidev
     ls: cannot access /usr/sbin/mgnokiidev: No such file or directory

     $ grep gnokii /etc/group

     $ dpkg-statoverride --remove /usr/sbin/mgnokiidev
     dpkg-statoverrides: unrecoverable fatal error, aborting:
      syntax error: unknown group 'gnokii' in statoverride file

     $ dpkg-statoverride --list
     dpkg-statoverrides: unrecoverable fatal error, aborting:
      syntax error: unknown group 'gnokii' in statoverride file

  The "corrupted state" here is that the statoverride file mentions a
  group which no longer exists.  (The same issue occurs with a
  nonexistent user, as see in LP#161798

  Problems with this:

  1. Parsing of /var/lib/dpkg/statoverride should not require the users
  & groups to exist.  Those are separately maintained databases; also,
  couldn't statoverride be referring to a file which may or may not
  exist and whose user/group identity might be maintained dynamically?

  2. This is not a "syntax error" but an "unexpected value".

  3. The error should not be fatal for --list.

  4. The error should definitely not be fatal for an attempt to --remove
  the very entry which is being complained about!

  5. Trivial: the message should not be prefixed with "dpkg-
  statoverrideS", which is neither the name of the utility nor of the
  data file.

  To reproduce without the help of a defective package:

     # sudo sh -c 'echo "foo bar 1234 /etc/baz" >> /var/lib/dpkg/statoverride'
     # dpkg-statoverride --list

  ProblemType: Bug
  DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.04
  Package: dpkg 1.15.5.6ubuntu4
  ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.32-22.36-generic 2.6.32.11+drm33.2
  Uname: Linux 2.6.32-22-generic i686
  Architecture: i386
  Date: Sun Jun 13 22:30:20 2010
  InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 10.04 "Lucid Lynx" - Alpha i386 (20091209)
  ProcEnviron:
   PATH=(custom, user)
   LANG=C
   SHELL=/bin/bash
  SourcePackage: dpkg

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