[Bug 1300987] Re: /usr/lib/auto-apt/auto-apt-pkgdcb consumes over 100% RAM on 0.3.23

[C de-Avillez]

** Also affects: auto-apt (Ubuntu Trusty)
   Importance: Undecided
       Status: New

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Title:
  /usr/lib/auto-apt/auto-apt-pkgdcb consumes over 100% RAM on 0.3.23

Status in “auto-apt” package in Ubuntu:
  Fix Released
Status in “auto-apt” source package in Trusty:
  New

Bug description:
  [Impact]
  * 'sudo auto-apt update' fills the RAM, causing the system to freeze for a few minutes
    when the SWAP starts being used.
    - Due to this, auto-apt is unusable in Trusty (and Saucy).
    - This bug can only be reproduced after fixing bug #1300991 by applying the workaround
      provided in the end of that bug report by the reported.
  * The new version 0.3.24 fixes this bug, LP: #1300991 and a dpkg warning about an
    obsolete argument.

  [Test Case]
  * First, apply the fix/workaround provided in the end of the bug report #1300991:
    Open /usr/bin/auto-apt and remove the first "[[:space]]" from line 145, so that it
    starts like 'sed -ne 's=^[[:space:]]*deb[[:space:]]'.
    Without the fix/workaround, the next command wouldn't even work!
  * Run the command 'sudo auto-apt update'.
    - With version 0.3.23, RAM is quickly filled and the system freezes for a few minutes
      (until the oom killer terminates the process).
    - With the new version 0.3.24, RAM is not filled and the system doesn't freeze.

  [Regression Potential]
  * auto-apt is already non-functional in Trusty (and Saucy), therefore there is no
    regression potential.

  [Other Info]
  * The original bug report for Saucy follows:

  1)Description:    Ubuntu 13.10
  Release:        13.10

  Note: Actually Kubuntu 13.10

  2)auto-apt:
    Installed: 0.3.23
    Candidate: 0.3.23
    Version table:
   *** 0.3.23 0
          500 http://md.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ saucy/universe amd64 Packages
          100 /var/lib/dpkg/status

  3) $ sudo auto-apt update
  Should update the database

  4) Running the update command (hadn't verified updatedb) causes the
  system to freeze (seemingly).

  I monitored the process tree with htop, during this command, and
  noticed, that /usr/lib/auto-apt/auto-apt-pkgdcb takes 100% CPU
  (doesn't seem to affect how responsive is the system) and like 60% of
  RAM. And it's constantly growing. Till it takes 100% of RAM, and then
  100% SWAP. Then the process is automatically killed. But if you run
  the command from a graphical interface, you won't know it, because it
  seems like completely frozen.

  Workaround: use /usr/lib/auto-apt/auto-apt-pkgdcb from auto-apt 0.3.22.
  (works for me)

  Notes regarding ways to reproduce in Ubuntu 13.10:
  There is another bug, the sed line parsing sources.list has to trailing spaces (^[:[space]:][:[space]:]*deb), which cause update and updatedb to fail (no repository contents files are downloaded, so 0 entries are created).
  Fixing that will make it possible to reproduce the bug, otherwise update commands won't even work.

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