[Bug 2083657] Re: Remove oem-flavour.cfg for the OEM kernel retirement

[Andreas Hasenack]

> However the content in /etc/default/grub.d/oem-flavour.cfg for the later OEM images from right now or OEM 
> metapackages in OEM archives for jammy should only contain 'GRUB_FLAVOUR_ORDER=generic'.

I actually confirmed this, by installing oem-somerville-lapras-
meta=22.04~ubuntu1 on jammy (that package comes from jammy-updates, and
is not available in any other pocket, not even release). That did not
create the symlink in /etc/default/grub.d yet.

And 22.04ubuntu9 is available in the dell repository:

$ apt-cache policy oem-somerville-lapras-meta                                                                                                    
oem-somerville-lapras-meta:                                                                                                                                    
  Installed: 22.04~ubuntu1                                                                                                                                     
  Candidate: 22.04ubuntu9                                                                                                                                      
  Version table:                                                                                                                                               
     22.04ubuntu9 500                                                                                                                                          
        500 http://dell.archive.canonical.com jammy/somerville-lapras amd64 Packages                                                                           
 *** 22.04~ubuntu1 500                                                                                                                                         
        500 http://br.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu jammy-updates/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status


Updating to 22.04ubuntu9 gives me:
$ cat /etc/default/grub.d/oem-flavour.cfg 
# This file is automatically generated by oem-somerville-lapras-meta, and changes will be overriden
GRUB_FLAVOUR_ORDER=generic

looks good then.

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/2083657

Title:
  Remove oem-flavour.cfg for the OEM kernel retirement

Status in OEM Priority Project:
  In Progress
Status in ubuntu-drivers-common package in Ubuntu:
  Won't Fix
Status in ubuntu-drivers-common source package in Jammy:
  Fix Committed

Bug description:
  [ Impact ]

   * This issue affects all Ubuntu OEM preloaded systems that are still utilizing the OEM kernel, particularly those equipped with NVIDIA graphics drivers.
   * Systems may fail to boot properly due to an outdated OEM kernel conflicting with newer NVIDIA drivers, leading to a black screen on reboot.

  [ Test Plan ]

  * To verify the fix, ensure that the file `/etc/default/grub.d/oem-flavour.cfg` is successfully removed from the affected system after applying the update.
  * After the system reboots, check that it boots into the general HWE kernel rather than the OEM kernel.

  * Idempotency Testing:
    - Perform the upgrade multiple times on the same system to verify that the upgrade process is idempotent, ensuring that repeated upgrades do not result in unexpected behavior or changes.

  * Non-OEM System Testing:
    - Test the upgrade on a system without OEM kernels to ensure that the upgrade does not affect systems that are not preloaded with the OEM kernel.
    - Confirm that the system continues to function normally and boots into the correct kernel after the update.

  [ Where problems could occur ]

   * Removing `/etc/default/grub.d/oem-flavour.cfg` may cause systems relying on the OEM kernel for specific hardware compatibility to lose access to certain OEM-specific optimizations.
   * There is a low risk that after removing the OEM kernel, some hardware features may not function as expected if the general HWE kernel does not fully support them.

  [ Other Info ]

   * This patch is targeted only for Ubuntu 22.04 and its associated OEM kernels.
   * The issue is specific to systems using NVIDIA drivers in conjunction with an outdated OEM kernel, which conflicts with updates to the HWE kernel and NVIDIA packages.

  1) The release of Ubuntu you are using, via 'lsb_release -rd' or System -> About $ lsb_release -rd
  Description:	Ubuntu 22.04.4 LTS
  Release:	22.04
  $ ubuntu-report show | grep DCD
      "DCD": "canonical-oem-sutton-jammy-amd64-20240606-874"

  2) The version of the package you are using, via 'apt-cache policy pkgname' or by checking in Software Center
  $ apt-cache policy ubuntu-drivers-common
  ubuntu-drivers-common:
    Installed: 1:0.9.6.2~0.22.04.6
    Candidate: 1:0.9.6.2~0.22.04.7
    Version table:
       1:0.9.6.2~0.22.04.7 500
          500 http://tw.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu jammy-updates/main amd64 Packages
   *** 1:0.9.6.2~0.22.04.6 100
          100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
       1:0.9.6.1 500
          500 http://tw.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu jammy/main amd64 Packages

  3) What you expected to happen

   * The system should seamlessly upgrade NVIDIA drivers and the HWE
  kernel without breaking the boot process. The system should boot into
  the latest supported HWE kernel without encountering compatibility
  issues with the NVIDIA drivers.

  4) What happened instead

   * After unattended-upgrades, the system rebooted into the OEM kernel,
  which is outdated and incompatible with the new NVIDIA drivers. As a
  result, the screen remained black upon reboot.

  We need to remove /etc/default/grub.d/oem-flavour.cfg to avoid the
  system booting from deprecated OEM kernels.

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