After dist-uprade, initramfs-tools chokes (Debian, buster amd64)

kaz2100 · 01-10-2019, 04:43 AM

Hya,

System Debian buster amd64, two systems are affected. Both on old hardware, use lilo as a loader.

Problem After dist-upgrade, iniramfs-tools chokes. Then dead lock.

Troubleshooting
On one system: uninstall lilo -> install grub2, then totally dead. On startup lilo goes (why??) and chokes. (need rescue disk to recover, I guess)

On the other system: reconfigure initramfs-tools with set -x on /var/lib/dpkg/initramfs-tools.postinst shows

Code:

.
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-4.19.12-rt6
Fatal: raid_setup: stat("/dev/disk/by-id/ata-FUJITSU_MJA2.......")
run-parts: /etc/initramfs/post-update.d//runlilo exited with return code 1
dpkg: error processing package initramfs-tools (--configure):
.

as seen above, some error with raid setup (There isn't any raid set up at all!)

I cannot find raid related bugs with initramfs-tools. I know there are many raid related bugs with lilo, but used to be immune.

Can anybody direct me next troubleshooting step? If better to replace lilo with grub2, how?

Any feedback will be appreciated.

cheers

Brains · 01-10-2019, 04:11 PM

I've never had success in the past with dist-upgrade and stopped those headaches by just doing a fresh install, since the amount downloaded is relatively the same.

It's easy enough to do a bit for bit backup of the original installation's partition with dd of dcfldd and just mount it within the new installation or just get what you want out of the old before installing the new.

There also appears to be a ACPI bug that came around with the 4.18.0.3 kernel in Debian testing and still exists in the 4.19.0.1 current testing kernel. Others are experiencing update-initramfs issues stemming from this ACPI issue, mostly in Debian derivative distributions but I have found complaints with OpenSuse also.

dave67 · 01-10-2019, 04:23 PM

well this is good to know for the future.

kaz2100 · 01-10-2019, 08:35 PM

Hya,

Umm, I guess I need to accept these encouraging posts.

What happens after clean install? Does new penguin run into same situation?

cheers

Brains · 01-11-2019, 01:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kaz2100

Hya,

Umm, I guess I need to accept these encouraging posts.

What happens after clean install? Does new penguin run into same situation?

cheers

I had ACPI issues with kernel 4.18.0.3, not initramfs related tho, just errors on screen at boot and it would hang there for 30 seconds or so before going on. So did a fresh install just before Christmas because it's been awhile, turned out the netinstall ISO I downloaded installed the 4.19.0.1 kernel, same errors but no hanging, booted much faster than the old installation with same configuration. Still the same today.

kaz2100 · 01-13-2019, 02:46 AM

Hya,

Dead penguin is reincarnated after clean install. So far, no ACPI issue. Kernel recompiled (localmodconfig) and update-initramfs goes. A minor (?) problem is that neither xfce4 nor lxde installs, as some files are 'forbidden' !?

With the other penguin, postinst file is tweaked so that it exits without action. So, dist-upgrade goes. All config files (lilo and initramfs-tools) are checked for raid, but none found.
Then uninstall lilo and install grub2. It looks like something went wrong. At boot, all I I got is grub prompt. no further boot process, but it is still better than the other penguin.

cheers

lilleskut · 01-14-2019, 06:40 PM

I ran into the same problem. Isn't there a simpler fix than reinstalling everything?

kaz2100 · 01-29-2019, 09:27 PM

Hya,

I regret to say, but reinstalling may be simpler than any other attempt to resuscitate.

Steps to get out of situation (#6)
(lilo boots into bzImage), -> rename to vmlinuz
grub can boot into linux.
Need to straighten out halfway upgraded system. (I ran into libc.so version incompatible problem.)
Trying to solve version incompatibility, downgrade several packages. (ran into duplicate file trigger problem)
Need to tweak /var/lib/dpkg/triggers/File

Then I gave up. Disk back up and installed new one. (need to take HD out, mount it on healthy penguin..) Dead Penguin is reincarnated.