[SOLVED] signal

jameswilson0609 · 05-29-2019, 11:42 AM

I'm a Linux newbie. A few days back I tried to download Signal through the terminal according to the steps mentioned on the site. I wasn't able to download it and it showed an error. The problem is whenever I try to download any software, it shows the same error it showed while I was trying to download Signal:
"E: Type 'sudo' is not known on line 2 in source list /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list
E: The list of sources could not be read."
Even after rebooting my laptop, the problem persists. Other functions like shutting down work. What is the course of action I should take?

hydrurga · 05-29-2019, 11:48 AM

You have an error in your software sources.

Can you please paste the output from the following command (preferably within CODE tags - see https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...og.php?b=36313) so that we can have a look at your software sources.

Code:

inxi -r

If you don't have inxi installed and are unable to install it, please instead paste the output from:

Code:

for i in /etc/apt/sources.list{,.d/*}; do echo file: $i; cat $i; echo ====; done

Please also inform us of your distro (and version).

tyler2016 · 05-29-2019, 11:49 AM

Can you post the contents of your singal-xenial.list in code tags?

hydrurga · 05-29-2019, 11:52 AM

OP, why have you marked this as "Solved"? What solution did you find?

jameswilson0609 · 05-29-2019, 09:47 PM

Code:

Repos:     Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list
           deb cdrom:[Xubuntu 18.04.2 LTS _Bionic Beaver_ - Release i386 (20190210)]/ bionic main multiverse restricted universe
           deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic main restricted universe multiverse
           deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic-security main restricted universe multiverse
           deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic-updates main restricted universe multiverse
           Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list
           deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main
           sudo apt update && sudo apt install signal-desktop
           deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main
           deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main
           Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/teejee2008-ubuntu-ppa-bionic.list
           deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/teejee2008/ppa/ubuntu bionic main
           Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/windscribe-repo.list
           deb https://repo.windscribe.com/ubuntu zesty main

frankbell · 05-29-2019, 09:53 PM

You apparently are running Ubuntu Xenial, but one of your repos is for Ubuntu Zesty. As pointed out in this post (which is a proposed "sticky"), that can be an issue.

evo2 · 05-29-2019, 10:17 PM

Hi,

Quote:

Originally Posted by jameswilson0609

Code:

Repos:     Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list
           deb cdrom:[Xubuntu 18.04.2 LTS _Bionic Beaver_ - Release i386 (20190210)]/ bionic main multiverse restricted universe
           deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic main restricted universe multiverse
           deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic-security main restricted universe multiverse
           deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic-updates main restricted universe multiverse
           Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list
           deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main
           sudo apt update && sudo apt install signal-desktop
           deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main
           deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main
           Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/teejee2008-ubuntu-ppa-bionic.list
           deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/teejee2008/ppa/ubuntu bionic main
           Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/windscribe-repo.list
           deb https://repo.windscribe.com/ubuntu zesty main

In addition to perhaps having the wrong release (xenial vs zesty) in your .list files, you also have "sudo apt update && sudo apt install signal-desktop" in /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list
Presumably that file should only contain:

Code:

deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main

Remove that line from the file. Then in a terminal run those commands. Ie

Code:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install signal-desktop

Evo2.

ondoho · 05-30-2019, 12:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jameswilson0609

Code:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install signal-desktop

this is a command, not a software source.
please remove it from wherever you added it, then run that very command from your command line a.k.a 'terminal'.

hydrurga · 05-30-2019, 05:29 AM

Thanks for posting that, James.

You have several problems with your software sources. You are probably not, as one poster above says, running Ubuntu Xenial (16.04). You appear to be running Ubuntu Bionic (18.04).

It is not good for your system to have "mixed" repositories from different versions of a distro. Yours has repositories from Bionic, Xenial and Zesty.

Please enter the following commands to rectify the situation.

First, open the main software sources file in a text editor (replace gedit with your favourite text editor if relevant).

Code:

sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

Then place a # symbol at the start of the deb cdrom line (which effectively comments it out) and save the file.

Then enter the commands:

Code:

sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list

sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/windscribe-repo.list

sudo apt update

and report back.

For background info, see my blog post on managing your software sources: https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...nd-mint-38002/

hydrurga · 05-30-2019, 05:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frankbell

You apparently are running Ubuntu Xenial, but one of your repos is for Ubuntu Zesty. As pointed out in this post (which is a proposed "sticky"), that can be an issue.

Quote:

Originally Posted by evo2

Hi,

In addition to perhaps having the wrong release (xenial vs zesty) in your .list files, you also have "sudo apt update && sudo apt install signal-desktop" in /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list
Presumably that file should only contain:

Code:

deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main

Remove that line from the file. Then in a terminal run those commands. Ie

Code:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install signal-desktop

Evo2.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ondoho

this is a command, not a software source.
please remove it from wherever you added it, then run that very command from your command line a.k.a 'terminal'.

The OP is running Bionic according to /etc/apt/sources.list. It is not a good idea in general to ask a poster with problems like these to run apt update unless all the software sources have been looked at and sorted out in case there are additional errors, which there are in this case.

My general approach to problems like these is to comment out or delete the "clashing" software sources, get apt update working correctly on the "non-clashing" software sources that remain and, only once that is working ok, look at finding correct replacements for the software sources for those that were deleted or commented out.

The way the world works, saying all that probably means that I'm now going to muck up my response to this particular poster's issue

but the general principle remains - look at the whole situation, cut out the bad stuff, get back to a nub that works correctly, and then build it up again properly.

evo2 · 05-30-2019, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hydrurga

The OP is running Bionic according to /etc/apt/sources.list. It is not a good idea in general to ask a poster with problems like these to run apt update unless all the software sources have been looked at and sorted out in case there are additional errors, which there are in this case.

Yes, *in general*, but in this case the two non-bionic repos are single app repos providing packages that do not exist in Bionic. They will not break the OPs system.

Evo2.

jameswilson0609 · 06-01-2019, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hydrurga

Thanks for posting that, James.

You have several problems with your software sources. You are probably not, as one poster above says, running Ubuntu Xenial (16.04). You appear to be running Ubuntu Bionic (18.04).

It is not good for your system to have "mixed" repositories from different versions of a distro. Yours has repositories from Bionic, Xenial and Zesty.

Please enter the following commands to rectify the situation.

First, open the main software sources file in a text editor (replace gedit with your favourite text editor if relevant).

Code:

sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

Then place a # symbol at the start of the deb cdrom line (which effectively comments it out) and save the file.

Then enter the commands:

Code:

sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list

sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/windscribe-repo.list

sudo apt update

and report back.

For background info, see my blog post on managing your software sources: https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...nd-mint-38002/

After doing this, I am receiving this error message:

Code:

E: Malformed line 1 in source list /etc/apt/sources.list (type)
E: The list of sources could not be read.

hydrurga · 06-01-2019, 08:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jameswilson0609

After doing this, I am receiving this error message:

Code:

E: Malformed line 1 in source list /etc/apt/sources.list (type)
E: The list of sources could not be read.

Ok. Please paste the output again from:

Code:

inxi -r

jameswilson0609 · 06-01-2019, 09:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hydrurga

Ok. Please paste the output again from:

Code:

inxi -r

Code:

Repos:     Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list
           a# deb cdrom:[Xubuntu 18.04.2 LTS _Bionic Beaver_ - Release i386 (20190210)]/ bionic main multiverse restricted universe
           deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic main restricted universe multiverse
           deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic-security main restricted universe multiverse
           deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic-updates main restricted universe multiverse
           Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/teejee2008-ubuntu-ppa-bionic.list
           deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/teejee2008/ppa/ubuntu bionic main

hydrurga · 06-01-2019, 10:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jameswilson0609

Code:

Repos:     Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list
           a# deb cdrom:[Xubuntu 18.04.2 LTS _Bionic Beaver_ - Release i386 (20190210)]/ bionic main multiverse restricted universe
           deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic main restricted universe multiverse
           deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic-security main restricted universe multiverse
           deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic-updates main restricted universe multiverse
           Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/teejee2008-ubuntu-ppa-bionic.list
           deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/teejee2008/ppa/ubuntu bionic main

Ah, when I said "insert a # symbol", I didn't mean to insert "a#", I just meant "#". You need to edit the file as you did before and take out the "a" before the "#". Then run sudo apt update again.