[SOLVED] Software Manager and Software Center Issues

[wmeler]

Synaptic seems to work fine for me.

However, both Mint's Software Manager and Ubuntu's Software Center attempt to start up but then just mysteriously stop. Running from a command line, mintinstall shows a 4 digit number usually (which I'm guessing may be a process number).

This has been happening for a while.

I tried to issue these commands (which seemed to occur), but there was really no effect.

PowerEdge-400SC /etc/apt/sources.list.d $ sudo apt-get clean
PowerEdge-400SC /etc/apt/sources.list.d $ cd /var/lib/apt
PowerEdge-400SC /var/lib/apt $ sudo mv lists lists.old
PowerEdge-400SC /var/lib/apt $ sudo mkdir -p lists/partial
PowerEdge-400SC /var/lib/apt $ sudo apt-get update
Get:1 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring Release.gpg [933 B]
Get:2 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates Release.gpg [933 B]
Get:3 http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia Release.gpg [197 B]
Get:4 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring Release [40.8 kB]
Get:5 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security Release.gpg [933 B]
Get:6 http://archive.canonical.com raring Release.gpg [933 B]
Get:7 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates Release [40.8 kB]
Get:8 http://archive.canonical.com raring Release [5,919 B]
Get:9 http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia Release [17.7 kB]
Get:10 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/main i386 Packages [1,168 kB]
Get:11 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security Release [40.8 kB]
Get:12 http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/main i386 Packages [23.5 kB]
Get:13 http://archive.canonical.com raring/partner i386 Packages [4,279 B]
Get:14 http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/upstream i386 Packages [9,237 B]
Get:15 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/main i386 Packages [118 kB]
Get:16 http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/import i386 Packages [39.9 kB]
Get:17 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/restricted i386 Packages [14 B]
Get:18 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/restricted i386 Packages [9,623 B]
Get:19 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/universe i386 Packages [38.3 kB]
Get:20 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/universe i386 Packages [5,405 kB]
Get:21 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/multiverse i386 Packages [3,864 B]
Ign http://archive.canonical.com raring/partner Translation-en_US
Get:22 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/main Translation-en [61.3 kB]
Ign http://archive.canonical.com raring/partner Translation-en
Get:23 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/multiverse Translation-en [1,826 B]
Get:24 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/restricted Translation-en [14 B]
Get:25 http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/universe Translation-en [23.4 kB]
Ign http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/import Translation-en_US
Ign http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/import Translation-en
Ign http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/main Translation-en_US
Ign http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/main Translation-en
Ign http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/upstream Translation-en_US
Ign http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia/upstream Translation-en
Ign http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/main Translation-en_US
Ign http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/multiverse Translation-en_US
Get:26 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/multiverse i386 Packages [131 kB]
Ign http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/restricted Translation-en_US
Ign http://security.ubuntu.com raring-security/universe Translation-en_US
Get:27 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/main Translation-en [673 kB]
Get:28 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/multiverse Translation-en [98.4 kB]
Get:29 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/restricted Translation-en [2,767 B]
Get:30 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/universe Translation-en [3,736 kB]
Get:31 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/main i386 Packages [185 kB]
Get:32 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/restricted i386 Packages [14 B]
Get:33 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/universe i386 Packages [149 kB]
Get:34 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/multiverse i386 Packages [3,864 B]
Get:35 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/main Translation-en [88.5 kB]
Get:36 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/multiverse Translation-en [1,826 B]
Get:37 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/restricted Translation-en [14 B]
Get:38 http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/universe Translation-en [76.9 kB]
Ign http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/main Translation-en_US
Ign http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/multiverse Translation-en_US
Ign http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/restricted Translation-en_US
Ign http://archive.ubuntu.com raring/universe Translation-en_US
Ign http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/main Translation-en_US
Ign http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/multiverse Translation-en_US
Ign http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/restricted Translation-en_US
Ign http://archive.ubuntu.com raring-updates/universe Translation-en_US
Fetched 12.2 MB in 19s (642 kB/s)
Reading package lists... Done
PowerEdge-400SC /var/lib/apt $ sudo mintinstall
Real-time signal 0
PowerEdge-400SC /var/lib/apt $ 3961

PowerEdge-400SC /var/lib/apt $
PowerEdge-400SC /var/lib/apt $ [YEAH, I JUST HIT ENTER TWICE... BECAUSE IT MYSTERIOUSLY DIED...ALSO, THAT "3961" ABOVE IS *OUTPUT* OF "mintinstall"]
WARNING:root:could not open file '/etc/apt/sources.list'

[YEAH,: command not found
PowerEdge-400SC /var/lib/apt $ HAHAHA

Ideas? Thanks in advance.

[karlchen]

Hello, wmeler.

Please, post the output of the commandline

Code: Select all

inxi -r

This will display which repositories are known to your system.
You might also like to execute this commandline and post the screen output:

Code: Select all

ls -al /etc/apt/sources.list

plus

Code: Select all

file /etc/apt/sources.list

This will show whether the file exists and if so which type it is. If it is a binary file then this is the cause of your trouble.

Kind regards,
Karl

[wmeler]

Thanks. Here you go...

PowerEdge-400SC ~ $ sudo inxi -r
Repos: Active apt sources in file: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/official-package-repositories.list
deb http://packages.linuxmint.com olivia main upstream import
deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu raring main restricted universe multiverse
deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu raring-updates main restricted universe multiverse
deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ raring-security main restricted universe multiverse
deb http://archive.canonical.com/ubuntu/ raring partner
PowerEdge-400SC ~ $ ls -al /etc/apt/sources.list
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 0 Oct 10 09:40 /etc/apt/sources.list
PowerEdge-400SC ~ $ file /etc/apt/sources.list
/etc/apt/sources.list: empty

Thanks in advance!

[karlchen]

Hello, wmeler.

Hm. /etc/apt/sources.list is merely an absolutely empty file.
What used to be in /etc/apt/sources.list has been relocated to the file /etc/apt/sources.list.d/official-package-repositories.list since Mint 15. - Or is it only Mint 15 KDE which does it? Not sure.

How about making /etc/apt/sources.list a non-empty text file, but without relevant content by feeding 2 comment lines to it?

Code: Select all

# What used to be in /etc/apt/sources.list is now in 
# /etc/apt/sources.list.d/official-package-repositories.list

You might edit the file /etc/apt/sources.list with root privileges and copy the 2 sample comment lines into it.

Then try

Code: Select all

sudo mintinstall

again, please.

Kind regards,
Karl

[karlchen]

<just for comparison>
I think on Mint 15 running

Code: Select all

sudo mintinstall

is correct. - On Mint 13 it only yields this error message:

Code: Select all

$ sudo  mintinstall
[sudo] password for karl: 
/usr/lib/linuxmint/mintInstall/mintinstall.py:254: SyntaxWarning: import * only allowed at module level
  def get_status_description(self, transaction):
/usr/lib/linuxmint/mintInstall/mintinstall.py:262: SyntaxWarning: import * only allowed at module level
  def get_role_description(self, transaction):
The software manager should not be run as root. Please run it in user mode. <===

The last line holds the relevant error message.
OK. Next try:

Code: Select all

$ mintinstall
/usr/lib/linuxmint/mintInstall/mintinstall.py:254: SyntaxWarning: import * only allowed at module level
  def get_status_description(self, transaction):
/usr/lib/linuxmint/mintInstall/mintinstall.py:262: SyntaxWarning: import * only allowed at module level
  def get_role_description(self, transaction):
add_categories took 26.011 ms
build_matched_packages took 0.215 ms
5590 <================================= this is the mintinstall splash.py here (splash screen)
add_packages took 4018.625 ms
add_reviews took 0.059 ms
__init__ took 4160.268 ms
_register_active_transactions_watch 
_register_active_transactions_watch :1.62
show_category took 98.304 ms
Overwriting reviews file in /home/karl/.linuxmint/mintinstall/reviews.list
update_reviews took 1716.835 ms

OK. Application window open and functional.
</just for comparison>[/size]

[wmeler]

That totally fixed it. Thanks a lot.