Bug#565613: exim4: syntax error: unknown group 'Debian-exim' in statoverride file

Sun Jan 17 12:21:18 UTC 2010

Package: exim4
Severity: critical
Justification: breaks unrelated software

Reason for marking critical: Until /var/lib/dpkg/statoverride is fixed manually (even dpkg-statoverride --remove doesn't work anymore) all package management operations fail.

Replacing exim4 with nullmailer causes aptitude/dpkg to break:

dpkg: unrecoverable fatal error, aborting:
 syntax error: unknown group 'Debian-exim' in statoverride file
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (2)

=== Begin full transcript ===
(sugar-deb)sascha.silbe at flatty:~$ sudo aptitude purge exim4 exim4-base exim4-config exim4-daemon-light
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information       
Initializing package states... Done
Reading task descriptions... Done  
The following packages are BROKEN:
  bsd-mailx 
The following packages will be REMOVED:
  exim4{p} exim4-base{p} exim4-config{p} exim4-daemon-light{p} 
0 packages upgraded, 0 newly installed, 4 to remove and 45 not upgraded.
Need to get 0B of archives. After unpacking 3924kB will be freed.
The following packages have unmet dependencies:
  bsd-mailx: Depends: exim4 but it is not installable or
                      mail-transport-agent which is a virtual package.
The following actions will resolve these dependencies:

Install the following packages:
xmail [1.25-4.1 (testing, unstable)]

Score is 39

Accept this solution? [Y/n/q/?] n
The following actions will resolve these dependencies:

Install the following packages:
ssmtp [2.64-1 (testing, unstable)]

Score is 39

Accept this solution? [Y/n/q/?] n
The following actions will resolve these dependencies:

Install the following packages:
nullmailer [1:1.04-1.2 (testing, unstable)]

Score is 39

Accept this solution? [Y/n/q/?] y
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  nullmailer{a} 
The following packages will be REMOVED:
  exim4{p} exim4-base{p} exim4-config{p} exim4-daemon-light{p} 
0 packages upgraded, 1 newly installed, 4 to remove and 45 not upgraded.
Need to get 88.3kB of archives. After unpacking 3527kB will be freed.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n/?] 
Writing extended state information... Done
Get:1 http://ftp.de.debian.org squeeze/main nullmailer 1:1.04-1.2 [88.3kB]
Fetched 88.3kB in 0s (460kB/s)
Preconfiguring packages ...
(Reading database ... 64356 files and directories currently installed.)
Removing exim4 ...
Purging configuration files for exim4 ...
dpkg: exim4-config: dependency problems, but removing anyway as you requested:
 exim4-base depends on exim4-config (>= 4.30) | exim4-config-2; however:
  Package exim4-config is to be removed.
  Package exim4-config-2 is not installed.
  Package exim4-config which provides exim4-config-2 is to be removed.
 exim4-base depends on exim4-config (>= 4.30) | exim4-config-2; however:
  Package exim4-config is to be removed.
  Package exim4-config-2 is not installed.
  Package exim4-config which provides exim4-config-2 is to be removed.
Removing exim4-config ...
Purging configuration files for exim4-config ...
dpkg-statoverrides: unrecoverable fatal error, aborting:
 syntax error: unknown group 'Debian-exim' in statoverride file
dpkg-statoverrides: unrecoverable fatal error, aborting:
 syntax error: unknown group 'Debian-exim' in statoverride file
dpkg: exim4-daemon-light: dependency problems, but removing anyway as you requested:
 bsd-mailx depends on exim4 | mail-transport-agent; however:
  Package exim4 is not installed.
  Package mail-transport-agent is not installed.
  Package exim4-daemon-light which provides mail-transport-agent is to be removed.
Removing exim4-daemon-light ...
************************************
All rc.d operations denied by policy
************************************
Purging configuration files for exim4-daemon-light ...
Removing exim4-base ...
************************************
All rc.d operations denied by policy
************************************
Purging configuration files for exim4-base ...
Processing triggers for man-db ...
dpkg: unrecoverable fatal error, aborting:
 syntax error: unknown group 'Debian-exim' in statoverride file
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (2)
A package failed to install.  Trying to recover:
Reading package lists... Done             
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information       
Initializing package states... Done
Writing extended state information... Done
Reading task descriptions... Done         

Current status: 1 broken [+1], 45 updates [-4].
(sugar-deb)sascha.silbe at flatty:~$ grep exim /var/lib/dpkg/statoverride
root Debian-exim 0640 /etc/exim4/passwd.client
(sugar-deb)sascha.silbe at flatty:~$ sudo aptitude install nullmailer
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information       
Initializing package states... Done
Reading task descriptions... Done  
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  nullmailer 
The following packages will be REMOVED:
  libdb4.6{u} 
0 packages upgraded, 1 newly installed, 1 to remove and 45 not upgraded.
Need to get 0B/88.3kB of archives. After unpacking 799kB will be freed.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n/?] 
Writing extended state information... Done
Preconfiguring packages ...
(Reading database ... 64155 files and directories currently installed.)
Removing libdb4.6 ...
dpkg: unrecoverable fatal error, aborting:
 syntax error: unknown group 'Debian-exim' in statoverride file
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (2)
A package failed to install.  Trying to recover:
Reading package lists... Done             
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information       
Initializing package states... Done
Writing extended state information... Done
Reading task descriptions... Done         

(sugar-deb)sascha.silbe at flatty:~$ sudo dpkg-statoverride --remove /etc/exim4/passwd.client
dpkg-statoverrides: unrecoverable fatal error, aborting:
 syntax error: unknown group 'Debian-exim' in statoverride file
(sugar-deb)sascha.silbe at flatty:~$ sudo vi /var/lib/dpkg/statoverride
(sugar-deb)sascha.silbe at flatty:~$ sudo aptitude install nullmailer
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information       
Initializing package states... Done
Reading task descriptions... Done  
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  nullmailer 
0 packages upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 45 not upgraded.
Need to get 0B/88.3kB of archives. After unpacking 397kB will be used.
Writing extended state information... Done
Preconfiguring packages ...
Selecting previously deselected package nullmailer.
(Reading database ... 64151 files and directories currently installed.)
Unpacking nullmailer (from .../nullmailer_1%3a1.04-1.2_armel.deb) ...
Processing triggers for man-db ...
Setting up nullmailer (1:1.04-1.2) ...
************************************
All rc.d operations denied by policy
************************************
Reading package lists... Done             
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information       
Initializing package states... Done
Writing extended state information... Done
Reading task descriptions... Done         

Current status: 0 broken [-1].
(sugar-deb)sascha.silbe at flatty:~$
=== End full transcript ===

-- System Information:
Debian Release: squeeze/sid
  APT prefers testing
  APT policy: (500, 'testing')
Architecture: armel (armv5tel)

Kernel: Linux 2.6.32-rc4-flatty-ocf-1-00019-g8b6ae29
Locale: LANG=en_GB.UTF-8, LC_CTYPE=en_US.UTF-8 (charmap=UTF-8)
Shell: /bin/sh linked to /bin/dash