reinstalling bcmwl-kernel-source

Run:

sudo dpkg --configure -a'

What is the output?

Thanks

> To: <email address hidden>
> From: <email address hidden>
> Subject: Re: [Question #250857]: reinstalling bcmwl-kernel-source
> Date: Fri, 27 Jun 2014 14:11:53 +0000
>
> Your question #250857 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/250857
>
> Status: Open => Needs information
>
> actionparsnip requested more information:
> Run:
>
> sudo dpkg --configure -a'
>
> What is the output?
>
> Thanks
>
> --
> To answer this request for more information, you can either reply to
> this email or enter your reply at the following page:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/250857
>
> You received this question notification because you asked the question.

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo dpkg --configure -a
[sudo] password for george:
Setting up bcmwl-kernel-source (6.30.223.141+bdcom-0ubuntu2) ...
Removing old bcmwl-6.30.223.141+bdcom DKMS files...

-------- Uninstall Beginning --------
Module: bcmwl
Version: 6.30.223.141+bdcom
Kernel: 3.13.0-30-generic (i686)
-------------------------------------

Status: Before uninstall, this module version was ACTIVE on this kernel.

wl.ko:
 - Uninstallation
   - Deleting from: /lib/modules/3.13.0-30-generic/updates/dkms/
 - Original module
   - No original module was found for this module on this kernel.
   - Use the dkms install command to reinstall any previous module version.

depmod.........

DKMS: uninstall completed.

------------------------------
Deleting module version: 6.30.223.141+bdcom
completely from the DKMS tree.
------------------------------
Done.
Loading new bcmwl-6.30.223.141+bdcom DKMS files...
Building only for 3.13.0-30-generic
Building for architecture i686
Building initial module for 3.13.0-30-generic
Done.

wl:
Running module version sanity check.
 - Original module
   - No original module exists within this kernel
 - Installation
   - Installing to /lib/modules/3.13.0-30-generic/updates/dkms/

depmod....

DKMS: install completed.

At this point the curser does not revert to normal "george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$" but you can type but the words only appear but no action takes place.
Thanks for your interest.

After closing the terminal and forcing the above program to quit, on a fresh terminal I get:-

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo ls /lib/modules/3.13.0-29-generic/updates
dkms
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo ls /lib/modules/3.13.0-30-generic/updates
dkms
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo apt-get --reinstall install bcmwl-kernel-source
E: Could not get lock /var/lib/dpkg/lock - open (11: Resource temporarily unavailable)
E: Unable to lock the administration directory (/var/lib/dpkg/), is another process using it?
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$

Just to shed some light on your problem:

You are seeing one original problem (with installing the update of bcmwl-kernel-source ) and a subsequent error (with dpkg).

For whatever reason one of the steps during installation of the updated bcmwl-kernel-source package fails (or stalls), leaving behind some sleeping processes of the dpkg package management system (keeping a lock on "/var/lib/dpkg/lock).

When you at that moment try to do any other package management action, this fails with the message that some other processing is holding a lock to prevent concurrent update in the package management.

I do not know what the problem with installing bcmwl-kernel-source really is, but it is required to get it solved, or you will always run against the "lock" problem.

Just a first idea: can you reboot, retry the "sudo dpkg --configure -a" command and let it run for ten minutes, and then check what processes are there still running as child processes of that command?

Thanks.
How do I check what processes are still running as a child process?
George

> To: <email address hidden>
> From: <email address hidden>
> Subject: Re: [Question #250857]: reinstalling bcmwl-kernel-source
> Date: Mon, 30 Jun 2014 07:02:31 +0000
>
> Your question #250857 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/250857
>
> Status: Open => Needs information
>
> Manfred Hampl requested more information:
> Just to shed some light on your problem:
>
> You are seeing one original problem (with installing the update of
> bcmwl-kernel-source ) and a subsequent error (with dpkg).
>
> For whatever reason one of the steps during installation of the updated
> bcmwl-kernel-source package fails (or stalls), leaving behind some
> sleeping processes of the dpkg package management system (keeping a lock
> on "/var/lib/dpkg/lock).
>
> When you at that moment try to do any other package management action,
> this fails with the message that some other processing is holding a lock
> to prevent concurrent update in the package management.
>
> I do not know what the problem with installing bcmwl-kernel-source
> really is, but it is required to get it solved, or you will always run
> against the "lock" problem.
>
> Just a first idea: can you reboot, retry the "sudo dpkg --configure -a"
> command and let it run for ten minutes, and then check what processes
> are there still running as child processes of that command?
>
> --
> To answer this request for more information, you can either reply to
> this email or enter your reply at the following page:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/250857
>
> You received this question notification because you asked the question.

I think I'm going mad!!!
Every time i try:-
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo dpkg -configure -a
[sudo] password for george:
dpkg: error: unknown option -o

Type dpkg --help for help about installing and uninstalling packages [*];
Use 'apt' or 'aptitude' for user-friendly package management;
Type dpkg -Dhelp for a list of dpkg debug flag values;
Type dpkg --force-help for a list of forcing options;
Type dpkg-deb --help for help about manipulating *.deb files;

Options marked [*] produce a lot of output - pipe it through 'less' or 'more' !
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$

Where does the option "o" come from?

Sorry "-configure" instead of "--configure"
George

For a process tree try

ps -ejH
or
ps ajf

The "ps -ejH output" isfaitly large, however ,here is the result of the other one.

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo ps ajf
[sudo] password for george:
 PPID PID PGID SID TTY TPGID STAT UID TIME COMMAND
 3197 3207 3207 3207 pts/0 3254 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 3207 3254 3254 3207 pts/0 3254 S+ 0 0:00 \_ sudo ps ajf
 3254 3256 3254 3207 pts/0 3254 R+ 0 0:00 \_ ps ajf
  981 1137 1137 1137 tty7 1137 Ssl+ 0 0:10 /usr/bin/X -core :0 -se
    1 1118 1118 1118 tty1 1118 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tt
    1 870 870 870 tty6 870 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tt
    1 867 867 867 tty3 867 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tt
    1 866 866 866 tty2 866 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tt
    1 860 860 860 tty5 860 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tt
    1 856 856 856 tty4 856 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tt
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$

It would help if I knew what to look for.
Thanks

if you start the update process from a terminal, you could use
ps -ejH | grep pts
but I think "ps ajf" is also fine

I recommend you reboot the system and open two terminals.

in one do the
sudo dpkg --configure -a
command, and in the other monitor it with repeated execution of
ps ajf

I expect that you see something like
bash
\_ sudo
\___dpkg
and some more.
If there is no change any more over an extended period (and no change visible in the other window), copy/paste the output.

BEFORE "
SUDO DPKG"

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ ps ajf
 PPID PID PGID SID TTY TPGID STAT UID TIME COMMAND
 2084 2363 2363 2363 pts/11 2411 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 2363 2411 2411 2363 pts/11 2411 R+ 1000 0:00 \_ ps ajf
 2084 2093 2093 2093 pts/0 2093 Ss+ 1000 0:00 bash
 1001 1145 1145 1145 tty7 1145 Ssl+ 0 0:08 /usr/bin/X -core :0 -seat seat0 -auth /var/run/lightdm/root/:0 -nolisten tcp vt7 -n
    1 1132 1132 1132 tty1 1132 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1
    1 936 936 936 tty6 936 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty6
    1 933 933 933 tty3 933 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty3
    1 932 932 932 tty2 932 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty2
    1 926 926 926 tty5 926 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty5
    1 922 922 922 tty4 922 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty4

"AFTER "SUDO DPKG "ON OTHER TERMINAL"

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ ps ajf
 PPID PID PGID SID TTY TPGID STAT UID TIME COMMAND
 2084 2363 2363 2363 pts/11 2417 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 2363 2417 2417 2363 pts/11 2417 R+ 1000 0:00 \_ ps ajf
 2084 2093 2093 2093 pts/0 2414 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 2093 2414 2414 2093 pts/0 2414 S+ 0 0:00 \_ sudo dpkg --configure
 1001 1145 1145 1145 tty7 1145 Ssl+ 0 0:10 /usr/bin/X -core :0 -seat seat0 -auth /var/run/lightdm/root/:0 -nolisten tcp vt7 -n
    1 1132 1132 1132 tty1 1132 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1
    1 936 936 936 tty6 936 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty6
    1 933 933 933 tty3 933 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty3
    1 932 932 932 tty2 932 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty2
    1 926 926 926 tty5 926 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty5
    1 922 922 922 tty4 922 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty4
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ ps ajf
 PPID PID PGID SID TTY TPGID STAT UID TIME COMMAND
 2084 2363 2363 2363 pts/11 3348 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 2363 3348 3348 2363 pts/11 3348 R+ 1000 0:00 \_ ps ajf
 2084 2093 2093 2093 pts/0 2420 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 2093 2420 2420 2093 pts/0 2420 S+ 0 0:00 \_ sudo dpkg --configure -a
 2420 2421 2420 2093 pts/0 2420 S+ 0 0:00 \_ dpkg --configure -a
 2421 2422 2420 2093 pts/0 2420 S+ 0 0:00 \_ /bin/sh /var/lib/dpkg/info/bcmwl-kernel-source.postinst configure 6.30.
 2422 3346 2420 2093 pts/0 2420 S+ 0 0:00 \_ modprobe wl
 1001 1145 1145 1145 tty7 1145 Rsl+ 0 0:11 /usr/bin/X -core :0 -seat seat0 -auth /var/run/lightdm/root/:0 -nolisten tcp vt7 -n
    1 1132 1132 1132 tty1 1132 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1
    1 936 936 936 tty6 936 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty6
    1 933 933 933 tty3 933 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty3
    1 932 932 932 tty2 932 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty2
    1 926 926 926 tty5 926 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty5
    1 922 922 922 tty4 922 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty4

"AFTER 30 MIN"

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ ps ajf
 PPID PID PGID SID TTY TPGID STAT UID TIME COMMAND
 2084 2363 2363 2363 pts/11 3409 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 2363 3409 3409 2363 pts/11 3409 R+ 1000 0:00 \_ ps ajf
 2084 2093 2093 2093 pts/0 2420 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 2093 2420 2420 2093 pts/0 2420 S+ 0 0:00 \_ sudo dpkg --configure -a
 2420 2421 2420 2093 pts/0 2420 S+ 0 0:00 \_ dpkg --configure -a
 2421 2422 2420 2093 pts/0 2420 S+ 0 0:00 \_ /bin/sh /var/lib/dpkg/info/bcmwl-kernel-source.postinst configure 6.30.
 2422 3346 2420 2093 pts/0 2420 S+ 0 0:00 \_ modprobe wl
 1001 1145 1145 1145 tty7 1145 Ssl+ 0 0:14 /usr/bin/X -core :0 -seat seat0 -auth /var/run/lightdm/root/:0 -nolisten tcp vt7 -n
    1 1132 1132 1132 tty1 1132 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1
    1 936 936 936 tty6 936 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty6
    1 933 933 933 tty3 933 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty3
    1 932 932 932 tty2 932 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty2
    1 926 926 926 tty5 926 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty5
    1 922 922 922 tty4 922 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty4

¬After :-"tHERE IS STILL A PROCESS RUNNING IN THIS TERMINAL.CLOSING THE TERMINAL WILL KILL IT."

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ ps ajf
 PPID PID PGID SID TTY TPGID STAT UID TIME COMMAND
 2084 2363 2363 2363 pts/11 3448 Ss 1000 0:00 bash
 2363 3448 3448 2363 pts/11 3448 R+ 1000 0:00 \_ ps ajf
 1001 1145 1145 1145 tty7 1145 Ssl+ 0 0:15 /usr/bin/X -core :0 -seat seat0 -auth /var/run/lightdm/root/:0 -nolisten tcp vt7 -n
    1 1132 1132 1132 tty1 1132 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1
    1 936 936 936 tty6 936 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty6
    1 933 933 933 tty3 933 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty3
    1 932 932 932 tty2 932 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty2
    1 926 926 926 tty5 926 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty5
    1 922 922 922 tty4 922 Ss+ 0 0:00 /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty4
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$

Thanks

Ok, perfectly done.

I conclude that during the configuration of bcmwl-kernel-source the postinst step "modprobe wl" does not finish, but apparently waits forever.

If you try

sudo modprobe wl

in a terminal, does that end successfully, or do you see the same problem?

For checking whether you need that driver at all, what is the output of
sudo lshw -C network

Without the driver I used to get the ethonet and a wireless usb adapter to give me the internet. The usb adapter would not connect to my printer and I use it on my desktop so that it is inconvenient to use it.
With the present trouble the above still work but I con nolonger get UPDATES.

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo lshw -C network
[sudo] password for george:
  *-network
       description: Network controller
       product: BCM4311 802.11b/g WLAN
       vendor: Broadcom Corporation
       physical id: 0
       bus info: pci@0000:0b:00.0
       version: 01
       width: 32 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: pm msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list
       configuration: driver=wl latency=0
       resources: irq:17 memory:fe8fc000-fe8fffff
  *-network
       description: Ethernet interface
       product: NetXtreme BCM5755M Gigabit Ethernet PCI Express
       vendor: Broadcom Corporation
       physical id: 0
       bus info: pci@0000:09:00.0
       logical name: eth2
       version: 02
       serial: 00:19:b9:83:27:d8
       size: 100Mbit/s
       capacity: 1Gbit/s
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: pm vpd msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list ethernet physical tp 10bt 10bt-fd 100bt 100bt-fd 1000bt 1000bt-fd autonegotiation
       configuration: autonegotiation=on broadcast=yes driver=tg3 driverversion=3.134 duplex=full firmware=5755m-v3.29 ip=192.168.1.85 latency=0 link=yes multicast=yes port=twisted pair speed=100Mbit/s
       resources: irq:43 memory:fe7f0000-fe7fffff
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$

I ran "sudo apt-get update" which ran and requested :-
E: dpkg was interrupted, you must manually run 'sudo dpkg --configure -a' to correct the problem.
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo dpkg --configure -a

Which ran untill:-

depmod....

DKMS: install completed.

At which point it hung up. I opened a second Terminal and did "sudo modprobe wl" which also hung up.
Both Terminals gave a warning that a process was still running when I closed them.

Thanks sofar Manfred,
George

Ok. It seems that is the issue:

Executing "sudo modprobe wl" does not end, neither successfully not with an error message. This command is also executed during installation of bcmwl-kernel-source, which leads to the problem that installing/upgrading of packages is also blocked.

I have no clue what the root cause is.

Some ideas on how to proceed:
As far as I know there are different drivers available for the BCM4311 WLAN device (a proprietary and an open source one). Maybe you can deinstall the bcmwl-kernel-source package and use the b43 package instead.
see also https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WifiDocs/Driver/bcm43xx

I have run the remove the bcmwl=-kernel-source from Softwear Centre but it has also hung up.
My best solution will be to reinstall ubuntu 14.04 and loose all my settings. How do I go about this either with Ethonet or the ubuntu 14.04 Disc?

I don't like giving up but it's better than going back to my ZX80
 Thanks for all your trouble George

Try the command

sudo dpkg --purge bcmwl-kernel-source

to get rid of the package that makes problems.

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo dpkg --purge bcmwl-kernel-source
dpkg: error: dpkg status database is locked by another process
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$

No luck !!!
George

Make sure that there is no other package management process running any more (eventually by rebooting the system) and retry.

I got the following before it hung up.

george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$ sudo dpkg --purge bcmwl-kernel-source
[sudo] password for george:
(Reading database ... 242381 files and directories currently installed.)
Removing bcmwl-kernel-source (6.30.223.141+bdcom-0ubuntu2) ...
Removing all DKMS Modules
Done.
update-initramfs: deferring update (trigger activated)
Purging configuration files for bcmwl-kernel-source (6.30.223.141+bdcom-0ubuntu2) ...
update-initramfs: deferring update (trigger activated)
Processing triggers for initramfs-tools (0.103ubuntu4.2) ...
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-3.13.0-30-generic
george@george-EasyNote-SL51:~$

Thanks Manfred
George

Sorry it can't be hung up. It must be me

The Updater now works. I expect all is OK. I shall try the b43 package.

Many thanks for your patience, Manfred, It's hard when your a 84 year old one fo
ingered typest.

George