#21 2020-02-01 02:07:53

AndrewSmart

Member

Registered: 2019-06-10

Posts: 66

Re: [classic]E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

A point is in order here...
We recommend Debian practices because we are an Official Debian Derivative, and Debian says Don't Make A FrankenDebian. Manually create your own backport of the package, but don't just add a repo from Ubuntu. This tutorial needs updating, but it still works...

It would help if he'd say what guide he was following to understand what he was trying to do.

Your next arguments are just plain old bad conjecture (I suspect? You suspect erroneously), and, by Debian standards, dangerous Linux maintenance recommendations...

Regarding testing/unstable (a release different from the system's), the trick is to press (N) when a package wants to update libc6. Many things in those repos do not require testing/unstable's libc6, so you can find newer packages not available in stable which had not been backported into stable-backports. Yes there is some risk here depending on what it is.

I suspect it is possible to fix the problem in the package management, just a matter of figuring out the issue. Possibly by commenting out said repos as earlier suggested, or by strategically changing apt-pinning to resolve conflicts the solver experiences...

This article is a short overview of how to use apt-pinning on Debian and Debian-based distributions (like Ubuntu). Apt-Pinning allows you to use multiple releases (e.g. stable, testing, and unstable) on your system and to specify when to install a package from which release. That way you can run a system based mostly on the stable release, but also install some newer packages from testing or unstable (or third-party repositories).

https://www.howtoforge.com/a-short-intr … pt-pinning

Sometimes it is necessary, to get bleeding edge software packaged as a .deb, without having to get the sources and deal with building it. I expect this is what he was doing with that postgresql repo, wanting version 12 instead of 9 for whatever reason...

I maintain it is likely possible to fix the issue the package management solver is stuck on... if he wishes to troubleshoot that instead of re-installing a vanilla system again.

One thing he could try, for example, is to use apt-pinning to "downgrade" every testing/unstable (non-stable) package to stable all at once! A Debian kosher solution don't you think?

Last edited by AndrewSmart (2020-02-01 02:28:32)

johnraff

nullglob

From: Nagoya, Japan

Registered: 2015-09-09

Posts: 12,662

Website

Re: [classic]E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

One thing he could try, for example, is to use apt-pinning to "downgrade" every testing/unstable (non-stable) package to stable all at once! A Debian kosher solution don't you think?

No.

Apt-pinning is for experienced users, and not often needed by them either. Downgrading packages is dangerous too, and the dpkg manual warns:

              Warning: At present dpkg does not do any dependency  checking  on
              downgrades  and  therefore  will  not  warn  you if the downgrade
              breaks the dependency  of  some  other  package.  This  can  have
              serious side effects, downgrading essential system components can
              even make your whole system unusable. Use with care.

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...elevator in the Brain Hotel, broken down but just as well...
( a boring Japan blog (currently paused), now on Bluesky, there's also some GitStuff )

Introduction to the Bunsenlabs Boron Desktop

hhh

Gaucho

From: High in the Custerdome

Registered: 2015-09-17

Posts: 16,169

Website

Re: [classic]E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

@Andrew, sources for the tutorial are in the second post of the tutorial...

https://forums.bunsenlabs.org/viewtopic … d=460#p460

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I don't care what you do at home. Would you care to explain?

stevep

MX Linux Developer

Registered: 2016-08-08

Posts: 381

Re: [classic]E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

Maybe my eyes are bad, and I missed it, but I didn't see the standard Debian Stretch repo in your apt policy results--just backports (also not a good idea to leave enabled) and security updates.

If you can install inxi, either via apt or manually, "inxi -r" gives a much more readable list of your repos, IMHO.

iMBeCil

WAAAT?

From: Edrychwch o'ch cwmpas

Registered: 2015-09-29

Posts: 767

Re: [classic]E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

I don't think that is accurate to advise to never add such repos. I've added Opera, testing, unstable repos, among many others.
...

Quite, I might put it too harsh ... I myself also have a few non-debian repos added (skype, picotech, stevep-palemoon@opensus), but I understood what OP's errors mean, and what can be done about it, while OP didn't know. (Now I hope (sh)he understand what is going under the hood.) In this respect I agree with hhh.

Rant: in particular, I'm not afraid adding - for example - skype, because I'm sure MS has had compiled almost everything statically, and packaged needed libraries, too. OTOH, adding postgresql repo (or Ubuntu repo, for that matter), implies that packagers rely on existence of common libraries ... and 'apt', attempting to be as automatic as possible, will pull missing ones, possibly overwriting existing (good) ones ... Generally speaking, or a rule of thumb, a standalone software should be reasonable to add as a repo; non-standalone shouldn't be. And of course, one has to know what he is doing, read messages in terminal, and understand them

Last edited by iMBeCil (2020-02-02 13:00:11)

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Postpone all your duties; if you die, you won't have to do them ..

stevep

MX Linux Developer

Registered: 2016-08-08

Posts: 381

Re: [classic]E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

If done right, a third-party repo like my Pale Moon one for the matching Debian release will be perfectly compatible. But you can't use my Ubuntu PM repo on Debian and not expect that problems may result!