do-release-upgrade stopped by lock files

21 replies [Last post]
useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026
 $ sudo do-release-upgrade 

Instructing procedure with yes, it opens a screen window with the following messages after an apt update:

 E: Could not get lock /var/lib/apt/lists/lock. It is held by process 5649 (ecne)
N: Be aware that removing the lock file is not a solution and may break your system.
E: Impossível criar acesso exclusivo ao directório /var/lib/apt/lists/
E: Could not get lock /var/lib/dpkg/lock-frontend. It is held by process 5649 (ecne)
N: Be aware that removing the lock file is not a solution and may break your system.
E: Unable to acquire the dpkg frontend lock (/var/lib/dpkg/lock-frontend), is another process using it?

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/ecne", line 8, in 
    sys.exit(main())
  File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeMain.py", line 241, in main
    if app.run():
  File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeController.py", line 2657, in run
    return self.fullUpgrade()
  File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeController.py", line 2462, in fullUpgrade
    if not self.doPostInitialUpdate():
  File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeController.py", line 1433, in doPostInitialUpdate
    self.quirks.run("PostInitialUpdate")
  File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeQuirks.py", line 103, in run
    func()
  File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeQuirks.py", line 133, in ecnePostInitialUpdate
    self._test_and_fail_on_unmerged_usr()
  File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeQuirks.py", line 2554, in _test_and_fail_on_unmerged_usr
    self.controller.error(_(
AttributeError: 'DistUpgradeController' object has no attribute 'error'
useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

Removing the lock files does not resolve the issue. Rebooting the computing, neither.

useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026
$ sudo lsb_release -a
No LSB modules are available.
Distributor ID: Trisquel
Description:    Trisquel GNU/Linux Aramo (11.0.1)
Release:        11.0.1
Codename:       aramo
useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

The following apt operations work just fine, without any complain[t] about lock files: autoremove, autoclean, update, upgrade.

useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

Right before that it is hitting "aramo" (Trisquel 11.0) repositories. I don't know if it should be hitting "ecne" (12.0) repositories. Should I try just seding /etc/apt/sources.list?

Hit https://trisquel...../packages aramo InRelease                                                                      
Hit https://trisquel...../packages aramo-updates InRelease                                                              
Hit https://trisquel...../packages aramo-backports InRelease                                                            
Hit https://trisquel...../packages aramo-security InRelease                                                             
Fetched 0 B in 0s (0 B/s)                                                                                                       
Reading package lists... Done    
Building dependency tree... Done 
Reading state information... Done
Reading package lists... Done
E: Could not get lock /var/lib/apt/lists/lock. It is held by process 7193 (ecne)
N: Be aware that removing the lock file is not a solution and may break your system.
E: Unable to lock directory /var/lib/apt/lists/
E: Could not get lock /var/lib/dpkg/lock-frontend. It is held by process 7193 (ecne)
N: Be aware that removing the lock file is not a solution and may break your system.
E: Unable to acquire the dpkg frontend lock (/var/lib/dpkg/lock-frontend), is another process using it?
useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

Rebooting and running from tty1 I removed those lock files, but the error is the same. The only difference is that I was prompted to choose how to deal with the error file, which did not happened when running in a console inside the graphical session. The output file is in /var/crash and has 1,5 M with apparently binary content after this traceback:

PythonArgs: ['/usr/bin/do-release-upgrade', '--mode=server', '--frontend=DistUpgradeViewText']
Traceback:
 Traceback (most recent call last):
   File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-ytxepwxq/ecne", line 8, in 
     sys.exit(main())
   File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-ytxepwxq/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeMain.py", line 241, in main
     if app.run():
   File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-ytxepwxq/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeController.py", line 2657, in run
     return self.fullUpgrade()
   File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-ytxepwxq/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeController.py", line 2462, in fullUpgrade
     if not self.doPostInitialUpdate():
   File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-ytxepwxq/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeController.py", line 1433, in doPostInitialUpdate
     self.quirks.run("PostInitialUpdate")
   File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-ytxepwxq/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeQuirks.py", line 103, in run
     func()
   File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-ytxepwxq/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeQuirks.py", line 133, in ecnePostInitialUpdate
     self._test_and_fail_on_unmerged_usr()
   File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-ytxepwxq/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeQuirks.py", line 2554, in _test_and_fail_on_unmerged_usr
     self.controller.error(_(
 AttributeError: 'DistUpgradeController' object has no attribute 'error'
UserGroups: N/A
ProblemType: Crash
Date: Sat Apr 18 10:31:55 2026
DistroRelease: Trisquel 12.0.
Package: trisquel-release-upgrader-core 1:12.0.28
Tags: dist-upgrade
VarLogDistupgradeAptclonesystemstate.tar.gz: base64
 H4sICAAAAAAC/1ZhckxvZ0Rpc3R1cGdyYWRlQXB0Y2xvbmVzeXN0ZW1zdGF0ZS50YXIuZ3oA
[etc.]
useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

I FORGOT this: I tried also the graphical interface for the upgrade. It was just crashing at that point, without error messages.

I just tried do-release-upgrade in another machine with Trisquel 11.0. Exactly the same error.

(In this one I had to mkdir /var/crash, because it complained with more messages without it and it was not possible to read the first error messages in the screen without scrolling within screen, that was not working with arrows or Emacs shortcuts. The user should know how to do it.)

Ark74

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I am a translator!

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Joined: 07/15/2009

Please join the this issue, to track it properly

https://gitlab.trisquel.org/trisquel/package-helpers/-/issues/245

useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

I just registered. I tried to upgrade in two production machines. What is the best way to install a VM with Trisquel 11.0 in Trisquel 12.0 to experiment?

Ark74

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I am a translator!

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Joined: 07/15/2009

It's very likely that you won't get that behavior from a T11 machine, but a T10 upgraded to a T11, then upgraded for a T12.
Please try this script and help us confirm that the latest version actually works.

https://gitlab.trisquel.org/trisquel/package-helpers/-/issues/245#3-current-version-of-the-script

useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

Before seeing your reply I did as Magic Banana suggested. Installing usrmerge solved the issue; I thought usrmerge could be a dependency of trisquel-base or trisquel-release-upgrader-core, but you are saying this only affects previously T10 machines upgraded to T11. I will try that version of the script on the other machine.

useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

In fact, the upgrade in the first machine just failed with the following message:

The package 'trisquel-desktop-common' is marked for removal but it is 
in the removal deny list.

Should I try that version of the script or you would need to update it first? My gitlab account is still suspended.

useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

Same symptom [in the first error reported] here: https://askubuntu.com/questions/1525165/kubuntu-22-04-24-04-fails-while-calculating-the-upgrade ― but not the [second] since there is no installed package from outside Trisquel repositories. One should not need to remove the package that is in some denial list.

useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

In a fresh T12 installation, trisquel-desktop-common is present. Why is the upgrade mechanism trying to remove it from T11?

useresu
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I created a new thread for this issue in specific: https://trisquel.info/en/forum/t11-t12 (sorry, the title got out incomplete and I cannot edit or remove that)

Magic Banana

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File "/tmp/trisquel-release-upgrader-9mg9ad1e/DistUpgrade/DistUpgradeQuirks.py", line 2554, in _test_and_fail_on_unmerged_usr

Install the usrmerge package. Then do-release-upgrade should work.

Gottfried
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Joined: 02/22/2022

I have got usrmerge installed.
I did a do-release-upgrade
and all the messages were ok.
After starting the laptop anew
it always opened the boot menu
and never was able to open trisquel.

what can I do?

useresu
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Joined: 04/18/2026

As a matter of fact, Ark74 says in that gitlab thread that one should not install usrmerge, but run the new version of the script instead.

prospero
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Joined: 05/20/2022

usrmerge has to be installed in order for the upgrade to go on.

The issue is that an error prevents the error message that instructs the user to do so to be displayed.

Running the new version of the script only makes sure that it actually fixes the issue and prompts the user to install usrmerge. It looks like the script still needs to be updated, so in the meanwhile users should be advised to install ursmerge if the above errors show up.

Magic Banana

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I am a translator!

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Joined: 07/24/2010

After starting the laptop anew it always opened the boot menu and never was able to open trisquel.

By "boot menu", you mean a menu of the BIOS/EFI? If so, I would try to try to reinstall GRUB, following https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Grub2/Installing#via_ChRoot

Gottfried
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Joined: 02/22/2022

thanks very much for that site.

I went through it, almost at the last step it said:
does not find an efi ...

Probably Guix SD has taken the EFI partition, which I had installed.

So I reinstalled Trisquel 12 in manually creating a second EFI /bootable partition for Trisquel.
This installation went quick,

To install Trisquel is quicker than updating from Trisquel 11.

Gottfried
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Joined: 02/22/2022

on an other notebook I had the same problem on updating from aramo to ecne.
after installing usrmerge
everything went find and sudo do-release-upgrade went on.

after rebooting there was no KDE menus visible,
only the empty screen

fortunately contr+alt+T worked to open the terminal

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade
and it showed that one package: udisk2 was hold back.

I had to install udisk2
in order to get everything back.

In opening synaptic through the terminal and
updating the packages
it installed udisk2
which was great.

Now I have my screen back with the menu on the bottom and all the desktop files.
now I have got Ecne on this old notebook.

thanks for your help