[Gnumed-devel] Re: Problem on Debian updating gnumed-common

[Andreas Tille]

On Mon, Jun 15, 2009 at 10:50:38AM -0700, Jim Busser wrote:
> Even though I did
>       apt-get clean

This is not connected to your problem - just removes previosely
downloaded package files from the cache.

>       apt-get update

That's reasonable before anything else in every case.

> When I try to apt-get install gnumed-client I get
>
>> The following packages have unmet dependencies:
>>   gnumed-client: Depends: python-support (>= 0.90.0) but 0.8.4 is to be 
>> installed

That's logical loocing at your apt_preferences file.

>>                  Depends: gnumed-common (= 0.4.5-1) but 0.3.10-1 is to 
>> be installed
>> E: Broken packages

I do not fully understand this line - but probably it is somehow
connected by the confusion the conflicting dependencies might have
caused.

> Do I need to
>       apt-get install gnumed-client -o DPkg::options::="--force-overwrite"
> or
>       apt-get install gnumed-common -o DPkg::options::="--force-overwrite"

No.

> ================================
>
> Explanation: apt preference will not accept release name
> lenny is release 5.x and was stable at January 2009
> Package: *
> Pin: release v=5.*
> Pin-Priority: 501
>
> Explanation: make testing available, but at a lower priority
> Package: *
> Pin: release a=testing
> Pin-Priority: 200
>
> Explanation: make unstable available, but at an even lower priority
> Package: *
> Pin: release a=unstable
> Pin-Priority: 100
>
> Explanation: make experimental available, at the lowest priority
> Package: *
> Pin: release a=experimental
> Pin-Priority: 50

This means you prefer

   stable over testing over unstable over experimental

... fine.

> Explanation: get gnumed-client debs from testing
> Package: gnumed-client
> Pin: release a=testing
> Pin-Priority: 601

That's the problem:  You prefer gnumed-client from testing over the
version from stable (which is what you want) but everything else
(including all dependencies from gnumed-client) should be taken from
stable - which just does not work for python-support which has a
lower version number than required in stable.

> Explanation: gnumed-common must usually be sourced like the client
> Package: gnumed-common
> Pin: release a=testing
> Pin-Priority: 601
>
> Explanation: gnumed-doc must usually be sourced like the client
> Package: gnumed-doc
> Pin: release a=testing
> Pin-Priority: 601

You might like to try pinning python-support also to the version
from testing but this might have further consequences.  So I would
rather do not use the pinning feature at all but rather try:

   apt-get -t testing install gnumed-client

This means: For this apt-get run use testing as target distribution
to install gnumed-client and all its dependencies - which is most
probably what you want.  There is no need for pinning because
later upgrades will not downgrade gnumed-client to the version of
stable.

And yes - I admit - pinning is a bit hard to understand.

Hope this helps

    Andreas.

-- 
http://fam-tille.de