Re: [opensuse] Unlocking a locked file

At 10:11:19 on Tuesday Tuesday 16 March 2010, C wrote:

On Tue, Mar 16, 2010 at 08:45, Stan Goodman wrote:

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My VirtualBox program has become corrupted, and I wish to remove it and start over again from scratch.

Is it only VirtualBox that is corrupted?

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At the moment, it won't start at all. I find that reinstalling over what is there is not permitted, because there is a locked file. How can I unlock this file?

I don't see anything about a lock file in what you've posted here.

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This is what happens when I try to uninsstall: # rpm -e VirtualBox* error: package VirtualBox-3.1-3.1.4_57640_openSUSE111-1.x86_64.rpm is not installed #

On the other hand, here is what happens when I try to reinstall: # rpm -U VirtualBox* warning: VirtualBox-3.1-3.1.4_57640_openSUSE111-1.x86_64.rpm: Header V4 DSA signature: NOKEY, key ID 6dfbcbae        package VirtualBox-3.1-3.1.4_57640_openSUSE111-1.x86_64 is already installed #

This looks a bit like an RPM database that needs a rebuild. Try rpm --rebuilddb Then try removing VirtualBox with rpm -e

Just as an aside, if you want feedback on a clean install... rpm -ivh and on an update, rpm -Uvh.

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When I try to reinstall from the user prompt, the response is: rpm -U VirtualBox* warning: VirtualBox-3.1-3.1.4_57640_openSUSE111-1.x86_64.rpm: Header V4 DSA signature: NOKEY, key ID 6dfbcbae error: can't create transaction lock on /var/lib/rpm/__db.000

That's an expected error. You cannot install RPMs as user. The requires root permissions. When you attempt to install an RPM as a user, you cannot lock the RPM database for the update. Try again as root and it'll work - assuming your other issues are sorted out.

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How can I remove VirtualBox from the system completely, so that I can install a clean program?

What really broke though? The VirtualBox binaries (which is really unusual since that is installed as root, and is "protected" from any mucking about by a user) or the user config in the user /home? I've been using Linux a long time (as have you) and I've never seen an installed and previously working app get corrupted (where a reinstall fixes it) without there being more fundamental issues like failing hardware.

What seems to have made the problem is (surprise!) my own forgetfulness. When I installed this version of VB (after carefully removing the earlier (ose) version, I neglected to reboot, and straightaway installed a guest. I have read that this is a known cause of misery. This kind of thing is not, as has been opined here, entirely a function of advancing age; I had a mini-stroke about a year ago, that fortunately left few traces (and none physically visible) but has left me with some trouble in retrieving words in real time -- in conversation (in any language), and a small deficit in short-term memory, the latter of which, I am sure,was the problem in this case, and which makes me appear a worse klunk than I am (or was formerly). Bottom line, I cannot blame Linux for what happened to VBox. I am exceedingly grateful for the help I have been getting from this group. -- Stan Goodman Qiryat Tiv'on Israel -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse+help@opensuse.org