Re: Question why multiarch is considered by apt 3.1.16, investigation of a problem in mkosi

Johannes Schauer Marin Rodrigues <[email protected]> Thu, 26 Mar 2026 11:33:28 +0100

Newsgroups	gmane.linux.debian.apt.devel
Message-ID	<177452120878.3821.15457407517877620064@localhost>

Hi,

Quoting Wagner Andre (2026-03-26 11:04:42)
> For solving this problem I replaced '?essential' by '?essential
> ?architecture(amd64)', now only "amd64" packages are considered and the
> install works.
> 
> Can someone explain to me why this happens and if the workaround i did is a
> good idea or are there better and more reliable solutions?

this is because ?essential select packages which have Essential:yes and that
matches packages from any architecture. In mmdebstrap we are using:

?narrow(...,?architecture(...),?essential)

Note also how some configuration settings to apt have to be specified via a
configuration file passed to it with the APT_CONFIG environment variable. This
is because settings like Dir::Etc are evaluated *before* apt takes command line
arguments into account. Does your /etc outside /buildroot maybe include armhf?

For example, look at the man page of mmdebstrap in the section OPERATION to see
a minimal example for how to set up a minimal chroot with apt only. Note how
that example is not using apt options like you do but creates a temporary
configuration file and passes that to apt via APT_CONFIG.

> This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended
> solely for the use of the individual or entity to which they are addressed.
> If you are not the intended addressee, or the person responsible for
> delivering it to them, you may not copy, forward, disclose, or otherwise use
> it or any part of it in any way. To do so may be unlawful. If you receive
> this e-mail by mistake, please advise the sender immediately.

You posted your message to a public mailing list and thus your message is
already copied and available to many others even outside this list.

Thanks!

cheers, josch

signature.asc (application/pgp-signature, 833 B)