Bug#801065: service failures should not fail dpkg installation: https://lists.debian.org/debian-devel/2015/09/msg00532.html

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hi serafi,

On Fri, May 29, 2026 at 10:50:10PM +0200, Serafeim (Serafi) Zanikolas wrote:
> devref guidance, section 6.9.4. "Specific types of packages" has some rec=
ently
> added guidance but is agnostic as to whether postinst should fail:

if the postinst of a package fails, this is usually considered an RC bug, u=
sually
detect by piuparts.d.o.
=20
> my reading of the bug log is that the guidance needs to be nuanced. here'=
s an
> attempt to reconcile the various views in the discussion:
>=20
> 	Package maintainers are expected to apply judgment with regards to which
> 	postinst behavior is more appropriate to any given package. Here is some
> 	generic guidance:
>=20
> 	1. a service failing to start upon a fresh install should, in general,
> 	   fail postinst, if
> 	  1.1 the service configuration is straightforward and can be reasonably
> 	      expected to work as-is in typical Debian setups
> 	  1.2 the service has no external dependencies (e.g. a database which
> 	      may be not configured yet, or unreachable at the time of the
> 	      install)
>=20
> 	2. a service failing to restart upon an upgrade should, in general, fail
> 	  postinst if
> 	  2.1 postinst can verify with high confidence that the service was
> 	      running prior to the restart (which may not always be feasible)
> 	  2.2 the service has no external dependencies or postinst can verify
> 	      that they are functional
> 	  2.3 the service configuration has not changed in backwards
> 	      incompatible ways between the old and new package versions
>=20
> fwiw I wonder whether this would be of much use. "typical Debian setups" =
is
> ambiguous. verifying whether a remote service is unreachable is not always
> straightforward. "backwards incompatible" is not always black and white.

I think this is still useful, despite its not all black and white, maybe
especially because its not black and white.


--=20
cheers,
	Holger

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