Re: [gentoo-user] New gentoo installation fails when trying to install syslog-ng

[Michael Schreckenbauer]

On Thursday, 15. September 2011 01:58:59 Trifu Catalin Florin wrote:
> On Thursday, 15. September 2011 01:16:12 Trifu Catalin Florin wrote:
> > First, make sure you have emerged the kernel's sources.
> > Second, check that the newer sources have been selected: 'eselect kernel
> > list' followed by 'eselect kernel set'. Build the kernel, either using
> > genkernel or make triumvirate (make menuconfig && make && make
> > modules_install) Install the new kernel in /boot.
> > Reboot.
> > Warning: packages that build their own kernel modules, e.g.,
> > xtables-addons, must be re-emerged prior to rebooting. Rgds,
> >
> > ---
> >
> > :(((((((((((((((((((
> > :(((((((((((((((((((
> >
> > Is it possible to compile the kernel without emerging kernel's sources?
>
> No.
>
> > I have made an installation one week ago on a virtual machine and it
> > worked fine. The kernel on that virtual machine is 2.6.39-gentoo-r3.
> > How is it possible to use the same manual, same mirrors, same steps and
> > still to have a different kernel version? How is it possible not to
> > work?
>
> You did not reboot.
>
> > If I use genkernel is because I DON'T KNOW how to compile the kernel
> > manually. This being said, sentences like:
> >
> > "Warning: packages that build their own kernel modules, e.g.,
> > xtables-addons, must be re-emerged prior to rebooting."
> >
> > are the Gordian knot for me.
>
> No problem. Just use genkernel, if you like. It works for many of us without
> problems. But you have to reboot. No matter how you build your kernel.
> > I'm very frustrated because on gentoo's forum no one didn't answer for
> > three days now, and on this mailing list we have changed 4-5 emails
> > regarding how an email should be written.
>
> If you want help, you need to know, how to ask questions in a "correct way"
> - if your mails are unreadable, nobody will read them and you will get no
> answers.
>
> > Meanwhile, my server is still offline.
>
> Why don't you follow my advices? Have you tried only one of the options I
> offered? You know, I am an experienced user, I don't tell you shit.
>
> > Now, in another order of ideas:
> > - I have searched the internet for 2-3 days before sending an email here
>
> Here's a tip. If you see an error, you cannot decipher, put it into google
> with quotes and gentoo, in your case:
>
> "touch: setting times of" gentoo
>
> The second hit, I get here, describes your problem.
>
> > - I didn't read the standard of how to send an email and I'm sorry for
> > that but I didn't had time - I wrote the emails using the format that
> > seemed more "natural" for me, the newest on top having the track of
> > emails bellow, so that anyone who sees the email can understand what's
> > this all about, including myself; I had to search for a half an our in
> > my emails to find the first email on another topic... - I do not now
> > how you format your emails to look the way they look, having that
> > sentence on top with "x wrote on..." and ">" before each line of the
> > text you keep for reply; this is why I have used standard reply from
> > yahoo, because I didn't wanted to reinvent the wheel
>
> I hit reply in my mail-client (kmail). That's all I have to do. Is yahoo's
> reply really so broken? Hmmm.
>
> > - I HAVE A LOT OF RESPECT FOR EACH USER ON THIS EMAIL LIST BUT I NEED
> > URGENT HELP ON THE TOPIC: I CANNOT INSTALL GENTOOOOOOO - I AM NOT AN
> > EXPERIENCED USER WHO CAN CREATE HIS OWN KERNEL, RE-WRITE DRIVERS AND SO
> > ON; PLEASE TAKE THIS INTO CONSIDERATION AND IF YOU ANSWER HAVE PATIENCE
>
> Shouting at people, that try to help, is a bad idea in my book.
>
> > Thank you in advance!
>
> Best,
> Michael
>
> ----
> Dear Michael
>
> Thank you for your help!
> I didn't reboot my machine as the installation is not complete yet. How can
> I reboot when the installation isn't finish, if things that should work
> don't work in the first place?

I can well understand, that you don't like to reboot your server right now.

> I didn't try your advices as I don't now how to try them. How do I
> deactivate sandbox?

In /etc/make.conf
1) it already has a line starting with FEATURES=
a) that line already has an entry "sandbox"
    solution: add a - before it, so it reads -sandbox
b) the line does not contain "sandbox"
    solution: add -sandbox at the end
2) there's no line starting with FEATURES=
    solution: add line FEATURES="-sandbox" to /etc/make.conf

> I tried to search for
> "touch: setting times of" gentoo
> but I don't understand how this is related to my problem.

That's (part of) the error-message you got, when you tried to compile syslog-
ng (in fact, it was part of the error, when emerge tried to compile autoconf, 
which is needed by syslog-ng)

> Yahoo reply broken? I don't know what to say about that... gmail works in
> the same way, outlook in the same way, thunderbird in the same way.

No, they don't. A lot of people here on the list use thunderbird and gmail, 
most replies are wellformed. Don't know, what outlook does. There's no linux- 
or BSD-version, so I don't care.

> Now I'm at work, but when I will get home I will try your advices. I don't
> know how to that but I will find a way. Suppose that it will work, I'm
> afraid that I will have big problems with my server after that. I think it
> will keep stop me from working with errors similar to this one.

If you have busybox installed, I would replace touch with the busybox version, 
until your server is up and running again with a new kernel.

How to do this:
a) check if busybox is installed and if it has "touch" in it
type in a shell:
~ $ busybox
and press return.
If busybox is installed, you will get a lot of output, among it there will be 
something like:

Currently defined functions:
<lot of stuff>

See if "touch" is included in <lot of stuff>

b) If it is, do the following as root:

mv /bin/touch /root
ln -s /bin/bb /bin/touch

If touch is not included in your busybox install or you don't have busybox 
installed:
try, if emerge busybox works
If that fails try
FEATURES="-sandbox" emerge busybox
if that also fails, disable sandbox in /etc/make.conf as explained above.
Otherwise continue with b).

After all that, your emerge should work again.
When you are done upgrading your server:
a) you did disable sandbox in /etc/make.conf
    solution: revert the changes in /etc/make.conf

b) you replaced touch by busybox:
    rm /bin/touch
    mv /root/touch /bin

> Sorry for "shouting" but I do not have power to continue anymore... :(( what
> should have been a straight forward installation, converted into a
> nightmare

I know that. Upgrading oldish gentoo-installs can be a very disappointing 
experience.

Best,
Michael