sudo cp /var/lib/dpkg/status /var/lib/dpkg/status.backup sudo cp /var/lib/dpkg/status-old /var/lib/dpkg/status sudo dpkg --configure -a If that fails, restore from backup:
sudo chown -R root:root /var/log/dpkg.log sudo chmod 644 /var/log/dpkg.log sudo dpkg --configure -a If sudo dpkg --configure -a continues to fail, use these alternative commands in order: sudo cp /var/lib/dpkg/status /var/lib/dpkg/status
Everything works again. Q: Do I need to be root to run this command? A: Yes. sudo is mandatory because dpkg modifies system-critical files. sudo cp /var/lib/dpkg/status /var/lib/dpkg/status
| Command | Purpose | |---------|---------| | sudo dpkg --configure -a | Configure all pending packages | | sudo apt --fix-broken install | Fix broken dependencies | | sudo apt-get install -f | Alternate fix for broken packages | | sudo dpkg --clear-avail | Clear available package cache | | sudo apt-get update --fix-policy | Regenerate package policy | sudo cp /var/lib/dpkg/status /var/lib/dpkg/status