Bug#817977: firefox: Please add Conflicts & Provides for iceweasel

[Mike Hommey]

On Sun, Mar 13, 2016 at 02:13:48AM +0100, Axel Beckert wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> Patrick Winnertz wrote:
> > please add Conflicts: Iceweasel and Provides: Iceweasel to firefox,
> > as it is otherwise not possible to install the firefox package and
> > to remove the iceweasel package without installing firefox-esr, too. 
> 
> I ran into this, too, when upgrading iceweasel (which pulled in
> firefox-esr) and installing firefox in the same aptitude run:
> 
> Preparing to unpack .../firefox-esr_45.0esr-1_amd64.deb ...
> Removing 'diversion of /usr/bin/firefox to /usr/bin/firefox.real by iceweasel'
> dpkg-divert: error: rename involves overwriting '/usr/bin/firefox' with
>   different file '/usr/bin/firefox.real', not allowed
> dpkg: error processing archive /var/cache/apt/archives/firefox-esr_45.0esr-1_amd64.deb (--unpack):
>  subprocess new pre-installation script returned error exit status 2
> Selecting previously unselected package firefox-esr-l10n-de.

No matter how hard I try, I can't reproduce. I also don't understand how
that can happen. But since neither of you are copy/pasting full apt
logs, I cannot tell much. The only way I can imagine this happening is
if iceweasel is not unpacked before firefox-esr. Interestingly,
iceweasel unpacking before firefox-esr is related to bug 817908.

> > Maybe a Conflicts: firefox-esr is also needed. :-)
> 
> Please don't! And if it's necessary policy-wise, please make firefox
> and firefox-esr co-installable as xulrunner-* was in the past. (And
> then maybe use update-alternatives for /usr/bin/firefox -- that would
> have avoided that issue, too.)
> 
> I'd be great to be able to fall-back to firefox-esr if firefox once
> again broke compatibility for XUL applications or plugins while still
> being able to to use the current version firefox without them (or to
> develop a fix while still being able to use them).

Beware that firefox will *not* be released (bug 817954)

Mike