Cannot install local packages (.deb files) without network connection (offline)

I have verified that this bug still exists in Software Center version 5.2.2.2, Ubuntu 12.04. I've set it to triaged as we have enough information now to begin work on the fix.

Many thanks!

Please also refer to related bug 911706.

Hi dronus, we are tracking this issue over at bug 911706, so I will mark this one as a duplicate of that one. Please follow that report for the status of a fix for this one. Many thanks for your help!

This is not a duplicate of bug 911706: that is about being connected to the Internet without using Network Manager. But you shouldn't need to be connected to the Internet *at all* to install a local .deb file (unless it has uncached dependencies). Bug 1014277 is the equivalent case for packages in a local repository.

This is very annoying. I just sent a .deb (containing an updated version) to a customer now that has all depencies installed but is not connected to the internet.

An easy solution could be to change the default association of installation of .deb files to gdebi-gtk instead, as I think it handles this case correctly (when dependencies are required to be downloaded possibly better too).

The implementation should warn the user if the installation of the deb file requires dependencies to be downloaded (i.e. all dependencies should be installed).

Ideally the user should be able to select several deb files at once to be installed that together satisfies all dependencies.

It would be good to backport this fix to O,P,Q if possible. Thanks

[Impact]

 * On Ubuntu, when the software-center is invoked to install a package from a local .deb file, the Install-Button is deactivated while not connected to the internet.

 * This is affecting Ubuntu's usability on desktop for our customer

[Test Case]

1. Download .deb file
2. Disconnect from internet
3. Attempt to install .deb by double-clicking
  a. Actual Results: the 'install' button is greyed out and not clickable.
  b. Expected Results: should be able to install normally.

[Regression Potential]

 * Installation would fail, if dependencies are not meet given that USC lacks the ability to install a group of packages.

Thanks. What about Raring?

Hi

  I have attached proposed patch for raring, to fix the stated issue.

dobey, can you have a look at this and see if you can integrate that to software-center in raring?

The attached patch at least for raring, is broken, and wants to apply the changes to a softwarecenter/ui/gtk3/views/appdetailsview.py.new file, instead of the original file.

Also, could the changes be submitted as changes against the upstream branches via branch merge proposals instead? Software Center also requires signing of the CCLA at http://www.canonical.com/contributors for contributions to be merged.

The linked branches for precise, quantal, and raring are incorrectly formatted. They should not be merged as they are.

This bug was fixed in the package software-center - 13.10-0ubuntu1

---------------
software-center (13.10-0ubuntu1) saucy; urgency=low

  * New upstream release.
  * debian/patches/00_bzr-no-network-local-debs.patch:
    - Don't require network for installing local debs. (LP: #926763)
 -- Rodney Dawes <email address hidden> Tue, 08 Oct 2013 16:03:35 -0400

I've uploaded the debdiff (with some minor changes) to Precise, I question whether it is worth the work of uploading it to Quantal an Raring though. Is there anyone who wants to see it fixed in those releases?

Hello dronus, or anyone else affected,

Accepted software-center into precise-proposed. The package will build now and be available at http://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/software-center/5.2.10 in a few hours, and then in the -proposed repository.

Please help us by testing this new package. See https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Testing/EnableProposed for documentation how to enable and use -proposed. Your feedback will aid us getting this update out to other Ubuntu users.

If this package fixes the bug for you, please add a comment to this bug, mentioning the version of the package you tested, and change the tag from verification-needed to verification-done. If it does not fix the bug for you, please add a comment stating that, and change the tag to verification-failed. In either case, details of your testing will help us make a better decision.

Further information regarding the verification process can be found at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/QATeam/PerformingSRUVerification . Thank you in advance!

This works.

note:

   offline dependency is broken including with upstream, but this would be a different bug. Given that concurrent package installation support is broken in s/w center.

This bug was fixed in the package software-center - 5.2.10

---------------
software-center (5.2.10) precise; urgency=low

  * debian/patches/local.patch:
    - Cannot install deb files without network connection (lp: #926763)
 -- Ritesh Khadgaray <email address hidden> Fri, 15 Nov 2013 14:26:56 -0800

The verification of the Stable Release Update for software-center has completed successfully and the package has now been released to -updates. Subsequently, the Ubuntu Stable Release Updates Team is being unsubscribed and will not receive messages about this bug report. In the event that you encounter a regression using the package from -updates please report a new bug using ubuntu-bug and tag the bug report regression-update so we can easily find any regresssions.