Installing Brother printer driver on Endless OS, Error: unable to access the dpkg database directory /var/lib/dpkg

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TakeIt

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Hi,

I've been trying to use the linux-brprinter-installer-2.2.3-1 MFC-J285DW from the Brother web site to no effect receiving the above error. I'm new to Linux and trying to learn. What info do I need to share with y'all to get this problem solved?

Thanks
 


G'day @TakeIt and welcome to linux.org :)

I am moving this to Hardware, where you might get a better chance of an answer.

Good luck

Chris Turner
wizardfromoz
 
Last edited:
Looks like those drivers are i386 you might have to add the 32 architecture first
Code: 
sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
then use gdebi to install it if gdebi is not installed
Code: 
sudo apt install gdebi
 
Hey, you could be getting this error. lol

1630341555875.png
 
Hey thanks for the replies,

so far, no luck. When I tried adding the 32 architecture I get this error:

dpkg: error: unable to create new file '/var/lib/dpkg/arch-new': Read-only file system

This error message is essentially the same error I get when installing the printer driver. So, tried installing gdebi & got this:

Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree... Done
W: Not using locking for read only lock file /var/lib/dpkg/lock-frontend
W: Not using locking for read only lock file /var/lib/dpkg/lock
E: Unable to locate package gdebi


brickwizard - that is the driver I'm trying to install
dc - in Settings the computer is recognizing that the printer is there but when I try to print I get nothing -- no error msg, printer doesn't turn on, nothing.
 
I have not had problems installing printers before, so sorry I am out of ideas [except for a silly one] have you set & enabled the print as preferred in the printer local host ?
 
TakeIt said:
Hey thanks for the replies,

so far, no luck. When I tried adding the 32 architecture I get this error:

dpkg: error: unable to create new file '/var/lib/dpkg/arch-new': Read-only file system

This error message is essentially the same error I get when installing the printer driver. So, tried installing gdebi & got this:

Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree... Done
W: Not using locking for read only lock file /var/lib/dpkg/lock-frontend
W: Not using locking for read only lock file /var/lib/dpkg/lock
E: Unable to locate package gdebi


brickwizard - that is the driver I'm trying to install
dc - in Settings the computer is recognizing that the printer is there but when I try to print I get nothing -- no error msg, printer doesn't turn on, nothing.
Click to expand...
run this command
Code: 
dpkg --print-foreign-architectures
does it spit back i386? if it does then the 32 bit architecture is installed already

You can try to remount the root filesystem as read/write, run the following command

Code: 
sudo mount -o remount,rw /

then try to install
 
Hey Boltar,

I tried both those commands to no effect - I just get a new command prompt in terminal. I'm starting to wonder if this is a "feature" of Endless OS being that it is intended for young/inexperienced users (like my kids - which is why I installed it in the first place) so they can't destroy the system or something.
 
Read the errors closely.
Code: 
dpkg: error: unable to create new file '/var/lib/dpkg/arch-new': Read-only file system

/var appears to be mounted read-only. This is why you cannot write to you.

What exactly is the status of the system you are on? Are you booted from a disk of some sort? Booted into single-user mode? What exactly is the system's status.

Run this command and show your output. It will show any filesystems that are mounted read-only.

Code: 
 cat /proc/mounts | awk '/ ro,/'

There is a space before the "ro," in "/ ro,/"
 
TakeIt said:
Hey Boltar,

I tried both those commands to no effect - I just get a new command prompt in terminal. I'm starting to wonder if this is a "feature" of Endless OS being that it is intended for young/inexperienced users (like my kids - which is why I installed it in the first place) so they can't destroy the system or something.
Click to expand...
That second command prompt windows is where you type in the commands
here is step by step
1)
Code: 
sudo mount -o remount,rw /
when second command prompt opens type in
2)
Code: 
sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
it may appear not to do anything that is fine next type in
3)
Code: 
sudo apt update
if it says you need updates then type in
Code: 
sudo apt upgrade -y
if not skip to 4 - now type in
4)
Code: 
sudo apt install gdebi
when that is done you can close all that out. Now open Gdebi (usually in Administration)and select file-open then point it to the printer deb file you download and open it and install if it needs dependencies it will get them as well - also make sure your printer is plugged in and on before you install driver
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hey dcbrown73,

The system in not booted from a disc but installed on the computer and is a multi-user system.
dcbrown73 said:
Code:
Click to expand...
After this command it shows:

tmpfs /sys/fs/cgroup tmpfs ro,nosuid,nodev,noexec,size=4096k,nr_inodes=1024,mode=755 0 0
/dev/mapper/endless-image3 /usr ext4 ro,relatime,errors=remount-ro 0 0


Hey Lord Boltar,

sudo mount -o remount,rw /

No second command prompt opens.
 
Sorry dcbrown73 that was after the following:

Code:
cat /proc/mounts | awk '/ ro,/'
 
TakeIt said:
Hey dcbrown73,

The system in not booted from a disc but installed on the computer and is a multi-user system.

After this command it shows:

tmpfs /sys/fs/cgroup tmpfs ro,nosuid,nodev,noexec,size=4096k,nr_inodes=1024,mode=755 0 0
/dev/mapper/endless-image3 /usr ext4 ro,relatime,errors=remount-ro 0 0


Hey Lord Boltar,

sudo mount -o remount,rw /

No second command prompt opens.
Click to expand...
Above in post #14 you said - I tried both those commands to no effect - I just get a new command prompt in terminal
That is where you type the commands
 
Sorry for the confusion, using the root command prompt and the code you suggested in post #14 brings up nothing but the root command prompt again in the next line down. No new command prompt window appears.
 
If your are in a root terminal instead of the regular terminal then you do not need the sudo command - sudo is a tool - root is a user - when you use root terminal that means you are logging in with user root
 
I don't mean to disrupt this ongoing thread, but I stumbled upon this in a search and I have a similar yet unrelated problem with that linux-brprinter-installer-2.2.3-1 shell script [I think]. I'm using Ubuntu and have a Brother MFC-J3930DW just got used and was installing the software. All were deb files and installed just fine...but I do NOT KNOW WHAT one is supposed to do with this shell script...no clue at all. Where does it go or what program can run it? Thanks much. I know I have both 386 and amd64 capabilities on this computer [it is amd 64]...but think that is not the problem. I have never confronted a shell script before that I apparently have to DO something with...but what?! Thanks and sorry to 'butt in'.
 
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