Hi Michael,
Thanks for the discussion and your time looking into this.
I wanted to update you that I have successfully resolved the issue on my system.
I ran `sudo apt install qemu-user-binfmt` directly. APT successfully handled the situation by removing the old `qemu-user-static` (1:10.0.3) package first, and then unpacking the new packages. This sequence avoided any potential file conflicts or transition loops.
Since my environment is now working correctly and I can proceed with my build tasks.
Thanks again for your maintenance work on the QEMU package!
Best regards,
Zhang Pan
主 题：Re: Bug#1125932: Root Cause found in debian/control: Replaces version (1:9.1.0) is too old
日 期：2026年01月19日17:15
发件人：Michael Tokarev
收件人：张攀,1125932
日 期：2026年01月19日17:15
发件人：Michael Tokarev
收件人：张攀,1125932
On 1/19/26 12:02, 张攀 wrote: > Hi Michael, > > > I wonder how upgrade worked in my testing.. > > I strongly suspect your testing involved upgrading from **Stable > (Bookworm)** or **Testing (Trixie)**, where the installed `qemu-user- > static` version is older (e.g., 1:8.x or 1:9.0). > Since those older versions are `< 1:9.1.0`, the existing `Replaces` > field worked perfectly for your tests. Ok, this makes sense. > **However, for users tracking pure Unstable (Sid), there is a gap.** > I currently have `qemu-user-static` version **1:10.0.3+ds-3** installed. > > Here is the proof from my system: > $ dpkg -l | grep qemu-user > ii qemu-user 1:10.0.3+ds-3 amd64 QEMU user mode emulation (static binaries) > ii qemu-user-binfmt 1:10.0.3+ds-3 amd64 QEMU user mode binfmt > registration for qemu-user > ii qemu-user-static 1:10.0.3+ds-3 amd64 QEMU user mode emulation > (compat/transitional package) > > > The "Replaces" field is meaningless in the context when apt chooses > which version of which package to install. [...] This field is not about > replacing a package, but about replacing *files* within a package. > > **This is exactly the problem.** > The new `qemu-user` (and `binfmt` via dependency) attempts to take over > ownership of specific files (like `/usr/bin/qemu-x86_64-static`) that > are currently owned by my installed `qemu-user-static` (1:10.0.3). There's no conflicting files like this. If there are, it's a bug. But I still don't see where the actual problem is. In 10.0 and up, qemu-user and qemu-user-binfmt packages has the same list of files, - be it 10.0 or 10.2. The only real difference is that qemu-user-statis is dropped, with all its files. The files which was in older qemu-user-static are not replaced by any other package, they're just gone. There is no (or should not be) file conflicts like this. /usr/bin/qemu-x86_64-static was owned by qemu-user-static before 10.0.3, and now it does not exist. > 1. `dpkg` checks if `qemu-user` has permission to overwrite files owned > by `qemu-user-static` (1:10.0.3). > 2. It checks `Replaces: qemu-user-static (<< 1:9.1.0)`. > 3. Since **1:10.0.3 > 1:9.1.0**, the condition fails. `dpkg` would > refuse the file overwrite. > 4. The APT solver anticipates this file conflict and the lack of a > forceful `Breaks` (which would force removal of the old package), > leading to the dependency error. ghhhrm. Maybe you can include the actual logs from apt/dpkg when this problem happens? Thanks, /mjt
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