Cannot open add/remove files 'database locked'

[Joe8x]

I am getting an error message that 'another process is using the packaging system'. Database is locked. Cannot get in add/remove files, and Adept is read-only, cannot install or remove programs.

Is there an apt-get command that I could find the file that may be keeping the packaging system open? And after finding, how could I remove the file?

Thank you for the help

[penguin.ch]

Re: Cannot open add/remove files 'database locked'

http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/index.php?topic=14042.0

[Joe8x]

Re: Cannot open add/remove files 'database locked'

Thanks for the advice.

searched /var for locked files. Found 3 : Adept, Aptitude, & Apt-get files. All inaccessible. Tried to delete, but am not able to. Any way to delete these files?

[penguin.ch]

Re: Cannot open add/remove files 'database locked'

Launch the file manager in "super user mode":

[Alt][F2] kdesu konqueror

(profoundly dangerous, but sometimes inevitable).

[slackrat]

Re: Cannot open add/remove files 'database locked'

have you checked Ksystem guard to see if any package tools are running in the background? if there is , that may block you from uisng another one......

cheers

[Fenyx]

Re: Cannot open add/remove files 'database locked'

From the IRC factoids:

If Adept crashed on you and your database is locked, try this in konsole

sudo fuser -vki /var/lib/dpkg/lock

then

sudo dpkg --configure -a