Description of problem: PackageKit is a nice alternative to using yum command line. I like having PackageKit installed so that it can tell me when there are new updates, but I usually use yum to install them. The "Cannot get lock" when running yum is however very annoying. It pops up out of nowhere, unrelated to what the user is doing. It pops up as something important even though nobody told it to do anything right now. It doesn't introduce itself as PackageKit. It doesn't tell which right it has to access the "package backend". It even pretend to know what the user should do ("close any other legacy packaging tools"). In my opinion, if it has anything to say from the tray then a notification icon and perhaps a notification message would be a better way to do it. The "I don't know if any critical updates are waiting" situation should be considered just as critical as "there _are_ critical updates waiting" - but not more critical or important than that. Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable): PackageKit-0.4.9-1.fc11.i586 - but I'm pretty sure I have got the same user experience in rawhide.
In F12 we show who is holding the lock. This is a difficult problem to solve, as if yum is sitting there doing nothing with the lock held, then PackageKit can't do anything. It's the software equivalent of locking a door and leaving for work, when other people need to open and close the door all day. >It doesn't tell which right it has to access the "package backend". How do you mean? Richard. p.s. is there any reason you're applying the updates using yum manually? pkcon lets you do that on the command line, and it plays nicely with PackageKit.
Yes, PackageKit solves a difficult problem and does a very good job at pleasing as many as possible, but obviously it can't please everyone. My request is mainly that if PackageKit is sitting in the corner and finds out that it can't do anything then it shouldn't start shouting and stealing attention. If PackageKit is locked out then it should tell it in a civilized manner, just as it does when critical updates are waiting. > >It doesn't tell which right it has to access the "package backend". > > How do you mean? The message box pops up out of context. It doesn't say that it is PackageKit (which might be Ok becuase the user doesn't know PackageKit by name), and it doesn't refer to how PackageKit looks and what it does. An over-simplified suggestion could be: "Hello. I am the service who checks for security updates to your system and notifies you when something requires your attention. I am currently not able to check for updates because something else has locked the package backend." I don't seriously suggest this text, but some aspects might be usable. However: if the current message showed up as an notification bubble pointing to the usual something-is-wrong-give-me-your-attention-icon then it would help a lot. > p.s. is there any reason you're applying the updates using yum manually? pkcon > lets you do that on the command line, and it plays nicely with PackageKit The main reason I don't use pkcon is that I might have seen it mentioned somewhere, but I really don't _know_ it. If PackageKit built directly on rpm then it would make more sense, but for me with a lot of rpm and yum experience I don't feel motivated for using a third and generic layer on top of it. I just use PackageKit as an extra tool, and I like it that way.
In F13 we've reduced the number of times PK can notify the user out-of the blue. Can you try F13 and tell us what you think? Thanks.