How could an update break X?

[Carrots171]

The latest updates for Ubuntu break X!. This problem has been fixed (the fix may not have hit the repositories yet, check the thread above), but a whole lot of computers (including mine) have gotten screwed up. Luckily, instructions on how to fix it were posted on these forums! Good job guys! =D>

This problem does bring up many questions, however: How could a bug in the update that breaks the whole x-server (and for that matter breaks the computer) have gotten into the repositories? What exactly happened?

[tseliot]

A human mistake I guess. Did you ever make a mistake?

Well I did (many times)

[mrgnash]

If there's a bug in the update for the xserver-xorg-core, then yeah, it can break X

[slimdog360]

Ive made a mistake once, I thought that I made a mistake but it turns out that I didn't so I made a mistake about that.

[Rackerz]

Ive made a mistake once, I thought that I made a mistake but it turns out that I didn't so I made a mistake about that.

Lol, you learn from your mistakes .

[win_zik]

A human mistake I guess. Did you ever make a mistake?

Well I did (many times)

Oh many.
However, afaik I'm not a distribution that claims to offer a stable, enterprise ready linux distribution.

Breaking X in a stable release is something that simply must not happen.

[%hMa@?b<C]

oh no! I just installed the update! How do i fix it, I have not rebooted yet though.

[philipgm]

Ubuntu has been installed by a lot of people who are not used to using the CLI and who will find fixing this problem very stressful, assuming that they have a spare system to look in these forums for the solution. The size of the installed base means that mistakes are much more difficult to tolerate in terms of the reputation of a distribution.

It seems to me that this could have cost Ubuntu some of its installed base and shows that there is some problem with the testing procedures. Since I can't believe that this software wasn't tested before going into the repos it seems to me that testing may have been limited to systems with the Intel bridge problem that the update says it fixes. The implication being that more testing needs to be done (obviously) but Ubuntu developers don't have unlimited access to hardware. Therefore, more people need to volunteer to test updates and I'd like to know how to do that!

[%hMa@?b<C]

ok, i downgraded by going into synaptic and searching for
"xserver-xorg-core"
and then doing
Package>Force version to dapper instead of dapper-updates. That should work

[chaosgeisterchen]

Humanity comes to its borders when it comes to the economical point of view. However.. Ubuntu cannot claim to be server capable if something like _that_ happens. I know that a professional server has no X. But just in case.. and imagine companies using ubuntu and updating the machines enterprisewide...

oh my god.. it's horrible.

Ubuntu can claim to be human, but this has nothing to do with it. Just an very annoying 'bugfix'