Ubiquity KDE crash on try/install and from live session with "malloc(): unaligned tcache chunk detected"

Some diagnosis as follows:

- Loaded a previous snapshot of a Kubuntu 21.04 VM from before 16th March 2021.
- Installed ubiquity.
- Tested whether ubiquity launches.
- Ubiquity launches.

- Then looked at what was upgradable in the release pocket.
- Sequentially upgraded likely culprits, rebooted, and tried to launch ubiquity after each small update.

Result:

Found that upgrading Mesa packages from 20.3.4-1 to 21.0.0-1 is all that is required to trigger the crash.

Upgraded the following packages:
libegl-mesa0 (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1
libgbm1 (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1
libgl1-mesa-dri (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1
libglapi-mesa (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1
libglx-mesa0 (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1
libxatracker2 (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1
mesa-va-drivers (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1
mesa-vdpau-drivers (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1
mesa-vulkan-drivers (20.3.4-1) to 21.0.0-1

This bug has been reported on the Ubuntu ISO testing tracker.

A list of all reports related to this bug can be found here:
http://iso.qa.ubuntu.com/qatracker/reports/bugs/1920665

Testing a no change rebuild of ubiquity 21.04.11 in a PPA, it seems this is all that is required to remedy the crash with the latest ISO build.

https://launchpad.net/~rikmills/+archive/ubuntu/hirsute/+sourcepub/12212560/+listing-archive-extra

successfully create a thumb drive from:
hirsute-desktop-amd64.iso 2021-03-21 05:49 2.7G Desktop image for 64-bit PC (AMD64) computers (standard download)
boot from thumb drive:
"Installation failed - KDialog \n
The installer encountered an unrecoverable error.
A desktop session will now be run so that you may
investigate the problem or try installing again"

Installation cannot proceed.

I don't have the know how to be able to investigate, unfortunately.

No crash with today's ISO 20210322 on real hardware (intel graphics laptop)

However, in a Virtualbox VM the crash persists.

Unfortunately iso 20210322 is producing a crash on my hardware. [see bug 1920712]

@rikmills

Crash in VirtualBox but real hardware (Lenovo 450) no crash ISO 2021-03-23 same as yr comment #6

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

crash on my hardware with ISO 2021-03-23

no error message appears now
I just get a black screen mouse pointer visible

I would also note that on real hardware here, the crash can be reproduced by booting in safe graphics mode. This is what Bob H said he was doing in his other duplicate bug.

Booting in full mode on my hardware is still no crash.

correction tp post #11:

I just re-attempted installing from thumb drive
on my hardware with ISO 2021-03-23
crash as with ISO 2021-03-22 and earlier

I have nVidia graphics [using safe mode install option]
my hardware is home built PC

My nvidia graphics card needs safe mode, but generally installations proceed without problems.

The Hirsute daily builds were installing without a hitch until recently. I'll check my most recent successful installation and see if I can find a version number. It was after this that the bug appeared.

It turns out I don't have my latest successful installation of Kubuntu Hirsute.
I did a successful install of Ubuntu Hirsute to confirm whether it was only the Kubuntu version that was affected.

A no change rebuild of ubiquity no longer seems to fix the issue with the latest ISO

I hit this issue a couple of days ago when trying the latest Kubuntu ISO in a VM.

Then I tried with the groovy ISO, and the issue was present with that as well.

I have attempted to install from

kubuntu hirsute daily build 21-03-22
kubuntu hirsute daily build 21-03-23
kubuntu hirsute daily build 21-03-24

each version the insstallation fails.

Incidentally I noticed another change.

While the daily builds were installing correctly a procedure appeared on screen, this no longer happens.

After booting the installation media, a self check ran with an on screen display showing the stages the check was passing through.

The word Kubuntu appeared on screen and this display was beneath it.

Since the installation began to fail, the file check no longer shows and although the word Kubuntu appears it disappears shortly after.

As it changed when installation began to fail, maybe there is a connection?

I should repeat, I am performing the installation using 'Safe Graphics' mode.

In reverse of my previous installation bisect, I can confirm that force downgrading mesa to the previous major release results in these crashes going away.

On 2021-03-23 17:32, Gunnar Hjalmarsson wrote:
> Then I tried with the groovy ISO, and the issue was present with that
> as well.

That was false alarm at least. Sorry.

kubuntu hirsute daily build 21-03-28

also fails if safe graphics mode is used on a machine with nVidia graphics

Can ubiquity be run manually? Or there would need to be another reproducer for this, otherwise bisecting mesa would be impossible.

On 31/03/2021 14:21, Timo Aaltonen wrote:
> Can ubiquity be run manually? Or there would need to be another
> reproducer for this, otherwise bisecting mesa would be impossible.

Ubiquity can be run from the command line in a terminal to reproduce.
You also do not have to do it from a ISO live session, but can install
'ubiquity' and 'ubiquity-frontend-kde' on a installed hirsute VM.

This is to confirm that kubuntu-21.04-beta-desktop-amd64.iso fails as an installation media on my PC.
I have nvidia graphics, amd m/board and am using 'safe graphics' when attempting to boot up the installation media from a thumb drive.
The usual "Installation failed" message is displayed.
If more info would help please give me any further instructions.

It is possible on my PC to install Ubuntu2104beta without encountering this behaviour and I can successfully install the Ubuntu flavour.

This bug does happen with the Kubuntu beta and I find it is impossible to install the Kubuntu flavour from the beta iso.

It is worth noting that mesa is present in both Ubuntu and Kubuntu.

To test the slight possibility that builds with the current toolchain might be at fault, I rebuilt mesa 20.03.4 against current release+proposed pockets and downgraded mesa to the result.

Ubiquity/greeter does not crash with that combination.

Is there somewhere or somehow I can test your modified version of Kubuntu by downloading it and attempting an install Rik?

"malloc(): unaligned tcache chunk detected" does not appear on my PC.

I am trying to install from an iso of hippo on a thumb drive.

The boot fails before any 'live session' appears.

I am not trying to install from a live session, boot fails before that point.

I do not think this is the same as the bug reported here.

Rik it appears is attemptig to boot from a live session of some sort.

My installation breaks down before reaching this point.

The iso in the daily build was not failing until some time in March.

It has not been right since.

There were a number of updates on a regular basis in March.

The change is in the boot process rather than in actual installation as the installation has not been begun at the point the bug occurs.

I'm no programmer but I can see that installation has not been offered, let alone begun when things go astray.

Please review any conclusions so far.

Unfortunately what Rik is experiencing on a "live session" in his virtual machine with intel graphics using an unnecessary 'safe graphics' mode is slightly different to my necessary use of 'safe graphics' to unsuccessfully boot from a thumbdrive containing the iso.

I'm sorry I am not a bug hunter, I am not aware of the protocols.
All I can repeat is that a thumb drive containing either a current daily build or the recent beta does not boot correctly.

I would guess in my untutored way that some change to the boot process occurred during March. Up until then I had performed test installs without a hitch.

I would be happy to give any assistance/info I can but my programming experience is severely limited.

@Bob Your crash log confirms it is the same issue. It crashes the installer at the try/install stage (what you are reporting, and what results in the message you see) AND when the installer is manually launched from a live session.

At the moment all anyone can do is wait for the result of the mesa uploaders git bisect, to find the commit/cause in the new mesa that landed in the release pocket @ around the 17th of March.

I've tried, out of interest, an install of Ubuntu (which incidentally also carries the mesa files) from recent daily builds and also of the recently released beta.

Ubuntu is not displaying the behaviour that appears with Kubuntu.

It is possible to transfer the iso to a usb stick, run it from there in safe graphics mode and do an install to a partition on the PC.

As we know at this time this is not possible for Kubuntu.

I post this thinking it might be relevant.

assigning to timo for better tracking

I've tried to bisect mesa to see where it regressed, but turns out that an older git snapshot (~20.3.0) crashes just like with 21.0, so looks like this is caused by something else like the toolchain instead?

On 06/04/2021 17:35, Timo Aaltonen wrote:
> I've tried to bisect mesa to see where it regressed, but turns out that
> an older git snapshot (~20.3.0) crashes just like with 21.0, so looks
> like this is caused by something else like the toolchain instead?

The rebuild of 20.3.4 here does not crash in my tests.

https://launchpad.net/~rikmills/+archive/ubuntu/mesa

Not the version is bumped to make upgrading on a system easier, but it
is a rebuild of 20.3.4 against the same toolchain crashy 21.0.x were
done with.

Please try those

@rikmills

Tested your suggestion in comment #35 and installed with no errors.

Having installed Ubuntu Hippo Beta [or a recent daily build version] successfully as in post #32 it is possible to install the Kubuntu desktop over it resulting in a working version of Kubuntu Hippo.

I suppose this could be seen as a workaround to install a working Kubuntu 2104.

this is caused by the zink driver, and there's a fix upstream

Will the mesa fix be available on a daily build? I would like to test it on my hardware.

This bug was fixed in the package mesa - 21.0.1-2

---------------
mesa (21.0.1-2) experimental; urgency=medium

  * Move zink down the list below the sw drivers. (LP: #1920665)

 -- Timo Aaltonen <email address hidden> Wed, 07 Apr 2021 13:18:01 +0300

I can confirm the fix works.

Tested daily ISO Kubuntu Hirsute ISO 20210409 with VirtualBox and no errors.

See results here: http://iso.qa.ubuntu.com/qatracker/milestones/419/builds/229247/testcases/1300/results

I downloaded Kubuntu daily build for 2021-04-09 and put the iso on a thumb drive
I am using the 'safe graphics' option needed by my system.

The on screen display of the initial file check process, with option to skip, still doesn't show.

A splash screen eventually shows and flickers a few times before the screen with 'try live' and 'install now' buttons appears.

I can now successfully access with the 'live screen' option, also the 'install now' button works.

I successfully installed Kubuntu Hippo via the 'install now' button.

The ISO file integrity check was recently changed so it now runs in the background. It does not show while booting or delay boot.

I understand, thanks Rik.