mkinitrd returns blkid: invalid option — 'u' on Centos 7.6

[barry_devops]

I rebuilt kernel rpms successfully and trying to install it. I get

blkid: invalid option -- 'u'

error. I found out that it comes from dracut.

Code: Select all

makeinitrd /boot/initramfs-${KVER}.img ${KVER} --force (actually calls dracut)
dracut /boot/initramfs-${KVER}.img ${KVER} --force

Both returns the same error. Looks like blkid has no such option but why dracut is trying to use this option?

Though it creates initramfs under /boot somehow. But it doesn't boot.

I use Centos 7.6 image, the kernel is from elrepo vmlinuz-4.20.6-1.el7.x86_64.

[TrevorH]

What's the output from which blkid run as root?

BTW, the command is mkinitrd not makeinitrd and it's officially deprecated and dracut should be used directly - that's why it's just a wrapper script.

[barry_devops]

it is /sbin/blkid

I found the problem. For the record, something in my rpm rebuild process is overwriting blkid with an old version. I start to build OS from kickstart. I'll check its configuration.

blkid in my centos box is version 2003. -u and -k options were introduced in late versions.

Thanks.

[TrevorH]

We ship

blkid from util-linux 2.23.2 (libblkid 2.23.0, 25-Apr-2013)

and it knows the -u switch.

[barry_devops]

I found the root cause.

I am adding e2fsprogs from kernel.org to my cents box. And apparently that package has an old version of blkid and overwrites util-linux blkid.

[barry_devops]

Centos has its own e2fsprogs package and it has no problem. I believe the package manager removes this binary from the rpm. But I have to use its new version which is not available with default centos 7.6 box so I installed it from the source.

There is a conflict between e2fsprogs and util-linux in terms of this binary.

[Haystack]

This issue has just rendered all of my servers unbootable after a kernel upgrade, because it has broken dracut so it can't make a new initramfs. e2fsprogs is installed from "anaconda" which I believe just means it was installed by the CentOS installer. I don't get why it only just happened now though. I've been running these servers for months. What should I do? Uninstall e2fsprogs?

[TrevorH]

I suspect the anaconda stuff that you have installed is not from CentOS repos but rather a developer version from the anaconda people. They add their own directory to the front of $PATH so their stuff is found first. Edit where they set that and move their path to the end of $PATH.

What's the output from which e2fsck ?

[Haystack]

I suspect the anaconda stuff that you have installed is not from CentOS repos but rather a developer version from the anaconda people. They add their own directory to the front of $PATH so their stuff is found first. Edit where they set that and move their path to the end of $PATH.

What's the output from which e2fsck ?

I've not installed anything except from CentOS and epel repos and I didn't install e2fsprogs myself as far as I can remember. My PATH did not have anything unexpected on it. I'm generally pretty aware of what is in my PATH.

which e2fsck gives me /sbin//e2fsck

Anyways I managed to fix it already. I reinstalled util-linux and it overwrote the super old version of blkid with the proper one, and then I was able to regenerate the initramfs with dracut as I would usually.

[TrevorH]

Actually it was the blkid comand which was wrong so look for duplicate copies of that and see where the rogue one comes from.

No package will ever overwrite a file that was supplied by one that is already installed (and is not obsoleted or superceded by the to-be-installed package) - i.e. packages that try to supply files that are already owned by an already installed package will get an error during yum install/update.