pitter patter on the keyboard

Just like it sounds, the package you are trying to emerge is attempting to write files outside of your prefix. Depending on the situation it may be that there is no fix, but it is possible that upgrading eselect or portage and re-syncing the portage tree will solve the problem – as was the case for me this morning when attempting to emerge -e system with the distributed portage snapshot:

>>> Completed installing ncurses-5.9-r02.1 into /Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/image/

ecompressdir: bzip2 -9 /usr/share/man
 * QA Notice: the following files are outside of the prefix:
 * /usr
 * /usr/lib
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/form.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/formw.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/menu.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/menuw.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/ncurses++.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/ncurses++w.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/ncurses.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/ncursesw.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/panel.pc
 * /usr/lib/pkgconfig/panelw.pc
 * ERROR: sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1 failed:
 *   Aborting due to QA concerns: there are files installed outside the prefix
 * 
 * Call stack:
 *   misc-functions.sh, line 1877:  Called install_qa_check
 *   misc-functions.sh, line  253:  Called install_qa_check_prefix
 *   misc-functions.sh, line  900:  Called die
 * The specific snippet of code:
 *   			die 

 * 
 * If you need support, post the output of `emerge --info '=sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1'`,
 * the complete build log and the output of `emerge -pqv '=sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1'`.
 * The complete build log is located at '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/temp/build.log'.
 * The ebuild environment file is located at '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/temp/environment'.
 * Working directory: '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/image'
 * S: '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/work/ncurses-5.9'
!!! post install failed; exiting.

>>> Failed to emerge sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1, Log file:

>>>  '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/temp/build.log'

 * Messages for package sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1:

 * ERROR: sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1 failed:
 *   Aborting due to QA concerns: there are files installed outside the prefix
 * 
 * Call stack:
 *   misc-functions.sh, line 1877:  Called install_qa_check
 *   misc-functions.sh, line  253:  Called install_qa_check_prefix
 *   misc-functions.sh, line  900:  Called die
 * The specific snippet of code:
 *   			die "Aborting due to QA concerns: there are files installed outside the prefix"
 * 
 * If you need support, post the output of `emerge --info '=sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1'`,
 * the complete build log and the output of `emerge -pqv '=sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1'`.
 * The complete build log is located at '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/temp/build.log'.
 * The ebuild environment file is located at '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/temp/environment'.
 * Working directory: '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/image'
 * S: '/Users/karma/gentoo/var/tmp/portage/sys-libs/ncurses-5.9-r02.1/work/ncurses-5.9'

 * GNU info directory index is up-to-date.

 * IMPORTANT: 2 news items need reading for repository 'gentoo_prefix'.
 * Use eselect news to read news items.

ioss-macbook:~ karma$ 

OS X used to ship with a version of locate which, when running locate.updatedb would throw a message warning that building the locate db as root could expose the location of all files to any user. As of Lion (10.7) this warning is no longer shown but I haven’t found anything which would indicate it’s no longer true. Combined with a few other limitations, a case can be made for installing slocate if Spotlight is just not for you.

Slocate has been the standard on Linux distributions for years, though it is losing favour to the more efficient mlocate. What they have in common is that the database is meant to be built as root and it includes ownership and permission information so lesser-priviledged users running m/slocate only get to see the files they have access to. To get slocate running on your mac you may choose to compile it from source or go the lazy route as I have and grab a binary distribution of it from MacPorts.

First, install MacPorts, available at http://www.macports.org/. Open a terminal session. If /opt/local/bin is not a part of your PATH cd there then run:

$ sudo ./port install slocate

Now that locate is installed it will be necessary to create the “slocate” group before creating the database or you will encounter an error like this:

slocate: warning: Could not find the group: slocate in the /etc/group file.
slocate: fatal error: This is a result of the group missing or a corrupted group file.

It is possible to create a new group from the command line with dscl but it requires you to choose a group number. To be tidy and use the internally incrementing group number let’s create the group by opening System Preferences > Users & Groups. Click the lock to make changes. Click the + button under the user list. Select Group from the New dropdown. Type ‘slocate’ and click the “Create Group” button. Once the group has been created add your account to it by clicking the checkbox next to your avatar in the Membership list.

Now we need to create the initial database:

$ sudo slocate -u

If you want your slocate database to update automatically add the contents of /opt/local/etc/daily.slocate to /etc/daily.local or /etc/weekly.local, excluding the line #!/bin/sh – if one already exists.

If you try to use slocate as a regular user (which has been added to the slocate group) in any currently open shells you will encounter the error message:

slocate: fatal error: search_db: open: '/opt/local/var/db/slocate/slocate.db': Permission denied

terminate the shell and start a new one; the old instance of bash was not aware of your account being a part of the new slocate group.

I haven’t given macs much thought since they switched to Intel and my computer repair days are long behind me but one of my clients is a doll of an ol’ gal who eats, sleeps and breathes mailing lists and when her old mac started crapping out I could not bear to let her go without.

It did not take long to figure out the Maxtor (so much for the “choice components” argument, huh Apple?) drive which shipped with the mac years ago had fried.

Opening up this thing is an immense pain in the ass. The iMac models above and below the iSight G5 seem to all open by lifting out the back panel by the stand, exposing all the replaceable parts. That makes perfect sense and I can see working on one of them to be a dream. The people who designed this chassis, on the other hand, were clearly drunk.

Not only does the front bezel (which includes the outer sides) have to be removed from the back, the LCD display must be unscrewed and disconnected – all the while one must put up with copious amounts of easily torn tape. Tape which I eventually decided served its purpose better in the rubbish bin.

The worst part about taking this thing apart is the two strange latches at the top of the bezel. I’m still not sure how to correctly operate them, I just dug in with a butterknife and shimmied around a bit until the damn things unhinged.

Once the display has been lifted and some of the plugs disconnected you can remove the hard drive. You will probably need a “proper” Torx driver set to do this; the screws mounting the screen are sunk into wells which were not large enough for the shaft of my ratchet driver to fit down. If I did not happen to have a precision slot driver that “fit” these screws handy this mac would have ended up benched for weeks (exactly how long it takes for a Torx set to ship here from Hong Kong)

The drive has a mounting bracket and little headless screw-pegs that slide into the rubber grommets on the inward side of the enclosure.

Here’s a photo of those grommets:

The drive has a heat sensor mounted on its side. I’m not sure if it was by intention or if this mac was unique but the PCB was mounted with a corner covering half of the middle bolt hole on the drive. This let me pry it off easily and I took the hint to do the same thing when mounting it on the new drive.

It’s held on by a little goo-pad. If you pry gently it should stay mostly intact.

Her mac is now as healthy as a horse. Despite this, I told her next time she has a problem with it to toss it in the bin.

Payment? One homemade blueberry-blackberry-raspberry cheesecake and a 26er of rye.

Bring on the NWO, I’ve got my bartering skills in line.

Resources:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=996617

This post in particular:

Remove all 5 screws on the bottom. The two for the ram slot are captive. The other 3 are not. One is longer than the others, note which slot it came from.

There are catch levers on the top corners that need to be released by sliding something in there. That post recommended a credit card or thin plastic. I used two thin table knives with non-serrated edges.

Once the top is off you can flip it up and lay it down or undo all the tape and unplug the iSight. I left mine intact.

Then the fun part (NOT!). Using my table knife I very carefully peeled up the thick black foil tape stuff along the two edges. It’s so sticky and tears easily. You need infinte patience. Once peeled up it reveals 4 torx screws holding the LCD in down on the bottom. You need a long Torx screwdriver and make sure it is magnetic—the screws are not captive and what a pain! Especially when you don’t have a magnetic driver!

The you can lift up the LCD. Again I left mine connected and just propped it up by sticking a can of compressed air I had sitting nearby in as a prop (obviously away from the boards). I did have to disconnect the video though (two white connectors on the left that are easy to disconnect).