bug # 1515513 is a contributing factor. DKMS has been patched upstream for that particular bug. Not sure when Ubuntu will update or incorporate the patch into their packaged version of dkms.
Are there any other files left behind after kernel updates that might cause these kinds of update problems? Are there different circumstances in which a file may or may not be deleted? It affects every install that uses dkms and updates kernels in the long run. This doesn't put any Linux distribution in a favorable light. This bug eventually leaves the system in an insecure, unstable state. And this has been happening since at least 2012 (that's when I first noticed updates failing due to lack of space in /boot). As others have stated, it is impossible to resolve manually for those who are not technical and just want to use the desktop. My father has actually had this happen on the Ubuntu install I set up for him. I agree. I think it should be handled as a security issue with a higher priority. -- You received this bug notification because you are a member of Ubuntu Touch seeded packages, which is subscribed to ubuntu-meta in Ubuntu. https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1037285 Title: /boot fills up after many kernel upgrades Status in ubuntu-meta package in Ubuntu: Confirmed Bug description: THIS ISSUE MAY PREVENT SECURITY UPDATES TO THE KERNEL. Obsolete versions of the kernel remain installed on a system, causing a full /boot or wasting space on single-partition installations. This has the effect that (some) software updates no longer work (at least those to the kernel): update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-3.2.0-29-generic gzip: stdout: No space left on device [...] Errors were encountered while processing: initramfs-tools E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1) To resolve this, the user must figure out which packages to deinstall. A novice user will not know what to do. To manage notifications about this bug go to: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/ubuntu-meta/+bug/1037285/+subscriptions -- Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~touch-packages Post to : touch-packages@lists.launchpad.net Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~touch-packages More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
