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HardSun

Member

Registered: 2025-07-29

Posts: 2  

Systemctl Daemon Reload

Hi Devuan forum.

I just installed devuan daedalus yesterday via devuan debootstrap from a grml live session and wanted to ask if this is normal behavior or something new when installing packages via a chroot/debootstrap. The system is working ok so sysvinit is doing its job but when i was in a chroot installing packages i got below messages on packages that needed init settings applied.

for example, connman-gtk.

Purging configuration files for connman (1.41-3) ...
Can't exec "systemctl": No such file or directory at /usr/sbin/update-rc.d line 98.
Can't exec "systemctl": No such file or directory at /usr/bin/deb-systemd-helper line 682.
Processing triggers for dbus (1.14.10-1~deb12u1devuan1) ...
Log ended: 2025-07-29  13:27:32

/usr/sbin/update-rc.d at line 98

sub systemd_reload {
    if (length $ENV{DPKG_ROOT}) {
        # if we operate on a chroot from the outside, do not attempt to reload
        return;
    }
    if (-d "/run/systemd/system") {
        system("systemctl", "daemon-reload");
    }
}

/usr/bin/deb-systemd-helper line 682

# If we changed anything and this machine is running systemd, tell
# systemd to reload so that it will immediately pick up our
# changes.
if (!length $ENV{DPKG_ROOT} && $changed_sth && $instance eq 'system' && -d "/run/systemd/system") {
    system("systemctl", "daemon-reload");
}

Im thinking its because maybe i was using grml live iso as the main/base system to install devuan? Or should these files even exist on a supposedly systemd free fork of debian?

Altoid

Member

Registered: 2017-05-07

Posts: 1,782  

Re: Systemctl Daemon Reload

Hello:

Welcome to Devuan.

... should these files even exist on a supposedly systemd free fork of debian?

I run Devuan Daedalus on my box:

$ uname -a
Linux devuan 6.1.0-37-amd64 #1 SMP PREEMPT_DYNAMIC Debian 6.1.140-1 (2025-05-22) x86_64 GNU/Linux
$ 

My system does not have systemctl installed.
No dependency requires it, but it is present in the repository and as such, it can be installed:

$ apt list | grep systemctl
--- snip ---
systemctl-service-shim/stable,stable 0.0.5-1 all
systemctl/stable,stable 1.4.4181-1.1 all
$

# apt install systemctl
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree... Done
Reading state information... Done
Suggested packages:
  tini | dumb-init
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  systemctl
0 upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
Need to get 79.8 kB of archives.
After this operation, 279 kB of additional disk space will be used.
Get:1 http://deb.devuan.org/merged daedalus/main amd64 systemctl all 1.4.4181-1.1 [79.8 kB]
Fetched 79.8 kB in 4s (18.3 kB/s)                 
Selecting previously unselected package systemctl.
(Reading database ... 165616 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to unpack .../systemctl_1.4.4181-1.1_all.deb ...
Unpacking systemctl (1.4.4181-1.1) ...
Setting up systemctl (1.4.4181-1.1) ...
Processing triggers for man-db (2.11.2-2) ...
# 

That said, I don't have much of an idea what it is used for in a systemd-less installation, but I suspect (wild guess) that it is/may be related to all the dummy/shim files Devuan uses to be able to run Debian packages which want to see indications of the presence of systemd to work properly. 
ie: a non-dependent dependency, if you will.

If you install it and run it as root from a terminal, you will get a printout with the list of dummy / shim files installed in your system with their status, some with a description of what they are used for.

eg:

# systemctl
.depend.boot.service	loaded inactive dead	
.depend.start.service	loaded inactive dead	
.depend.stop.service	loaded inactive dead	
README.service	loaded inactive dead	
acpid.path	loaded inactive dead	ACPI Events Check
acpid.service	loaded inactive dead	ACPI event daemon
acpid.socket	loaded inactive dead	ACPID Listen Socket
--- snip ---
connman-wait-online.service	loaded inactive dead	Wait for network to be configured by ConnMan
connman.service	loaded inactive dead	Connection service
--- snip ---
zramswap.service	loaded inactive dead	Linux zramswap setup

150 loaded units listed.
To show all installed unit files use 'systemctl list-unit-files'.
# 

Cannot say much more than that.

Best,

A.

ralph.ronnquist

Administrator

From: Battery Point, Tasmania, AUS

Registered: 2016-11-30

Posts: 1,446  

Re: Systemctl Daemon Reload

It appears your system in the chroot has a directory "/run/systemd/system"; perhaps that chroot filesystem has a bind-mounted "/run" from an outer "grml live iso" system with that badness in it?

HardSun

Member

Registered: 2025-07-29

Posts: 2  

Re: Systemctl Daemon Reload

@ralph.ronnquist
Thanks, that makes sense seeing as though i installed via grml live iso using grml-chroot. So those scripts must be a catch all for systemd, openrc, runit and sysvinit then? Had i used a devuan live iso with sysvinit i possibly would not have seen those messages or maybe other messages in place.