this post was submitted on 20 Sep 2023
1066 points (98.7% liked)

Linux

56064 readers
736 users here now

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

Rules

Related Communities

Community icon by Alpár-Etele Méder, licensed under CC BY 3.0

founded 6 years ago
MODERATORS
 
all 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] dustyData@lemmy.world 167 points 2 years ago (5 children)

People would read the second message, type the yes prompt, break their system. But still claim that it was linux's fault, and that the OS doesn't work.

[–] gogosempai@programming.dev 28 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

They need to noobify that prompt further, something like "Yes, break my system!". Even Linus wouldn't fall for that (I hope)!

[–] Matombo@feddit.de 21 points 2 years ago (1 children)

*They will claim it was Linus fault

[–] msage@programming.dev 4 points 2 years ago (1 children)
[–] darcy@sh.itjust.works 13 points 2 years ago
[–] palordrolap@kbin.social 18 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Message two can also be caused by packages (or rather, package creators) with delusions of grandeur that only think that the system will stop working without them, so they rig things to threaten to uninstall the system.

Or else someone has created too heavy a dependency on something that ought to be removable, but isn't thanks to malice or incompetence (or both).

We still mock Microsoft for putting too heavy a dependency (or at least removal FUD) on whatever web browser they bundle with their OSes (first IE, now Edge), and here we might have a package creator trying the same damn thing.

[–] z500@lemmy.world 11 points 2 years ago

Honestly I once did this to my desktop environment because I saw a huge list of packages and ignored it because I thought they were packages that could be upgraded, not that it was going to uninstall my fucking desktop lol

[–] phx@lemmy.ca 160 points 2 years ago (2 children)
  • Login as a user.
  • Delete the user while still logged in
  • Run command

You should get a message "you don't exist, go away"

Not sure if that one is still around but I know one person who ran a script with "deluser $USER" and it ate root resulting in fun messages like that

[–] marcos@lemmy.world 36 points 2 years ago (1 children)

My local deluser checks if the user has any active process. I tried deleting all of the data by hand, but the process is still assigned to a user name and id.

I'm not sure if this one can error still can be replicated.

[–] phx@lemmy.ca 4 points 2 years ago

Well you could manually edit /etc/password and shadow I suppose

[–] Hubi@feddit.de 25 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I think I'll just take your word for it.

[–] lauha@lemmy.one 8 points 2 years ago

Easy to try in a virtual machine with snapshot. Or use a filesystem snapshot

[–] poweruser@lemmy.sdf.org 86 points 2 years ago (2 children)

How could you not include the classic printer lp0 on fire!

I actually got that one around 2010 on Ubuntu. The printer wasn't actually on fire. If I recall it was caused by the network attached printer losing connection during a job

[–] mreiner@beehaw.org 17 points 2 years ago

That was a fun read, thank you.

[–] ryannathans@aussie.zone 15 points 2 years ago

Good chance that could be fire

[–] Martin@lemmy.ml 86 points 2 years ago (1 children)

There's also the naughty programmer getting spanked by EFL

[–] fishsayhelo@lemmy.ml 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

EFL is an absolute crime against programmer-kind, even if the errors are, admittedly, hilarious. can assert that they are not so funny when you find them deeeeep in some god-forsaken legacy codebase that's seen more null *s than git commits lol

[–] Hubi@feddit.de 77 points 2 years ago (1 children)

The third one is new to me. "Congratulations" - that's fucking hilarious.

[–] nyan@lemmy.cafe 10 points 2 years ago

I got so hung up on the misspelling of "separate" that I didn't even see the "Congratulations" on first read-through. Which says more about me than about the error message, alas. 😅

[–] MIDItheKID@lemmy.world 74 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Reminds me of the Chocolatey Uninstall script warning

[–] 30p87@feddit.de 18 points 2 years ago (2 children)

What the heck tho, how could a simple script destroy a whole machine?

[–] Natanael@slrpnk.net 21 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

When a software package installer isn't designed to be reversible

I recall a bunch of antiviruses being similarly difficult to completely wipe

[–] 30p87@feddit.de 3 points 2 years ago

It isn't as hard apparently. The script follows the manual way, just delete the folder it's in. What is a problem seems to be changing the path - extracting, changing and reapplying the path variable seems to need 90 lines of Powershell alone. That's just crazy. I'm also wondering how other programs write themselves into path without needing warnings and backups of the path for the user to restore.

[–] MonkderZweite@feddit.ch 5 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

It doesn't say that.

If you setup your system with Chocolatey (is a package manager for Windows), removing Chocolatey will break your setup (removing all installed packages).

[–] 30p87@feddit.de 4 points 2 years ago

Seriously, this script may destroy your machine and require a rebuild. It may have varied results on different machines in the same environment. Think twice before running this.

I don't think "machine" is defined as "installed packages". And reading the code of the script, the breaking part is the whole script, as 90 lines are literally just for the purpose of getting, changing and reapplying the path variable. It (or rather the system and user one) are also backed up to C:\PATH_backups_ChocolateyUninstall.txt.
So it's still a wonder for me how removing something from path, or adding for that matter, is so complicated. Linux just has /usr/bin and /usr/local/bin for custom scripts/programs globally, and .local/bin for user specific executables. If you really want custom paths for your special application then add a script in /etc/profile.d/. No need to permanently change a global variable that could easily break your system at any time.

TL;DR Windows is dumb for having global PATH variables without a way to expand them modularly, which would be much safer.

[–] xantoxis@lemmy.world 66 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (2 children)

score 10 or sacrifice child is actually just a MtG card, how did that get in there

[–] Lemmyvisitor@lemmy.dbzer0.com 40 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I can't imagine Linux users and mtg players being mutually exclusive lol

[–] SaintWacko@lemmy.world 2 points 2 years ago
[–] iHUNTcriminals@lemm.ee 2 points 2 years ago

Gah and I spent all that money on a garage foundation.

[–] Voyajer@lemmy.world 65 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)
[–] palitu@aussie.zone 15 points 2 years ago

yeah, quote a problematic video. surprised that he deleted everything, when is says it will break his system!

[–] JWBananas@startrek.website 47 points 2 years ago
[–] boringbisexual@lib.lgbt 41 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

Top one has to be my favorite. I've gotten it once. I did manage to get it to boot and fixed it but at the time I was just like: "oh....well shit"

[–] ciko22i3@sopuli.xyz 12 points 2 years ago (2 children)

do you remember what causes it? and what was the fix?

[–] magi093@l.tta.wtf 15 points 2 years ago

When a (typical) Linux system boots up, it first goes through an "early boot" environment that just has some basic drivers and things. The entire purpose of this environment is to find where your actual root file system is (which could theoretically be on something quite complicated, like RAID or a network file system), mount that, and then transition to the "real" system.

That error appears when something goes wrong with mounting the real file system.

[–] HatFullOfSky@lemmy.world 7 points 2 years ago

I had this happen to me recently too, with an EndeavourOS live USB. In my case, it turned out to be due to a faulty flash, reflashing with Rufus fixed it.

[–] zazaserty@discuss.tchncs.de 26 points 2 years ago

BEST os ever, proof is right here.

[–] Pfnic@feddit.ch 23 points 2 years ago (1 children)

That's some bare metal system breakage I can get behind

[–] DocBlaze@lemmy.world 2 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

What was that? I couldn't hear you over my triggered anxiety.

Be back later, gonna go generate more recovery media.

[–] Overlock@sopuli.xyz 19 points 2 years ago

Where lp0 on fire?

[–] chandz05@lemmy.world 16 points 2 years ago

I've been messing around with Linux VMs and have gotten kernel panic a lot lately. Always gives me a chuckle

[–] RegalPotoo@lemmy.world 12 points 2 years ago

lp0: on fire

[–] blight@hexbear.net 11 points 2 years ago (1 children)

linux susadmin can't even find the print screen button smdh head /s

[–] traches@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 years ago

You don’t see most of these errors in situations where screenshots are possible

[–] 9488fcea02a9@sh.itjust.works 10 points 2 years ago

php has a log message about killing children, i think i saw once

[–] theshatterstone54@feddit.uk 4 points 2 years ago

The first one sent shivers fown my spine.

Second one just reminded me of Linus' challenge.

The third one gave me quite a laugh.

I let out a chuckle on the last one

[–] cypherpunks@lemmy.ml 2 points 2 years ago

the famous "This incident will be reported" error was briefly removed last year before being replaced with a less ominous version.

[–] rotopenguin@infosec.pub 2 points 2 years ago