apt-cache throws error when running with --no-generate

[beata]

OS: ubuntu:trusty

Ansible log

TASK [debops.php : Get available PHP packages for selected version] ************
[DEPRECATION WARNING]: always_run is deprecated. Use check_mode = no instead..
This feature will be removed in version 2.4. Deprecation
warnings can be disabled by setting deprecation_warnings=False in ansible.cfg.
fatal: [gwectest_web]: FAILED! => {"changed": false, "failed": true, "rc": 100, "stderr": "E: Could not open file  - open (2: No such file
or directory)\nE: Unable to determine file size for fd -1 - fstat (9: Bad file descriptor)\nE: Can't mmap an empty file\nE: Empty package c
ache\nE: Could not open file  - open (2: No such file or directory)\nE: Unable to determine file size for fd -1 - fstat (9: Bad file descri
ptor)\nE: Can't mmap an empty file\nE: Empty package cache\n", "stdout": "", "stdout_lines": []}

Test by executing command directly:

# With `--no-generate` => fail
root@d8d60c0bb48a:/# apt-cache pkgnames php --no-generate
E: Could not open file  - open (2: No such file or directory)
E: Unable to determine file size for fd -1 - fstat (9: Bad file descriptor)
E: Can't mmap an empty file
E: Empty package cache

# Without `--no-generate` => success
root@d8d60c0bb48a:/# apt-cache pkgnames php-memcache
php-memcached
php-memcache

[carlalexander]

I'm getting a whole bunch of errors when I take it out. Example:

Target Packages (main/binary-amd64/Packages) is configured multiple times in /etc/apt/sources.list:4 and /etc/apt/sources.list:9

[carlalexander]

It looks like I made a typo editing the script. I think there's no fatal errors!

[drybjed]

Thanks, it looks like at certain points the APT cache might be not ready for use and initialization might be needed. I'll drop the --no-generate from the script to fix this.