Why is dpkg failing when I try to install or update packages?

November 12, 2026 2 answers
Asked by peek_inside_the_box_

Package installations and updates keep failing with /usr/bin/dpkg error code 1. Running sudo dpkg --configure -a shows a DKMS build failure for nintendo/3.2 while configuring kernel headers. It points to a make.log file under /var/lib/dkms. What should I check?

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Aisle_Elsewhere

The dpkg error is the final result, not the underlying cause. In the output you shared, DKMS is trying to build the nintendo module for the new kernel and that build is failing. The REMAKE_INITRD messages are deprecation warnings, so look past those for the actual compiler error.

Read /var/lib/dkms/nintendo/3.2/build/make.log, for example with less /var/lib/dkms/nintendo/3.2/build/make.log. Share the relevant errors from that file, along with your distribution and version, if you want help figuring out whether the module can be fixed.

nearly_there+_:

That log location is normal for a DKMS build. It is separate from the package manager's own logs.

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_perhaps_later

If you no longer need that module, you can remove its DKMS registration with sudo dkms remove nintendo/3.2 --all. Then try sudo dpkg --configure -a again to finish the interrupted package configuration.

That removes the module for all kernels, so check whether you rely on it first. If it came from a package, remove the source through the package manager too. If it was installed manually, identify where its source was placed before deleting anything.

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