Re: Newbie: Error when using "guix gc -D" to delete directory in /gnu/store

[Julien Lepiller]

First of all, you don't need to delete these files. Even if they exist in the 
store, they won't be foumd by other software unless they are currently 
installed in one of your profiles.

The error you get when you try to delete them means that one of the generations 
of one of your profiles still has a reference to them. You should have a look 
at the symlinks at /var/guix/profiles to fehure out which profile and which 
generetion that is.

Le 19 mars 2023 01:33:56 GMT+01:00, Rodrigo Morales 
<moralesrodrigo1100@gmail.com> a écrit :
>Table of Contents
>_________________
>
>1. The context
>2. What I've tried
>3. Additional information
>4. The question
>
>
>1 The context
>=============
>
>  I had previously installed the package `rime-data'. One of the files
>  that is installed by that package is called `wubi86.dict.yaml'.
>
>  I'm currently experimenting with `ibus' and I need all files that
>  exist in `/gnu/store' that are called `wubi86.dict.yaml' to be deleted
>  from my system. I've located those files, but when I try to delete
>  those files, I get the following error
>
>  ,----
>  | guix gc -D /gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | finding garbage collector roots...
>  | guix gc: error: cannot delete path
>`/gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile' since it is still
>alive
>  `----
>
>  See next section to see what I've tried to delete those directories.
>
>
>2 What I've tried
>=================
>
>  I know how to locate all files that are called `wubi86,dict.yaml' and
>  are located under `/gnu/store'
>
>  ,----
>  | sudo updatedb
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | locate 'wubi86.dict.yaml'
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  |
>/gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile/share/rime-data/wubi86.dict.yaml
>  |
>/gnu/store/b3f1s6nnj1rg7szcmb3n3y194ayhfgja-rime-data-0.38.20210802/share/rime-data/wubi86.dict.yaml
>  |
>/gnu/store/zj0cf20jk3qgl12451znx1n8rj13z2jg-profile/share/rime-data/wubi86.dict.yaml
>  `----
>
>  If I try to delete any of those directories using `guix gc -D', I get
>  the same error (please see code blocks below)
>
>  ,----
>  | guix gc -D /gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | finding garbage collector roots...
>  | guix gc: error: cannot delete path
>`/gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile' since it is still
>alive
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | guix gc -D
>/gnu/store/b3f1s6nnj1rg7szcmb3n3y194ayhfgja-rime-data-0.38.20210802
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | finding garbage collector roots...
>  | guix gc: error: cannot delete path
>`/gnu/store/b3f1s6nnj1rg7szcmb3n3y194ayhfgja-rime-data-0.38.20210802' since
>it is still alive
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | guix gc -D /gnu/store/zj0cf20jk3qgl12451znx1n8rj13z2jg-profile/
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | finding garbage collector roots...
>  | guix gc: error: cannot delete path
>`/gnu/store/zj0cf20jk3qgl12451znx1n8rj13z2jg-profile' since it is still
>alive
>  `----
>
>
>3 Additional information
>========================
>
>  I found [this thread] in the help-guix mailing list on the same
>  topic. In [this reply], someone mentions that it is possible to list
>  the referrers to see which directories are pointing to those
>  directories. This is the output of those command.
>
>  For the two directories that end in `*-profile', `guix gc --referrers'
>  print the directory itself.
>
>  ,----
>  | guix gc --referrers /gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | /gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | guix gc --referrers /gnu/store/zj0cf20jk3qgl12451znx1n8rj13z2jg-profile/
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | /gnu/store/zj0cf20jk3qgl12451znx1n8rj13z2jg-profile
>  `----
>
>  For the directory, that has the files from the package, a lot of files
>  ending with `drv' is shown.
>
>  ,----
>  | guix gc --referrers
>/gnu/store/b3f1s6nnj1rg7szcmb3n3y194ayhfgja-rime-data-0.38.20210802
>  `----
>
>  ,----
>  | /gnu/store/0wr0x4v73wiks87843njqqf590fm0xix-glib-schemas.drv
>  | /gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile
>  | /gnu/store/4zpl6kqdb1ppnc0a1wbh50az8bhnzc4z-gtk-icon-themes.drv
>  | /gnu/store/7qjr2v4w4m8kp1mzax2w840mg489120m-emacs-subdirs.drv
>  | /gnu/store/8qjbmddr1x6v4pjwxm8i5alslxb7ca43-profile.drv
>  | /gnu/store/8ziy5i9svd645iinf850cnca82vb154s-ca-certificate-bundle.drv
>  | /gnu/store/a8n5pfdh03lwfrcpp6823bnwlgh5in13-xdg-desktop-database.drv
>  | /gnu/store/ascqql7fl3c7r784hpnqcam3x8f78dmg-info-dir.drv
>  | /gnu/store/bwlk4j71l97vk84pzdddra2fpvn9zvj5-fonts-dir.drv
>  | /gnu/store/d9dhmxg8b87jj8n797vyabdc2dimr2aw-ibus-rime-1.5.0
>  | /gnu/store/h4qckgajdkz7rm8yrwrxqv882mr1mnnm-emacs-rime-1.0.5
>  |
>/gnu/store/hlrfay6rcgh9c5wzzcj7wf7iwzf87msc-gdk-pixbuf-loaders-cache-file.drv
>  | /gnu/store/nbhwrpx1py3j4sivysv6xi5s4hx4ziqz-gtk-im-modules.drv
>  | /gnu/store/px3idmv8x0ws0zs2n7scgbi302af7iaw-xdg-mime-database.drv
>  | /gnu/store/qczdrj7c8wyszygw78yi9ngz46lhyylv-ibus-rime-1.5.0
>  | /gnu/store/zj0cf20jk3qgl12451znx1n8rj13z2jg-profile
>  `----
>
>
>[this thread]
><https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/help-guix/2016-05/msg00043.html>
>
>[this reply]
><https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/help-guix/2016-05/msg00048.html>
>
>
>4 The question
>==============
>
>  How can I get rid of those three directories in `/gnu/store/' [1] so
>  that I can make sure that my system has no file called
>  `wubi86.dict.yaml'?
>
>  [1] Namely
>  + `/gnu/store/252h4ryvdj3d3bgnm1v47s7838wn86nz-profile'
>  + `/gnu/store/b3f1s6nnj1rg7szcmb3n3y194ayhfgja-rime-data-0.38.20210802'
>  + `/gnu/store/zj0cf20jk3qgl12451znx1n8rj13z2jg-profile'