Can't build simple snap, maybe because of missing kmod arp_tables
Metadata
Current evaluation
New-user confusion: `snapcraft build` only runs the part build step, so no .snap appears; maintainer explained the pull/build/stage/prime + snap workflow and suggested better help text
Suggested action: close not a bug
Reason: This is a usage/support question, not a defect: the reporter ran `snapcraft build`, which per `snapcraft help build` ("Build artifacts defined for a part") only builds parts and never produces a snap; ~sergiusens answered exactly this, explaining the four lifecycle steps and that `snap`/`pack` generates the output. The arp_tables, polkit and store 403 lines in the logs are host/multipass noise unrelated to snapcraft, and the residual ask ('We can improve the help output') has no spec or reproducer and is a vague enhancement.
Evaluated by: mr-cal-bot
Impact:
15
Quick Win:
3
Complexity:
10
Confidence:
85
Actionability:
25
Issue body
I'm getting started with snapcraft. I'm planning to use it for server applications (daemons). As a first step, I tried to snap a simple shellscript (it just runs `date`).
The output of `snapcraft build` tells me that a core18 system is installed. But right after that, it stops with the following lines:
```
Processing triggers for initramfs-tools (0.130ubuntu3.11) ...
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-4.15.0-140-generic
Warning: couldn't identify filesystem type for fsck hook, ignoring.
Processing triggers for ca-certificates (20210119~18.04.1) ...
Updating certificates in /etc/ssl/certs...
0 added, 0 removed; done.
Running hooks in /etc/ca-certificates/update.d...
done.
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
The following NEW packages will be installed:
apt-transport-https
0 upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
Need to get 1,696 B of archives.
After this operation, 153 kB of additional disk space will be used.
Get:1 http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu bionic-security/universe amd64 apt-transport-https all 1.6.12ubuntu0.2 [1,696 B]
Fetched 1,696 B in 0s (11.5 kB/s)
debconf: delaying package configuration, since apt-utils is not installed
Selecting previously unselected package apt-transport-https.
(Reading database ... 19451 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to unpack .../apt-transport-https_1.6.12ubuntu0.2_all.deb ...
Unpacking apt-transport-https (1.6.12ubuntu0.2) ...
Setting up apt-transport-https (1.6.12ubuntu0.2) ...
2021-03-30T20:56:11+02:00 INFO Waiting for automatic snapd restart...
snapd 2.49.1 from Canonical✓ installed
core18 20210309 from Canonical✓ installed
"core18" switched to the "latest/stable" channel
snapcraft 4.6 from Canonical✓ installed
"snapcraft" switched to the "latest/stable/ubuntu-20.04" channel
snapd is not logged in, snap install commands will use sudo
core18 20210128 from Canonical✓ refreshed
Pulling my-test
+ snapcraftctl pull
Building my-test
+ snapcraftctl build
```
The command did not exit with an error. There is no snap file. I even created an account on snapcraft.io and logged in with `snap login`. `journalctl -u snapd` tells me:
```
-- Reboot --
Mar 30 19:30:57 dev-2020 systemd[1]: Starting Snap Daemon...
Mar 30 19:30:57 dev-2020 snapd[616]: AppArmor status: apparmor is enabled and all features are available
Mar 30 19:30:58 dev-2020 snapd[616]: AppArmor status: apparmor is enabled and all features are available
Mar 30 19:30:58 dev-2020 snapd[616]: daemon.go:347: started snapd/2.49.1 (series 16; classic) ubuntu/20.04 (amd64) linux/5.4.0-1036-kvm.
Mar 30 19:30:58 dev-2020 snapd[616]: daemon.go:440: adjusting startup timeout by 1m50s (pessimistic estimate of 30s plus 5s per snap)
Mar 30 19:30:59 dev-2020 systemd[1]: Started Snap Daemon.
Mar 30 19:30:59 dev-2020 snapd[616]: storehelpers.go:551: cannot refresh: snap has no updates available: "chromium", "core", "gnome-3-26-1604", "gnome-3-28-1804", "gnome-3-34-1804", "gnome-calculator", "gnome-characters", "gnome-logs", "gnome-system-monitor", "gtk-common-t>
Mar 30 19:30:59 dev-2020 snapd[616]: stateengine.go:150: state ensure error: cannot sections: got unexpected HTTP status code 403 via GET to "https://api.snapcraft.io/api/v1/snaps/sections"
Mar 30 19:31:03 dev-2020 snapd[616]: storehelpers.go:551: no install/refresh information results from the store
Mar 30 20:51:32 dev-2020 snapd[616]: api.go:383: Installing snap "multipass" revision unset
Mar 30 20:51:39 dev-2020 modprobe[27552]: FATAL: Module arp_tables not found in directory /lib/modules/5.4.0-1036-kvm
Mar 30 20:51:39 dev-2020 runuser[27644]: pam_unix(runuser:session): session opened for user me by (uid=0)
Mar 30 20:51:39 dev-2020 runuser[27644]: pam_unix(runuser:session): session closed for user me
Mar 30 20:51:59 dev-2020 snapd[616]: api.go:383: Installing snap "multipass" revision unset
Mar 30 20:52:03 dev-2020 modprobe[28173]: FATAL: Module arp_tables not found in directory /lib/modules/5.4.0-1036-kvm
Mar 30 21:47:32 dev-2020 snapd[616]: daemon.go:215: polkit error: Authorization requires interaction
```
It seems some module `arp_tables` cannot be found. How do I get it?
What about `polkit error: Authorization requires interaction`?
What about `cannot sections: got unexpected HTTP status code 403 ...`????
Evaluation history
| Date | Model | Scores | Action | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| stealth/space-bunny-alpha |
Impact:
15
Quick Win:
3
Complexity:
10
Confidence:
85
Actionability:
25
|
close not a bug | New-user confusion: `snapcraft build` only runs the part build step, so no .snap appears; maintainer explained the pull/build/stage/prime + snap workflow and suggested better help text | |
| stealth/space-bunny-alpha |
Impact:
15
Quick Win:
5
Complexity:
10
Confidence:
88
Actionability:
40
|
close not a bug | User confusion: ran `snapcraft build` expecting a .snap file; that command only builds parts. Maintainer explained the pull/build/stage/prime vs. pack lifecycle and suggested clearer help output. arp_tables/polkit log lines are unrelated. | |
| qwen/qwen3.6-35b-a3b |
Impact:
10
Quick Win:
7
Complexity:
10
Confidence:
90
Actionability:
80
|
close not a bug | User confused about snapcraft build not producing a snap file; also asks about unrelated multipass and snapd errors | |
| qwen/qwen3.8-27b |
Impact:
10
Quick Win:
8
Staleness:
95
Complexity:
20
Confidence:
80
Support Request:
85
|
close stale | User's snapcraft 4.6 build stalls after snapcraftctl build; host KVM kernel lacks the arp_tables module needed by multipass networking, plus unrelated store 403 and polkit errors. Untriaged, 0 comments, ~5.4 years old, on long-EOL versions. | |
| qwen/qwen3.6-35b-a3b |
Staleness:
98
Complexity:
10
Confidence:
90
Support Request:
95
|
close not a bug | User asks for help troubleshooting a failed snapcraft build, citing missing kernel modules and API errors. Untriaged, zero maintainer interaction, over 5 years old. | |
| qwen/qwen3.6-35b-a3b |
Staleness:
95
Complexity:
15
Confidence:
90
Support Request:
95
|
close not a bug | User reports failure building a simple snap, citing missing arp_tables kernel module, snapd API 403 errors, and polkit prompts. No maintainer response or labels. | |
| qwen3.6-35b-a3b-mtp-q6 |
Staleness:
98
Complexity:
15
Confidence:
90
Support Request:
85
|
close not a bug | User reports a failed snap build due to a missing kernel module and snapd API errors. The issue is over 5 years old with no maintainer response or comments. |
Update history
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| created |
Related issues
No related issues found above the similarity threshold.