On Tue, 2 May 2006, Winnie Lacesso wrote:

> Situation: install new box (SL41) - goes v well.
> LSB Version:    1.3
> Distributor ID: ScientificSL
> Description:    Scientific Linux SL release 4.1 (Beryllium)
> Release:        4.1
> Codename:       Beryllium
> 
> Post-OS load+config, yum -y update updates all - looks good.
> Reboot box. All looks v well.
> Then yum install few things:  mozilla lynx pine
> Use box for mozilla browsing etc couple hours.
> Overnight, yum crontab updates nothing (according to /var/log/yum.log)
> next day: yum is broken:
> ********
> [log in to unmask]> yum check-update
> 'import site' failed; use -v for traceback
> There was a problem importing one of the Python modules
> required to run yum. The error leading to this problem was:
> 
>     No module named yum
> 
> Please install a package which provides this module, or
> verify that the module is installed correctly.
> 
> It's possible that the above module doesn't match the
> current version of Python, which is:
> 2.3.4 (#1, Mar 14 2006, 11:28:20)
> [GCC 3.4.5 20051201 (Red Hat 3.4.5-2)]
> 
> If you cannot solve this problem yourself, please go to
> the yum faq at:
>    http://wiki.linux.duke.edu/YumFaq
> ********
> from rpmpkgs:
> python-2.3.4-14.2.i386.rpm
> (++lots of other python stuff)
> yum-2.4.2-4.SL.noarch.rpm
> yum-conf-41-9.SL.noarch.rpm
> 
> via the duke wiki & google, most mentions are old (2004) & saying "python 
> was not installed". But it is installd & everything worked. It ends up in 
> a mire of unrelevant snippets.
> 
> using python -v for traceback:
> # /usr/lib/python2.3/os.pyc matches /usr/lib/python2.3/os.py
> 'import site' failed; traceback:
> Traceback (most recent call last):
>    File "/usr/lib/python2.3/site.py", line 60, in ?
>      import sys, os
> ValueError: bad marshal data
> 
> Again it ends up in a mire. The only thing I can think of is that somehow
> installing mozzila,lynx,pine (which have done on many other box) somehow in this 
> one instance broke python/yum. Or it's a version issue?

Many install mozilla and pine,  not as many install lynx. I really doubt 
that any of these broke it.

Can you look at /var/log/yum.log and see if anything else was installed 
via yum.   Of couse installing things via non yum can break things too.  
To see what was installed "recently" you can do a

rpm -qa --last

You should verify that you do not have more than one version of python 
installed. 

 > 
> Thanks for any fix hints.
> 

You are welcome.

-Connie Sieh