[GH-ISSUE #5689] apt upgrade repeatedly proposes to downgrade netbird #10932

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opened 2026-08-05 01:27:45 -04:00 by saavagebueno · 0 comments
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Originally created by @thosil on GitHub (Mar 25, 2026).
Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/5689

Describe the problem

On Ubuntu 25.04 (Questing Quokka), apt upgrade repeatedly proposes to "downgrade" netbird and netbird-ui to the same version (0.67.0 → 0.67.0). This creates an infinite loop: install → upgrade proposes downgrade → accept → next upgrade proposes downgrade again.

To Reproduce

Steps to reproduce the behavior:

  1. install netbird as described in the doc: https://docs.netbird.io/get-started/install/linux#ubuntu-debian-apt
  2. do apt upgrade → apt ask to downgrade netbird
  3. accept to downgrade
  4. apt upgrade → apt ask again to downgrade netbird

Expected behavior

not asking to downgrade to the same version

Are you using NetBird Cloud?

N/A

NetBird version

netbird version

0.67.0

Is any other VPN software installed?

No

Debug output

It's not a bug in netbird itself but in the packaging:

The NetBird apt repository declares Architecture-Variant: amd64v1 in the package metadata for 0.67.0. Once installed, dpkg registers the package as plain amd64 (without the variant). On the next apt upgrade, apt sees a mismatch between the installed package (amd64, priority 100) and the repo candidate (amd64 + Architecture-Variant: amd64v1, priority 500), treats them as different packages, and proposes a "downgrade".

This is visible in apt-cache show netbird | grep -E "Version|Architecture|Filename" | head output, which shows two entries for 0.67.0:

  • One from /var/lib/dpkg/statusArchitecture: amd64, no variant
  • One from the repo — Architecture: amd64 + Architecture-Variant: amd64v1

The .deb filename also reflects this: netbird_0.67.0_linux_amd64.deb is downloaded but unpacked as netbird_0.67.0_amd64v1.deb.

Screenshots

# apt-cache show netbird | grep -E "Version|Architecture|Filename" | head
Architecture: amd64
Version: 0.67.0
Version: 0.67.0
Architecture: amd64
Architecture-Variant: amd64v1
Filename: pool/netbird_0.67.0_linux_amd64.deb
Version: 0.66.4
Architecture: amd64
Filename: pool/netbird_0.66.4_linux_amd64.deb
Version: 0.66.3

Additional context

problem was not present before 0.67.0

Have you tried these troubleshooting steps?

  • Reviewed client troubleshooting (if applicable)
  • Checked for newer NetBird versions
  • Searched for similar issues on GitHub (including closed ones)
  • Restarted the NetBird client
  • Disabled other VPN software
  • Checked firewall settings
Originally created by @thosil on GitHub (Mar 25, 2026). Original GitHub issue: https://github.com/netbirdio/netbird/issues/5689 **Describe the problem** On Ubuntu 25.04 (Questing Quokka), `apt upgrade` repeatedly proposes to "downgrade" `netbird` and `netbird-ui` to the same version (0.67.0 → 0.67.0). This creates an infinite loop: install → upgrade proposes downgrade → accept → next upgrade proposes downgrade again. **To Reproduce** Steps to reproduce the behavior: 1. install netbird as described in the doc: https://docs.netbird.io/get-started/install/linux#ubuntu-debian-apt 2. do `apt upgrade` → apt ask to downgrade netbird 3. accept to downgrade 4. `apt upgrade` → apt ask again to downgrade netbird **Expected behavior** not asking to downgrade to the same version **Are you using NetBird Cloud?** N/A **NetBird version** `netbird version` 0.67.0 **Is any other VPN software installed?** No **Debug output** It's not a bug in netbird itself but in the packaging: The NetBird apt repository declares `Architecture-Variant: amd64v1` in the package metadata for 0.67.0. Once installed, dpkg registers the package as plain `amd64` (without the variant). On the next `apt upgrade`, apt sees a mismatch between the installed package (`amd64`, priority 100) and the repo candidate (`amd64` + `Architecture-Variant: amd64v1`, priority 500), treats them as different packages, and proposes a "downgrade". This is visible in `apt-cache show netbird | grep -E "Version|Architecture|Filename" | head` output, which shows two entries for 0.67.0: - One from `/var/lib/dpkg/status` — `Architecture: amd64`, no variant - One from the repo — `Architecture: amd64` + `Architecture-Variant: amd64v1` The `.deb` filename also reflects this: `netbird_0.67.0_linux_amd64.deb` is downloaded but unpacked as `netbird_0.67.0_amd64v1.deb`. **Screenshots** ``` # apt-cache show netbird | grep -E "Version|Architecture|Filename" | head Architecture: amd64 Version: 0.67.0 Version: 0.67.0 Architecture: amd64 Architecture-Variant: amd64v1 Filename: pool/netbird_0.67.0_linux_amd64.deb Version: 0.66.4 Architecture: amd64 Filename: pool/netbird_0.66.4_linux_amd64.deb Version: 0.66.3 ``` **Additional context** problem was not present before 0.67.0 **Have you tried these troubleshooting steps?** - [ ] Reviewed [client troubleshooting](https://docs.netbird.io/how-to/troubleshooting-client) (if applicable) - [ ] Checked for newer NetBird versions - [x] Searched for similar issues on GitHub (including closed ones) - [ ] Restarted the NetBird client - [ ] Disabled other VPN software - [ ] Checked firewall settings
saavagebueno added the triage-needed label 2026-08-05 01:27:45 -04:00
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Reference: DYNR/netbird#10932