[R-sig-Debian] "Failed-to-restart-avahi-dnsconfd-service" error when I try to install R binary.

[Rolf Turner]

On 1/28/19 2:56 AM, Dirk Eddelbuettel wrote:
> 
> | Being a docile and biddable young ( :-) ) fellow, I have tried to do so,
> | following the instructions made available at:
> |
> |     https://cran.r-project.org/bin/linux/ubuntu/README.html
> |
> | I have made sure that the line
> |
> |      deb https://cloud.r-project.org/bin/linux/ubuntu bionic-cran35/
> |
> | is present in my /etc/apt/sources.list file and I  then do:
> |
> |      sudo apt-get update
> |
> | (which seems to go OK) and then:
> |
> |      sudo apt-get install r-base
> 
> If you want is to _upgrade_ already installed packages use
> 
>         sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
> 
> instead. There is no apt sub-command to upgrade just one.
> 
> The point with packages is that they may have further dependencies; the
> strength of this tool is to resolve that graph for you. And I have been
> running it (on average) at least once a day (given several machines) for
> many, many. You can trust it.

Thanks Dirk.  I just tried doing:

     sudo apt-get dist-upgrade

I was told:

> The following packages will be upgraded:
>   r-cran-class
> 1 to upgrade, 0 to newly install, 0 to remove and 0 not to upgrade.
> 1 not fully installed or removed.
> Need to get 87.0 kB of archives.
> After this operation, 1,024 B of additional disk space will be used.
> Do you want to continue? [Y/n]

So I said "y" --- and immediately crashed into the same problem as before:

> Failed to restart avahi-dnsconfd.service: Unit avahi-daemon.service is masked.
> invoke-rc.d: initscript avahi-dnsconfd, action "restart" failed.
> ● avahi-dnsconfd.service - Avahi DNS Configuration Daemon
>    Loaded: loaded (/lib/systemd/system/avahi-dnsconfd.service; enabled; vendor preset: enabled)
>    Active: inactive (dead)

There is something wrong in my system in respect of this "Avahi DNS 
Configuration Daemon" --- but I have no understanding or insight as to 
what is actually wrong or how to fix it.

How can I get the "avahi-daemon.service" to be *unmasked*?  How can I 
get the avahi-daemon.service to restart?

Can anyone give me any guidance or pointers?  Please!!!

cheers,

Rolf
-- 
Honorary Research Fellow
Department of Statistics
University of Auckland
Phone: +64-9-373-7599 ext. 88276