Error removing floppy controller

[mealingr]

Hi all,

At the end of a packer build, just before the post-processor (vagrant) is started, packer fails to remove the floppy drive.

The exact error is:

virtualbox-iso: Error removing floppy controller: VBoxManage error: VBoxMana
ge.exe: error: The machine 'packer-virtualbox-iso-1436168056' is already locked
for a session (or being unlocked)
==> virtualbox-iso: VBoxManage.exe: error: Details: code VBOX_E_INVALID_OBJECT_S
TATE (0x80bb0007), component Machine, interface IMachine, callee IUnknown
==> virtualbox-iso: VBoxManage.exe: error: Context: "LockMachine(a->session, Loc
kType_Write)" at line 1011 of file VBoxManageStorageController.cpp
==> virtualbox-iso: Unregistering and deleting virtual machine...
==> virtualbox-iso: Deleting output directory...
Build 'virtualbox-iso' errored: Error removing floppy controller: VBoxManage err
or: VBoxManage.exe: error: The machine 'packer-virtualbox-iso-1436168056' is alr
eady locked for a session (or being unlocked)
VBoxManage.exe: error: Details: code VBOX_E_INVALID_OBJECT_STATE (0x80bb0007), c
omponent Machine, interface IMachine, callee IUnknown
VBoxManage.exe: error: Context: "LockMachine(a->session, LockType_Write)" at lin
e 1011 of file VBoxManageStorageController.cpp

==> Some builds didn't complete successfully and had errors:
--> virtualbox-iso: Error removing floppy controller: VBoxManage error: VBoxMana
ge.exe: error: The machine 'packer-virtualbox-iso-1436168056' is already locked
for a session (or being unlocked)
VBoxManage.exe: error: Details: code VBOX_E_INVALID_OBJECT_STATE (0x80bb0007), c
omponent Machine, interface IMachine, callee IUnknown
VBoxManage.exe: error: Context: "LockMachine(a->session, LockType_Write)" at lin
e 1011 of file VBoxManageStorageController.cpp

==> Builds finished but no artifacts were created.

The strange thing is the error only happens about 50% of the time. Typically the first build will fail with this error and then the next build will succeed with nothing changed in between.

My packer json is:

{
  "builders": [
    {
      "type": "virtualbox-iso",
      "iso_url": "http://download.microsoft.com/download/6/2/A/62A76ABB-9990-4EFC-A4FE-C7D698DAEB96/9600.16384.WINBLUE_RTM.130821-1623_X64FRE_SERVER_EVAL_EN-US-IRM_SSS_X64FREE_EN-US_DV5.ISO",
      "iso_checksum_type": "md5",
      "iso_checksum": "458ff91f8abc21b75cb544744bf92e6a",
      "headless": false,
      "boot_wait": "2m",
      "ssh_username": "vagrant",
      "ssh_password": "vagrant",
      "ssh_wait_timeout": "4h",
      "shutdown_command": "shutdown /s /t 10 /f /d p:4:1 /c \"Packer Shutdown\"",
      "guest_os_type": "Windows2012_64",
      "disk_size": 61440,
      "floppy_files": [
        "./floppy_files/Autounattend.xml",
        "./floppy_files/microsoft-updates.bat",
        "./floppy_files/win-updates.ps1",
        "./floppy_files/openssh.ps1",
        "./floppy_files/oracle-cert.cer",
        "./floppy_files/setenv.bat",
        "./floppy_files/setdnssuffix.wsf",
        "./floppy_files/hosts"
      ],
      "vboxmanage": [
        [
          "modifyvm",
          "{{.Name}}",
          "--memory",
          "2048"
        ],
        [
          "modifyvm",
          "{{.Name}}",
          "--cpus",
          "2"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "provisioners": [
    {
      "type": "shell",
      "remote_path": "/tmp/script.bat",
      "execute_command": "{{.Vars}} cmd /c C:/Windows/Temp/script.bat",
      "scripts": [
        "./packer_scripts/vm-guest-tools.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/vagrant-ssh.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/enable-rdp.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/disable-auto-logon.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/chef.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/chocolatey.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/chocopacks.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/tomcat6.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/copyHosts.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/setdnssuffix.bat",
        "./packer_scripts/setPerlPath.bat"
      ]
    },
    {
      "type": "shell",
      "inline": [
        "rm -rf /tmp/*"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "post-processors": [
    {
      "type": "vagrant",
      "keep_input_artifact": false,
      "output": "windows_2012_r2_{{.Provider}}.box",
      "vagrantfile_template": "vagrantfile-windows_2012_r2.template"
    }
  ]
}

Any idea how to fix this?

Thanks

[cbednarski]

@mealingr I think this is a timing issue similar to #1193. We can likely fix it in packer with a retry.

[mealingr]

I forgot to mention I was running version 0.8.0, i've heard that it may be fixed in later versions (perhaps because packer does more retries as you suggest?).

[mealingr]

This seems to be fixed in version 0.8.1.

[mwrock]

I just ran into this same error with 0.8.1. Its definitely intermittent. I've built successfully about 10 times and this is the first time I have hit this.

[pahunt1978]

I'm having this issue intermittently using version 0.8.2. I have created a Windows Server 2012 R2 image 5 or 6 times using this template https://github.com/joefitzgerald/packer-windows/blob/master/windows_2012_r2.json (only modification is I've set headless to false) and have got the error twice.

I'm using Windows 7 Pro as a host with VirtualBox. Is there anything I can do to help diagnose the problem?

[mwrock]

BTW: it would be great if there was a way to tell packer not to delete the artifacts when an error occurs. When I see this error it is after hours of image building and then I have to start from the beginning again. If the image could be preserved I could at least do some manual salvaging.

[beporter]

I'm running into timing issues that seems similar, except in my case the issue is with detaching the OS install iso. In case it helps future googlers, here's the error output I'm occasionally seeing:

// [...snip...]
==> mybox-vbox: Connected to SSH!
==> mybox-vbox: Uploading VirtualBox version info (5.0.2)
==> mybox-vbox: Uploading VirtualBox guest additions ISO...
==> mybox-vbox: Provisioning with shell script: provisioners/shell/virtualbox-guest-additions-install.sh
// [...snip provisioner script output...]
==> mybox-vbox: Gracefully halting virtual machine...
    mybox-vbox: [sudo] password for vagrant:
==> mybox-vbox: Error detaching ISO: VBoxManage error: VBoxManage: error: Failed to get a console object from the direct session (VBOX_E_INVALID_OBJECT_STATE)
==> mybox-vbox: VBoxManage: error: Details: code VBOX_E_VM_ERROR (0x80bb0003), component MachineWrap, interface IMachine, callee nsISupports
==> mybox-vbox: VBoxManage: error: Context: "LockMachine(a->session, LockType_Shared)" at line 325 of file VBoxManageStorageController.cpp
==> mybox-vbox: Unregistering and deleting virtual machine...
==> mybox-vbox: Deleting output directory...

Build 'mybox-vbox' errored: Error detaching ISO: VBoxManage error: VBoxManage: error: Failed to get a console object from the direct session (VBOX_E_INVALID_OBJECT_STATE)
VBoxManage: error: Details: code VBOX_E_VM_ERROR (0x80bb0003), component MachineWrap, interface IMachine, callee nsISupports
VBoxManage: error: Context: "LockMachine(a->session, LockType_Shared)" at line 325 of file VBoxManageStorageController.cpp

I just upgraded Packer from 0.6.1 to 0.8.5 and Virtualbox from 4.3.28 to 5.0.2. This same build worked (at least once) immediately beforehand and worked again with the upgraded tooling on a subsequent attempt. The speed at which the operations are processed seems to be the variable.

[chrisjsmith]

A me too on packer 0.8.6 and VirtualBox 5.0.4 on Windows 8.1 x64 as a host machine deploying Windows Server 2012 R2 as a guest.

[vvchik]

same error on Packer 0.8.6

[mwrock]

One other data point to leave here. I only encounter this on Windows hosts. I have never seen it on my ubuntu 14 host. When I was working on this win7 template, I started to run into this 100% of the time and never reproduced on ubuntu. So if you are trying to reproduce its important to use a windows host unless someone can report experiencing this on non windows.

[vvchik]

I using mac os x 10.10.5

[mwrock]

ah ok good to know. I have never used a mac. There might even be a headless vs. GUI element here since my ubuntu box runs as a server with no desktop.

[jglf]

I also have the issue on packer 0.8.6, VirtualBox 5.0.8 on Windows 7 x64 as a host machine deploying Windows Server 2008 R2 as a guest. It happens systematically with "headless": false but never with "headless": true.