gpg doesn't get the right proxy configuration

It looks like add-apt-repository doesn't seem to set the http_proxy variable for GPG, so if you're behind a proxy the keyserver is always 'down'. The process hangs and the only signal it seems to respond to is -9 (C-\).

Work-around for at least the proxy issue:
After you run add-apt-repository and it hangs, it's already set up the repo. I did let it sit for awhile and it will eventually time out, but it's several minutes at least.

So, if you cancel out and run 'sudo apt-get update'

Apt-get will complain that it could not find a GPG key for the PPA repo, but it will give you the key finger print.

Then, you can use the gpg command above to later get the key and apt will work properly. I had to add '--no-default-keyring' since gpg wrote the key into root's keyring (in /root/.gnupg). Or you could get the key some other way.

I am curious though, how did you get the verbose output from add-apt-repository?

Sounds like this utility to make things easier doesn't really make it easier (at least from behind a proxy).

I ran into this issue myself, but I am not using a proxy, I believe the keyserver was just down. Perhaps a shorter timeout (5-10 seconds), a helpful error message that says something like "Cannot reach the keyserver at this time, please try again later. Note that the repository has been added anyway. You can still install software from the new repository, but you will receive warning messages until the key has been added to your keyring."

Or something like that....

'sudo add-apt-repository ppa:qutim/qutim.svn', 'sudo apt-key adv --recv-keys --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com', etc do not work via proxy at my Ubuntu 10.04 as well...

Try exporting the https_proxy environment variable in addition to http_proxy (without "s"). I found that suggestion in https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/software-properties/+bug/516032 and it works fine for me:

export http_proxy=...
export https_proxy=...
add-apt-repository ppa:...

Heikos workaround din't work for me.
I do have "http" _and_ "https" set though the gui anyway (check-box at "use same settings for all protocols").

Ubuntu 10.04

This is a serious problem with or without proxy. I don't use proxy but I suffer this problem often.
keyserver.ubuntu.com is down frequently but "add-apt-repository" isn't "smart" enough to seek the key in another server.
What's happens with keyserver.ubuntu.com lately? It fails too much.

Clarification of Heiko's workaround:
- you need to set https_proxy
- you may need to set it to "http://my-proxy-host" not "https://my-proxy-host" (which is what Ubuntu sets it to by default)
- beware that 'sudo add-apt-repository' might load a new shell and overwrite the environment; use 'sudo bash' then set 'https_proxy' in the root shell

This seems worth noting:

/usr/lib/python2.6/dist-packages/softwareproperties/ppa.py

            # FIXME: this needs to go - elmo says the keyserver will not handle
            # the load
            res = subprocess.call(
                ["apt-key", "adv", "--keyserver", "keyserver.ubuntu.com",
                 "--recv", signing_key_fingerprint[0]])

I found that copying my http_proxy setting to https_proxy fixed the hang.

It seems this problem also occurs, if you don't configure your firewall right. I allowed outgoing TCP/UDP connections on port 11371 and everything worked fine afterwards.

(from bug 712812) There are a few cases like bug 712666 and bug 710054 where users seem to need an http proxy, and they have it set up well enough that they can get to Launchpad, but it's not configured into gpg. It looks like in Maverick, gpg does always honor $http_proxy, but it might not be getting set correctly.

To solve the problem I had to add the https_proxy settings in the root shell (not in the user shell) eg:

sudo -i
export https_proxy="http://proxy.....:port"

Is this a duplicate of bug #516032 ? That was marked fixed on 02/11.

@Gordon I think probably it is a duplicate. I'm going to mark it as such; if people can still reproduce this in natty, please either undupe or open new bugs.

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

The bug 516032 suggests that this would be fixed. Could someone pleae confirm if this is an issue in Precise (I don't use proxy so can't test it)? Thanks in advance.

Just to add that this should be fixed since Natty.

@ #19: I don't have a proxy as far as I know. But I can solve this problem by allowing outgoing TCP/UDP connections on port 11371. Maybe its not the same issue...

It fails me even I have set up correctly https_proxy under a root terminal.
I don't have permissions to reconfigure the firewall, so this isn't a good solution.

GPG works properly behind a proxy using recv-keys; as long as the http_proxy variable is set in the environment (and it is properly set automatically by GNOME when proxy settings are configured and "Apply system-wide").

Furthermore, software-properties' add-apt-repository now defaults to using keyserver.ubuntu.com over port 80; which should further reduce the cases where proxies are in use but don't allow the custom port 11371/tcp.

The environment isn't getting cleared when spawning gpg either (or actually, when spawning apt-key), so that would also be "fixed", if it was wrong.

Note that gpg *does* depend on the *http_proxy* variable; not https_proxy.

Closing as Fix Released.

@papukaija (papukaija)
Yap this is still an issue in precise . I get this error whenever I try to add the repo

This bug is fixed. Please open a new bug for your issue. Thanks.