VirtualBox not working after kernel upgrade

[Statia]

I installed 3.2.0.30 last week, now VirtualBox will not start a VM. It shows a dialog box:

Kernel driver not installed (rc=-1908)

The VirtualBox Linux kernel driver (vboxdrv) is either not loaded or there is a permission problem with /dev/vboxdrv. Please reinstall the kernel module by executing

'/etc/init.d/vboxdrv setup'

as root. If it is available in your distribution, you should install the DKMS package first. This package keeps track of Linux kernel changes and recompiles the vboxdrv kernel module if necessary.

Trying to do that:

# /etc/init.d/vboxdrv setup
bash: /etc/init.d/vboxdrv: No such file or directory

I do have DKMS:

# dpkg -l | grep dkms
ii  dkms                                                              2.2.0.3-1ubuntu3                        Dynamic Kernel Module Support Framework
ii  virtualbox-dkms                                                   4.1.12-dfsg-2ubuntu0.1                  x86 virtualization solution - kernel module sources for dkms

There is no /dev/vboxdrv on my system.


How to get VirtualBox working again?

[ranger1021994]

sudo dpkg-reconfigure virtualbox-dkms
sudo dpkg-reconfigure virtualbox




You might have recently removed older kernel

[nothingspecial]

Thread moved to Virtualization.

[Statia]

sudo dpkg-reconfigure virtualbox-dkms
sudo dpkg-reconfigure virtualbox




You might have recently removed older kernel

I solved it by using Synaptic to do a reinstall.

I have indeed recently removed an older kernel, I normally have only the last two kernels installed.

This raises a number of new questions though:

- I removed 3.2.0.27, so was left with 3.2.0.29 and 3.2.0.30. Did VirtualBox use modules from 27 under 29? Why did that work? With a video driver, that won't work.
- Why does DKMS take care of my nvidia module, but not of the VirtualBox module?
- How can I make DKMS recompile the driver when I upgrade a kernel?

[moderator: thanks for moving my post, I had not seen there is a virtualization section on the forum]

[ranger1021994]

Virtualbox uses kernel specific modules ie.29 will work with 29 only...so when you remove a kernel the modules of virtualbox associated with it are also uninstalled


2 I dont think i know the answer

3 I gave the command for that in my previous comment.The command reconfigures dkms modules for virtualbox according to the new kernel.

[Statia]

3 I gave the command for that in my previous comment.The command reconfigures dkms modules for virtualbox according to the new kernel.

But should the reconfiguration not happen automagically, just like happens with video drivers? Now I'll have to remember to do that myself every time there is a kernel update.

[Statia]

So yesterday, I installed 3.20.31, VirtualBox stops working. I did not even remove an older kernel. I had to reinstall VirtualBox. This is inconvenient. Is there no way to make DKMS take care of the VirtualBox modules, just like happens with the nvidia module?

[Statia]

Apparently not.

[idlemind324]

Are the kernel upgrades happening through an Ubuntu package or are you compiling and adding these kernels yourself?

[Statia]

Ubuntu packages, via update manager.