.deb package postinst script fails during Docker build due to missing systemd (regression in 1.300060.0b1248-1)

[erees-embarkvet]

Description

The .deb package installation fails during Docker image builds because the postinst script attempts to interact with systemd, which is not available in the Docker build context.

• Version affected: 1.300060.0b1248-1
• Last known working version: 1.300059.0b1207-1

The apparent cause is the addition of a postinst script to the .deb package.

Steps to Reproduce

Minimal reproducible Dockerfile:

ARG PLATFORM=linux/amd64
FROM --platform=$PLATFORM debian:bookworm-20250929-slim AS base

ENV DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
RUN apt update && apt --assume-yes --no-install-recommends install wget ca-certificates
RUN wget -nv https://amazoncloudwatch-agent.s3.amazonaws.com/debian/amd64/latest/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb
RUN dpkg -i amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb

Build command:

docker build -f Dockerfile .

Expected Behavior

The .deb package should install successfully during Docker builds, similar to:

• How version 1.300059.0b1207-1 installed without issues
• How the .rpm package can be installed with rpm -i --noposttrans (as shown in your official LocalStack AL2 Dockerfile)

Actual Behavior

The build fails with:

dpkg: error processing package amazon-cloudwatch-agent (--install):
 installed amazon-cloudwatch-agent package post-installation script subprocess returned error exit status 1
Errors were encountered while processing:
 amazon-cloudwatch-agent

Setting up amazon-cloudwatch-agent (1.300060.0b1248-1) ...
System has not been booted with systemd as init system (PID 1). Can't operate.
Failed to connect to bus: Host is down
unknown init system

Environment

• Host OS: macOS (Docker Desktop), Linux
• Docker build context: Ubuntu 24.04, Debian bookworm
• Package: amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb from https://amazoncloudwatch-agent.s3.amazonaws.com/debian/amd64/latest/
• First observed: ~October 10, 2025

Current Workaround

We're currently working around this by removing the postinst script before configuring the package:

RUN wget -nv https://amazoncloudwatch-agent.s3.amazonaws.com/debian/amd64/latest/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb \
    && dpkg --unpack ./amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb \
    && rm -f /var/lib/dpkg/info/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.postinst \
    && dpkg --configure amazon-cloudwatch-agent

This mirrors the approach used in the RPM-based Dockerfiles with --noposttrans.

Notes

• Version 1.300059.0b1207-1 worked correctly in Docker builds
• Note: version 1.300060.0b1248-1 does not appear to have a corresponding GitHub release, which made it slightly more difficult to identify the cause.
• The official .rpm package handles this case with rpm -i --noposttrans
• The agent binaries install correctly and work when started manually in the container
• This is purely a Docker build-time issue; runtime operation is unaffected

[naveen2112]

Hi,
We are also facing the same issue starting today (14-Oct-2025). Our platform is running on Debian Bookworm.

As a temporary workaround, we are using the specific CloudWatch Agent version that is currently running in our production setup instead of the latest tag:

https://amazoncloudwatch-agent.s3.amazonaws.com/debian/arm64/1.300059.0b1207/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb

[erees-embarkvet]

@naveen2112 I didn't realize there were version-specific URLs available - thanks for sharing!

[bingiflash]

@naveen2112 I was scratching my head to find the version-specific URLs. Thanks for sharing.

[abishekas]

@naveen2112 : Thanks for sharing, You made my day!

[chandrakumar-loganathan]

Hi,
We also encountered the same issue, but resolved it by removing the post-installation script, which didn’t affect the installation process. Instead of installing the application directly, we unpacked it using dpkg --unpack, removed the post-installation file, and then completed the installation with dpkg --configure. We are using the latest version for this.

RUN curl -o /root/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb https://amazoncloudwatch-agent.s3.amazonaws.com/ubuntu/arm64/latest/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb

RUN dpkg --unpack /root/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb && rm /var/lib/dpkg/info/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.postinst && dpkg --configure amazon-cloudwatch-agent

Note: This is also considered as a temporary fix