The srcpkgcache.bin file in APT's cache directory has become corrupted, preventing APT from reading source package metadata. This is typically resolved by clearing the corrupted cache files and rebuilding the cache.
This error occurs when APT attempts to read the source package cache file (srcpkgcache.bin) but encounters a corrupted or inaccessible file. The "Bad file descriptor" error indicates that the file exists but cannot be read due to corruption or permission issues. The srcpkgcache.bin file is part of APT's internal cache system that stores parsed package information from remote sources to avoid reparsing package files on subsequent operations.
Remove all binary cache files (.bin files) from the APT cache directory. APT will automatically regenerate these files on the next update:
sudo rm /var/cache/apt/*.binThis removes both pkgcache.bin and srcpkgcache.bin, which are temporary files that APT recreates as needed.
Rebuild the APT cache by running update. This will download the latest package list from repositories and regenerate the cache files:
sudo apt-get updateWatch for any new errors during this process. If update completes successfully, the corrupted cache has been cleared.
Confirm that APT can now access package information properly:
apt-cache search . # Lists all available packagesIf this command completes without errors, the cache corruption is resolved. You can now proceed with normal apt-get operations.
If basic cache clearing doesn't resolve the issue, clean additional APT-related files:
sudo apt-get clean
sudo apt-get autoclean
sudo apt-get update- apt-get clean removes all cached .deb packages from /var/cache/apt/archives/
- apt-get autoclean removes only outdated .deb packages that are no longer available in repositories
- Then rebuild the cache with apt-get update
For systems with persistent cache corruption, investigate underlying filesystem health using fsck (filesystem check). Unexpected shutdowns, disk I/O errors, or SD card issues (on Raspberry Pi) can cause cache corruption. On Docker containers, ensure volumes mounted at /var/cache/apt/ support proper file operations. The srcpkgcache.bin file is generated by APT's internal gencaches process and is safe to delete—APT will regenerate it automatically. If corruption occurs repeatedly, consider running a full filesystem check and verifying hard disk health with smartctl.
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