Comment 3 for bug 601430

I have found the solution.

Looking at the error message, I noted that the 1st error was this: "update-extlinux: not found".

at the very beginning of the text:

"Examining /etc/kernel/postrm.d .
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postrm.d/extlinux 2.6.32-21-generic /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.32-21-generic
/etc/kernel/postrm.d/extlinux: 15: update-extlinux: not found
run-parts: /etc/kernel/postrm.d/extlinux exited with return code 127"

So I googlelized: "update-extlinux: not found" and found the precise solution in this post :

http://osdir.com/ml/debian-bugs-dist/2010-05/msg08675.html

"You must have installed and then removed extlinux, leaving the script /etc/kernel/postrm.d/extlinux. This is a bug in extlinux - the script
should do nothing if the package has been removed. You can work around it by purging extlinux.

Ben Hutchings"

Thanks very much to Ben Hutchings for posting, whoever he may be!

Looking for extlinux, I could verify that the package was not installed but its configuration files were present: (c) in aptitude search:

philippe@dell-1720:~$ aptitude search extlinux
c extlinux - utilities for the syslinux bootloaders (ext2/ext3 bootloader)

Removing the files was impossible with aptitude for he always tried to configure linux-image which always ends in the procedure to abort. So I used dpkg which is a lower level tool that don't need to upgrade everything before he could move his little finger as aptitude does:

philippe@dell-1720:~$ sudo dpkg -P extlinux
(Lecture de la base de données... 182806 fichiers et répertoires déjà installés.)
Suppression de extlinux ...
Purge des fichiers de configuration de extlinux ...

philippe@dell-1720:~$ aptitude search extlinux
philippe@dell-1720:~$
philippe@dell-1720:~$ aptitude show extlinux
E: Paquet extlinux introuvable

Then I could update and upgrade everything including linux-image.

I've just reboot on kernel 2.6.32-23 without any problem.

In the end I don't what this problem with extlinux came from but everything's right now.

I apologize for having filed a bug report too early but maybe someday it'll help someone.