I solved the impasse by moving /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite to another place where it wouldn't be found, in this case /var/tmp .
Then I went into $PORTSDIR/ports-mgmt/pkg and ran make deinstall install to update pkg. That produced a new, small, /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite which I renamed to local.sqlite.2 in preparation for restoring the older local.sqlite . Then, with the new pkg installed but the ghost of the old pkg remaining in local.sqlite, I ran, again, from $PORTSDIR/ports-mgmt/pkg make deinstall install to put local.sqlite in sync with the installation of updated pkg. I think the pkg database is restored now. At first, with sqlite3 not listed as a dependency of pkg, I wouldn't have realized what needed fixing. Tom _______________________________________________ freebsd-ports@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-ports To unsubscribe, send any mail to "freebsd-ports-unsubscr...@freebsd.org"