[chef] easy_install errors

[David Montgomery < >]

About 10% of the time when I do a chef bootstrap, the bootstrap fails
because of easy install errors.  This has serious implications for
fail-overs.  The packages are at random.  I have never had a problem
running a easy install from the command line or from a bash script.
So..why is the a persistent issue with a chef bootstrap?  This time is
was easy_install with pytz.  Next time....who knows.....

I am bootstrapping a a ec2 ubuntu 64 on ec2

ec2-23-20-103-96.compute-1.amazonaws.com /usr/bin/chef-client:19
ec2-23-20-103-96.compute-1.amazonaws.com [Wed, 23 May 2012 13:54:45
+0000] ERROR: Running exception handlers
ec2-23-20-103-96.compute-1.amazonaws.com [Wed, 23 May 2012 13:54:45
+0000] FATAL: Saving node information to
/var/chef/cache/failed-run-data.json
ec2-23-20-103-96.compute-1.amazonaws.com [Wed, 23 May 2012 13:54:45
+0000] ERROR: Exception handlers complete
ec2-23-20-103-96.compute-1.amazonaws.com [Wed, 23 May 2012 13:54:45
+0000] FATAL: Stacktrace dumped to /var/chef/cache/chef-stacktrace.out
ec2-23-20-103-96.compute-1.amazonaws.com [Wed, 23 May 2012 13:54:45
+0000] FATAL: Chef::Exceptions::Exec: easy_install_package[pytz]
(php_base::default line 117) had an error: Chef::Exceptions::Exec:
easy_install "pytz==2012c" returned 1, expected 0


so...are there known issues?  What can be done?  For a known package,
it would be great if there was a retry function rather than killing a
chef boostrap.  Or is there a functionality that I am not aware?

Thanks