SSHd not respecting configuration in /etc

[Gregory Stark <gsstark@mit.edu>]

Every time I update my system now sshd gets disabled again. This is most
incredibly frustrating. The first time it happened I had to search until I
found non-standard a file in /etc/ssh/sshd_not_to_be_run. Now every time I
update I have to remove this file.

I would guess this is a debconfism. However it points out a serious flaw in
our approach to debconf. Originally Debian's handling of config files was to
aid initial installs. Sysadmins were then free to use the standard config
files to configure their systems. Any future updates were careful not to
change the sysadmin's configurations without permission.

Now I have a piece of important configuration that I can only fix by learning
debconf. Every time I update my system configuration gets blown away by the
install script. This is a most unhappy situation.

And of course of all services to assume it shouldn't be run, the remote access
service is the last one! This leaves me helpless to actually fix the damn
problem. Once upon a time sshd didn't even shut itself down for an upgrade for
fear the user was performing the upgrade remotely, now we have it shutting
down and not even re-enabling itself!

-- 
greg