Re: Adding a user in postinstall
On Wed, Jun 17, 2020 at 11:55:18AM +0200, Markus wrote:
> Dear Mentors,
>
> While packaging a package for a Virtual Observatory server, I'm
> encountering a postinst glitch in the CI that I don't quite
> understand.
>
> This is about git@salsa.debian.org:debian-astro-team/gavodachs.git,
> the gavo branch.
>
> The idea is that the package creates a user that has all the
> necessary permissions to configure the server, run debug copies, and
> the like. It is called dachsroot, and the postinst creates if if
> necessary:
>
> # create user "dachsroot" if (s)he is not already there
> if ! getent passwd dachsroot ; then
if ! getent passwd dachsroot ; then
> adduser --disabled-password --gecos "" --ingroup gavo dachsroot
> fi
>
> This has never resulted in headache over all the years that we have
> been distributing the resulting package outside of Debian. But the
> CI on salsa gives:
>
> Adding user `dachsroot' ...
> Adding new user `dachsroot' (1011) with group `gavo' ...
> Creating home directory `/home/dachsroot' ...
> Stopped: Couldn't create home directory `/home/dachsroot': File exists.
>
> Removing directory `/home/dachsroot' ...
> Removing user `dachsroot' ...
>
> after which the installation duly fails.
>
> Now... I really cannot see where that home directory might come from
> (the full log is on
> https://salsa.debian.org/debian-astro-team/gavodachs/-/jobs/798533/raw),
> which made me doubt whether a package is allowed to create users with
> homes in the first place and what I'm seeing here really is some
> adduser extra on the CI.
>
> However, at least in 9.2 in the Policy I've not seen anything to that
> effect. Have I missed it there or anywhere else?
>
> And if it's legal to create users like this: Why would the adduser in
> the postinst fail?
Sorry for not answering the questions
Untested:
if [ ! getent passwd dachsroot && ! -d /home/dachsroot ] ; then
adduser --disabled-password --gecos "" --ingroup gavo dachsroot
else
echo "I: Assumed that user dachsroot exists ..."
fi
Regards
Geert Stappers
--
When you assume, you make an ass of u and me
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