Re: apt-get and authentication

[marc <gmane@auxbuss.com>]

Ephemeral root said...
> Quoting Rick Pasotto <rick@niof.net>:
> 
> > Why has apt-get started giving me this message:
> > 
> > WARNING: The following packages cannot be authenticated!
> 
> That's part of apt 0.6's new security feature. You must add
> to your apt set-up the gpg public key of the archives where
> you downloaded the packages. I think this has already been
> done for you if you download only official Debian
> packages.

I think that this change has been very badly managed. I saw these 
messages and had no idea what had changed and what was required of me to 
"correct" the "problem".

Worse, there is no reference to apt-key in the man pages of aptitude or 
apt-get, which is where, I suspect, most folk would first look for 
clues.

Neither was there an announcement in debian.user.news

> For adding the keys of unofficial sites, read the man page,

Thanks for advertising apt-key's existence :-o It might also help folk 
to know about man apt-secure.

That said, I couldn't work out what steps I am supposed to take from 
those man pages.

> I hope my explanation doesn't read like a man page.

Not all all. It was clear, precise and understandable on first reading, 
without references to a minimum of a dozen documents of required 
reading, usually recursively, before being remotely comprehensible. But 
I suspect that you were writing for an audience of human beings :-)

Now, does anyone know what actions we are supposed to take?

-- 
Best,
Marc