Bug#241809: apt-get -y is broken by package authentication

[Andrew McMillan <debian-bugs-200404@mcmillan.net.nz>]

Package: apt
Version: 0.6.21
Severity: wishlist


This relates only to the version of apt, currently in experimental,
which does package authentication.

Since the "-y" option to Apt forces a "Yes" answer to each question
it is useless where packages cannot be authenticated, and I have to
not use it.  Among other things this breaks cron-apt, which expects
to do something like:

apt-get -fyd dist-upgrade

and which is intended to run to completion without interaction.

While I realise that ultimately it will be important to enable package
authentication in all cases, at present this is necessarily harder to
allow.

The questions from apt-get are currently:

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
After unpacking 2801kB of additional disk space will be used.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n]
WARNING: The following packages cannot be authenticated!
  fileutils ethereal-common
Abort? [Y/n]
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

perhaps it would be better if those were something like:

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
After unpacking 2801kB of additional disk space will be used.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n]
WARNING: The following packages cannot be authenticated!
  fileutils ethereal-common
Do you still want to continue? [y/N]
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

so that "--yes" and friends still allow unattended operation.

Thanks,
              Andrew McMillan


-- Package-specific info:

-- apt-config dump --

APT "";
APT::Architecture "i386";
APT::Build-Essential "";
APT::Build-Essential:: "build-essential";
Dir "/";
Dir::State "var/lib/apt/";
Dir::State::lists "lists/";
Dir::State::cdroms "cdroms.list";
Dir::State::userstatus "status.user";
Dir::State::status "/var/lib/dpkg/status";
Dir::Cache "var/cache/apt/";
Dir::Cache::archives "archives/";
Dir::Cache::srcpkgcache "srcpkgcache.bin";
Dir::Cache::pkgcache "pkgcache.bin";
Dir::Etc "etc/apt/";
Dir::Etc::sourcelist "sources.list";
Dir::Etc::vendorlist "vendors.list";
Dir::Etc::vendorparts "vendors.list.d";
Dir::Etc::main "apt.conf";
Dir::Etc::parts "apt.conf.d";
Dir::Etc::preferences "preferences";
Dir::Bin "";
Dir::Bin::methods "/usr/lib/apt/methods";
Dir::Bin::dpkg "/usr/bin/dpkg";
DPkg "";
DPkg::Pre-Install-Pkgs "";
DPkg::Pre-Install-Pkgs:: "/usr/sbin/dpkg-preconfigure --apt || true";

-- (no /etc/apt/preferences present) --


-- /etc/apt/sources.list --

# Debian Unstable...
deb http://http.us.debian.org/debian unstable main contrib non-free
deb http://non-us.debian.org/debian-non-US unstable/non-US main

# Debian Unstable Source...
deb-src http://http.us.debian.org/debian unstable main

# MPlayer and others
deb ftp://ftp.nerim.net/debian-marillat/ unstable main

# Experimental, for the truly bleeding edge...
deb http://ftp.debian.org/debian ../project/experimental main contrib non-free

# DRI trunk for latest DRI drivers
deb http://dri.freedesktop.org/~daenzer/debian/dri-trunk-sid/ ./


-- System Information:
Debian Release: testing/unstable
  APT prefers unstable
  APT policy: (500, 'unstable'), (500, 'testing'), (1, 'experimental')
Architecture: i386 (i686)
Kernel: Linux 2.6.5-rc3-mm1
Locale: LANG=C, LC_CTYPE=C

Versions of packages apt depends on:
ii  libc6                       2.3.2.ds1-11 GNU C Library: Shared libraries an
ii  libgcc1                     1:3.4-0pre2  GCC support library
ii  libstdc++5                  1:3.3.3-5    The GNU Standard C++ Library v3

-- no debconf information