On Monday, May 1, 2023 3:20:19 PM EDT Einhard Leichtfuß wrote: > On 01/05/2023 19:47, Scott Kitterman wrote: > > On Monday, May 1, 2023 1:01:17 PM EDT Einhard Leichtfuß wrote: > >> On 01/05/2023 18:14, Scott Kitterman wrote: > >>> On Monday, May 1, 2023 11:06:07 AM EDT Einhard Leichtfuß wrote: > >>>> Package: postfix > > > > ... > > > >>>> In `main.cf`, the following lines were appended: > >>>>> readme_directory = /usr/share/doc/postfix > >>>>> html_directory = /usr/share/doc/postfix/html > >>>> > >>>> If I understand the postinst script correctly, this modification of > >>>> `main.cf` should only have happened upon first installation, which this > >>>> was not. I was unable to reproduce this. So maybe this modification > >>>> was indeed done earlier. > >>>> > >>>> However, even upon initial installation (with pre-existing > >>>> configuration), this should, in my opinion, not happen. > > > > ... > > > >>> Also, note that the message about is about main.cf not being modified. > >>> These changes are in master.cf, so I don't understand the concern with > >>> the message? > >> > >> The second modification (readme_directory, html_directory) was to > >> `main.cf`. While this modification should only happen for initial > >> installations (with pre-existing configuration), the message is > >> displayed even then. > >> > >> Steps to reproduce (assuming postfix is not installed): > >> > >> $ apt install postfix-doc > >> $ echo > /etc/postfix/main.cf > >> $ apt install postfix > > > > To focus in on the main.cf part of this, I believe that's per policy. > > > > First, it's a change made by postfix-doc, not postifx, so the postfix > > package statement that main.cf was not modified by it is correct and > > unrelated to the main.cf change. > > Ah, I did not check the postfix-doc postinst script. It seems that both > postfix-doc's and postfix's postinst scripts conditionally run > > postconf -e readme_directory=/usr/share/doc/postfix > html_directory=/usr/share/doc/postfix/html > > However, postfix's postinst script only does so in the arguably rare > case that postfix-doc was installed first. So one might argue that this > is still an action performed for postfix-doc falling under Policy 10.7.4. > > > For the postfix-doc change to main.cf, Policy 10.7.4 is the relevant > > portion. Postfix-doc uses the provided interface (postfconf), when > > available. > It is not clear to me that Policy 10.7.4 overrides Policy 10.7.3 w.r.t. > the requirement not to override local changes. While this may very well > not be the intention behind these policies, I'd understand them as such > that the related package (postfix-doc) must only [be able to] modify the > configuration file if it does not contain local changes. > > I.e., either the provided program (currently postconf) should refuse to > modify a locally modified configuration file, or the related package > (postfix-doc) should check for local changes itself. > > I am generally unsure, however, how detection of local modification is > supposed to work in practice without using conffiles. I suppose a > second configuration file copy that is modified by postinst scripts, but > not the local administrator, should work.
Preserve local modifications means don't undo specific changes made by the local administrator. It does not mean make no changes to a file that an administrator has made changes to. The use of postconf specifically enables changing the values relevant to postfix-doc without disturbing anything else in the file. I think this is fine. Scott K
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