Latest revision as of 14:54, 24 December 2024

dropping Of cert.pem file

This is a proposed Change for Fedora Linux.
This document represents a proposed Change. As part of the Changes process, proposals are publicly announced in order to receive community feedback. This proposal will only be implemented if approved by the Fedora Engineering Steering Committee.

Summary

In order to increase the performance of OpenSSL by default using directory-hash format we need to drop the /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem file to prevent it from being loaded by default. This also includes the certificate bundles in /etc/pki/tls/certs/ folder(ca-certificates.crt, ca-bundle.crt).

Owner

Name: František Krenželok
Email: fkrenzel@redhat.com

Current status

Targeted release: Fedora Linux 42
Last updated: 2024-12-24
Initial Announcement
Re-announcement
Discussion thread
FESCo issue: #3293
Tracker bug: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>
Release notes tracker: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>

Detailed Description

In order to improve the loading time of OpenSSL, a directory-hash support was added to ca-certificates. In order for OpenSSL to use the directory-hash format by default we need to stop it from trying to load /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem by deleting it. This also applies to the certificate bundles in /etc/pki/tls/certs/ folder(ca-certificates.crt, ca-bundle.crt).

Feedback

(a) Changing the OpenSSL configuration directory (OPENSSLDIR)

Automated tools often rely on the output of openssl version -d to infer locations such as <OPENSSLDIR>/openssl.cnf as the configuration file. Changing OPENSSLDIR risks breaking these assumptions and complicating integrations.

A possible solution could be changing the directory to something like /usr/lib/openssl/ and shipping a symlink, e.g., /usr/lib/openssl/openssl.cnf -> /etc/pki/tls/openssl.cnf. However, this is less than ideal.

(b) Patching the OpenSSL source code

This approach involves patching OpenSSL to use directories outside of the OPENSSLDIR/certs default for the root certificates.

Although it avoids relocating the configuration file. It introduces a downstream patch that would need to be maintained indefinitely(There are already loads of patches and the maintainers really dislike this idea). Such a patch would also be unexpected behavior for users accustomed to upstream defaults.

This was partly discussed here: https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/devel@lists.fedoraproject.org/thread/NNVFZMRDXNJN6OJE2ZUJ3NWPHUW6EB2F/

Note: Option (a) is gravely discouraged. Option (b) could be implemented instead, but it still has drawbacks, including potentially unforeseen ones.

Benefit to Fedora

Applications using OpenSSL(possibly other libraries as well) will benefit from much faster initialization of OpenSSL.

Scope

Other developers:

Any package loading the root certificates from any of the following bundles:

/etc/pki/tls/cert.pem

/etc/pki/tls/certs/ca-certificates.crt

/etc/pki/tls/ca-bundle.crt

needs to preferably use the defaults of the library or if they must, use the /etc/pki/ca-trust/extracted/pem/tls-ca-bundle.pem file instead.

Release engineering: #Releng issue number
Policies and guidelines: N/A (not needed for this Change)
Trademark approval: N/A (not needed for this Change)
Alignment with the Fedora Strategy: neither does nor doesn't

Upgrade/compatibility impact

Once this change is integrated, the packages/software using any of the following files /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem /etc/pki/tls/certs/ca-certificates.crt /etc/pki/tls/ca-bundle.crt as a root certificate bundle file might encounter connectivity issues.

How To Test

Target behavior: OpenSSL initialization takes less time when the file isn't present compared to it being there.

1. The following will create a symlink for testing after the change has been integrated(i.e. the .../tls/cert.pem file is missing)

ln -s /etc/pki/ca-trust/extracted/pem/tls-ca-bundle.pem /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem

2. Test the time of OpenSSL initialization or a package using it with and without the aforementioned symlink. (If there is no difference for package then it is most likely due to OpenSSL not being configured to search for certs in default location)

User Experience

Packages using a OpenSSL will have faster initialization time.

Dependencies

Any package using /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem,/etc/pki/tls/certs/ca-certificates.crt or /etc/pki/tls/ca-bundle.crt file are affected. It is required that the maintainers change this so that user experience is not compromised.

Contingency Plan

Contingency mechanism: We will postpone the change if majority or critical package owners will be unable to make appropriate changes.
Contingency deadline: before end of beta freeze(2025-02-18).
Blocks release? The feature doesn't block release.

Documentation

The change is documented as a part of ca-certificates package changelog.

Release Notes

The /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem certificate file has been Removed.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{admon/important | Comments and Explanations | The page source contains comments providing guidance to fill out each section. They are invisible when viewing this page. To read it, choose the "view source" link.<br/> '''Copy the source to a ''new page'' before making changes!  DO NOT EDIT THIS TEMPLATE FOR YOUR CHANGE PROPOSAL.'''}}
-{{admon/tip | Guidance | For details on how to fill out this form, see the [https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/program_management/changes_guide/ documentation].}}
-{{admon/tip | Report issues | To report an issue with this template, file an issue in the [https://pagure.io/fedora-pgm/pgm_docs pgm_docs repo].}}
-<!-- The actual name of your proposed change page should look something like: Changes/Your_Change_Proposal_Name.  This keeps all change proposals in the same namespace -->
 = dropping Of cert.pem file =
@@ Line 12: / Line 4: @@
 == Summary ==
-In order to increase the performance of OpenSSL by default using directory-hash format we need to drop the /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem file to prevent it from being loaded by default.
+In order to increase the performance of OpenSSL by default using directory-hash format we need to drop the /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem file to prevent it from being loaded by default. This also includes the certificate bundles in /etc/pki/tls/certs/ folder(ca-certificates.crt, ca-bundle.crt).
 == Owner ==
@@ Line 23: / Line 15: @@
 == Current status ==
-[[Category:ChangePageIncomplete]]
+[[Category:ChangeAnnounced]]
 [[Category:SystemWideChange]]
 * Targeted release: [https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/releases/f42/ Fedora Linux 42]
@@ Line 33: / Line 25: @@
 ON_QA -> change is fully code complete
 -->
-* [Announced]
+* [https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/devel-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/thread/PFXTJCZOWKMW5Z2ZDRZUAVYIT7ZFYKKL/ Initial Announcement]
-* [<will be assigned by the Wrangler> Discussion thread]
+* [https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/devel-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/thread/WH23HNBG7XZS3KFEZTW3RHFDSJNQNPBS/ Re-announcement]
-* FESCo issue: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>
+* [https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/t/f42-change-proposal-dropping-of-cert-pem-file-system-wide/140616 Discussion thread]
+* FESCo issue: [https://pagure.io/fesco/issue/3293 #3293]
 * Tracker bug: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>
 * Release notes tracker: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>
 == Detailed Description ==
-In order to improve the loading time of OpenSSL a directory-hash support was added to ca-certificates. In order for OpenSSL to use the directory-hash format by default we need to stop in from trying to load /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem by deleting it.
+In order to improve the loading time of OpenSSL, a directory-hash support was added to ca-certificates. In order for OpenSSL to use the directory-hash format by default we need to stop it from trying to load /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem by deleting it. This also applies to the certificate bundles in /etc/pki/tls/certs/ folder(ca-certificates.crt, ca-bundle.crt).
 == Feedback ==
-<!-- Summarize the feedback from the community and address why you chose not to accept proposed alternatives. This section is optional for all change proposals but is strongly suggested. Incorporating feedback here as it is raised gives FESCo a clearer view of your proposal and leaves a good record for the future. If you get no feedback, that is useful to note in this section as well. For innovative or possibly controversial ideas, consider collecting feedback before you file the change proposal. -->
+=== (a) Changing the OpenSSL configuration directory (OPENSSLDIR) ===
+Automated tools often rely on the output of openssl version -d to infer locations such as <OPENSSLDIR>/'''openssl.cnf''' as the configuration file.
+Changing OPENSSLDIR risks breaking these assumptions and complicating integrations.
+A possible solution could be changing the directory to something like /usr/lib/openssl/ and shipping a symlink, e.g., `/usr/lib/openssl/openssl.cnf -> /etc/pki/tls/openssl.cnf.` However, this is less than ideal.
+=== (b) Patching the OpenSSL source code ===
+This approach involves patching OpenSSL to use directories outside of the OPENSSLDIR/certs default for the root certificates.
+Although it avoids relocating the configuration file.
+It introduces a downstream patch that would need to be maintained indefinitely(There are already loads of patches and the maintainers really dislike this idea).
+Such a patch would also be unexpected behavior for users accustomed to upstream defaults.
+This was partly discussed here:
+https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/devel@lists.fedoraproject.org/thread/NNVFZMRDXNJN6OJE2ZUJ3NWPHUW6EB2F/
+Note: Option (a) is gravely discouraged. Option (b) could be implemented instead, but it still has drawbacks, including potentially unforeseen ones.
 == Benefit to Fedora ==
@@ Line 49: / Line 59: @@
 == Scope ==
-* Proposal owners:
+* Other developers:
-The change is already in the rawhide
+Any package loading the root certificates from any of the following bundles:
+`/etc/pki/tls/cert.pem`
+`/etc/pki/tls/certs/ca-certificates.crt`
+`/etc/pki/tls/ca-bundle.crt`
-* Other developers:
+needs to preferably use the defaults of the library or if they must, use the `/etc/pki/ca-trust/extracted/pem/tls-ca-bundle.pem` file instead.
-Any package loading the root certificates from `/etc/pki/tls/cert.pem` file need to preferably use the defaults of the library or if they must, use the `/etc/pki/ca-trust/extracted/pem/tls-ca-bundle.pem` file instead.
 * Release engineering: [https://pagure.io/releng/issues #Releng issue number] <!-- REQUIRED FOR SYSTEM WIDE CHANGES -->
@@ Line 61: / Line 76: @@
 == Upgrade/compatibility impact ==
-Once this change is intergrated, the packages/software using `/etc/pki/tls/cert.pem` as a root certificate bundle file might encounter connectivity issues.
+Once this change is integrated, the packages/software using any of the following files `/etc/pki/tls/cert.pem` `/etc/pki/tls/certs/ca-certificates.crt` `/etc/pki/tls/ca-bundle.crt` as a root certificate bundle file might encounter connectivity issues.
 == How To Test ==
@@ Line 70: / Line 85: @@
 `ln -s /etc/pki/ca-trust/extracted/pem/tls-ca-bundle.pem /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem`
-. Test the time of OpenSSL initialization or a package using it.
+. Test the time of OpenSSL initialization or a package using it with and without the aforementioned symlink.
 (If there is no difference for package then it is most likely due to OpenSSL not being configured to search for certs in default location)
@@ Line 77: / Line 92: @@
 == Dependencies ==
-Any package using `/etc/pki/tls/cert.pem` file are affected. It is required that the maintainers change this so that user experience is not compromised.
+Any package using `/etc/pki/tls/cert.pem`,`/etc/pki/tls/certs/ca-certificates.crt` or `/etc/pki/tls/ca-bundle.crt` file are affected. It is required that the maintainers change this so that user experience is not compromised.
 == Contingency Plan ==
@@ Line 86: / Line 101: @@
 == Documentation ==
 <!-- Is there upstream documentation on this change, or notes you have written yourself?  Link to that material here so other interested developers can get involved. -->
-The change is documented as a part of ca-certificates changelog.
+The change is documented as a part of ca-certificates package changelog.
 == Release Notes ==
-The /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem file is deprecated use .
+The /etc/pki/tls/cert.pem certificate file has been Removed.
-<!-- The Fedora Release Notes inform end-users about what is new in the release.  Examples of past release notes are at https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/fedora/latest/release-notes/ -->
-<!-- The release notes also help users know how to deal with platform changes such as ABIs/APIs, configuration or data file formats, or upgrade concerns.  If there are any such changes involved in this change, indicate them here.  A link to upstream documentation will often satisfy this need.  This information forms the basis of the release notes edited by the documentation team and shipped with the release.
-Release Notes are not required for initial draft of the Change Proposal but has to be completed by the Change Freeze.
--->

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