Changes/RemovePamConsole

Remove pam_console

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

Remove pam_console as it does nothing.

Owner

• Name: Iker Pedrosa
• Email: ipedrosa@redhat.com

Current status

• Targeted release: Fedora Linux 39
• Last updated: 2023-01-03
• FESCo issue: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>
• Tracker bug: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>
• Release notes tracker: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>

Detailed Description

Currently, the pam_console module does nothing because one of the configuration files (50-default.perms) is not installed in the distribution. This file is used to define the files or devices permissions, and as it isn't installed there isn't any permission defined, thus making the module do nothing.

Other packages may install their own configuration files to specify the permissions, but I haven't found any.

In 2007 there was a System-Wide Change proposal to remove pam_console, but it wasn't finished. My plan is to continue that work and remove the pam_console module.

Benefit to Fedora

The main benefit is that it reduces the maintenance effort of the package, without reducing the functionality. The pam_console module is not included in the Linux-PAM, and it has to be maintained in a side-project. On top of that, the module is only used in Fedora and some of its derivatives.

Scope

• Proposal owners:

1. Provide PRs to remove pam_console from the PAM stack of the identified software packages (see Dependencies).
2. Remove pam_console from pam-redhat project and rebuild the PAM package without it.

• Other developers:

1. Identified software package maintainers should review and merge the pam_console removal PRs.

• Release engineering: #Releng issue number

• Policies and guidelines: N/A

• Trademark approval: N/A

• Alignment with Objectives: N/A

Upgrade/compatibility impact

No impact is expected.

How To Test

No special hardware or configuration is required to test this change. Once the change is in place, check that the pam_console isn't installed in your system (default location: /lib64/security/pam_console.so) and do a user authentication (i.e. graphical interface, su, ssh, and whatever else comes to your mind).

User Experience

Users won't experience any change.

Dependencies

This change depends on other packages removing pam_console from their PAM stack. I have identified five packages and I have opened a bugzilla for all of them:

• xorg-x11-server - https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1822209
• lxdm - https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1822227
• xorg-x11-xdm - https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1822225
• slim - https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1822229
• gdm - https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1822228

From the above list only the first item is a blocker as it requires pam_console to succeed in the authentication. In all other cases it is optional, so not removing the module from their PAM stack will only cause a message printed in the security file.

Contingency Plan

• Contingency mechanism: Postpone to the next release.
• Contingency deadline: Beta freeze.
• Blocks release? No.

Documentation

No documentation.

Release Notes

No need to update the release notes for this change.