On Mon, 9 Jan 2017 14:21:00 -0500 Nathan Stratton Treadway <natha...@ontko.com> wrote:
> On Sun, Jan 08, 2017 at 12:51:45 -0700, Charles Curley wrote: > > May I request you end two irritants about the Debian version. It > > creates a user, "backup". That's fine, although "amanda", say, > > would avoid stepping on some other user named "backup". > > For what it's worth, the "backup" user (uid 34) -- including its home > directory and login shell settings -- is actually defined on all > Debian systems as part of the base-passwd package (and thus exist > completely separately from the Amanda packages). > > See, for example: > > https://anonscm.debian.org/cgit/users/cjwatson/base-passwd.git/tree/passwd.master > https://www.debian.org/doc/debian-policy/ch-opersys.html#s9.2.2 > (_Debian Policy Manual_ "9.2.2 UID and GID classes") I stand corrected, thank you. > > > I've always figured that whoever did the original Debian packaging for > the Amanda software (years ago) decided it would be easier to make use > of that pre-existing user rather than having to have the package > installation scripts manage creation (and deletion) of a separate > "amanda" user.... My conjecture also. The culprits also did not anticipate amanda over ssh, or possibly other tools like amcheck, and so the need to use the amanda account interactively. > > Interestingly, /usr/share/doc/base-passwd/users-and-groups.txt.gz > doesn't seem to know what the "backup" user is for, either: > backup > > Presumably so backup/restore responsibilities can be locally > delegated to someone without full root permissions? > > HELP: Is that right? Amanda reportedly uses this, details? > > .... so I suspect that this user was "allocated" in the early mists of > time for the Debian project, and since then has mostly or completely > fallen out of use -- except for the use by the Amanda packages.... Yep. Except that something, probably the update-passwd tool, appears to still use it. -- The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. -- U.S. Const. Amendment IV Key fingerprint = CE5C 6645 A45A 64E4 94C0 809C FFF6 4C48 4ECD DFDB
