On Thu, 18 Jan 2024 13:40:01 +0100, Greg Wooledge wrote: > On Thu, Jan 18, 2024 at 05:38:37AM -0000, David Chmelik wrote: >> Couldn't Debian standardize uid:gid numbers for daemons? >[...] * Every obscure, niche package's users and groups would have to be > added to every Debian system. I don't even think we *know* how many > this would be. Hundreds? Thousands? Do you want a thousand new > system users to be created in your /etc/passwd file? Your local UIDs > beginning with 1000 might be overwritten. [...]
I doubt; way SlackBuilds.org (SBo) does (though 'unofficial'... recent years, after endorsement/usage by Slackware creator, seems quasi-official) is each user/uid & group/gid is added with its software, so one certainly doesn't need to add any until installed. However, if potentially will be installed, still should be standardized and installed with each particular package. Usually these start after system users/uids & groups/gids before 100 and go on to before 1,000 (but clearly don't overwrite that). If truly necessary for some bizarre/illogical reason to install users/uids & groups/gids one doesn't even use, perhaps one could have master/reference passwd & group files (or reference document like http://slackbuilds.org/ uid_gid.txt ) and ones of only what's installed, to make things easier for system administrators (sysadmins). Clearly it would be bad for passwd & group files to become like Ubuntu snapd debacle/fiasco in which if you install 1,000 snap packages (snaps) then type 'mount' you get over 1,000 entries so 'mount' command becomes unusable. A workstation/server usually isn't a phone PC (with snaps) and a Debian computer isn't likely ever a server that'll have all daemon/etc. (I don't know it's just daemons?) users/uids & groups/gids, rather than only some/many, which brings the question what's the point of installing all even if standardized? > They might have to be rebased to start at 3000, or 5000. Would that > be high enough? Would it be future-proof? [...] SBo currently only uses uid:gid between (not all) 81 and 382, but if Debian does differently or has more, one might need keep ones already used from 43 to 999 (some seem standardized as said, but not all) and then continue above some high number you mentioned I have no idea if high enough or 'future-proof'... no telling what might be high enough for servers with large/increasing number of users. It'd need expert consideration but, as you say, maybe are too many uids:gids for feasibility. I guess difference is despite Slackware has largest base system, it has fewer extra/installable packages, so doesn't have same problem of potentially thousands to standardize. Extra/SBo (whether unofficial or quasi-official) software only has recommended standard, despite I see SBo similar to Debian's repositories, so theoretically possible but might be more work than feasible. I'll read about solutions people posted above for installing/ standardizing Debian-based workstations/servers with same users/uids & groups/gids ahead of time, and I suppose this might work with GUI-based derivatives I administer for users, not just my Debian servers? I first saw replies on nntp:linux.debian.user but wasn't allowed to reply there so am trying nntp:gmane.nntp:linux.debian.user ... sorry if the above shows up twice...
