[Pkg-shadow-devel] Bug#1103523: passwd: username -d does not create HOME_DIR when useradd(8) says it will.

[Mark Symonds]

Package: passwd
Version: 1:4.17.4-1
Severity: normal
Tags: patch

Dear Maintainer,

In useradd(8), we have the following: 

   -d, --home-dir HOME_DIR
       The new user will be created using HOME_DIR as the value for the user's login directory. The default is to append the LOGIN name to BASE_DIR and use that
       as the login directory name. If the directory HOME_DIR does not exist, then it will be created unless the -M option is specified.

The last sentence says HOME_DIR will be created, but it is not.  Looking further, 
it appears the reason is because CREATE_HOME does not exist in /etc/login.defs 

I've attached a patch to remove the last sentence of above description.  


-- System Information:
Debian Release: trixie/sid
  APT prefers testing
  APT policy: (500, 'testing')
Architecture: amd64 (x86_64)

Kernel: Linux 6.12.17-amd64 (SMP w/2 CPU threads; PREEMPT)
Locale: LANG=C.UTF-8, LC_CTYPE=C.UTF-8 (charmap=UTF-8), LANGUAGE not set
Shell: /bin/sh linked to /usr/bin/dash
Init: systemd (via /run/systemd/system)
LSM: AppArmor: enabled

Versions of packages passwd depends on:
ii  base-passwd     3.6.7
ii  libacl1         2.3.2-2+b1
ii  libattr1        1:2.5.2-3
ii  libaudit1       1:4.0.2-2+b2
ii  libbsd0         0.12.2-2
ii  libc6           2.41-6
ii  libcrypt1       1:4.4.38-1
ii  libpam-modules  1.7.0-3
ii  libpam0g        1.7.0-3
ii  libselinux1     3.8.1-1
ii  libsemanage2    3.8.1-1
ii  login.defs      1:4.17.4-1

Versions of packages passwd recommends:
ii  sensible-utils  0.0.24

passwd suggests no packages.

-- no debconf information