[Bug 564853] Re: Spurious conffile prompts for /etc/default/grub

[Brian Murray]

irc logs regarding some confusion regarding verification of this bug:

08:58 < bdmurray> cyphermox: it looks like you only verified 1 of the three 
                  test cases in bug 564853
08:58 < ubot5`> bug 564853 in grub2-signed (Ubuntu Cosmic) "Spurious conffile 
                prompts for /etc/default/grub" [Undecided,Fix committed] 
                https://launchpad.net/bugs/564853
08:59 < cyphermox> bdmurray: err, no; I tested forcing to get a prompt, and the 
                   two different ways you normally should have had one and now 
                   won't.
09:01 < bdmurray> "the changes that previously triggered a conffile prompt now 
                  no longer do;"
09:02 < bdmurray> that's only one (okay two) right?
09:03 < cyphermox> bdmurray: I'm not sure I follow what you mean
09:03 < cyphermox> there are three different cases; one is maas-deployed, 
                   that's how I was deploying the systems to begin with
09:04 < cyphermox> there's people changing /etc/default/grub and triggering 
                   debconf prompts; I did this as well
09:04 < cyphermox> and you can further muck with the files to reproduce the 
                   case where you /should/ be getting a prompt (ie. we changed 
                   our default settings)

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/564853

Title:
  Spurious conffile prompts for /etc/default/grub

Status in grub2 package in Ubuntu:
  Fix Released
Status in grub2-signed package in Ubuntu:
  Fix Released
Status in grub2 source package in Bionic:
  Fix Committed
Status in grub2-signed source package in Bionic:
  Fix Committed
Status in grub2 source package in Cosmic:
  Fix Released
Status in grub2-signed source package in Cosmic:
  Fix Released
Status in grub2 package in Debian:
  Fix Released

Bug description:
  [Impact]
  All users of Ubuntu, especially on updates of the grub packages. (Grub is used nearly everywhere to boot)

  [Test case]
  == Upgrade prompting ==
  0) Install Ubuntu
  1) Modify /usr/share/grub/default/grub options
  2) Run 'sudo apt install --reinstall grub-pc ((or grub-efi-amd64))

  Verify that the user IS prompted to approve grub.cfg changes due to
  changes in the template coming from the process.

  == User-specified changes ==
  0) Install Ubuntu
  1) Modify /etc/default/grub.cfg options
  2) Update grub to the new package

  Verify that the user is not prompted to approve grub.cfg changes
  unless the grub2 package unless the grub packages have changed the
  contents of the default grub.cfg.

  == Post-deployment upgrades on MAAS-controlled system ==
  0) Deploy a system using MAAS
  1) Update grub to the new package

  Verify that the user is not prompted to approve grub.cfg changes
  unless the grub2 package unless the grub packages have changed the
  contents of the default grub.cfg.

  [Regression potential]
  Pay attention to prompting behavior on grub updates as well as any failure to update the grub* packages. Prompting should be limited to the cases where the grub2 source package has changed the contents for the default provided grub.cfg; and on MAAS-controlled systems, the local modifications have changed in some way from the original copy of grub2 installed on the system.

  ---

  Binary package hint: grub-pc

  This concerns grub-pc 1.98-1ubuntu5 in Lucid beta1 (upgrading from
  1.98-1ubuntu4).

  I have a locally modified /etc/default/grub file. When I upgraded to
  this version of grub-pc, I got the "A new version of configuration
  file /etc/default/grub is available, but the version installed
  currently has been locally modified. What do you want to do about
  modified configuration file grub?" question.

  The problem is, when I look at the diff, it just shows the differences
  between my file, and the way it was originally. In other words, the
  upgraded package does not include any updates to this file; its
  "pristine" copy of /etc/default/grub is the same as the previous
  version's. So I shouldn't even be getting a conffile prompt in the
  first place---as far as the administrator is concerned, nothing has
  changed.

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