Package: xdm
Version: 4.2.1-15.backports.org.1
Severity: important
Note: I am using the 4.2.1-15 package from backports.org, but this bug
also exists in all XDM versions. This is really a bug upstream (i.e.
not a Debian-specific bug), but, perhaps, can be fixed rather easily.
The XDM's fallback mechanism for creating the .Xauthority file does not
work in the situations when the user is over disk quota in his home
directory, but empty files can be created.
Acording to the XDM's man page:
DisplayManager.DISPLAY.userAuthDir
When xdm is unable to write to the usual user
authorization file ($HOME/.Xauthority), it creates
a unique file name in this directory and points the
environment variable XAUTHORITY at the created file.
It uses /tmp by default.
This information is incorrect, since XDM does not check whether it can
*write* to the file, only that it can open() it. Because of this, if
the user is over disk quota in such a way that he can't write to the
files, but can create empty files, this fallback mechanism does not
work; XDM then fails to create the .Xauthority file and the XDM session
is terminated.
This is very aggravating for the users who can only log in at the
graphical console, because they are left without any means of cleaning
up their disk space.
At the very least, the man page should be modified to read "When xdm is
unable to *create* the usual user authorization file...".
-- System Information
Debian Release: 3.0
Architecture: i386
Kernel: Linux bashful 2.4.25-i386-cdf-workstation #1 Mon Apr 19 17:01:18 EDT
2004 i686
Locale: LANG=C, LC_CTYPE=C
Versions of packages xdm depends on:
ii cpp-2.95 1:2.95.4-11woody1 The GNU C preprocessor.
ii debconf 1.2.35 Debian configuration management sy
ii libc6 2.2.5-11.5 GNU C Library: Shared libraries an
ii libpam0g 0.72-35 Pluggable Authentication Modules l
ii libxaw7 4.2.1-15.backports.org.1 X Athena widget set library
ii xbase-clients 4.2.1-15.backports.org.1 miscellaneous X clients
ii xlibs 4.2.1-15.backports.org.1 X Window System client libraries
ii xlibs [libxpm4] 4.2.1-15.backports.org.1 X Window System client libraries
pn xlibs (>> 4.1.0 Not found.
pn xlibs (>> 4.1.0 Not found.
pn xlibs (>> 4.1.0 Not found.
pn xlibs (>> 4.1.0 Not found.
pn xlibs (>> 4.1.0 Not found.
pn xlibs (>> 4.1.0 Not found.
