system-tools-backends puts a regular file in /etc/localtime instead of updating the symlink, breaks snap packages

[Tim Starling]

When system-tools-backends updates the current timezone, it deletes /etc/localtime and copies the new zone info as a regular file.

sub set_timezone
{
    ...
    unlink $localtime; # Important, since it might be a symlink.

    &Utils::Report::enter ();
    $res = copy ($tz, $localtime);
    &Utils::Report::leave ();

This contradicts localtime(5) which states that /etc/localtime should be a symlink. It breaks Firefox as I reported at https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1817701 , and probably all other snap packages that depend on an old libc.

[Tim Starling (tstarling)]

I tested the attached patch by building the package and installing it locally.

[Ubuntu Foundations Team Bug Bot (crichton)]

The attachment "08_localtime-symlink.patch" seems to be a patch. If it isn't, please remove the "patch" flag from the attachment, remove the "patch" tag, and if you are a member of the ~ubuntu-reviewers, unsubscribe the team.

[This is an automated message performed by a Launchpad user owned by ~brian-murray, for any issues please contact him.]

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

Thank you for the patch

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

This bug was fixed in the package system-tools-backends - 2.10.2-3.1ubuntu1

---------------
system-tools-backends (2.10.2-3.1ubuntu1) lunar; urgency=medium

  * debian/patches/08_localtime_symlink.patch:
    - update /etc/localtime by creating a symlink, the upstream documentation
      states it shouldn't a file, which also fixes incorrect timezones
      informations being displayed in the firefox snap.
      Thanks Tim Starling for the patch (lp: #2007806)

 -- Sebastien Bacher <email address hidden> Thu, 09 Mar 2023 15:27:16 +0100