CLI install pulls in xauth (and other X11 deps)

[Daniel Richard G.]

Binary package hint: debian-installer

I am installing Intrepid with an "F6 - Other options" command line of

    file=/cdrom/preseed/cli.seed priority=low initrd=/install/initrd.gz quiet --

to install only the ubuntu-standard base system.

After the install is finished, the resulting system includes the following packages:

    libx11-6
    libx11-data
    libxau6
    libxcb-xlib0
    libxcb1
    libxdmcp6
    libxext6
    libxmuu1
    x11-common
    xauth

I believe it is inappropriate for a CLI-only system install to pull in any X11 packages. (The only exception is xkb-data, which is needed by console-setup.) Indeed, all the above can be purged after the fact without any fuss.

As far as I can tell, what happened here is that openssh-client has "Recommends: xauth", and apt is configured to install recommended packages when a metapackage is requested. So ubuntu-standard is installed, which requires openssh-client, which recommends xauth, which depends on all these various X libraries.

I don't know what the best solution to this may be---only that x11-common and friends should not be present on a freshly-installed CLI system.

(Side note: Is it sensible for openssh-client to recommend/suggest xauth in the first place? As I understand it, that command is used on the remote end when you are ssh-ing out. Indeed, openssh-server recommends xauth, and there it makes sense.)