system-config-samba fails with "SystemError: could not open configuration file `/etc/libuser.conf': No such file or directory" at start

[Karl-Philipp Richter]

Invoking `sudo system-config-samba` does nothing, except printing

    $ sudo system-config-samba
    (system-config-samba:27398): IBUS-WARNING **: The owner of /home/richter/.config/ibus/bus is not root!
    Traceback (most recent call last):
      File "/usr/sbin/system-config-samba", line 45, in <module>
        mainWindow.MainWindow(debug_flag)
      File "/usr/share/system-config-samba/mainWindow.py", line 121, in __init__
        self.basic_preferences_win = basicPreferencesWin.BasicPreferencesWin(self, self.xml, self.samba_data, self.samba_backend, self.main_window)
      File "/usr/share/system-config-samba/basicPreferencesWin.py", line 97, in __init__
        self.admin = libuser.admin()
    SystemError: could not open configuration file `/etc/libuser.conf': Datei oder Verzeichnis nicht gefunden

which makes it impossible to use the program.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 15.04
Package: system-config-samba 1.2.63-0ubuntu6
Uname: Linux 4.1.4-040104-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.17.2-0ubuntu1.3
Architecture: amd64
CurrentDesktop: Unity
Date: Sat Aug 29 18:30:32 2015
InstallationDate: Installed on 2015-06-08 (82 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 14.04 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Release amd64 (20140417)
PackageArchitecture: all
SourcePackage: system-config-samba
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to vivid on 2015-06-09 (81 days ago)

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Aimo Ella (aimo-ella)]

This is duplicate of a long row of similar bug reports: 214959, 1387274, 1428379, 1450962, 1453223 and 1490216. Not too difficult to fix, either.

I have it in Ubuntu 16.04 (Xenial Xerus).

[Lubo Diakov (lubod)]

One more vote for "still present in 16.04.1". If the package simply did "sudo touch /etc/libuser.conf" at the end of the install, the problem vanishes. As demonstrated by jmarkus on ubuntuforums.org.
https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2300403&p=13550389#post13550389

Obviously it expects the file to exists, even if it is empty.

If any further diagnostics are needed, I'll try to post, though since both the problem and solution are known, the fix should be possible as is.

[StephanBeal (sgbeal)]

It's now February 2018. i can find reports of this bug going back to 2008, and the fix is as trivial as it gets. Wha???

[Père Ubu (todo-ubuntu)]

Still a bug in 18.04 LTS , still there after $ sudo touch /etc/libuser.conf
Please advise